Central football team routs top-seeded Hillsboro for district crown

HILLSBORO, Mo. -- Central senior Mikey Jones passed Monroe Hick's 11-year-old single-season school rushing record on his first carry of Monday night's Class 4 District 1 championship game with a 14-yard run on Tigers' first offensive play.

He spent the rest of the night passing by the Hillsboro Hawks defense.

Jones added 333 yards to his new record and scored four touchdowns in the second-seeded Tigers' 59-33 romp past top-seeded Hillsboro.

The win, which avenged a loss to Hillsboro in last year's title game, extended Central's winning streak to seven games and claimed the program's first district title since 2006. It also earned the Tigers (8-4) the right to host Saturday's quarterfinal game against undefeated Miller Career Academy.

It's an unlikely storyline in a season during which the Tigers lost four of their first five games.

"We never gave up on ourselves and kept going and going," senior defensive tackle Darville Hopkins said. "It feels good to win, and we're going to keep on winning."

Jones finished the night with 347 yards on 20 carries to break his own single-game record for yards gained and increase his season total to 1,924 yards. He scored on runs of 3, 55, 34 and 65 yards.

"It was crazy," Jones said. "Coach wanted me to get it and go. I told him I had him, and I'd do what I had to do. I had to keep going."

Central, which scored on six consecutive possessions after trailing by 12 points early, topped 56 points for the fourth consecutive game as it finished with 567 yards of total offense. The Tigers finished with 413 yards rushing.

Jones carried on Central's first eight offensive plays, and scored the Tigers' first touchdown on their second possession with his 3-yard TD run.

It was the Tigers' lone score on their first three possessions as Central found itself in an early hole. Hillsboro scored on three straight possessions after punting on its first series of the game.

A 40-yard TD run by Jacob Kelam, a 44-yard scoring pass to Chris Walsh and a 5-yard TD scamper by Seth Castleman gave the Hawks a 20-8 lead with 4 minutes, 34 seconds left in the first half.

Hillsboro (9-3) then had Central on the ropes when it recovered an on-side kick at the Tigers' 49 after Castleman's touchdown run.

But the tide turned on the Hawks' first play of the possession when Kelam fumbled and Central junior linebacker Jordan Franklin recovered at the Central 36. Three plays later Central quarterback Dennis Vinson connected with sophomore Al Young for a 65-yard TD pass. Young pulled down the pass at the Hillsboro 25 between two defenders and covered the remainder of the distance.

"I think we can go really far," said Young, who went over 1,000 yards receiving on the season with three catches for 142 yards. "We have the best backs in the nation, and receivers. That's the way I feel about it."

The Tigers weren't through for the half. They forced Hillsboro to punt and took possession at their own 23 with 31 seconds left.

A 55-yard pass and run to Young moved the ball to the Hillsboro 15 with seven seconds left, and the Tigers attempted to call timeout after Jones carried on the next play, but the clock ran out with the Tigers at the 12. Both teams were exiting the field when the referees conferred and put four-tenths of a second on the clock.

"There were some questionable calls on both sides," Central said Central coach Nathan Norman, who was hit with a sideline personal foul during the first half. "I thought we had a definite fumble we recovered [that the officials allowed Hillsboro to retain possession], but very seldom have I seen an official put time back on the clock in such a heated moment like that. And I'm glad they did."

It was enough time for Vinson to find senior tight end James Wilferth in the back of the end zone.

"The play was designed to come to me. It was a post route," said Wilferth, a senior playing his first year of football, about his first career touchdown reception. "As soon as I caught it I knew my foot was inbounds."

The two-point conversion run by Vinson gave Central a 24-20 lead and loads of momentum for the second half.

Jones took over from there, scoring three touchdowns on his first five carries of the half. He broke through the right side on all three carries, including his 55-yard jaunt on the second play of the third quarter. Matt Chism's kick gave Central a 31-20 lead with less than a minute gone in the third quarter.

"We told him to follow us, and we could get him home," said right guard Lorenzen Brookins. "We got him home a couple times."

Jones' TD carries looked like carbon copies, with him busting over right tackle virtually untouched with Hillsboro in hot pursuit. He also broke off a similar 90-yard run and ran out of gas before being caught by the Hawks' Joe Melton at the 2.

Central scored on its four third-quarter possessions with Jones running for 252 yards in the period.

"Mikey Jones is a stud, and I'm glad he's on my side," Norman said. "In the playoffs, he's even more important, a senior leader like that. He never gives up."

Hillsboro fumbled on its first possession of the third quarter and Jones needed only two carries to cover the 40 yards to the end zone. Chism's PAT gave Central a 38-20 lead with 10:12 left in the third quarter.

After Brett Cole scored on a 65-yard pass for Hillsboro, Jones answered with a 65-yard TD run on the Tigers' next possession for a 45-26 lead with 6:19 left in the third quarter.

Junior Braion Owens added a 2-yard run with 2:50 left in the quarter for a commanding 52-26 lead.

Young accounted for Central's final points with a 75-yard interception return in the fourth quarter.

"Very proud [of] how hard they've worked here at the end," Norman said. "They've always stuck together. 1-4? What are we, 8-4? It's a heck of turnaround -- my coaches, my kids believed in themselves and the coaches. They fought and fought, and here we are, district champs."

Central 8 16 28 7 -- 59

Hillsboro 13 7 6 7 -- 33

First Quarter

H -- Jacob Kelam 40 run (Clayton Sancoucie kick), 6:48

C -- Mikey Jones 3 run (Jones run), 4:52

H -- Chris Walsh 44 pass from Jarrett Johnson (run failed), 2:46

Second Quarter

H -- Seth Castleman 5 run (Sansoucie kick), 4:34

C -- Al Young 65 pass from Dennis Vinson (Jones run), 2:54

C -- James Wilferth 12 pass from Vinson (Vinson run), 0:00

Third Quarter

C -- Jones 55 run (Matt Chism kick). 11:06

C -- Jones 34 run (Chism kick), 10:12

H -- Brett Cole 65 pass from Johnson (kick failed), 6:36

C -- Jones 65 run (Chism kick), 6:19

C -- Braion Owens 2 run (Chism kick), 2:50

Fourth Quarter

C -- Young 75 interception return (Chism kick), 5:50

H -- Trey Terry 3 run (Sansoucie kick), :38

C H

First downs 18 22

Rushes-yards 37-413 51-366

Passing yards 154 57

Passes 4-5-0 2-13-1

Punts 2-39.0 2-38.5

Fumbles-Lost 1-0 1-1

Penalties-Yards 5-47 3-20

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING -- Central, Jones, 20-347. Chase Eubank 1-4, Owens 12-84, Vinson 3-(-14), Team 1-(-8); Hillsboro, Johnson 9-33, Terry 17-150, Kelam 9-109, Walsh 11-59, Castleman 5-15.

PASSING -- Central, Vinson 4-5-0-154; Hillsboro, Johnson 2-13-1-57

RECEIVING -- Central, Young 3-142, Wilferth 1-12; Hillsboro, Kelam 1-13, Walsh 1-44.