Two NIC-10 teams that lost their QB; One is rising with defense
Football fortunes can unravel quickly when the quarterback position isn’t right, something the Chicago Bears have seemed intent on proving for decades.
Guilford and Jefferson weren’t supposed to have to worry about that. Both teams had underclassmen who passed for more than 1,000 yards last year. But neither are on the team this year and their offenses have struggled. Guilford, though, might be finding its footing again behind a rising defense, as the Vikings showed by routing Jefferson 48-8 Saturday.
Guilford (2-3) forced five turnovers and held Jefferson to zero first downs until it put its reserves in after the running clock had started in the fourth quarter.
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Jefferson (0-5) gained positive yards on only two of its first nine drives — both times gaining a single yard before punting. Five of those drives ended in three interceptions and two fumbles before the J-Hawks ever got to fourth down.
Guilford also forced five turnovers the week before in a 20-12 loss to Harlem.
“Our defense has been lights out for the last three weeks,” Guilford coach Tony Capriotti said. “Against Harlem, in the second half, we didn’t even give up 60 yards.”
LaDamion Hoffman caught four passes for 102 yards and Izaias Primus ran for 91 yards on 16 carries Saturday, but Guilford has struggled most of the year on offense after tying for second in the NIC-10 last year. The Vikings’ best hope is to be dominant on defense as it breaks in a pair of young quarterbacks.
“It’s a heavy load,” cornerback Grant Nelson said, “but we can manage it. That gives the offense more time to learn and see what they need to change.”
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Jefferson hasn’t had a winning season in 30 years, but set 13 school records on offense last year behind sophomore quarterback Sebastian Bracius. Without Bracius, who is out for the season with a non-football injury he suffered over the summer, the J-Hawks have struggled mightily. They took an 8-0 lead when De’Anglos Roby returned a fumble 55 yards for a touchdown on the opening drive.
The J-Hawks forced two other turnovers and it could have been four — a possible quarterback fumble that Jefferson recovered deep in Guilford territory was ruled an incomplete pass.
“We’re all running to the ball, trying to push it out and get a turnover on defense,” Jefferson linebacker/running back Lashawn Gathright said.
That’s not enough with an offense that can’t gain a first down. At one point, Guilford had run 52 plays to Jefferson’s 14.
“Our players are young and they are growing,” first-year Jefferson coach Cody Casazza said of the J-Hawks, who have only four seniors on varsity and start four sophomores in the secondary. “We have to get bigger, faster, stronger. This game is still about that and that’s why we’re going to continue to struggle until we fix that.”
Guilford may still be struggling some on offense, but not on defense. Which was part of the offense Saturday. Nelson had an interception he returned 35 yards to set up the TD that put Guilford ahead for good, 14-8. Messiah Tilson had two interceptions, returning the second one 46 yards for a touchdown.
“I was aggressive because I knew the route that was coming,” Tilson said. “I read what they were trying to throw.
“We’re playing pretty good right now on defense, but we can get even better.”
The goal is to keep taking the ball away.
“We preach it in practice,” Capriotti said. “First guy makes the tackle. Second guy gets the ball out. It’s our mindset.”
Contact: mtrowbridge@rrstar.com, @matttrowbridge or 815-987-1383. Matt Trowbridge has covered sports for the Rockford Register Star for over 30 years, after previous stints in North Dakota, Delaware, Vermont and Iowa City.
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Guilford and Jefferson struggle after losing QBs, but Guilford rising
