Saints dominate Jemison on the road 46-19

The Selma High Saints football team have taken on the mentality of a popular professional wrestling duo of the late 1980s called the “Road Warriors.” The Saints played their fifth game on the road Friday night, walloping Jemison High School 46-19 while improving to 4-2 on the season. 

The Saints clinched a playoff berth garnering a 3-0 record in Class 5-A Area 3 and now set their sights on an area championship. The Road Warriors were a tag-team combination built on power and speed. 

The Saints dynamic duo of multi-purpose seniors Dion Nelson and Jevonte Stubbs use that same athletic combination to spearhead the Selma offense. Stubbs got the Saints in great field position with the opening kickoff return near midfield. 

For the second consecutive week, Nelson has taken the first play from scrimmage to the endzone. His 57-yard sweep left put the Saints up 6-0 as the two-point attempt failed. After the defense forced a Jemison punt, senior two-way player Trent Waller went off right tackle on first down and outraced the Tiger defense 75-yards and a 12-0 score. 

The defense held the home team scoreless in the first quarter with Artimus Edwards, Kenterrius Carter, and Ken McMillian stuffing the run game. At the start of the second quarter, behind the strong running of Hunter Baker, Tigers drove into scoring position. Quarterback Nick right snuck a seam route pass to tight end Luke Mitchell for 20-yard touchdown pass that caught the visitors off guard and brought the Tigers to within six. Dylan Walker blocked the PAT for a 12-6 score. Junior linebacker Donnie Brown fought on the bottom of a pileup and recovered a surprise on-side kick and gave the Saints the ball at their own 46. 

Waller carried five times, chewing up yardage that gave the Saints a fourth and goal from the 1-yardline. Stubbs pounded in behind 6’5, 310lb senior tackle Kashief Norwood for the touchdown and added a 2- point conversion for a 20-6 lead. 

Selma adjusted to Jemison’s running game, forcing a three and out resulting in a punt. On second and 11, Stubbs took a jet-sweep, eluded a tackler, and outraced the defense for a 63-yard score that put the Saints up 26-6. A personal foul on Selma set up the Tigers at midfield. Jemison drove deep into Selma territory, but a fourth-down pass fell incomplete in the Saints endzone. From their 25 yard-line, Selma went to its two-minute offense with 1:42 remaining. 

Rodrick Ward used his legs and arm to move the Saints into Tiger territory. With :10.6 on the clock, the sophomore left-hander, lofted a deep spiral down the middle of the field, where Stubbs electrified the Selma fans by leaping over two defenders, high-pointing the  the ball and bulled his way in to the endzone with only :01.5 left before the half and a 32-6 lead at intermission. 

Selma forced a turnover on downs on Jemison’s first possession of the second half as McMillian and Dakari Nelson each had tackles for a loss. Nelson’s fourth down sack gave the Saints the ball at their own 37. Stubbs 25-yard gain moved the Saints into Tiger territory and Waller gained big yardage on several attempts. 

Dion Nelson replaced an injured Ward and converted a 4^th and 6 by hitting his brother, sophomore Dakari for ten yards to keep the drive alive. Waller capped the drive with his second touchdown on a 6-yard dash of right end. His two-point attempt was short. The senior speedster added to the offensive punch and finished 127 yards on the night. 

The rest of the quarter saw a staunch defense stuff the Tigers as junior defensive linemen Cornelius Hosea had a sack and Kamari Eaton had a tackle for a loss causing a fumble that the younger Nelson recovered. Nelson finished with 11 tackles, 3 for losses, Stubbs added a fourth-quarter interception, while McMillian and seniors Kenterrious Carter and Kel Carter turned in stellar defensive performances. 

“Defensively we’ve got to go back to the drawing board and shore up some things, especially on the back end” said Head Coach Will Gandy. We’ve got to be disciplined in our coverages and not fall asleep.”

Gandy was unhappy with two late passing scores the Tigers put up in the fourth quarter as reserves were deployed among the starters. 

“I’m really impressed with the offensive line, they had a good week this week in practice, we ran the ball really well, if we run the ball, we win football games,” the second-year coach continued. The Saints continue their road schedule next week with a venture to Tuscaloosa next Friday with a key area matchup at Central High School. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.