Jags fall to Choctaws, 42-13
The Bibb County Choctaws traveled up Highway 82 to take on the Northridge Jaguars on Friday night and were anything but polite guests. Although the first half ended with the Choctaws holding only an 8-point lead, the second half saw Bibb County add 21 points to their total and hold the Jags off the scoreboard. The outcome was the second loss of the season for the Jags, 42-13.
The Jags won the opening coin toss and elected to receive to start the game. Unfortunately, the turnover bug bit the Jags on their third play with the Bibb County recovering a Jag fumble. It didn’t take the Choctaws long to get on the board, notching a 35-yard run into the end zone, only two minutes into the game. The PAT gave Bibb County a 7-0 lead.
The Choctaws surprised the Jags with an onside kick attempt that, luckily for the Jags, spun out of bounds, giving Northridge the ball at the Choctaws 41. The Jags put together a short, but time consuming drive that eventually stalled inside the red zone. However, Caleb Scofield got the Jags on the board with a 33-yard field goal with 4:00 remaining in the first quarter, pulling the Jags within four at 7-3.
On the Choctaws ensuing possession, a 4th-and-7 conversion attempt resulted in a touchdown catch and run for Bibb County. The PAT increased the Choctaw lead to 14-3 with 8:45 to go in the second quarter.
The Jags were unable to pick up a first down on their next possession, setting up the first punt of the night. Scofield’s punt was dropped by the Bibb County return man and was recovered by the Jags at the Choctaw 27. A little over two minutes later, Colin Kapilovic was able to just get the nose of the ball across the goal line for a touchdown at the 4:20 mark of the second quarter. The PAT was good, bringing the Jags to within four, once again but still trailing 14-10.
Bibb County wasted little time, picking up their third touchdown of the fist half on a quarterback run with 1:54 to go. The following PAT gave the Choctaws a 21-10 lead.
Facing little time to work with, the Jags were able to get into range for Scofield to tack on his second FG of the night, a 34-yarder, with 3.6 seconds to go in the half. That resulted in a 21-13 deficit for the Jags going into halftime.
The second half saw Bibb County tack on another three touchdowns. The first came on their opening drive of the second half in the form of a 7-yard run at the 8:29 mark of the third quarter. The PAT gave the Choctaws a 28-13 lead. Bibb County’s quarterback picked up a 4-yard TD run with 1:45 remaining in the third quarter, with the PAT increasing the Choctaw lead to 35-13. The final touchdown of the night came on a 50+ yard touchdown run by the Choctaws at the 9:53 mark of the fourth quarter and the PAT locked in the final score of the night, resulting the 42-13 Bibb County win.
The Jags are now 4-2 on the season and 2-1 in region play. Northridge is looking at three successive region games coming up – Hueytown (2-3, 2-1) at home, Paul W. Bryant (0-5, 0-2) at Bryant and Bessemer City (5-1, 2-1). As noted, two of those games are against teams who currently hold the same 2-1 region record as the Jags. If the Jags can put together three wins, they will be sitting at the second spot in Class 6A Region 4 and secure a playoff appearance.