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Photo courtesy of Nick Johnston.
John Carroll’s Zach Archer fights for yardage.
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Photo courtesy of Nick Johnston.
Fairview’s Cade Yeager covers a receiver.
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Photo courtesy of Nick Johnston.
John Carroll’s Mitchell Nutter returns a kick.
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Photo courtesy of Nick Johnston.
John Carroll’s Carson McFadden passes.
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Photo courtesy of Nick Johnston.
John Carroll’s Ryan Redmond catches a pass.
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Photo courtesy of Nick Johnston.
Fairview’s Ashton McLeskey calls out a play.
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Photo courtesy of Nick Johnston.
Fairview coach George Redding talks with Kolt Redding.
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Photo courtesy of Nick Johnston.
Fairview’s Eric Gonzalez looks to make a tack.
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Photo courtesy of Nick Johnston.
John Carroll’s Jaylin Shepherd returns an interception.
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Photo courtesy of Nick Johnston.
Fairview’s Jake Harper runs.
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Photo courtesy of Nick Johnston.
Fairview’s Zane Boyll awaits a kickoff.
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Photo courtesy of Nick Johnston.
Fairview’s Andrew Latham blocks.
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Photo courtesy of Nick Johnston.
Fairview’s Gannon Black runs in for a touchdown.
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Photo courtesy of Nick Johnston.
Fairview’s Zayden Cruce catches a pass.
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Photo courtesy of Nick Johnston.
Fairview’s Kolt Redding hands off to Carson Jones.
CULLMAN – John Carroll Catholic High School supporters had waited so long, more than the lifetimes of every player in gray pants with white jerseys, for a playoff win.
With 1:47 to play in the game, up 22-14 and salting away the clock as a steady rain fell, they could taste it. Then the Cavs were called for back-to-back holding calls, an illegal shift two plays later, and then five real-time minutes of mass confusion about the play clock and game clock sent both fanbases into frenzies.
But a Koron Wright interception with 13 seconds left sealed a thrilling 22-14 win for John Carroll in the first round of the Class 5A playoffs, the first playoff win for the Cavs since 2004.
“I knew it wasn’t going to be easy,” said Cavs head coach Will Mara. “I knew it wasn’t going to just happen. That’s probably where the emotions are coming from.”
The boys who celebrated in the rain Friday at Dafford Smith Stadium weren’t even alive when John Carroll defeated Huffman that year, 17-14. One after the game said his parents might not have even been married then. An emotional Mara spoke through choke-ups after the game.
“Emotion. They’re up against it every week and they keep battling, keep battling, keep battling,” Mara said. “They put their heads down and just kept fighting. I’m just so happy for these guys. I don’t know. Can’t put it into words.”
The first four drives of the game tell the story almost entirely. Fairview quarterback Kolt Redding was intercepted by John Carroll’s Jaylin Shepherd on the third play of the game, which the Cavs turned into a 28-yard field goal by Charles Farr. On the next play from scrimmage, Fairview running back Jake Harper fumbled and the Cavs (9-2) recovered. Three plays later, quarterback Carson McFadden hit Zach Archer for an 8-yard touchdown. A failed two-point try left John Carroll up 9-0.
Fairview responded with a 12-play, 80-yard drive that ended with a Carson Jones 4-yard scoring run, cutting the deficit to 9-7. The Cavs answered with their own 12-play drive, punctuated by another McFadden-to-Archer hookup, this time from 15 yards. Fairview (9-2) scored late in the second quarter when Redding found Gannon Black for a 16-yard touchdown, making it a 16-14 John Carroll lead at halftime.
The lone score of the second half came when Archer bolted 35 yards with 8:26 left in the game.
“I think what was different tonight is we wanted it so bad,” Archer said. “This is a playoff game, and we really want to make it far in the playoffs. I think that shifted it into another gear for me, personally. I wanted it so bad.”
The John Carroll defense held the Aggies to 98 second-half yards. Redding was 2-of-9 for 9 yards in the second half.
“They stepped up,” Mara said of his defense. “We knew Fairview wanted to compress the game, shorten the game and it was going to be a battle of who made the least amount of mistakes. We overcame a lot of mistakes. We probably made more mistakes, but we’ve got kids that toughed it out and made one extra play. It’s tough. We knew they were going to try to shut down Carson and we needed some guys to step up.”
For John Carroll, McFadden finished 11-of-16 for 129 yards and two touchdowns. He rushed for 60 yards on 17 carries. Running back Mitchell Nutter ran 12 times for 45 yards. Archer caught five passes for 49 yards and two touchdowns, and his lone rush was the 35-yard score.
For Fairview, Redding was 9-of-22 for 89 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Harper ran 28 times for 182 yards and lost a fumble.
Speaking of 2004, the cliché would be to rock the bus ride home to music from 2004. Maybe something by Outkast, Mara said.
“That’s what I’m saying,” he said. “Some ‘Hey Ya.’”
But the players will rule the playlist on the drive back to Birmingham, and Outkast doesn’t stand a chance. Archer mentioned a new album that came out Friday, but his mind was already drifting toward next Friday.
“I definitely want to treat it like a 24-hour rule,” he said. “I want to focus on making it as far as we can in the playoffs. What’s going to matter is focusing on one game at a time and not focusing too much on the wins, not being satisfied with one win.”
John Carroll will play host to Guntersville (10-1), who beat Springville 31-7, next week. Mara knows what this weekend now looks like for him.
“We’ll enjoy this one for 24 hours, then I’ll order the paint and start painting on Sunday,” he said.
