East Rankin battles, falls short against Winston Academy Patriots

On August 25th, East Rankin Academy (ERA) kicked-off their home opener against Winston Academy at Moody Davis Field. In the week prior, the East Rankin Patriots squared off against the 2022 MAIS Class 5A State Champions, Oak Forest Academy, in a tough loss. Conversely, Winston started off strong in a 35-6 win against Heritage Academy, a team that finished 10-2 during the 2022 season. Despite the loss to Oak Forest, East Rankin was confident that they would move to 1-1 on the season. 

At 8:00, East Rankin captains Bryson Loe, Nick Wesson, and Curt Smith made their way to the 50-yard line for the coin toss. Upon winning the toss, Winston elected to start the game on defense. The starting quarterback for the East Rankin Patriots was senior Reece Cordell, a veteran at the position. The passer for the Winston Patriots was junior Holder Tidwell. 

With time running out in the first quarter, the Patriots were forced to punt the ball back. Then with just 0:25 left in the quarter, East Rankin quarterback Reece Cordell threw a screen pass to senior wide receiver Jace Denson but was intercepted for a touchdown by the Winston Patriots to lead 7-3.

At the beginning of the second quarter, East Rankin quarterback Reece Cordell was sacked and as a result, lost possession of the football to Winston. Shaken up from being tackled in the backfield, Cordell left the game and was replaced by sophomore quarterback Rivers Belk. Towards the end of the first half, East Rankin struggled offensively but made up for it with their defense. By the end of the first half, one thing was very evident for East Rankin and Winston: both teams ran the ball consistently with success. The East Rankin Patriots’ stacked offensive line was the large contributor for their rushing success. The score at halftime was Winston 10, East Rankin 3.

Despite the rough first half, the East Rankin Patriots came back into the game with an unmatched confidence. Furthermore, the Patriots first string quarterback, Reece Cordell, re-entered the game. The Patriots looked to continue their defensive production from the end of the first half to hopefully put them on top. To kick off the half, Winston received the kickoff from East Rankin. Consistent with the first half, the East Rankin Patriots shut down the running game. Winston matched the East Rankin Patriot defense as well. 

Winston, looking to put points on the board, started to pass the ball to their receivers. With 0:36 left in the third quarter, Winston running back Omar Scott received a handoff and broke to the outside in open field for a 58 yard touchdown run. Scott’s touchdown gave Winston a 17-3 lead. On the next drive, East Rankin running back Brandon Loper struck back with a 53 yard run where he broke five tackles before being tackled at the Winston 11 yard line.

To begin the fourth quarter, Winston had their most dominant drive of the game. In an 89 yard drive, the Patriots had many successful runs and receptions from senior running back Will Chancellor and junior wide receiver Savarion Miller. Despite many flags that pushed Winston back, the Patriots capped off the drive with a 55 yard touchdown reception by senior Bryson Wright.

On East Rankin’s final drive, Brandon Loper continued his dominance on a 47 yard kickoff return. On the last play of the drive, Reece Cordell threw a bullet pass through a tight window to Jace Denson for a 23 yard touchdown to bring the score to 24-10. In a last-ditch effort, East Rankin performed an onside kick, but Winston recovered to finish off the game.

All in all, both teams gave it everything they had until the very last minute. Although the Patriots lost, this game proves that East Rankin is dominant on both sides of the ball. Offensively, East Rankin was able to move the ball downfield thanks to a solid running back core and a phenomenal offensive line. Defensively, the Patriots kept big plays for Winston to a minimum and allowed very few successful pass attempts. Don’t be surprised if East Rankin begins to build momentum as the season progresses. This game was only a stepping stone for what is to come in this hopeful season.