Edwardsville hangs on as Nesbitt, Jackson make strides in season opener

After a long offseason of speculation and anticipation, the Jackson Indians kicked off the season with a 30-21 loss at Edwardsville on a hot Friday night in Edwardsville, Illinois.

Going down to the wire, Jackson scored with less than five minutes remaining to knot the game at 21-21, but a full-field drive from Edwardsville, scoring with just 33 seconds remaining, followed by a late safety gave the hosting Tigers the victory despite a raucous back-and-forth affair.

“I’m really proud,” Indians head coach Ryan Nesbitt said. “I'm proud of the effort. I thought they played hard, I thought they battled. That's a positive. Our identity is not defined on an outcome.”

While the team went into Edwardsville looking to knock off one of the top teams in the state of Illinois, a strong effort from the Indians saw that the season still began on a high note.

Senior quarterback Adrian Fox used both the ground game and a strong aerial assault to open the game up for the Jackson offense, which struggled early but slowly became more comfortable as the game progressed.

Fox scored two touchdowns through the air, completing a long pass to TJ Altenthal for the opening score while finding Blayne Harris in the red zone through a deflection.

With a star-studded Indians receiving corps, with headliners including Harris and Altenthal as well as returners Kai Crowe and Gavin Alspaugh, the weapons remain hot for Fox in the new system under Nesbitt.

“They’re phenomenal guys, period,” Fox said. “Phenomenal people. I'll start with that. With phenomenal athletes like that, I am so blessed, and we're so blessed to have that group as a receiving corps. They're super athletic and they're great people, too. Their work ethic is through the roof.”

Jackson's Kai Crowe signals for the first down during an August 25, 2023 game between the Jackson Indians and the Edwardsville Tigers at Edwardsville High School in Edwardsville, Ill. Edwardsville defeated Jackson, 30-21.Cole Lee ~ clee@semoball.com

Fox handed the ball off to freshman back Jaylon Hampton for a five-yard score to tie the game in the fourth quarter, finishing a 21-point effort from the Indians that had them vying for the win but falling just short.

Offensive discipline played a large role in the outcome of the game, stalling two drives that marched deep into Tiger territory. False starts, holds, illegal blocks all came back to haunt the Indians as the game unfolded.

While it’s impossible to have a flawless offense, Nesbitt looks to work some of the kinks out of the system as the week progresses ahead of the Indians’ week two game against Francis Howell.

“There were a lot of times that we just beat ourselves,” Nesbitt said. “It had nothing to do with the opponent. It always starts with you. As a competitor, you start with me, the ultimate leader of ‘What can I do better? What can I do to improve?’ That trickles down.

“No football team is good enough to overcome pre-snap penalties. We’re no different. Sometimes there's nothing more painful than learning a lesson through a loss. We’ve got to clean that up. It starts in practice, it starts in the details and in everything that we do. They're close. I think we’ve got a chance to be a good football team.”

Jackson coach Ryan Nesbitt talks to the officiating crew during an August 25, 2023 game between the Jackson Indians and the Edwardsville Tigers at Edwardsville High School in Edwardsville, Ill. Edwardsville defeated Jackson, 30-21.Cole Lee ~ clee@semoball.com

Recovering from a season-opening loss to the Tigers at home last year, Jackson matched up with a highly-talented Edwardsville team that returned much talent, including Southern Illinois University-commit Jake Curry under center.

With the strong quarterback play of Curry, the Tigers continued to find themselves open in the short game, giving Edwardsville enough small gains to piece together a strong offensive effort.

Despite winning the turnover battle by two, with an early interception from junior defensive back Tyson Ford and a fumble recovery at the end of the first half, the Indian defense found itself a few plays away from holding the Tigers on their final drive.

“We have a bunch of little things to fix on, but I think that as a team, this was a good first game,” Altenthal said. “This is a great game to start off on. Once we get all the little things, I think we can be an elite team and compete in Class 6.”

With the loss, the Indians fall to 0-1 for the second consecutive season. With a matchup against Francis Howell, winners of the 2022 Class 5 state championship, the Indians face yet another tall task against a strong regional opponent.

With a loss against Edwardsville setting the tone for the upcoming practice week, all eyes turn to the Vikings as Jackson looks to upend one of the top teams in the state as Howell travels to “The Pit” in Nesbitt’s first home game as the Indians’ head coach.

While the mood remains sour from a tough loss on Friday, Nesbitt knows that the ceiling remains high for an athletic Indians team, even despite the long road ahead.

“It's never a fun feeling when you lose, but they're still great kids,” Nesbitt said. “They're wonderful. The dudes are working their tails off and, you know, we've got two choices. The sun's gonna come up tomorrow. We’ve got an opportunity to wake up, get right back to work and continue to grow.”