High school football: Stafford ends losing streak in grand fashion, rallying to beat James Monroe | High School

Winning isn’t something the Indians have done much of in recent years. So the Stafford supporters’ hesitation of sorts about what to do as the game’s final seconds ticked away was more than a little understandable following the conclusion of their 35–14 beatdown of the Yellow Jackets at Lloyd A. Busch Stadium. The win ended a 20-game losing streak dating back to 2019.

It didn’t long, however, before excited students figured it out and began massing in the end zone to greet the victors, who accounted for the game’s final 28 points to erase an early 14–7 deficit.

“I’ve been telling ‘em since February that they had it in ‘em,” first-year Stafford coach Jeff Drugatz said after winning his first game and getting a Gatorade shower for his efforts. “I’The last few months I’ve been more of an assistant coach than a psychology professor. They just needed to believe.”

Senior safety Skilayr atkinson, a senior-free safety, made sure his team believed in him by intercepting two passes. One of these passes was a touchdown return in the third quarter. He was able to block a James Monroe punt and recover it in the endzone to stop the Indians from losing.

“It felt really good,”Atkinson spoke about his night. “We really needed a win.”

The depth-starved Yellow Jackets (0–1), who will try to rebound when they host Charlottesville next week, managed just two first downs and a meager 45 yards of total offense in the decisive second half. James Monroe ran just 16 yards for the evening.

“We didn’t match their physicality,”George Coghill was the coach. “We got beat up in the trenches.”

It didn’t help James Monroe that speedy wide receiver Tyson Taylor missed most of the second half with an injury after tallying eight of his nine catches before the break.

Stafford (1–0), which plays at Chancellor next week, eventually wore down its visitors. Senior quarterback Aidan McConnell completed six out of nine passes for 169 yard and two touchdowns. James Monroe had to rely solely on the passing game, despite the Indians defense having struggled in recent years.

“This was a huge win because the key is to get these guys to believe,” Drugatz said. “We had to get this train pushed in the right direction.”

James Monroe got things started when senior tailback Ke’Shaun Wallace plunged into the end zone from 1 yard to give the Yellow Jackets a 7–0 lead with 7:33 left in the first half.

Stafford tied the score at 7-1 when McConnell and Kimani Morton teamed up for a 32 yard pitch-and-catch with 4 minutes remaining in the first half.

The Indians accounted for touchdowns on both their third-quarter drives and got an additional boost from Atkinson’s 49-yard interception return for a score to close the third period.