Frederica Academy Knights
Jason Bishop Show w Kipp Branch Sept 23
Knights Knock Off Trinity
By: Alex Mathis
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
It had been a total of 20 days since the Knights last took the field in Atlanta against powerhouse Wesleyan.
The Knights went into unfamiliar territory against Wesleyan but played hard the entire game. Turnovers cost the Knights in that game and that would be the last game they would play for a while because Hurricane Irma would put a halt on the Knights’ season.
When the Frederica Knights evacuated their campus, they did not know what they would come back to. Nor when they would be allowed to be back on campus.
Just last year the Knights were in this same position when Hurricane Matthew decided to wreak havoc on St. Simons Island. This year, Hurricane Irma would cause the Knights to cancel their games against Valwood and Memorial Day School.
Luckily, this year Frederica Academy only suffered minor damage. A bent goal post and a few missing lights would be all the damage dished out from Irma. Frederica got back to some normalcy when they resumed practice on Monday
Brandon Derrick’s Knights started out fast against the Trinity Christian Crusaders. The defense came out and forced a punt. The Knights ensuing drive stalled as well, but the Knights got a great punt from John Mitchell Brock and pinned the Crusaders inside the 5.
The Frederica defense, led by stud linebacker Harry Veal, made another great stand and forced a punt.
The first score of the game for the Knights came with a Jaylin Simpson scamper into the endzone. The next offensive possession saw Jaylin Simpson connecting with Jashawn Sheffield for a big pass down the center of the field. The Knights finished the half with scores from Isaiah Jackson and a huge catch from Harry Veal from Jaylin Simpson.
Frederica went in at halftime up 21 points and with over 200 yards of offense. The defense held the Crusaders to only 53 yards of offense.
Coach Derrick’s and Burkett’s goal defensively this week was to stuff the run and they did a great job in the first half doing that. The Crusaders struggled to find running lanes in their Wing-T offense.
Offensively, Coach Derrick’s goal was to be efficient and move the ball down the field to score and score often. They were able to do that in the first half.
The long 20 day break without playing a game seemed to show in the second half. Frederica struggled on offense to start the half.
Jaylin Simpson fumbled on the first offense possession in the second half. That fumble led to the Crusaders first score as they scooped and scored.
The Knights got another big play on defense from Avery Cobb. Cobb intercepted a pass from Trinity’s quarterback and sprinted through the Crusaders defenders for a pick 6.
After this spectacular play, the Knights struggled to stop the passing game of the Crusaders. Trinity Christian amassed 250 yards of offense in the 4th quarter but this was not enough to beat the Knights.
Isaiah finished the night with 188 yards rushing and Simpson had 196 all-purpose yards.
Harry Veal played lights out on defense. Veal is one of the best linebackers in Southeast Georgia and he showed that on Friday.
The offensive and defensive lines also played great on the night. The offensive line helped pave the way for almost 300 yards of rushing offence. The defensive line did a great job stuffing the run and pressuring the quarterback as well.
Next week the Knights will travel to play Pinewood. The winner of the Frederica versus Pinewood game traditionally goes on to win the region. The Knights look to go 2-0 next week.
SSE Minute Sept 23
Brandon Derrick Show September 20
Brandon Derrick Show Sept 6
Jason Bishop Show w Kipp Branch Sept 2
SSE minute September 1
Brandon Derrick Show August 30
Frederica Academy Knights Destroys Bethesda
By: Alex Mathis
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The Frederica Knights traveled to Savannah to take on Bethesda Day School and brought a lot of the rain they had on St. Simons this week with them.
Frederica got off the bus and only had the pleasure of staying dry for about 10 minutes. The rest of the night they would be saturated with water.
The Knights started off very fast. The first play of the game saw Jaylin Simpson sprinting up the sideline on a quarterback zone read.
The next play was not as positive. Jaylin Simpson tried connected with Santana Clark in the end zone for a long pass but was intercepted by the Bethesda defender. The ensuing defensive play the Knights registered a safety by defensive tackle Cole Hinson. This would be the last play for 45 minutes due to a lighting delay.
When play resumed the Knights’ offense dominated. The Knights scored quickly out of the break with Jaylin Simpson connecting with Santana Clark on a screen pass. The rain did not seem to slow the Knights down on the night.
Jaylin Simpson scored on an 80-yard touchdown run to keep the scoring going. Trace Dorminy got in on the quarterback rushing touchdowns as well by scoring on a quarterback keeper. Trace also found sophomore, Avery Cobb for a touchdown.
Isaiah Jackson did a great job running the ball is well. His field vision allows him to make every run an opportunity for 6. Jackson found pay dirt as well on the night.
Senior Rett Thompson ran the ball hard viscously on the night. Thompson found the end zone twice on the night. He had a rushing touchdown and also a kick return for a touchdown as well. The Knights went on to score 49 straight points. There were a lot of freshmen that got to see action on the night. This will pay off as the season progresses.
The Frederica defense was lights out. Led by Harry Veal, the Knights forced several turnovers on the night.
Harry Veal is may be one of the best linebackers in Glynn County this year. He could be one of those guys we watch on Saturdays.
There were a few highlights plays on defense. Hard hits by Deke Jernigan, Tyler Pierce, Josh Meadows, Matthew Hagstrom, and others and also an interception and big return by Santana Clark.
The biggest play on defense came from junior defensive back, Jackson Wetzler. Wetzler broke on a bubble screen from his cornerback position and intercepted the ball and returned it 50 yards for the pick 6. This was indeed the defensive play of the night.
Frederica’s youngsters did a great job as well. William Brock, Eli Fritchman, Kyle Perez, Josh Elliot, and Will Counts all made excellent defensive plays on the night.
The Knights finished off Bethesda 62-12. Head Coach Brandon Derrick addressed his team at the end of the game. He praised his team for coming in, battling the conditions and dominating the game the way they did.
Frederica has a huge game next week. This week will be a GISA versus GHSA battle in Atlanta against Wesleyan. FA will face a very talented and disciplined team that has a few division 1 players.
This is will be a test but Coach Derrick knew that when Wesleyan was scheduled. Coach Derrick’s favorite message to his team is, “In the words of Ric Flair, if you want to be the man you have to beat the man.”
The Knights will step into the ring next week to take on the man and they hope to make some noise in Atlanta.
Jason Bishop Show w Kipp Branch Aug 26
