It was JHS Homecoming 2024 for the Jena Giants this past Friday night and they did not disappoint the fans and alumni, blowing out the Buckeye Panthers 46-6.
It was a day filled with festivities that would not be ruined by the weather. The 6-3 Giants would host the 6-3 Buckeye Panthers. Both teams came into the game looking to pick up a win to try and improve their power ranking for the playoffs as much as they could. The captains for the Giants were seniors Triston McLendon, Colten Sharp, Zach Scales and Jacob Belcher. The Giants would win the toss and would defer to the second half.
The Giants would appear to be locked in from the start and would not allow the homecoming festivities to distract them. The Giants defense would completely shut down the Buckeye run game as they would force three and outs on Buckeye’s first three drives. Buckeye’s total yardage on the first three drives was -16 yards.
The Giants offense, on the other hand, would be the complete opposite as they would look unstoppable. Deuce McPherson would find receiver Zadrien Cooper on a post route for a long 56yard touchdown pass to get the scoring started and electrify the crowd.
The Giants would then get a 10-yard touchdown run from Sedrick Wilson and a 9-yard touchdown run from Daniel Hatcher to take a 22-0 lead into the second quarter.
In the second quarter, Buckeye would finally pick up their first 1st down but it would be the only 1st down of the first half for the Panthers. The Giants would pick up another touchdown run from Daniel Hatcher, this time for 37 yards to increase the lead to 30-0. Later on, Deuce McPherson would find Zadrien Cooper for the second time on a 24-yard touchdown pass to put the Giants up 38-0. Late in the first half senior running back Courtland Ford would score his first career touchdown on a 12-yard run to put the Giants up 46-0 going into halftime.
In the second half, the teams would agree to have 8-minute quarters and run the clock so it would be a quick second half. Buckeye would pick up a touchdown late but the Giants would go on to win 46-6.
The Giants have struggled to pass the ball for the past few weeks but junior quarterback Deuce McPherson seemed to get the passing game back going as he finished 3-5 for 84 yards and two touchdowns. Zadrien Cooper would finish with two receptions for 80 yards and two touchdowns. Daniel Hatcher would lead the Giants with 8 carries for 80 yards and two touchdowns.
Zac Brown would lead the Giants defense with six tackles in the game. Triston McLendon also had four tackles and a tackle for loss. Bubba Stevens had a good game as well with three tackles and two tackles for loss.
With the win, the Giants finish the regular season with a 7-3 record and were the district runner-up for District 2-3A. They ended up ranked #7 in Division III Non-Select.
In a strange turn of events, the LHSAA announced Friday, Nov. 8, that they would be delaying the playoff brackets due to the lawsuit that University Lab out of Baton Rouge has brought against the LHSAA.
University Lab had to forfeit a majority of their games due to ineligible players and they are trying to fight the ruling. Due to this affecting the playoff brackets the LHSAA had announced that the brackets will not be released until this situation is resolved.
However, Sunday morning, it was announced the brackets would be released with U-Lab in the playoffs pending the outcome of the litigation. U-Lab is not in Jena’s division so it didn’t really affect Jena’s ranking.
This Friday night, the first round of the state football playoffs will begin with Jena, ranked #7, hosting the Caldwell Spartans #26.
Just two weeks ago on November 1, the Giants defeated the Spartans 50-14 in Columbia. This made the sixth time in a row Jena beat Caldwell, including twice last year when they also hosted Caldwell in the first round where they won 46-7.
The Giants should not overlook this talented Spartan team as they would like nothing better than to end Jena’s playoff run in the first round. The winner of this game will face the winner of Church Point #10 and Port Allen #23. With the lower seed getting the homefield, a win for Jena will see the second round at home also.
Everyone is encouraged to be at Guy Campbell Memorial Stadium Friday night to cheer for the Giants. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. If you can’t make the game, you can always listen on KJNA FM 102.7 and if you’re not in the listening area, listen on the MIXLR app.
Photos from the game:
