Second half not kind to Dragons
CAK Warriors explode late to take 45-13 win over CHS
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Clinton senior back Elie Deshomme follows the lead of Dragon Darrion Woodruff for short gain against the CAK Warriors on Friday night. - Ken Leinart
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Clinton’s Jacquez Johnson squeezes through the CAK defense. - Ken Leinart
Clinton High School has gotten off to a rough start in 2020. And new head coach Darell Keith says he knows that things won’t get much easier for the Dragons as the campaign progresses.
They had a second tough outing, but Keith saw some things he liked in Clinton’s 45-13 loss to Christian Academy of Knoxville Friday night at Warrior Stadium.
“The kids gave a great effort. They gave me all they had,” Keith said after the Dragons dropped to 0-2 this season. “But we just didn’t execute. We have to work on execution.
“Things aren’t going to get any easier for us. I’ve got Halls, then I’ve got Meigs (County) and then, I’ve got Powell. We’ve really put these kids in a tough situation. When you’re trying to rebuild in Tennessee, it’s like an FCS team playing an SEC team. But I want to tell everybody this: You better get your licks in while you can.”
Clinton made enough plays to go toe-to-toe with the Warriors in the first half and the Dragons found themselves down just 14-0 to a team that has a large arsenal of potent offensive weapons.
The Dragons intercepted CAK quarterback Ryan Degges twice in the opening half to stop a pair of promising drives. Rodayvein Truss picked off a pass on the game’s first series after the Warriors drove deep into Clinton territory, and Reese King added another interception for the Dragons a short time later.
Clinton fell behind 7-0 with 8 minutes, 56 seconds remaining in the first quarter when Degges connected with Grant Sterchi on a 14-yard scoring strike.
Sterchi, who also plays defense for CAK, made life miserable for the Dragons on this night. He had two receptions for 29 yards and a score. On defense, he had a tackle and a sack.
The Warriors (2-0) extended their advantage to 14-0 in the second stanza when J.D. Dunn Jr. scored on a 32-yard touchdown scamper.
After halftime, however, the Warriors would seize complete control of the contest and they wouldn’t waste much time.
The Dragons got the ball first after the break but they didn’t have it long as CAK’s Denzel Jackson intercepted a pass from Clinton quarterback Trace Thackerson and returned it 34 yards for a touchdown with 10:54 remaining in the third frame. Ross Badgett’s extra point gave the Warriors a 21-0 lead, It was the first of three CAK touchdowns in the quarter.
Dunn’s second touchdown, a three-yard run made it 28-0, and running back Dario Love found the end zone from six yards out a short time later.
Thackerson was injured in the third quarter and he didn’t return. Joshuah Keith took over under center and led Clinton on its first scoring drive of the contest.
Keith, the son of coach Keith, culminated the drive with a 67-yard scoring scamper to make the score 35-6 early in the fourth quarter before kicker Ryan Bradley added the extra point.
The backup quarterback finished with 145 yards of total offense against the Warriors and closed out the scoring in the game with a 27-yard pass to Braylon Taylor with 29 seconds to play. In the fourth quarter, the Warriors got a 39-yard field goal from Badgett and a 67-yard scoring strike from Eli Campbell to Sloan Helton.
