Ohio State pledge
Carnell Tate reeled in a scoring strike in each half to lead No. 10
IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) to a 27-16 win Friday night over No. 2
St. Frances Academy (Baltimore) on the campus of the University of Maryland in College Park.
Tate, a 6-foot-2, 185-pound senior, got behind the St. Frances defense and scored on a 34-yard strike from
Jayden Bradford to put the Ascenders up 14-8 midway through the second quarter. Then, four plays after the Panthers cut the deficit to 20-16, the future Buckeye hauled in a 40-yard strike early in the fourth quarter to keep the momentum with the visitors.
With the win, IMG Academy (8-1) snapped St. Frances Academy's 16-game winning streak, evens the series record at 2-2 and secured its second win over a top-100 foe in 2022.
The Ascenders saw their 2021 campaign end with a bitter 34-24 loss to the Maryland independent powerhouse.
One of Friday night's most pivotal plays, Jordan Johnson-Rubell if IMG Academy pulls away for a pick-six in the final minute of the second quarter. (Photo: Cory Royster)
St. Frances Academy (8-1) opened the scoring on its second possession when
Dejuan Williams hauled in a delayed middle screen and raced 15 yards midway through the first quarter to cap a 4-play, 43-yard drive that lasted all of 81 seconds.
IMG Academy scored the next 20 points to stun St. Frances Academy faithful.
Winston Watkins Jr. put the Ascenders on the board early in the second quarter when he grabbed an eight-yard strike from Bradford with 9:40 left in the first half.
Two possessions later, Tate scored his first touchdown of the contest. Then, with the Panthers in the red zone,
Jordon Johnson-Rubell raced 98 yards for another score after picking off a third-down pass from
Michael Van Buren late in the first half.
Van Buren rallied the Panthers early in the fourth quarter when he scrambled for a 10-yard score on first and goal, capping an 11-play, 76-yard drive to make the score 20-16.
Tate's final score secured the win with each defense pitching shutouts over the final nine minutes of the contest. At that point in the contest, he had six receptions for 123 yards with the two TDs.
IMG Academy senior running back Evan Dickens evades a defender during his team's win Friday night on the campus of University of Maryland. (Photo: Cory Royster)
Senior linebacker Jordan Hall, a Michigan State signee, celebrates a big play for IMG Academy. (Photo: Cory Royster)
