By Jim Cotter
CHILLICOTHE—-Football is a game that is measured in yards. However, for the St. Joseph-Ogden Spartans on Friday night, the contest came down to a mere few inches.
The Spartans couldn’t advance the ball past the goal line from the one-yard line, despite having three chances to do so, and as a result, fell 19-16 to the Grey Ghosts of Illinois Valley Central in an Illini Prairie Conference game at Chillicothe.
SJO (4-3) fell behind early, and trailed for the entire first half, only mustering a safety, as the IVC quarterback was called for intentional grounding in the end zone, resulting in two points for the Spartans, as they trailed 12-2 heading into the halftime locker room.
The Spartans finally caught fire to begin the second half, as signal caller Crayton Burnett found senior Joel Orcutt open for a 16-yard touchdown strike, and after a successful two-point conversion by that same duo, SJO trailed by just two points at 12-10 and had the momentum.
The Spartans held the Grey Ghosts on their next possession, and marched the ball right down the field, resulting in a five-yard run by Jarrett Stevenson to put SJO up 16-12. Stevenson, who is a junior, finished the game with 20 carries for 83 yards and the touchdown.
Burnett, who is a sophomore, finished the game 9 of 21 for 139 yards and the touchdown to Orcutt. Burnett was pressed into action in the second half of SJO’s 34-14 loss at home against Prairie Central one week earlier, and for the most part, handled himself well during the game.
“We felt pretty good about our ability to sneak the ball in because with the guys we have up front, we’ve been successful doing it all season, but you have to give them (IVC) credit. They knew what was coming and they didn’t give us any room for error and made plays”, SJO head coach Shawn Skinner said following the game on the final few plays and the inability to get the ball across the goal line.
Stevenson, who was filling in for the injured Dwight Colvin, who sprained his ankle in the loss to Prairie Central, did a commendable job, which didn’t go unnoticed by his coach either.
“Jarrett did a great job and responded to a tough situation, and all he did was perform the best that he could, which is all you can ask for from him”, Skinner added regarding Stevenson and the job he did in running the football.
Orcutt caught three passes for 45 yards, while fellow senior Jack Cook hauled in two catches for 61 yards, including a 48-yard catch that set up the Spartans’ second score of the game.
IVC (3-4) was led on offense by their workhorse running back Ethan Kempf, who carried the ball 20 times for 66 yards and scored twice, from one and two yards. Grey Ghosts quarterback Alex Merlo was efficient through the air, completing 12 of 22 passes for 220 yards and a touchdown strike to Alex Fulton for 69 yards, which put IVC on the board in the first quarter. Fulton finished the game with five grabs for 105 total yards.
The Spartans will travel to Olympia this coming Friday night for their final conference road game in the 2018 season and will have their backs up against the wall when they take on the other Spartans. Olympia is 1-6 on the season and were defeated 36-14 by Prairie Central on Friday night in Fairbury. SJO still needs one victory to officially become playoff eligible, and with Monticello looming for a week nine showdown in St. Joseph, the need for another win has reached the crucial stage.
