WARREN, Ark. – The Warren Lumberjacks football team scored early and often as freshman quarterback Jackson Denton threw for 308 yards and four touchdowns in a 44-7 win over Star City Friday night in the 4A-8 conference opener for Warren at Jim Hurley, Jr. Stadium. Warren showed little rust coming off a bye week to improve to 3-0 on the season and 1-0 in league play, while Star City drops to 0-4 overall and 0-2 in conference action.
By Dennen Cuthbertson
Saline River Chronicle Sports Contributor
This Lumberjack Game Report is brought to you by:
First Quarter:
The Lumberjacks received the opening kickoff and wasted little time getting on the scoreboard after the touchback as Denton found Kam Davis over the middle of the field for an 80-yard touchdown. Davis secured the catch, broke a tackle, and used his elite speed to outrun the Star City defense to the endzone. The extra point from Alann Juarez was good and Warren was in front 7-0 just 19 seconds into the game.
Star City went three-and-out on its first possession, but a fumbled snap on fourth down ended Warren’s ensuing drive. The Bulldogs started their next drive on their own 37 and were able to earn one first down. However, the drive stalled when the visitors elected to go for it on fourth down and Warren’s Tristan Greene forced Star City’s quarterback to run out of bounds at the Lumberjacks’ 44-yard line. Tramond Miller began the drive with a 19-yard run on a sweep for Warren, followed by an 11-yard dash from Treylon Jackson. Denton then found Neon’dre Thomas for a 22-yard touchdown a couple of plays later and the successful extra point extended the Warren edge to 14-0 with 2:01 remaining in the first period. Star City fumbled on the kickoff with Braeden Smith recovering for Warren, but a couple of penalties pushed the home team back and a turnover on downs ended the first quarter.
Second Quarter:
However, the Jacks defense remained strong by forcing a three-and-out on the first possession of the quarter. Star City attempted to punt, but some pressure by Ervin Rivera caused a blocker to retreat a couple of steps and the punt hit him in the back and bounced towards the end zone. Rivera couldn’t corral the ball for a touchdown, but Cody Weatherspoon and Neeyo Harding tackled the Star City player in the end zone for a safety and 16-0 advantage for Warren. After the free kick by the Bulldogs, the Denton-to-Davis connection was on display again on the first play. The junior wide receiver, Davis, made a spectacular catch on the sideline, avoided getting tackled, avoided going out-of-bounds, and sprinted 73 yards for his second touchdown of the night. The extra point was knocked through the uprights to push the Warren lead to 23-0 with 9:59 in the second period.
Star City appeared to gain some momentum on the kickoff with a big return to the Warren 26-yard line. The Orange and Black’s defense stepped up again though with Weatherspoon recovering a fumble at Warren’s 32-yard line. The home team converted a key third down on a 20-yard run by Jackson and then Denton tossed his fourth touchdown pass of the game when he found Rivera wide open over the middle of the field for a 42-yard pitch-and-catch. Rivera had to make a defender miss just inside the 10-yard line before coasting into the end zone. The extra point made the score 30-0 in favor of Warren with 7:24 remaining before halftime.
The Bulldogs put together a promising series, but an unsuccessful play on fourth down gave Warren the ball at its 13-yard line with 2:05 showing on the clock. Two big plays of 40 yards and 21 yards through the air to Antonio Jordan set up a two-yard touchdown run by Jackson to make the score 37-0 after a successful extra point. The Lumberjacks only needed one minute and 20 seconds to go 87 yards for the score. Warren would take the 37-0 into the locker room to invoke the sportsmanship rule when play began in the second half.
Third Quarter:
Miguel Mendoza kicked off for Warren to begin the third period and Star City had to punt after three plays again. However, another special teams adventure by the Bulldogs saw the snap fumbled on an attempted fake with Warren taking over on Star City’s 25-yard line. The Lumberjacks moved backwards on their first two plays, but backup signal-caller Cam Burks scrambled on third down and found Smith in the end zone for a 32-yard score to push the Warren lead to 44-0 after a Juarez extra point with 6:34 in the quarter. Star City drove 76 yards on Warren’s second-string defense to make the score 44-7 before the quarter ended.
Fourth Quarter:
Kolby Pope entered the game at quarterback for Warren in the final quarter. Warren went three-and-out, but sophomore Aaron Davis forced a fumble on the ensuing Bulldogs’ possession with De’Sean Adams recovering for the Jacks. Kylon Cross gained some yardage on the ground for Warren’s second unit, but another turnover on downs ended the drive. Star City got the ball back and Warren defender David Jordan, Jr. made a nice open-field tackle on the last play of the game as Warren won 44-7.
The Lumberjacks host conference foe McGehee next Friday night (Sept. 22) at Jim Hurley Jr. Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Game Stats:
Warren Lumberjacks Offense:
- 417 Total Yards
- 340 Passing Yards
- 77 Rushing Yards
Individual Stats:
- Jackson Denton: 10-for-18, 308 yards, four touchdowns
- Treylon Jackson: 9 carries for 63 yards and a touchdown
- Kam Davis: 2 catches for 153 yards and two touchdowns
- Antonio Jordan: 3 catches for 71 yards
- Neon’dre Thomas: 3 catches for 31 yards and a touchdown
Warren Lumberjacks Defense:
- Held Star City to 241 total yards (all rushing) as Star City did not complete a pass
Stats provided by Saline River Chronicle Sports Contributor David King.
Due to scheduling issues with our photographer, we will not be publishing a photo album from this game. We should be back with our regular photo album for next week’s game vs. McGehee.
