Minutes after his team almost did something extraordinary, Eagle’s Landing Christian Academy coach Jonathan Gess did something out of the ordinary.
With his team, coaching staff and parents gathered around him after a hard-fought 28-21 loss to Stockbridge (2-0), the No. 3 team in Class AAAAA, Gess apologized to the group for a play call he made that turned out to be pivotal.
Though the Chargers (1-1), the top-ranked team in Class A, moved the ball well all night with its power read-option, with his team trailing 21-7 late in the third quarter Gess called for a throw-back pass play – quarterback D.J. Hammond to Khaleb Hood, back to Hammond -- from the Stockbridge 33. Tiger safety Jajuan Jackson stepped in front of the pass back to Hammond and raced down the near sideline for a 77-yard touchdowsn return to provide Stockbridge with what turned out to be the margin of victory.
“I had to [apologize],” Gess said of the call, which came on fourth-and-26. He made the same call two plays earlier in the drive, but Hood, just a sophomore, bobbled the initial lateral from Hammond. “I put a kid in a bad position on that play and that’s my fault not his. I put too much on him in that situation. He’s a phenomenal player and he’s going to do great things for us.”
Indeed, Hood made up quickly for the mistake by returning a punt 47 yards for a touchdown with just over four minutes left in regulation to pull ELCA to within 28-21. But the Stockbridge offense was able to grind out a few first downs – the most important of which came on a 23-yard run by Jamari Clark on third-and-17 – to seal the win.
While several programs from larger classifications turned down Gess’ invitation to meet for non-region games, Tiger head coach Kevin Whitley jumped at the chance. His team defeated ELCA 33-3 last season in the first meeting between the Henry County powers.
“They’re the only team in the county to win a state championship, so you always want to measure yourself against the best,” said Whitley, who led Stockbridge to the Class AAAAA semifinals last season. “They’re well-coached and have some great athletes and they played hard. I think tonight they wanted it more than we did. But any time you can get a win over a good team like that, you’ll take it any way you can get it.”
ELCA senior offensive tackle Chandler Reeves, who went toe-to-toe with Stockbridge defensive end Charles Wiley, one of the state’s most highly recruited linemen, said the game made a statement for Class A football.
“No one should ever underestimate Class A. We have the same athletes as everybody else,” said Reeves, who is committed to Clemson. “Our schools are just smaller. We can play with anyone.”
S – Jalen Holston 53 pass from Malachi Brown (Rico Saunders kick)
S – Malik Turner 45 run (Saunders kick)
E – Trevor Gear 3 run (Alex Usry kick)
S – Marquez Ezzard 50 pass from Brown (Saunders kick)
S – Jajuan James 77 interception return (Saunders kick)
E – Sean Queen 20 pass from DJ Hammond (Usry kick)
E – Khaleb Hood 47 punt return (Usry kick)
ELCA 0 7 0 14 21
Stockbridge 14 0 14 0 28
