Aynor defense shows up just in time in a victory over West Columbus (N.C.)

Following a second quarter that had a combined 42 points scored, defense seemed like an afterthought as Aynor hosted West Columbus (N.C.). Yet, it was that side of the ball that saved the Blue Jackets when they needed it most.

Aynor (3-1) held the Vikings (1-3) to 67 yards of offense and six points in the second half and junior quarterback Caleb Jenerette broke a 32-all tie with a 1-yard scoring run on fourth down midway through the final quarter as the Blue Jackets downed West Columbus 40-32 on Friday night.

“I thought our defense obviously played pretty poor in the first half,” Aynor coach Jody Jenerette said. “They came out and got a bunch of stops for us in the second half that we had to have. … It felt good to come out and fight a little bit. We hadn’t fought in a long time, so I was real proud of our guys.”

The teams combined for 10 offensive possessions in the first half and eight of those ended in touchdowns. The only stops came on the Vikings’ game-opening drive as Aynor forced a quick three-and-out and at the end of the half when Aynor took a knee to run out the clock.

The second half was a different story as each team found the end zone just once. The Aynor offense kept piling up the yards, outgaining the Vikings 155-62 in the second half and 409-293 for the game. West Columbus tied the game at 32 on Marco Torres’ 23-yard touchdown run inside the first minute of the final quarter. Aynor responded with an 11-play, 59-yard drive that ended with Caleb Jenerette faking a handoff and walking into the right side of the end zone untouched. The drive ate up five minutes off the clock.

On the next possession for West Columbus, the Aynor defense came up big with two tackles for loss and a fourth-down interception by Blake Gore that was forced by heavy pressure on Vikings quarterback Johnny McFaddin. The Blue Jackets offense then ran the final 4:51 off the clock.

Both teams found the end zone five times on the night, but Aynor converted on each two-point attempt while the Vikings failed on four of their five tries.

“Their running backs are good,” West Columbus coach Jason Jones said, “but their linemen get downhill as well as anybody I have seen in the time that I have been watching, playing or coaching football. You get linemen that get downhill and you stand up just a little bit, it is going to be lights out for you. (Aynor does) a great job of getting downhill and their backs get right on top of their blockers’ backs, and ride them as far as they can ride them, and then when they get a crease they just go.”

Aynor had seven players carry the ball on the night led by Caleb Jenerette, who rushed 17 times for 98 yards and two scores. Senior Zach Todd had 92 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries while senior Colie Rogers rushed eight times for 72 yards. Jalen Dixon and Gore also had rushing touchdowns.

“I told everybody all year we are going to be about a five- or six-horse guy,” Jody Jenerette said. “We saw it tonight.”

West Columbus was led by senior Fred Evans, who had touchdown runs of 6, 34, and 10 yards as he rushed for 92 yards on 15 carries. McFaddin had 67 yards and a touchdown rushing on 11 carries and also threw for 61 yards.

The Blue Jackets host Lake View next Friday while West Columbus will host Whiteville (N.C.).

“We are not playing as good as we can play, but we are getting closer,” Jody Jenerette said. “We got some guys that just don’t get it right now, but we are progressing in the right way.”

Aynor had a halftime ceremony to retire the number 64 worn by current NFL player T.J. Johnson, who starred for the Blue Jackets from 2004-07. Johnson went on to play offensive line for the University of South Carolina and started a school-record 53 games for the Gamecocks. He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the seventh round of the 2013 NFL Draft and is currently listed as the backup center for the Bengals.

“The first day we came out here, he is a baseball guy,” Jody Jenerette said of Johnson. “So he came up to me and he has a book written by Nolan Ryan, it is the fundamentals of baseball. I said, ‘I tell you what you do, you go home tonight, you take that book you throw it in the trash and stand in front of your mirror because I have never seen 80,000 people come watch anybody pitch a college baseball game. So get your butt in the weight room tomorrow and let’s go.’ From then on, he is a stud. He is a class guy and he is the kind of guy you want to represent your school.”

The Bengals host San Diego at 1 p.m. Sunday.

This story was originally published September 18, 2015 at 11:58 PM with the headline "Aynor defense shows up just in time in a victory over West Columbus (N.C.)."