Jackson nearly knocks off top-ranked TR North
BY MIKE WHITE
Staff Writer

JACKSON — This one had upset written all over it.

The Jackson High School football team got an outstanding effort from senior running back Will Clayton and the Jaguars darted to an early 13-point advantage over Toms River North.

However, the Mariners came up with the big plays and managed to escape with a dramatic 21-19 win last Friday night in a Shore Conference American Division game at John J. Munley Field.

Clayton rushed for a total of 185 yards and scored three touchdowns, helping Jackson build a 13-0 first quarter cushion.

The Mariners rallied for a pair of TDs in the second quarter and added one more at the start of the fourth to hold off the scrappy Jackson team, which fell to 2-2 overall with the loss.

"When you take the top-ranked team in the Shore Conference to the wire, I think that you’re playing pretty good football," first-year Jackson coach Mike Smith said. "We’re still a young squad and we made a couple of key mistakes. You have to give it to Toms River North, they made the big play when they needed to."

Despite the setback, Smith feels this loss is going to benefit his club later in the season.

"There was a powerful message sent here during this game," Smith said.

"Our guys now realize that we belong on the same field as all the top teams in the this conference. We no longer have to feel that we can’t play with teams like Toms River North. I think that we grew up a little after this one."

The schedule gets no easier for the Jags. Jackson is scheduled to host Toms River East at 7 p.m. Friday. The Raiders come in undefeated at 4-0.

Last week, TRE steamrolled Marlboro 54-0 behind five TDs from running back Kevin Davis.

"They are a very sound football team," Smith said. "They are confident and playing very well. Our defense is going to have to step up and try and control their ground game."

Smith realizes this is a must-win game.

"This is the big one," he said. "One of our goals is to give ourselves a chance to qualify for the state tournament. We need to win this game in order to keep that chance alive."

Clayton finished with 185 yards on 30 carries. Jackson’s entire offense amassed 260 yards.

"He had a big game for us," Smith said. "He was running well and we figured we’d just keep going to him."

Jackson turned a TRN fumble into an early lead. Travis Wilton pounced on a loose ball deep in Mariners’ territory and a few plays later Clayton scored on a 22-yard run. The Jags missed the PAT, which would eventually prove significant later in the game.

"It was a nice way to start the game," Smith said. "Our defense came up with a big play and we were able to take advantage."

Jackson made it 13-0 when Clayton plunged over from the 1-yard line. Clayton’s score culminated a 95-yard drive by the Jags.

"There is no question we had momentum going our way," Smith said. "We stopped them in our own end then turn around and marched right down the field and scored. We were feeling pretty good at that point."

But TRN put up a couple of TDs before the end of the half. The Mariners put together a 70-yard scoring drive of their own to cut the lead to 13-7.

Toms River North squelched another Jackson threat when Rob Rossano picked off a pass with Jackson on the Mariners’ 25-yard line.

Five plays later, running back Brad Osborn went 52 yards for a touchdown.

"Good teams make big plays," Smith said. "They made the big plays to get back in it in the second quarter."

Osborn’s 2-yard scoring run in the fourth quarter put TRN ahead 21-13.

Jackson’s Joe Arneth intercepted a pass that set the stage for Clayton’s third TD. The Jags engineered a drive that finished with Clayton scoring from 2 yards out.

But the Jags were forced to go for the two-point conversion and the attempt failed.

"We’ve seen a lot of growth in the past few weeks," Smith said. "This team has proven that it belongs."

Lakewood and New Egypt remain winless. Both dropped games against their respective opponents last weekend. The Piners suffered a 41-12 loss to Howell, while the Warriors got knocked off by Palmyra, 20-6.

Howell jumped out to a 27-0 lead be­fore Lakewood got on the board with a 4-yard TD run by Dwayne Jones, who rushed for 98 yards on 15 carries.

Lakewood’s other touchdown came on a 29-yard run by running back Rupert Gill.

The Piners fall to 0-4 on the season.

New Egypt failed to take advantage of five turnovers in the setback. The Warriors now fall to 0-4 on the year.