“I was very proud with how we came out in the second half. Our defense obviously hasn’t gone anywhere. I thought they played with great eye discipline. I think we only gave up one busted play there. Our effort and our enthusiasm and our joy for playing football was really, really high. We’ll go back and watch film and get this thing fixed,” said Coffee Trojans’ head coach Mike Coe following the Trojans’ 28-0 win over the Fitzgerald Purple Hurricanes in Fitzgerald Friday night.
Coe praised his team’s physicality, effort, and intensity; however, he also noted that the Trojans committed too many penalties. “We’ve got to clean those penalties up,” he stated.
The scrimmage consisted of two distinct periods: the first quarter, in which the junior varsities played; and the second, third, and fourth quarters, which were contested by the varsity squads. At the end of the first quarter, the scoreboard was reset to zero and the game resumed with no score.
Coffee finished the first quarter up 14-0. Jakobe Goolsby and Matthew Taylor scored the Trojans’ touchdowns.
Coffee managed just one score during the second quarter, a 34-yard touchdown run by senior Tyrese Woodgett with 1:37 left in the quarter.
At halftime, despite being up by just one score, Coach Coe said he was pleased with where his team was. “I’d rather be in a dogfight here than up by 30. Our defense hasn’t gone anywhere. They can stop anybody. This is a lot like it was last year. We will learn from this and get better. I want us to finish strong, with good effort. We’ll see if our conditioning and the way practice kick in here in the second half,” he said.
In the third quarter, neither team scored on its first possession. Then, with 3:39 remaining in the period, Woodgett struck again, this time on a 41-yard run. An interception by senior Jayden Hancock on the ‘Canes’ ensuing possession set up a three-yard touchdown run by senior Tyrese Hansley. About five minutes later, Coffee added its fourth touchdown of the night, this time on a 24-yard pass from senior quarterback Jordan Phillips to sophomore Tresean Smith. With 5:10 left in the game, the Trojans were up 28-0.
Coffee scored once more late in the game on a short run by Phillips but the touchdown was called back due to a penalty. The Trojans also missed several other opportunities – some due to penalties, others due to turnovers. Still, overall, Coach Coe was pleased with the outcome. “I thought we were very physical but I’ve got to do a better job. These penalties will get us beat. I thought execution on offense was good. Dang Jordan Phillips – it couldn’t have started any worse for him [Phillips threw an interception on the first play from scrimmage]. But that’s the thing I love about him. Man, it doesn’t faze him. That’s what you want. He gets better when you let him run the ball a little and he gets hit. He dropped a dime in there for a touchdown. Our kids believe in him,” said Coach Coe.
The Trojans will have next week off then travel to Bainbridge for the season opener against the Bearcats on Friday, August 16.