Loris thwarts all Aynor drives en route to shutout win

Drive after drive, Aynor got into Loris territory.

Series after series, it amounted to empty yards.

The Lions earned a much-needed 27-0 win over Aynor on Friday after all seven Blue Jackets drives stalled after moving past the 50-yard line. It didn’t matter than Jody Jenerette’s team ran more than 70 offensive plays or that it earned twice as many first downs in the game.

“They’re going to get yardage; they’re going to get first downs. That’s the nature of the beast,” coach Jamie Snider said. “The difference was when they got to our side of the field, we were able to get them behind the chains. We were able to keep them from continuing drives.”

Aynor finished the night with seven different players earning at least three carries out of its hammer offense. But much of that was out of necessity.

The Blue Jackets were already banged up and then had four players – including two running backs – go down to injury. All of them found some success moving the ball, but not into the end zone.

It was like that throughout the night.

Aynor ran 40 offensive plays in the first half alone. However, the Blue Jackets turned it over on downs three times and were forced to punt on their other possession before the break, when they trailed 14-0.

Desmond Dozier’s two third-quarter touchdowns – including an 81-yard punt return – then put the game away, effectively knocking the Blue Jackets out of the playoff picture.

“Every time we come over here, we’ll go 20-to-20 really good, and then we’ll get bogged down,” Jenerette said. “We’d get a dumb penalty or miss a block. The thing about Aynor football, when it’s second-and-15, anything behind the chains is real hard.”

The misdirection offense started to pale in comparison to Loris’ front seven. Linebacker Heath Reaves, for instance, had 12.5 tackles and a sack.

Mack McLeod also added an interception and the Lions as a whole ended up with 12 tackles for loss. It was the first time Loris had shut out Aynor since 2011 and just the second time since 2000.

“It shows that when we need it, we can do it,” Reaves said. “We should be able to do it all the time. I don’t think expectations change. I think people change, and we just try to adapt.”

The Lions have clinched a playoff berth. However, with four teams in Region VIII-AA playing next week, positioning is still up in the air.

A win over Marion on Friday would only help Loris’ seeding. Of course, that would require more of the same.

The Swamp Foxes run a close-knit, run-based package similar to Aynor’s.

“They’re offense is so hard to prepare for,” Snider said. “… They moved the ball, but I’m proud of our kids. Now, we’ve got to go do it again against the same type of football next week.”

This story was originally published October 30, 2015 at 10:34 PM with the headline "Loris thwarts all Aynor drives en route to shutout win."