FLORRISANT, Mo. - The Jefferson City Jays wasted no time showing off their revamped offense in a 64-34 drubbing over McCluer North Friday night.
Junior Gunnar See made his debut as the starting quarterback. He showed his versatility with four passing touchdowns and three rushing touchdowns.
The Jays offense fired on all cylinders nearly through the entirety of the game.
On the first play from scrimmage, See bobbled a snap from the shotgun. The play resulted in a McCluer North fumble recovery at the Jays' 20-yard line.
"That mental error gave (McCluer North) momentum," Jays head coach Ted LePage said. "It was scary at that point."
McCluer North, Class 5 No. 8 in the Missouri preseason poll, quickly took advantage. Stars quarterback Vernell Rue found highly touted wide receiver Harry Ballard in the end zone for a touchdown on the first play following the turnover to take a 6-0 lead in the season opener.
That connection became a common theme throughout the 2 hour, 30 minute contest. Ballard was a force to be reckoned with. The 6-foot-3 playmaker totaled five touchdowns, four receiving and one rushing.
"I know there were a lot of points given up, but that may be the best football player in the state of Missouri," LePage said of Ballard. "That young man does things individually that I haven't seen done on the football field in a long time."
LePage was pleased with how his team played.
"The rest of the first half we played really, really good football," he said. "I saw a lot of composure. Because after that first bad series, that's a time where a young player really could go in a shell. It didn't affect him."
See connected with senior wide receiver Daniel Ellinger on a fake handoff screen play. It resulted in a 45-yard score to tie up the score. The Stars followed that up with their best drive of the game. McCluer North ran seven plays, ending in a Ballard touchdown to reclaim a 12-6 lead.
Senior running back Denzel Wilson ran a hard two yards for a touchdown with six minutes left in the first quarter. The J.T. Bohlken point after touchdown put the Jays up 13-12. They didn't trail from there.
Jefferson City, Class 6 No. 6 in the Missouri preseason poll, scored five unanswered touchdowns, four of them coming in the second quarter. The Jays outscored the Stars 27-6 in the second. They had a comfortable 47-18 lead at halftime.
During the unanswered scoring streak, See connected with senior wide receiver Jacob Gourley and junior wide receiver Adam Huff. See also rushed in a touchdown of his own.
Jays senior fullback/linebacker Nathaniel Bustamante was heavily involved in the offense. He rushed in a 16-yard touchdown. Bohlken tossed a 36-yard touchdown pass to cap off the five consecutive touchdowns with just over six minutes left in the second quarter.
Huff showed off his speed on a 63-yard catch and grab just before the half. McCluer's penalties bit them in the first half with a total of nine for 75 yards.
"You really got to see how fast (Huff) is," LePage said. "He's very electric."
See found junior tight end Allan Roettgen for a score near the end of the third quarter.
The Jays defense had two interceptions on consecutive series inside the Stars' own 10-yard line in the third quarter. Senior linebacker David Rogers and junior defensive back Isaac Moreland made the plays. The Jays offense turned the turnovers into a total of 10 points to finish their scoring at 64 points.
There was a running clock in the fourth quarter. The contest started at 5 p.m. because the stadium did not have lights. The Jays will return to the St. Louis area Friday to take on the reigning Missouri Class 6 champions and preseason No. 1 team, C.B.C. Game time is 7 p.m. They plan to debut their new road white jerseys for the first time.
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