9 months ago
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FAIRFIELD – Will Mara could hardly believe it.
The John Carroll Catholic High School football team is 3-0 for the first time since 1999.
“Wow,” he uttered, his voice still shaking from a brief celebration with his team.
While a small achievement to some, it’s a big deal for the John Carroll Catholic High School head football coach, who has been part of the Cavs’ program as everything from a player to an assistant coach to the head coach, of which he’s now in this fourth year.
On Thursday night, the Cavs got to that 3-0 mark by knocking off Class 5A, Region 5 opponent Fairfield, using a bruising effort over the final two quarters to run away with a 45-28 victory.
John Carroll has been a program known to struggle in the second halves of games, particularly due to the inevitable fatigue that sets in with so many guys playing on offense and defense much of the game.
But the players and coaches keep referencing their offseason conditioning as what has paved the way to this memorable start to the 2023 season. Against Fairfield, the Cavs got stronger as the game wore on, despite the fact several key players batled illness throughout the week.
“We’ve worked so hard,” said senior Zach Archer, who had a huge night on offense, catching 5 passes for a whopping 162 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
Those five completions were all senior quarterback Carson McFadden needed Thursday, as he went 5-of-7 through the air. Those two touchdowns were certainly necessary, as the Cavs tied the game with an 84-yard connection in the first quarter and lengthened the lead in the third quarter with a 49-yard play.
But it was the running game that allowed the Cavs to control play. They got that running game rolling in the second quarter, as McFadden, Koron Wright and Mitchell Nutter all scored rushing touchdowns to help the Cavs open up a 28-14 lead at the half.
“We keep going, keep going and we found something that worked,” Mara said. “That [offensive] line is coming over [to the sideline] begging to keep running it. That’s a great feeling when the players are confident.”
Fairfield cut the lead to 36-28 early in the fourth quarter, but the Cavs responded like they had all night. They went right back down the field and scored on a strange play. McFadden put his head down near the goal line, attempting to power into the end zone. But the ball was knocked loose shy of the goal line. Fortunately for John Carroll, Grey Higgins pounced on the football for a score.
Fairfield mistakenly called for fair catch at the 1-yard line on the ensuing kickoff, and the first play of the drive resulted in a safety, as Wright forced Fairfield quarterback Ju’Maria Hamilton out of the back of the end zone to make it 45-28.
Fairfield’s best method of attack was hitting big plays, and the Tigers did that several times Thursday night. They outgained the Cavs 439-400 in the game, but the lack of sustained drives proved too much to overcome.
Hamilton completed 8-of-17 passes on the night, with half of those completions going for touchdowns. He threw for 299 yards in the contest. On the first play of the game, he floated a perfect ball to Je’Dan Gilbert for an 80-yard score. Gilbert had just 3 grabs in the game, but picked up 180 yards.
Hamilton had a pair of touchdown passes to Danzell Lambert, of 30 and 31 yards, and hit Jakorrion Bradley for a 26-yard score as well. Justin Murray led the Tigers with 110 rushing yards on 16 carries.
For John Carroll, Nutter led the way with 130 yards on 15 carries. Wright finished with 48 yards on 7 rushes, while Tristen Rutledge added 10 carries for 53 yards.
John Carroll will look to keep the momentum going next week, as it travels to Hayden for another region contest.
“They stayed committed and have a great attitude every day,” Mara said. “Sometimes we face opponents bigger, faster and stronger than us and you’ve got to have courage.
“That’s what they’ve done. They played for each other and their school. It’s a special group.”
Check out all of our high school football photos from this week here.
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