Deer Lakes’ ball control tactics not enough to slow down Imani Christian

By: Josh Rizzo
Friday, October 11, 2024 | 10:26 PM

Deer Lakes did what it could to stall Imani Christian sophomore running back Gabriel Jenkins. But when the Lancers’ early success at playing keep-away didn’t result in points, the Saints quickly put the hammer down in an Allegheny 7 Conference showdown Friday night at Graham Field.

Imani, the top Class 3A team in the Trib HSSN rankings, scored four touchdowns in the second quarter and never trailed during a 48-0 victory.

Jenkins finished with a game-high 256 rushing yards and scored four times.

“We had to be disciplined and stay focused,” said Jenkins, who has offers to play at Pitt, Penn State, West Virginia and Maryland. “We couldn’t let anything get into our heads.”

Nothing seemed to bug Imani Christian’s excellent defense. The Saints now have recorded four shutouts, including in back-to-back weeks.

Imani coach LaRoi Johnson said the Saints, who allow an average of 9.0 points per game, will be difficult for anyone to score against.

“We currently have four Division I players, but I feel we have seven,” Johnson said. “Our linebacking corps is outstanding. We play hard, and we play together. We give our best effort, and no one wants to let the next man down.”

This was another tough defeat for the fourth-ranked Lancers (6-2, 3-1). Deer Lakes was shut out for the second straight week

Deer Lakes employed the strategy it hoped to use in the first quarter. The Lancers chewed the clock, and the Saints ran only eight plays from scrimmage. But despite controlling the ball for a majority of the quarter, Deer Lakes didn’t make a dent in the scoreboard.

On the game’s opening drive, Deer Lakes took 6 minutes off the clock on a 12-play, 47-yard drive.

But Imani halted the drive with an interception by William Gorman on fourth down.

“We can’t shoot ourselves in the foot,” Lancers coach Tim Burk said. “We had a great drive. We get a third-and-2, and then we have a false start. Those things mount quickly. If we score in the first quarter, it’s probably a different ballgame.”

The Saints (8-0, 4-0) turned the ball over on downs on the ensuing possessions. Deer Lakes started another lengthy drive that ended with a turnover on downs on the Saints’ 22-yard line.

After one quarter, the game was scoreless, and Imani had run only eight plays from scrimmage.

“We figured they would try to eat some of the clock down,” Johnson said. “We were prepared for that. We pressed down on our guys and put a little more pressure on them up front by pressing down on receivers.”

Jenkins opened up the scoring early in the second quarter with a 22-yard touchdown run. He would score two more touchdowns in the next six minutes to stretch the Saints’ lead to 22-0.

“We had to play all together,” Jenkins said. “I give a lot of credit to my offensive linemen.”

Deer Lakes’ offense didn’t have many answers.

Lancers running back Zaire Williams was limited to 43 yards on 18 carries.

“We have to get back to the team that got us to 6-0,” Burk said. “The last two weeks have been crazy, tough opponents. These are the teams at the top of the conference and 3A. If we want to be like them, we have to play better.”

Tags: Deer Lakes, Imani Christian