Tampa Catholic hasn't had much luck against Jesuit recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Crusaders are taking a road trip to take on the Tigers at 7:30 p.m. Tampa Catholic has given up an average of 30.7 points per game this season, but Friday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.
On Friday, Tampa Catholic ended up a good deal behind Calvary Christian and lost 43-26.
Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the best came from Lucas Ruan, who threw for 305 yards and two touchdowns. Those passing touchdowns were his first of the season. Mannie McKinney also helped out as he racked up 166 receiving yards.
Most of the squad's points came courtesy of special teams, who contributed 14 in total. The biggest highlight from special teams (and perhaps the team as a whole) came courtesy of Carl Jones Jr., who ran a punt back for a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Jesuit had already won five in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 45 points) and they went ahead and made it six on Friday. They blew past the Terriers 69-6. With the Tigers ahead 62-0 at the half, the contest was all but over already.
Tampa Catholic better focus on containing Hezekiah Davis and Will Griffin as the pair were huge in Jesuit's win. Davis rushed for 151 yards and one TD on only five carries, while Griffin threw for 157 yards and four touchdowns. That's the most rushing yards Davis has posted since back in August. Mikey Vernon was in the mix as well, providing Jesuit with two scores.
Jesuit was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 300 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.
On the defensive side of the ball, a lot of the credit has to go to Jesuit's defense and their three sacks. In fact, those sacks all came courtesy of defensive juggernaut Kaden Henderson. Kam Housey got in on the action too, converting a pick into a touchdown.
Tampa Catholic's loss dropped their record down to 1-8. As for Jesuit, their record now sits at 8-1.
Tampa Catholic couldn't quite get it done against Jesuit in their previous matchup back in November of 2024 as they fell 31-21. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Griffin, who threw for 251 yards and three TDs while completing 72% of his passes, and also rushed for 66 yards and one score on only six carries. Now that the Crusaders know the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
