North Clayton coasts past Mt. Zion-Jonesboro

By Glennis Curry

For the AJC

North Clayton ignored the annual distraction that is Homecoming Week and defeated county rival Mt. Zion-Jonesboro 34-13 on Friday night.

Senior running back Clarence Jackson was crowned Mr. Homecoming at halftime and used the second half to show fans why he’s the Big Man On Campus. He scored two of his three touchdowns and helped put away the Bulldogs.

Jackson returned an interception 93 yards for a score late in the third quarter to put the Eagles up 27-0. He made a spot appearance as a defensive back and caught Josh King’s pass near his ankles before outrunning him to the end zone.

Earlier in the quarter King lofted a pass over a receiver’s head into the hands of Kyle Taylor, who returned the ball 44 yards for a touchdown. Taylor and King met at the end zone and Taylor leaped over the tackle, putting North Clayton ahead 21-0.

“I wanted to do a little extra for my last year at North Clayton,” Jackson said of his defensive effort. “I’d watched them the previous week and saw that he lobs the ball. I made the right read and took it all the way back.”

Jackson also scored on a 31-yard run early in the fourth quarter to finish with 118 yards rushing on 19 carries. He also caught two passes for 43 yards and a touchdown. The Ole Miss commitment has rushed for at least 100 yards in all five games this season, including two games with more than 200 yards.

North Clayton (5-0, 2-0 in Region 4-AAAA) led 7-0 at halftime when Jackson scored on a 22-yard screen pass from Dennis Johnson. The Eagles were faced with third-and-15 when Johnson rolled to his right and threw back left to Jackson. Jackson broke a tackle at the 15 and ran in untouched, capping a 12-play, 79-yard drive.

“The pass is part of our package,” North Clayton coach Rodney Hackney said. “Everybody keys on [Jackson]. Once we figured out what they were doing on defense, we got it going.”

Mt. Zion (3-2, 0-2) avoided being shut out with a 59-yard touchdown drive to start the fourth quarter. Quarterrio Morgan (57 yards rushing on 14 carries) scored on a 4-yard run with 9:02 left to play.

King (7 of 14 for 56 yards) found Brian Johnson on a 4-yard score with less than a minute to play. Randall Snell caught three passes for 83 yards.