The Saint James Trojans defeated the Prattville Christian Panthers, 34-0, at home on Friday night in the region opener for both teams at Carlisle Field.
The Trojans are now 40-3 in region play over the last six years, a record that is the best in the Alabama High School Athletic Association.
When asked about how his teams have been so stout against region opponents, 11th-year Trojans head coach Jimmy Perry gave a good coach answer and then praised the Panthers for the effort they showed.
“Its just been good boys playing good football,” said Perry. “But I still have to give credit to PCA, they have a few players out sick, and they came out here and played their fannies off.”
The Trojans (2-1) will travel to Greensboro next Friday to face off against the Raiders for the first time in school history in a region contest next Friday. When asked about the challenges of playing a first-time opponent, coach Perry was absolutely focused on his team first.
“We’ve got to focus on us first, and we can’t start looking at (Greensboro) before we look at ourselves,” he said. “We’re going to all come back on Monday and start getting our team ready for our next opponent.”
Junior quarterback KJ Jackson completed 9 of 10 passes for 208 yards and three touchdowns, all coming in the first half in a game that featured only 30 offensive plays by the Trojans.
Junior wide receiver Clint Houser caught three passes for 76 yards and two touchdowns, while junior wide receiver Ziggy Holloway caught two passes for 70 yards and a touchdown.
Senior running back Cosner Harrison ran the ball eight times for 38 yards and two touchdowns, scoring the game’s final touchdown in the third quarter after coaches had agreed on a running clock.
The Panthers (1-2 overall and 0-1 in region play) have now lost two games in a row, but their season is still young, and they can start their turnaround when the Panthers face the Raiders in two weeks after an off- week next Friday.
The Trojans got on the board very early in the game after Harrison ran in a 13-yard touchdown on the fourth play of the game. Later in the first quarter, the Trojans scored again after Houser caught a 7-yard pass from Jackson. With only seconds left in the first quarter, Holloway caught a short pass from Jackson and ran 59 yards for the score.
Houser caught his second touchdown of the game after a 53-yard pass from Jackson and went to the end zone for a 27-0 lead at the half.
