Patrick Fallon/Special to the Liberty TribuneLiberty High senior quarterback Jimmy Smelcer takes the ball upfield in the second half of the Blue Jays’ game with Columbia Hickman on Friday, Aug. 29.
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Flawless third quarter sparks Liberty
Jays score 27 points in less than nine minutes after halftime to beat Kewpies
By Kevin Goodwin
COLUMBIA — There were no claims of an impressive halftime speech or chewing-out session from a coach to motivate the players.
But whatever happened to the Liberty High football team in its locker room after the first half against Columbia Hickman should be bottled up and saved for later.
The Blue Jays, who struggled for much of the first half and trailed by a field goal, roared out of the locker room, scoring 27 points in a span of just over 8 minutes to hammer the Kewpies 34-10 in their season opener Friday, Aug. 29.
“There wasn’t any major halftime speech or anything like it,” said Liberty coach Joel Wells, who won his opening game with the Blue Jays. “It was just a matter of a few adjustments and coming out and establishing momentum. We turned the whole thing and we jumped on them like a shark smelling blood.”
And each phase of the game contributed to Liberty’s exceptional third quarter. The special teams turned in a blocked punt by Jameson Drew after Hickman’s first possession, which the Blue Jays converted with quarterback Jimmy Smelcer’s 3-yard touchdown run that gave Liberty a 14-10 lead.
Senior kicker Derek Koon pooched the ensuing kickoff and Liberty recovered it at the Hickman 25.
“He’s one of the better kickers that I’ve had,” Wells said. “There’s more to kicking than making field goals and extra points, and that paid off for us.”
Liberty’s passing offense found its rhythm. Smelcer connected for two touchdowns with 6-foot-5 junior wide receiver Marcus Lucas.
The Blue Jays appeared to have scored on their first play after the pooch kickoff with a 25-yard pass from Smelcer to Lucas. But Lucas was called for offensive pass interference. On the very next play, Smelcer found Lucas again for a 40-yard touchdown for a 21-10 lead.
“Jimmy Smelcer had a great game throwing the ball, and I thought the thing that broke the thing open was overcoming the penalties,” Wells said.
Smelcer, who completed 13 of 23 passes for 233 yards and three touchdowns, hit Lucas (six catches for 123 yards) to make it 27-10 with a 26-yard scoring pass with 6:29 remaining in the third quarter.
Hickman had a bad punt snap on its next possession, which was recovered at the Kewpies’ 2-yard-line. Two plays later, Katro Keels scored on a 4-yard run for a 24-point lead.
Liberty’s defense made an about-face, shutting down Hickman’s spread attack. The Kewpies gained 274 yards in the first half, but only 39 yards in the last two quarters.
“The first half, we didn’t have our feet underneath us and we started to understand our keys and what was going on around us,” said junior linebacker Devin Montague. “I think we really stepped up, started flying around and making plays.”
Liberty was fortunate to be down by only three points at halftime. Hickman had four possessions inside the Blue Jays’ 20 in the first half, but came away with only three points.
Jake Schmitt recovered a Hickman fumble on the Kewpies’ first possession at the Liberty 15. Hickman also missed a 28-yard field goal late in the first half.
“We felt like they had us on the verge in the first half,” Wells said. “We were surviving there for a little while.”
Sports writer Kevin Goodwin can be reached at 389-6652 or kgoodwin@npgco.com.
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But whatever happened to the Liberty High football team in its locker room after the first half against Columbia Hickman should be bottled up and saved for later.
The Blue Jays, who struggled for much of the first half and trailed by a field goal, roared out of the locker room, scoring 27 points in a span of just over 8 minutes to hammer the Kewpies 34-10 in their season opener Friday, Aug. 29.
“There wasn’t any major halftime speech or anything like it,” said Liberty coach Joel Wells, who won his opening game with the Blue Jays. “It was just a matter of a few adjustments and coming out and establishing momentum. We turned the whole thing and we jumped on them like a shark smelling blood.”
And each phase of the game contributed to Liberty’s exceptional third quarter. The special teams turned in a blocked punt by Jameson Drew after Hickman’s first possession, which the Blue Jays converted with quarterback Jimmy Smelcer’s 3-yard touchdown run that gave Liberty a 14-10 lead.
Senior kicker Derek Koon pooched the ensuing kickoff and Liberty recovered it at the Hickman 25.
“He’s one of the better kickers that I’ve had,” Wells said. “There’s more to kicking than making field goals and extra points, and that paid off for us.”
Liberty’s passing offense found its rhythm. Smelcer connected for two touchdowns with 6-foot-5 junior wide receiver Marcus Lucas.
The Blue Jays appeared to have scored on their first play after the pooch kickoff with a 25-yard pass from Smelcer to Lucas. But Lucas was called for offensive pass interference. On the very next play, Smelcer found Lucas again for a 40-yard touchdown for a 21-10 lead.
“Jimmy Smelcer had a great game throwing the ball, and I thought the thing that broke the thing open was overcoming the penalties,” Wells said.
Smelcer, who completed 13 of 23 passes for 233 yards and three touchdowns, hit Lucas (six catches for 123 yards) to make it 27-10 with a 26-yard scoring pass with 6:29 remaining in the third quarter.
Hickman had a bad punt snap on its next possession, which was recovered at the Kewpies’ 2-yard-line. Two plays later, Katro Keels scored on a 4-yard run for a 24-point lead.
Liberty’s defense made an about-face, shutting down Hickman’s spread attack. The Kewpies gained 274 yards in the first half, but only 39 yards in the last two quarters.
“The first half, we didn’t have our feet underneath us and we started to understand our keys and what was going on around us,” said junior linebacker Devin Montague. “I think we really stepped up, started flying around and making plays.”
Liberty was fortunate to be down by only three points at halftime. Hickman had four possessions inside the Blue Jays’ 20 in the first half, but came away with only three points.
Jake Schmitt recovered a Hickman fumble on the Kewpies’ first possession at the Liberty 15. Hickman also missed a 28-yard field goal late in the first half.
“We felt like they had us on the verge in the first half,” Wells said. “We were surviving there for a little while.”
Sports writer Kevin Goodwin can be reached at 389-6652 or kgoodwin@npgco.com.