Jackson offense electric in conference-opening shootout win at Farmington

An offensive explosion saw Jackson football take the early lead, never relinquishing its edge to win 63-38, taking a 25-point win to open conference play despite a flurry of Farmington scores.

Special teams miscues and a well-executed Farmington option attack kept the Jackson defense on its heels, particularly in the first half. While fighting the Knights off with a relentless offensive effort, Farmington hung around for quite some time, taking advantage of these errors.

In spite of this, Jackson outgained the Knights 606-449, notching their highest-scoring effort of the season. At the end of the game, a 63-point night for Jackson proved more than enough to secure the win to improve to 2-1 on the season.

“Starting with the positive, the goal is to get to 1-0 [every week]. We did that,” Jackson coach Ryan Nesbitt said. “Offensively, we played well. Running the ball, throwing the ball, it was fairly complete. We got a little sloppy in the second half in terms of penalties, but to overcome penalties and score in the red zone, I thought that was a good confidence boost.

“Defensively, it all starts with the coaches. It starts with us. We’ve got to look at the plan. The kicking game – that's definitely us, and that's something that we’ve got to address. We'll get back to work tomorrow morning.”

Jackson's Adrian Fox dodges Farmington defenders looking downfield during a September 8, 2023 matchup between the Jackson Indians and the Farmington Knights at Farmington High School's Haile Memorial Field in Farmington, Mo. The Indians defeated the Knights, 63-38.Cole Lee ~ clee@semoball.com

A high-flying outing from the Jackson offense opened the passing game up with a 367-yard effort through the air from quarterback Adrian Fox, completing 18 of 27 passes for an average of 13.6 yards per completion.

Fox’s best passing effort of the season so far, the senior rarely faltered through the air as Jackson punted just once in the lopsided win. Orchestrating a masterful game both through the air and on the ground, the general of the Indian attack continues to impress in Nesbitt’s new system.

“He's doing a really nice job,” Nesbitt said. “He completely understands what we're trying to get accomplished. He's playing fast, making fast decisions. He's obviously got natural talent, and that helps. He's got a good supporting cast. He’s got good backs around him, a good receiving corps and guys that are getting better up front every day.”

Jackson’s game opened with a 67-yard touchdown pass from Fox to senior wideout Blayne Harris, soon followed by another deep strike to classmate Kai Crowe. Both scoring in the first quarter, the Indians established their game through the air early before carrying the game home on the ground.

The two veteran scoring receivers are key members of a veteran Jackson receiving corps that could be the key to a deep Indian run this year, rounding out a senior-heavy roster of Indian skill players.

“The sky's the limit for us,” Harris said. “The receiving corps, I feel like we can compete with anyone in the state. We're not backing down from nobody. Even the young guys, they're on their way up. They're following in our footsteps, and it's gonna be fun to watch.”

Fox, freshman runningback Jaylon Hampton and several other Jackson rushers combined for 249 yards on the ground. This included rushing for five total touchdowns – three from Hampton, three from senior back Jason Goodman and another from junior Zach Crump.

Another impressive effort on the ground, the Indians’ rushing attack continues to offset the passing game as a true neutral attack.

Despite all of the recent success, the group still remains humble despite its recent success.

“I don't know, I feel like we still have room to improve,” Hampton said. “The running game, our offensive linemen, our receivers blocking and us runningbacks running the ball – we did good tonight, but we could do better.”

Jackson linebacker Peyton Klund gets in the face of cornerback TJ Altenthal after a third-down stop during a September 8, 2023 matchup between the Jackson Indians and the Farmington Knights at Farmington High School's Haile Memorial Field in Farmington, Mo. The Indians defeated the Knights, 63-38.Cole Lee ~ clee@semoball.com

With the win, Jackson upped its winning streak to 13 against the Black Knights, now leading the all-time series by a 36-11-1 margin. The Indians won their 12th consecutive conference-opening matchup, picking up their 22nd consecutive regular season conference victory.

Jackson continues its quest to defend the conference crown as the team travels to Poplar Bluff for Week 4. For the first time since 2017, Jackson enters the matchup with a losing streak against the Mules.

Fresh off an overtime victory against the Tigers of Cape Central on the road, Poplar Bluff looks to defend the barn against its archrivals in the Indians.

“Coming off a big win last week and a big win this week, we think we could beat anybody,” senior Jackson offensive lineman Zane Coon said. “Obviously, going into Bluff with how last year ended, there's definitely going to be a lot of animosity.

“So, it’s just preparing. Obviously, we want to beat them badly, but you’ve got to prepare first. We’ll have a good week of practice and then get there on Friday and handle business.”