SHERIDAN – Rogers’ defense fueled its offense, leading the Mounties to a dominant win in Sheridan on Thursday night.
Sheridan fell 43-7 to the Mounties at Yellowjacket Stadium for its second straight loss to finish non-conference play.
Sheridan (1-2) coach Kevin Kelly said his team started the game without two starting offensive linemen, and Rogers took advantage with seven sacks.
“We do believe next man up, but we lost some experience when those two starters were out,” Kelley said. “Rogers is the best team we’re going to see. I knew they were when we scheduled them… But offensively, if your offense line, if we have problems, it’s going to be a problem for the passer, for the running, and for everything else.”
Rogers (2-1) stopped Sheridan on six fourth downs. Those defensive stops against Sheridan’s aggressive philosophy saw the Mounties start five drives in Sheridan territory.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
The Mounties quickly took advantage. Sheridan started the game with the ball but turned it over on downs at its own 8-yard line after four plays. Rogers quarterback Jeff Regan made the Yellowjackets pay immediately with an 8-yard touchdown pass to Braxton Lindsey on the Mounties’ first offensive play.
Rogers drove the field on its second drive, which began at its own 23-yard line, to make it 13-0. Sheridan’s defense stiffened after this, forcing two fourth down stops of its own on the Mounties’ next two drives, but Rogers scored on three of its final four drives of the first half to take a 40-0 lead into the locker room.
Kelley said given the circumstances, the Sheridan defense played well.
“I put our defense in bad situations all night,” Kelley said. “I always do. I always have, and we trained those guys to trot out there and be proud that you only get to defend 20 yards when other teams don’t get to do that. Take pride in that. For the most part, they did. They made two great stops when I put them in awful situations.”
Sheridan only had two first half drives end in Rogers territory. The Yellowjackets also threw an interception which Rogers returned for a touchdown late in the second quarter, helping the Mounties trigger the sportsmanship rule to begin the second half.
Regan completed 9 of 17 passes for 207 yards and three touchdowns, all in the first half. Lindsey caught five passes for 104 yards and a touchdown.
Sheridan quarterback Dax McMellon completed 16 of 33 passes for 173 yards. Wide receiver Peyton Sterritt caught six passes for 59 yards.
Kelley said Sterritt has been Sheridan’s best receiver so far.
“This week, he turned it up a notch,” Kelley said. “I thought he did last week, but this week, he played with an attitude of aggression and finishing the runs on his catches. … We’re in game three of this offense. It’s a tough offense, and he’s picked it up mentally, and now, he’s starting to be confident. If he does that, he’s going to be one of the best players in the state, I believe.”