Jesuit’s Sputtering Offense Wears Down Its Own Brilliant Defense

This was the seventh time Jesuit and St. Paul’s met on the gridiron. The first four games were won by St. Paul’s some time ago. The rivalry went dormant for several years and it was revived in 2013, when the teams played in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome at the start of the season. The Wolves won with a last second field goal, 24-21. In 2014, the eventual state champion Blue Jays beat St. Paul’s 49-22 at Hunter Stadium. Last year, the Jays defeated the Wolves at Tad Gormley, 17-14. This season, the rivalry returned to St. Paul’s campus. It’s almost time for the kickoff as the Jays run onto the field.

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The Blue Jays almost pulled it off, trying to sneak out of the Wolves’ den with an upset win over St. Paul’s on Friday night.

Not this year.

As Denny McGinnis holds, Jake Chanove attempts a 34-yard field goal with one second left in regulation. The kick was accurate, but fell short to send the 10-10 game into overtime. Earlier in the fourth quarter, Chanove kicked a 26-yard field goal to put the Jays out front for the second time, 10-7.

The Jays shocked the Wolves early in the second quarter when Jesuit quarterback Alex Watermeier connected on a 58-yard pass to wide receiver Bryce Musso for a touchdown. Jake Chanove’s extra point gave the Jays a 7-0 lead. Two series later, the Wolves mounted a drive that ended with a six-yard touchdown run. The extra point was good and the two rivals were tied, 7-7, with 45 seconds left in the first half.

In the fourth quarter, the Jays’ offense struggled to put together a drive, which resulted in Chanove kicking a 28-yard field goal to give Jesuit a 10-7 lead. Three minutes later, St. Paul’s kicked a 37-yard field goal to tie the game, 10-10. With one second remaining in regulation, the Jays relished the chance to steal a win with another Chanove field goal, this one from some 34-yards out. Chanove put his foot into it, nice and straight between the uprights, but unfortunately, five yards short.

Time expired and overtime kicked in with St. Paul’s having the first possession from the 10-yard line. The Jays’ defense swarmed the Wolves on three plays and facing fourth down and 13 yards, the Wolves opted for a 32-yard field goal to take the lead, 13-10.

The Jays now had an opportunity to put the game away with a touchdown, or at least tie it again with a field goal.

Michael Hull (5) makes a huge effort to get a hand on this field goal attempt in overtime. The kick was good and gave the Wolves a 13-10 lead.

Jesuit’s Connor Prouet was given the ball twice. Nothing up the middle on first down, maybe a couple of yards around left end on second down.

Facing third and eight, Watermeier took the snap from under center Nick Gauthé. He dropped back, targeting wide receiver Ashton Loria, who cut across the end zone. However, a Wolf defender stepped in front of Loria and cleanly picked off Watermeier’s pass. It was the second interception of the night for Watermeier (the Wolves nearly had three) and it ended overtime and the game.

The St. Paul’s side of the stadium erupted in howls. The Jesuit side of supporters fell silent, shocked by the sudden ending and the first loss of the season. After Jesuit won two years in a row (2014 and 2015), the Wolves’ victory increased their lead in the series rivalry, 2-5.

Week 3 for Jesuit has Escambia High School’s football team traveling to New Orleans for a Friday night (September 16) date at Tad Gormley Stadium. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. Pre-game tickets go on sale Tuesday, September 13 at Jesuit’s switchboard.

If Jesuit had the upper hand for most of the Friday night showdown in Hunter Stadium, the credit goes to the Jays’ defense.

After St. Paul’s jumped out to a 13-10 lead with a field goal in overtime, the Jays had their turn. Two running plays had Connor Prouet picking up a scant two yards. Facing third and eight, quarterback Alex Watermeier dropped back and threw to his intended target in the end zone, wide receiver Ashton Loria (14). But the Wolf defender made a clean pick of the throw to end overtime and the game, Jesuit’s first loss of the season.

“We didn’t have any momentum on offense,” Coach Mark Songy said. “We had one drive going that resulted in a field goal, but our offense had no momentum. I thought our defense played real, real well against a very potent offensive team. St. Paul’s has some weapons and they did a great job with them, but I was real disappointed with how our offense played.”

Coach Songy said that this week’s practice will focus on the Jays’ offensive unit “getting better.”

When Jesuit and the Gators of Escambia High School kick off, there could very well be some unfamiliar numbers when the Jays offensive unit takes the field.

Read More…

The New Orleans Advocate: St. Paul’s edges Jesuit 13-10 in overtime

Nola.com: St. Paul’s 13, Jesuit 10 (OT): Wolves DB Jack Bonaldi’s interception seals the victory