‘Canes Win; First in Region
The ’Canes won their second game in a row last Friday against the Putnam County War Eagles.
It was definitely a packed house full of ’Cane fans, and the fans got a show and got the win with the final score 36-12, Canes.
The captains of the night were Chris Anglin, Walt McMichael, and Jordan Stone, all with outstanding performances on the field.
The ’Canes started out on the defensive side of the ball, with great defensive pressure.
Jordan Stewart began the game with a sack on the War Eagle’s quarterback, forcing the first War Eagle punt of the contest.
On the ’Canes first offensive drive, the War Eagles did a great job of holding the Canes, with only allowing one first down run by Stone.
The War Eagles did a great job using the clock in the first quarter by only allowing the Canes to touch the ball one time in the first quarter.
It wasn’t until the second quarter, when the scoring began. A War Eagle, one of their best, went down with an injury at the top of the second quarter, but shortly after that, the War Eagles added the first points of the game, 6-0.
On the very next offensive drive for the Canes, Quincy Standifer got a toss from Thomas Deraney and took it to the end zone for 64 yards, and Bryce Crawford added the extra point putting the ’Canes in the lead, 7-6.
The touchdown motivated the ’Canes as they gained momentum.
Garrison Williams and Xavier Gude were on a few tackles early in the second quarter, but Stone came up big with a third down sack, followed by Jamaric Bonner with a big tackle on fourth and long.
The ’Canes forced the Eagles to turn the ball over, Stone rushed for another first down, followed by a first down completion from Deraney to McMichael. And with about two minutes remaining in the half, Deraney hit Jay Johnson for a 17 yard touchdown pass putting the ’Canes up 14-6.
Just before the half ended, the ’Canes recovered a fumble, but time eventually expired and they were unable to score before the half ended.
To start out the second half, Johnson recovered the kickoff and brought it out in good position. And after a first down pass reception to McMichael from Deraney, and a couple first downs from Stone, Standifer took it to the house for his second touchdown of the night, after breaking numerous tackles and with the help from the offensive line doing a superb job blocking.
The ’Canes began to pull away at this point with the score being 21-6, at the beginning of the third.
Shortly into the third quarter, the Canes amped up their defense, with Garrett Scroggs on a big third down tackle which forced the War Eagles to go fourth and long. Unfortunately, the War Eagles capitalized on the fourth down and scored off a touchdown pass, which made the score 21-6. McMichael was there and intercepted the 2 point conversion attempt.
At the top of the fourth quarter, the game was pretty much in the ’Canes favor despite the fact that they were forced to punt not even a minute into the quarter.
After a great punt by Deraney numerous ’Canes were on a tackle around the War Eagles two yard line. The ’Canes kept the pressure coming and forced the War Eagles into another fourth down situation. The War Eagle snap was bad and went flying into the end zone, which was recovered by the ’Canes were awarded a 2 point safety, making the score 23-12.
The ’Canes were given back the ball and Stone who nearly slipped away was tripped up around the 40 yard line on the return.
After Johnson ran for a Canes first down, Stone punched it in for a Canes touchdown with 6:21 left in the game, with the score now, 28-12.
On the next defense, Johnson came up big with a interception, which gave the ’Canes their last offensive drive of the game. As they drove the ball down field, Deraney scored the last touchdown with about a minute remaining, which left the final score 36-12, ’Canes.
The ’Canes headed into Friday night’s homecoming contest against Crawford County undefeated in the region.
Everyone is encouraged to support the Marching Hurricanes, Homecoming Court, and Hurricane Football team this Friday. Go Canes!