Jackson football fights off Lindbergh, advances to district final

With the season quickly going on the line, Jackson football showed some signs of strife in the midgame but eventually held on to claim a 31-14 victory over the Lindbergh Flyers in Friday night’s playoff opener.

Led by an unrelenting defensive effort that rarely gave room to a highly competitive and physical Flyer offense, Jackson escaped a couple of costly miscues to seal a second consecutive berth in the district championship game.

The Indians rarely match up with a team that can go pound-for-pound with their size, but against a Lindbergh team led by Indians alum Nathan Norman, they got all they could ask for in a feisty affair.

The win improved Jackson to 8-2 on the season, marking the seventh win in a row since beginning 1-2 against some tough St. Louis competition.

Lindbergh dropped to 8-3, a record largely unreflective of the Flyers’ competitiveness as, after Friday night, its three victorious opponents combined for just seven losses this season.

While marking a year since his debut against the same Lindbergh team in the playoffs, junior quarterback Drew Parsons scored two touchdowns on the ground to ice out Jackson’s seventh consecutive victory.

Aided by two more scores from sophomore back Jaylon Hampton, one through the air and one on the ground, Jackson broke out of its third-quarter slump to send the home fans happy and keep the season alive.

“Proud of our kids,” Indians coach Ryan Nesbitt said. “Showed some grit and resilience.

“Right now, at this time of the year, it doesn’t matter what it looks like. It’s just about getting the job done.”

That they did, as when the Indians needed points the most, they got some big answers as Parsons rushed three quarters of the field for a long score, while Hampton knocked heads with some testy Flyers defenders.

It won’t show up on paper as the most glorious win, but Jackson showed expertise on all three sides of the ball at one point or another, helping overcome Lindbergh’s best effort at “The Pit” for the eighth win of the season.

Going back to Week 5 of the regular season, the Indian defense hasn’t surrendered more than seven points in the first half, last failing to do so in the SEMO North opener against the Farmington Knights.

That spark plug defense created three turnovers in Jackson’s Friday night playoff victory, led by senior defensive back Tyson Ford who intercepted a ball in the first quarter and later recovered a fumble.

Emerging as an integral piece of Jackson’s lockdown secondary unit, Ford’s mentality against a large, daunting Lindbergh offense never wavered as he led the team back to the district finals.

”We like to hit people on defense, as you can tell,” Ford laughed.

“It was a great night. We had a lot of fun out there. I’m just proud of our boys.”

Opening the game up with Parsons’ first rushing touchdown, Ford cut the Flyers’ opening possession short with a pick off a Flyer wideout’s hands to put Jackson right back on the field.

On the first play of that ensuing drive, Hampton hauled in a 40-plus-yard receiving score completely untouched on a wheel route to help the Indians cruise to a 14-point lead early.

Connor Lanham got the Flyers on the board on their next drive, with a Kai Crowe field goal ending the first-half scoring at 17-7 Jackson.

A Parsons third-quarter fumble helped Lindbergh close that gap to 17-14 on a long return, but the quarterback got right back at the Flyers with a full-field rushing score to extend it back to a 10-point lead.

Going into the fourth quarter, Jackson searched for insurance and got it after a long run from Hampton, shoved out of bounds at the Flyer 3, slammed a second after for a personal foul gain of about 4 1/2 feet, eventually punching it in for the final score a play later.

With his back against the wall, Parsons orchestrated a masterful final few drives to end the game, making the most he could against an exceptional Lindbergh defense at home.

“I’m really happy for him,” Nesbitt said. “Couldn’t be more happy that it was him who ripped off a 79-yarder and got us back to 10.

“That kind of allowed us to take a deep breath and get back to the business at hand.”

The business now is quite familiar, preparing to make a trip to Class 6 District 1 No. 1 Seckman for a battle with the undefeated Jaguars for a second year in a row.

The Jags are coming off a second seasonal victory against Oakville, defeating the Tigers 34-7 at home to set up a date with Jackson as the two teams combined for 17 consecutive victories going into a Friday, Nov. 15, showdown in Imperial.

Last season, Jackson showed no signs of weakness as it charged out to a huge 48-0 halftime lead, eventually closing out a 55-21 victory over Seckman to claim its first Class 6 division title after years as a Class 5 power.

It’s of course a familiar stage for the Indians, coming in with a chip on their shoulder knowing full well exactly how last year went, with both teams entering in similar standing.

But it’s important to address the differences between now and then, with Nesbitt emphasizing the elimination of comfort going into a matchup with an undefeated foe on the road.

The Jaguars have momentum, and after some teaching points brought up in Friday’s victory, Jackson will have plenty to address before making a business trip up Interstate 55 next weekend.

“That was last year, this is a new year,” Nesbitt began. “New teams, new game. We’re just going one week at a time, and right now we’re just trying to fight for another opportunity to spend a week together.”