SODDY-DAISY Trojans (2-1/0-1)
at
CATHOLIC Irish (2-1/0-0)
September 14, 2018
Blaine Stadium/Hollin Field
7:30 p.m.

 

SETTING THE SCENE – Catholic celebrates Homecoming…Irish play their first Region game of the season…this will be the second meeting between the schools…Catholic won last year’s game, 49-48…Catholic is ranked second in this week’s Associated Press Class 5A poll…Irish have posted five consecutive 10-win seasons…Irish have won 146 of their last 191 games…Gregg passed for 248 yards and three touchdowns in the win over Cleveland… Winton had three receptions for 124 yards and a touchdown…Jarmon rushed for 134 yards and a score in the win…Bindner had 16 tackles, including four for-loss…Winton leads the Irish in receiving…Duncan tops the tackle chart with 31… Catholic is even in turnover margin…

 

THE RECORDS – Catholic is 2-1 in 2018. The Irish won at home over Cleveland last week, 35-28. Soddy-Daisy is 2-1 this year, including an 0-1 mark in Region 4-5A. The Trojans won at home over Hixson, 42-7, last week.

 

ON THE SIDELINE – Steve Matthews is in his sixth year at the helm of the Irish. He also serves as Catholic’s offensive coordinator. Matthews came to Catholic from Seigel High School in Murfreesboro, where he served as offensive coordinator from 2010-2012. He was head coach at Moore County in 2008 and 2009 and posted a 10-11 record. He also served as QB/WR coach at Tullahoma, his high school alma mater, from 2004-2007. His overall record is 65-27, and his record at Catholic is 55-16. The Irish have reached the TSSAA Playoffs in each of Matthews’ seasons at Catholic. His playoff record is 15-3, and his 2015 (4A) and 2017 (5A) squads won TSSAA state championships. Matthews played collegiately at Tennessee and Memphis. He played professionally with the Kansas City Chiefs, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Tennessee Oilers.

 

SEASON SCHEDULES – Here are 2018 schedules for both teams:

Catholic (2-1/0-0) Soddy-Daisy (2-1/0-1)

8/17 Maryville L, 31-10 8/17 @Red Bank cancelled
8/24 Baylor W, 35-16 8/24 East Hamilton W, 24-7

8/31 Open Date 8/31 Lenoir City* L, 34-31

9/7 Cleveland W, 35-28 9/7 Hixson W, 42-7

9/14 Soddy-Daisy* 9/14 @Catholic*

9/21 @Brentwood Academy 9/21 @Ooltewah

9/28 @Rhea County* 9/28 Open Date

10/5 @West Greene 10/4 @Bradley Central

10/12 Walker Valley* 10/12 Rhea County*

10/19 Open Date 10/19 Signal Mountain

10/26 @Lenoir City* 10/26 @Walker Valley*

*Denotes Region 4-5A game

SERIES VS. SODDY-DAISY – Catholic leads the series with Soddy-Daisy, 1-0. Here’s a look:

2017: Catholic 49, @Soddy-Daisy 48

 

LAST YEAR VS. SODDY-DAISY – Catholic improved to 3-2 overall and 1-0 in Region 4-5A with its 49-48 win at Soddy-Daisy. After spotting the Trojans a 21-0 lead after one quarter, the Irish exploded for 42 second-quarter points. A 58-yard pass from Jack Sompayrac to Dashon Bussell put the Irish on the scoreboard, but Soddy-Daisy regained its three-touchdown advantage on the ensuing possession and led, 28-7. The Irish then scored three touchdowns in the span of 2:50. Xavier Story returned an interception 38 yards to cut the deficit to 28-14. A 27-yard pass from Sompayrac to Bussell brought the Irish to within seven, and a 52-yard scoring pass from Sompayrac to DJ Mitchell pulled the Irish even at 28-28. Sompayrac’s fourth touchdown pass of the quarter, a 14-yard strike to Cameron Blakley, gave Catholic its first lead of the game, 35-28, with 1:40 remaining before halftime. A 65-yard punt return from Mitchell with 25 seconds remaining gave the Irish a 42-28 halftime advantage. After Soddy-Daisy cut the margin to 42-35, the Irish went back ahead by two touchdowns on the ensuing possession on a one-yard blast from Joe Fluker. Soddy-Daisy posted two touchdowns to trim the margin two 49-48, but a missed extra-point following the final score proved to be the difference. Sompayrac was 15-of-29 passing for a season-high 279 yards. Bussell had five receptions for 116 yards and two scores. Both Mitchell and Blakely had three grabs and a touchdown each. Fluker led the rushing effort with 89 yards on 13 carries. Fluker and Jack Jancek paced the Irish defense with nine tackles each, while Stiles Moore had eight stops. In addition to his offense and special team efforts, Mitchell had six tackles and an interception. Story had five tackles and a caused fumble to go along with his pick-six. LB Liverman had five tackles and a fumble recovery for the Irish.

 

ASSOCIATED PRESS CLASS 5A POLL – Catholic is ranked second in this week’s

Associated Press Class 5A poll. Fulton is ranked first with 160 overall points and 16 first-place votes. The remainder of the Top 10 includes: 2. Catholic (122); 3. Henry County (120); 4. Oak Ridge (108); 5. Clarksville Northeast (94); 6. Clarksville (90); 7. David Crockett (65); 8. South Doyle (47); 9. Tennessee (13); 10. Daniel Boone (11).

 

RACK ‘EM UP – Catholic has won 119 of its last 153 regular-season games.

 

FIVE FOR TEN – Catholic has posted five consecutive 10-win seasons. Here’s a look:

2013: 10-4

2014: 10-2

2015: 11-4

2016: 10-2

2017: 12-3

 

REGION 4-5A STANDINGS – Here’s a look at the 2018 Region 4-5A standings:

REGION OVERALL

Rhea County 1-0 2-1

Lenoir City 1-0 2-2

Catholic 0-0 2-1

Soddy-Daisy 0-1 2-1

Walker Valley 0-1 0-4

 

Last week’s results

@Catholic 35, Cleveland 28

@CAK 34, Lenoir City 20

@Soddy-Daisy 42, Hixson 7

Stone Memorial 34, @Walker Valley 14

@McMinn County 15, Rhea County 7

 

Friday’s Games

Soddy-Daisy @ Catholic

Rhea County @ Lenoir City

Open – Walker Valley

 

WEEK FOUR – Catholic improved to 2-1 on the season with its 35-28 home win over Cleveland. The Irish spotted the Blue Raiders a 14-0 lead but tied the contest on a pair of Drew Gregg second-quarter touchdown passes. Gregg connected with Cody Duncan on a 27-yard strike, then hit Tommy Winton on a 61-yarder to even the score late in the first half. Cleveland took a 21-14 lead into halftime via a late second-quarter score. The Blue Raiders went ahead by 14 again late in the third quarter and held a 28-14 lead after three periods. Gregg’s third touchdown pass of the evening, a 27-yarder to Keondre Jarmon early in the final quarter, brought the Irish to within 21-14. Jarmon struck again less than two minutes later, racing 54 yards to paydirt and knotting the score at 28. A 19-yard run from Winton capped an 11-play, 77-yard drive with 1:32 remaining to provide the winning margin for the Irish. Making his first start, Gregg was 11-of-22 passing for 248 yards and three touchdowns. Winton was the top target, grabbing three balls for 124 yards. Jarmon rushed 12 times for 134 yards to pace the Irish ground attack. Alec Bindner recorded 16 tackles, including four for-loss, to lead the Catholic defense. Xavier Story had 13 tackles, with Duncan adding 11 stops, including two for-loss and a sack. In addition, JT Quinones collected his third interception of the season.

 

WEEK THREE – Catholic enjoyed an open date.

 

WEEK TWO – Catholic evened its record at 1-1 with its 35-16 home win over Baylor. Jack Jancek gave Catholic a 7-0 lead with his 17-yard run on the game’s opening possession. A 17-yard interception return from JT Quinones put the Irish ahead, 14-0, just a minute later. A 29-yard Jancek dash had the Irish ahead, 21-0, after the first quarter. A two-yard run from Drew Hicks late in the second quarter provided the Irish a 28-0 halftime lead. A seven-yard pass from Drew Gregg to Adam Jones midway through the third quarter pushed the Irish advantage to 35-0. A third-quarter safety and (cont’d)

two fourth-quarter touchdowns provided Baylor’s points on the evening. Ray Thompson paced the Irish rushing attack with 49 yards on seven carries. Jancek added 43 yards and two touchdowns on eight carries. Gregg was 8-of-12 passing for 145 yards and a touchdown. Jones was the top target, grabbing eight balls for 97 yards and a score. Quinones led the Catholic defense with 12 tackles, two interceptions, and a caused fumble. Cody Duncan added nine stops, with Xavier Story collecting eight tackles.

 

WEEK ONE – Catholic opened its 2018 campaign with a 31-10 home loss to Maryville. The Irish scored on their opening possession of the season, marching 80 yards in 10 plays. Tommy Winton went in from nine yards to give the Irish a 7-0 lead just 3:32 into the game. Maryville tied the score with a touchdown of its own on the ensuing drive. Paxton Robertson gave Catholic its last lead of the contest midway through the second quarter with his 25-yard field goal. A Rebel touchdown, followed by a field goal as time expired in the second quarter, left them ahead, 17-10, at halftime. The Rebels scored two second-half touchdowns to account for the final margin. Jack Jancek was 14-of-25 passing for 139 yards on the evening. Jancek also led the Irish in rushing with 39 yards on 12 carries. Winton had nine receptions for 93 yards in addition to his touchdown run. Adam Jones led the Irish defense with 12 tackles, while Cody Duncan added 11 stops. Chris Torres had ten tackles, including one for-loss and a sack.

 

TEAM STATS – Catholic averages 367.0 yards per-game in total offense, including 165.3 yards on the ground and 201.7 yards through the air. Defensively, Catholic allows 299.7 yards per-game, including 145.0 yards on the ground and 154.7 yards through the air. Catholic averages 26.7 points per-game. Opponents average 25.0 points per-game.

 

TURNOVER MARGIN – Catholic is even in turnover margin in 2018. The Irish have thrown three interceptions and lost two fumbles. Opponents have thrown five interceptions and lost no fumbles.

 

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS – Here’s a look at Catholic’s statistical leaders in various categories –

Rushing: Keondre Jarmon (23 att., 145 yds, 1 TD)

Passing: Drew Gregg (19-34-2, 393 yds, 3 TD)

Receiving: Tommy Winton (13 rec., 275 yds, 1 TD)

Interceptions: JT Quinones (3)

Scoring: Tommy Winton (18 points; 3 TD)

Tackles: Cody Duncan (31)

 

PLAYERS OF NOTE

 

3 – Jack Jancek (QB/DB, 6-4, 185, Jr.): 8 att, 43 yds, 2 TD (17, 29), 5-8-0, 60 yds, 3 tackles vs. Baylor…12 att, 39 yds, 14-25-1, 139 yds, 6 tackles vs. Maryville…

 

7 – Stiles Moore (DE, 6-3, 240, Jr.): 5 tackles, 1 TFL vs. Baylor…6 tackles vs. Maryville…

 

9 – Adam Jones (WR/DB, 6-3, 175, Sr.): 2 rec, 34 yds, 5 tackles, 1 PBU vs. Cleveland…8 rec, 97 yds, 1 TD (7), 3 tackles vs. Baylor…1 rec, 16 yds, 12 tackles vs. Maryville…

 

13 – Ray Thompson (RB/DB, 6-0, 190, Sr.): 7 att, 49 yds, 1 rec, 3 yds, 4 tackles, 1 PBU vs. Baylor…7 att, 18 yds, 1 rec, 5 yds, 7 tackles vs. Maryville…

 

16 – Drew Gregg (QB/DB, 6-1, 170, So.): 7 att, 19 yds, 11-22-2, 248 yds, 3 TD (27, 61, 27) vs. Cleveland…5 att, 36 yds, 8-12-0, 145 yds, 1 TD (7) vs. Baylor…

 

24 – Tommy Winton (RB/DB, 5-10, 175, Fr.): 5 att, 45 yds, 1 TD (19), 3 rec, 124 yds, 1 TD (61), 2 KOR, 54 yds vs. Cleveland…1 att, 4 yds, 1 rec, 58 yards vs. Baylor…3 att, 17 yds, 1 TD (9), 9 rec, 93 yds, 2 KOR, 57 yds vs. Maryville…

 

30 – Cody Duncan (RB/LB, 6-2, 215, Jr.): 5 att, 17 yds, 3 rec, 34 yds, 1 TD (27), 11 tackles, 2 TFL, 1 sack vs. Cleveland…2 att, 2 yds, 2 rec, 28 yds, 9 tackles vs. Baylor…6 att, 23 yds, 11 tackles vs. Maryville…

 

41 – JT Quinones (WR/LB, 5-10, 165, So.): 8 tackles, 1 INT vs. Cleveland…12 tackles, 1 FC, 3 PBU, 2 INT, 1 TD (17) vs. Baylor…6 tackles vs. Maryville…

 

45 – Paxton Robertson (K, 6-1, 200, Jr.): 5/5 XP vs. Cleveland…5/5 XP vs. Baylor…1/1 XP, 1/1 FG (25) vs. Maryville…

 

53 – Chris Torres (LB, 6-1, 210, Sr.): 4 tackles vs. Cleveland…4 tackles vs. Baylor…10 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 sack vs. Maryville…

 

78 – Cooper Mays (OL/DL, 6-3, 260, Jr.): 8 tackles, 1 TFL vs. Cleveland…6 tackles, 1 TFL vs. Baylor…7 tackles, 1 TFL vs. Maryville…

 

100-YARD RUSHERS – Catholic has had one 100-yard rushing effort in 2018. Here’s a look:

PLAYER OPPONENT ATT-YDS-TD

Keondre Jarmon Cleveland 12-134-1

 

225-YARDS PASSING – Drew Gregg has one 225-yard passing games this season. Here’s a look:

OPPONENT STATISTICS

Cleveland 11-22-2, 248 yds, 3 TD

 

100-YARDS RECEIVING – Catholic has had one 100-yard receiving game this season. Here’s a look:
PLAYER OPPONENT REC-YDS-TD

Tommy Winton Cleveland 3-124-1

 

DOUBLE-DIGIT TACKLES – Catholic has had seven double-digit tackle efforts this season. Here’s a look:

Player Opponent Tackles

Alec Bindner Cleveland 16

Xavier Story Cleveland 13

Cody Duncan Cleveland 11

JT Quinones Baylor 12

Adam Jones Maryville 12

Cody Duncan Maryville 11

Chris Torres Maryville 10

 

THE LAST GO ‘ROUND – Catholic’s 2018 roster includes nine seniors. Included are Xavier Story (RB/LB), Adam Jones (WR/DB), Ray Thompson (RB/DB), Adam Margolis (RB/LB), Chris Torres (RB/LB), Alec Bindner (OL/DL), Jordan Natour (OL/DL), Max Suchomski (K), and Adam Price (WR/DB).

 

ON THE STAFF – Serving as assistant coaches for the Irish are: Justin Anderson (Offensive Line), Sam Brown (Running Backs), Rodney Ellison (Tight Ends), Drew Franklin (Wide Receivers), Kevin Lane (Co-Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Backs), Kris White (Co-Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers), Geraud Hall (Defensive Ends), John Brewster (Defensive Tackles), Don Coffey (JV) and Tyler Teague (JV).

 

ON THE RADIO – Tonight’s game is being broadcast on WNML, The Sports Animal (99.1 FM). John Wilkerson handles play-by-play, while former Catholic quarterback and 1999 Mr. Football winner Rob Demastus adds commentary.

UP NEXT – Catholic plays its first road game of the season as it travels to Brentwood Academy. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. (Central), at Carlton Flatt Field.