The Jayton Jaybirds traveled to Knox City last Thursday to take on the Chillicothe Eagles for the bi-district championship.
Coming off a huge win last week against Motley County to secure the district championship, the Jaybirds employed the “one game at a time” mentality that has been their focal point all season. Everyone knows that anything can happen on any given night in Texas football, and Jayton knew that they needed to play well as they were heavily favored over the Eagles.
The Jaybirds took care of business against the Eagles dominating on both sides of the line of scrimmage to win 45–0. The defense held the Eagles to 93 total yards from scrimmage and only three first downs. They also caused two turnovers when Mason Long intercepted a pass and Devon Jones recovered a fumble. The Jaybirds looked sharp during their first playoff matchup of the season.
Jones, Pecos Smith, and Kaden Valerio recorded double digit tackles defensively while also seeing a strong defensive effort from Caleb Valerio, Tripp Scott, and others who kept the Eagle offense from scoring. To hold a playoff team scoreless in six-man football is an amazing achievement. Jayton has made a strong showing by controlling the line of scrimmage and forcing teams to use their secondary options to try and score.
Smith rushed for 198 yards and four touchdowns to lead Jayton. He ran the ball at will with huge gains on only seven attempts. Caleb Valerio scored a rushing touchdown of his own to show that he can complement Smith when needed. Joel Williams converted his one pass attempt for a score with a touchdown pass to Mason Long. Tripp Scott converted five of six PAT attempts to give Jayton the extra edge.
The game ended at halftime because of the 45 rule. The bidistrict champions will face the heavily favored Balmorhea Bears on Thursday, November 19, in Garden City for the regional championship. The Bears have been chosen by several media outlets to make the State championship game. Jayton has been in this position before in past years. The Jaybirds have proven that they are a difficult team to count out of any contest.
Both communities will look forward to an exciting matchup.
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