The moniker the Jayton Jaybirds have played with from the beginning of the season is #TPW (Tough People Win). As their season has progressed through highs and lows, Coach Josh Stanaland has continued to preach this message to his players knowing that they would need to be tough when facing difficult opponents in the state playoffs. The Jaybirds would face their toughest test of the season coming into the Regional Semifinal against the undefeated Blackwell Hornets, who many had picked to make the State Title game.
Their message resonated on the field as Jayton overcame early 1st-quarter fumbles to completely dominate the Hornets, moving on to the State Quarterfinal game, winning 68-18. The Jaybirds came into their playoff game coming off two big wins against Groom and Throckmorton. Having been through difficult points of the season already, the Jaybirds responded to adversity early in the game by eliminating running lanes and defending against the Blackwell air attack.
Sophomore Pecos Smith only touched the ball 7 times in the game. In spite of this, Smith was the leading offensive scorer with 6 touchdowns (3 rushing and 3 receiving), showing everyone how to make the most of one’s opportunities. Junior Aaron Hernandez and senior Kaden Awe combined for 5 touchdown passes to keep the Blackwell defense uncomfortable the entire night. Juniors Tye Scogin and Cameron Benavides each had receiving touchdowns. Scogin led the Jaybirds in rushing with 119 yards and 1 touchdown, converting several third-down attempts to move the chains to keep drives alive. Sophomore Tripp Scott was perfect on all 7 of his PAT attempts, making the difference for the Jaybirds to end the game at the beginning of the 3rd quarter. The Jayton offense amassed a total of 445 yards to overwhelm the Hornets, who had never been in this position before all season.
While the offense proved effective, the deciding point of the game was six Jayton defenders who put up double-digit tackles. Smith led the way for the Jaybird defense with 16 tackles. The other five with tackles in the double digits were junior Evan Cheyne, Awe, Scogin, Hernandez and Benavides. The defense was all over the field from beginning to end, making open-field tackles and keeping the Blackwell defense in a constant state of disarray. When all was said and done, the Jaybirds hoisted the trophy as the community of Jayton celebrated their huge win.
The Jaybirds’ mission is not over. They will now begin to prepare for their State Quarterfinal game against Grandfalls-Royalty on Friday, Nov. 30 in Sterling City at 6:30 p.m. With the moniker #TPW on their minds, the Jaybirds know not to look ahead but stay focused on the task they have in front of them. They look to continue their bid to play football in December.
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