Jackson celebrates first win of season

EVERETT — The chest bumping, yelling and cheering in the locker room after the game said it all.

Finally, the Jackson football team had gotten it right.

The Wolfpack came from behind to beat Shorecrest 21-17 Sept. 22 to win its first game of the season after starting with three losses.

“We’ve breathed life back into the season,” Jackson head coach Joel Vincent said. “We’re back in the chase.”

Sophomore tailback Taylor Cox ran wild, racking up 267 yards on 29 carries while quarterback Jake Gelakoska ran for a touchdown and threw for two more to lead Jackson to the Western Conference South Division victory at Everett Memorial Stadium.

Jackson, who handed the Scots their only league loss last season, has owned the Scots in recent years.

Last week’s win gives the Wolfpack, 1-2 Wesco South, 1-3 overall, a chance to put together a win streak with a game against Lynnwood at 5 p.m. tonight (Friday, Sept. 29).

“It’s just step one of where we need to be,” Cox said.

Gelakoska, an Oregon State recruit, threw a 3-yard touchdown strike to receiver Jamie Eisinger with 7:35 left to cap a 16-play, 94-yard drive that gave Jackson its first lead of the game. In the third quarter, Shorecrest’s Elliott Richards converted a 27-yard field goal to break a 14-14 halftime tie.

Gelakoska struggled with the Shorecrest pass rush especially in the first half and only completed 5 of 13 passes. But the ones he did complete were clutch. After a sack, he faced a second-and-33 situation from the Jackson 42-yard line on the final scoring drive. On the next play, he hit Colby Robinson for a 15-yard gain. On a more manageable third-and-18, Gelakoska struck again, finding Billy Green for a 21-yard gain and a first down at the Shorecrest 22. Four plays later, he zinged the ball to Eisinger, who was camped inside the goal line, for what proved to be the winning score.

While Gelakoska made plays at opportune times, the much-maligned Jackson defense did as well.

The defense, which had been suspect all year, gave up 42 points to Mariner the week before, and had a lot to prove.

That opportunity came late in the fourth quarter with Shorecrest driving for the go-ahead touchdown in Jackson territory.

After the Wolfpack stopped Shorecrest’s Grady Small on second down for no gain and Lamonte Edwards for a 1-yard gain on third-and-three, the Scots faced fourth-and-two at the Jackson 40.

The play, as expected, went to Small, one of the league’s top rushers who piled up 190 yards on 30 carries.

But this time Small went nowhere.

Jackson’s defense, led by sophomore defensive back Brian Morse and freshman linebacker Riley Carr, stuffed Small at the line of scrimmage and the Wolfpack took over.

“We were really focused on swarming to the ball,” said Morse, who also recovered a fumble in the first half.

Shorecrest head coach Mike Wollan said the plan was to run Small to the weak side but Jackson dropped another lineman down and made the play.

“(Small) was a workhorse for us all night,” Wollan said. “Unfortunately we came up a little bit short.”

The defense buckled down knowing it might be the last chance it would have to stop Shorecrest, Morse said.

“We made huge strides in that area,” Vincent said referring to the defense.

Cox chewed up yards on the ensuing possession, racking up a couple first downs, and Gelakoska kneeled down as the clock ran out.

Although he did not score a touchdown, Cox’s running kept touchdown drives alive, as he churned out yards after taking hits.

“He’s got intangibles you can’t coach, speed and vision and change of direction,” Vincent said. “He’s a delight to have on our team. He’s such a polite and thoughtful young man. He’s one of the good ones.”

Cox credited the offensive line for paving the way for his big night.

“They did an outstanding job,” Cox said. “They work hard every day in practice.”

The last minute of the first half included touchdowns by both teams. Shorecrest receiver Kevin Ramos plucked a tipped ball out of the air for an 18-yard touchdown pass from Pierce Rankin with 59 seconds left. Rankin threw the ball into triple coverage but none of the Jackson defensive backs could come down with it. Ramos’ fortuitous catch capped a 10-play, 61-yard drive.

Jackson responded quickly with three runs by Cox that put the ball on the 29-yard line. On the next play, Gelakoska found Billy Green streaking down the left sideline for the touchdown with three seconds left in the half.

“We gave up a big play at the end of the first half to let them back in the game,” Wollan said. “It was a big momentum swing.”

Shorecrest struck first on a 6-yard touchdown run by Rankin with 1:32 left to play in the first quarter. Jackson responded when Gelakoska made a spin move on a 16-yard jaunt into the end zone to even the score at 7-7 after Kevin Springer’s extra point.

Jackson receiver Kawika Emsley-Pai, who led the team in catches and yards last year, was supposed to be out for the season because of a stress fracture in his back. However, the senior wants to get back on the field if he gets cleared by his doctor, although Vincent said he doesn’t know if or when that will happen.

“I hope it’s when we’re playing games that really, really matter and that means all 70 of us in the meantime have gotten the job done,” Vincent said.

Jackson (1-2 Wesco South, 1-3 overall) plays Lynnwood (0-4, 0-4) at 5 p.m. tonight (Friday, Sept. 29) at Edmonds Stadium while Shorecrest (1-3, 1-3) hosts Meadowdale (1-2, 1-3) at 7 p.m. Shoreline Stadium.

The Mavericks have lost to first-place Edmonds-Woodway and a last-second interception killed a potential game-winning drive against Mariner last week.

“Meadowdale, they’ve been on the short end of tough breaks so far,” Wollan said. “As far as us and Meadowdale, we both need a win right now.”

The Scots and Mavericks are among the Class 3A teams vying for the top seed out of the Western Conference to the District 1 playoffs.

Meadowdale runs a lot of misdirection out of its backfield and some Wing-T sets, which present a challenge to defenses.

“You have to be able to adjust on the fly to all their sets,” Wollan said. “We have our work cut out for us.”

Two Shorecrest starters, left guard Justin Kofoed (back) and center Jeff Waddingham (rib muscle) missed the Jackson game but should be back against Meadowdale.