Eckerson, Maddox spark Dragons in shootout loss
Clinton’s Austyn Phillips shakes free from a William Blount defender and turns upfield for extra yards Friday night in Blount County. Phillips hauled in five catches for 48 yards and a touchdown as the Dragons piled up 431 yards of total offense in a 48-35 loss to the Governors. (photo:Tony Cox )
Eckerson completed 24 of 35 passes for 375 yards and five touchdowns, two of them covering 64 and 11 yards to Maddox. The Dragons (0-2) made huge gains on short passes to the sideline, as Eckerson would make the toss and the receivers would do the rest.
Maddox ended the game with seven catches for 137 yards. Will Young added five catches for 101 yards for Clinton, including another 64-yard score, a short catch-and-run like Maddox’s long TD play.
Austyn Phillips caught five passes for 48 yards and a TD, and Braylen Hayden reeled in three for 48 yards for the Dragons. Ryin Jones caught the other Clinton TD on a 25-yard play.
The last quarterback for Clinton to put up similar numbers was Joshuah Keith in 2022, when he threw for 402 yards in an overtime win over Gibbs and five TDs in a 54-12 triumph over Cherokee.
William Blount (3-0) has scored 156 points in three games. Against Clinton, only two Governor players ran the ball: quarterback Jaxon Dabrowski, who carried 25 times for 149 yards and four TDs, and running back Ayden Kline, who supplied 142 yards and two scores on 29 attempts. Dabrowski added a 33-yard TD pass in a 4-for-9 passing day for 75 yards.
Clinton outgained William Blount 431 yards to 362, with the Governors finishing with 56 rushes for 287 yards and six scores.
Two kneel-downs at the end were among the few plays that lost yardage on the ground for the home team.
The Dragons rushed 17 times for 56 yards, with Cameron Anderson having the longest gainer, 19 yards.
Emmanuel Ortiz went 5-for-5 on extra points for the Dragons.
Eckerson was intercepted twice, and Dabrowski once, the latter pick coming from Young on a one-handed grab.
Charlie Turbyville led Dragon defenders with 10 tackles. Ryker Armes and Jaxon Herrell added eight stops each. Herrell and Hayden Atkins combined on a sack for 6 yards.
William Blount took the opening kickoff and drove 70 yards in 10 plays to take a lead they would not relinquish.
Dabrowski scored the TD on a run with the ball inches from the goal. Ayden Tyler’s extra-point kick went wide right, but the Govs led 6-0 with 7:50 left in the first quarter.
Nate Basler then intercepted Eckerson on the first play after the ensuing kickoff and returned it 16 yards to the Dragon 33.
Dabrowski fired a TD pass to Gavin Robison on the next snap. The quarterback’s two-point-conversion run gave William Blount a 14-0 lead with 7:25 showing.
Clinton got on the scoreboard as Young caught a 25-yard pass before Eckerson hit Phillips, leaping in the back of the end zone, for a 13-yard TD with 2:46 remaining in the opening period.
Dabrowski ran it in from 6 yards out for a 21-7 Governor lead with 6:55 to go in the first half.
The Dragons responded with a 67-yard march in nine plays. Eckerson found Maddox just inside the goal line for an 11-yard TD toss to bring Clinton within 21-14 at the 3:04 mark.
The Governors recovered an onside kick to begin the second half, and drove for another score. Dabrowski tallied on a 1-yard sneak for a 28-14 lead with 5:55 on the third-quarter clock.
Caleb Henson intercepted Eckerson at the Dragon 34 two plays later, and Kline scored on a 2-yard run for a 35-14 advantage.
Clinton answered with a 64-yard touchdown pass to Young that began as a short toss from Eckerson. Ortiz’s kick pulled the Dragons to within 35-21 with 3:18 left in the third.
William Blount scored its sixth TD on a 1-yard sneak by Dabrowski with 11:27 remaining, for a 42-21 lead.
Clinton found the end zone in only three plays, the last a 25-yard pass from Eckerson to Jones, to make it a 42-28 game at the 10:17 mark.
Another long drive for the Governors ended in a 9-yard TD run by Kline, the extra point sailing wide left with 4:08 to play. Maddox took a short pass to the left and sprinted 64 yards to the end zone for the game’s final tally with 1:02 remaining.
The Dragons continue region play at home this Friday against Karns (1-2, 1-0).
