Junior quarterback propels Raytown South past Belton

The Raytown South Cardinals, thanks in large part to quarterback Jabril Cox, rebounded from a rough first quarter and came away with a 40-21 win over the Belton Pirates on Friday night at Chitwood Stadium.

Cox, the Cardinals’ 6-foot-2, 205-pound junior quarterback, passed for 168 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 90 yards and two more scores. Four of those touchdowns came in the final 8:59 of the second quarter, turning a 7-0 deficit into a 28-7 halftime lead.

“He’s just a tremendous leader for us, on and off the field,” said Raytown South coach Nick Adkins. “He has the ability to make plays with his feet and throw the ball, as well. He’s a special young man and he’s surrounded by several players who can make plays around him.”

After not picking up a first down in the first quarter, Cox sparked the South offense, breaking loose and tight-roping down the sideline for a 44-yard touchdown run with 8:59 left in the second quarter. Belton went three-and-out before Cox found a wide-open Alahandro Garrett for a 61-yard touchdown pass.

“I was just trying to give us a spark,” Cox said. “I think that first touchdown run helped us loosen up a little bit and then we started making plays.”

Cox then hit Dominic Herndon for two straight touchdown passes, the second coming on a 35-yarder as time expired in the second quarter.

“I just wanted to get in the end zone on that last play,” Herndon said. “I saw the ball and went up and tried my best to catch it.”

Belton, 3-4, turned an interception into a touchdown to open the third quarter. Zach Willis, who finished the night with 109 yards rushing, scored the second of his three touchdowns to cut the Cardinals’ lead to 28-14.

But on the next play from scrimmage, South’s Isaiah Hutchinson broke loose for an 87-yard touchdown, accounting for more than half of his 151 yards rushing yards and pushing the Raytown South lead back to three scores.

“You have to give them credit; their athletes made plays,” Belton coach Todd Vaughn said. “We had four sophomores in the secondary and three sophomore defensive linemen, and I’m proud of them. We competed, but they just made too many plays.”

Belton quarterback Bart Harris completed 11 of his 19 passes for 115 yards before leaving with an injury in the second half. Daren Johnson had 68 yards rushing and 54 receiving for Belton.

On its first defensive series of the night, Raytown South allowed a 13-play, 61-yard drive that ended in a touchdown and a 7-0 deficit. They then forced four three-and-outs and gave up just two more scores the rest of the way.

“It’s the old adage of coming out and getting popped in the mouth,” Adkins said. “We had to be woken up a little bit and realize we had to play football.”

This story was originally published October 3, 2014 at 10:58 PM with the headline "Junior quarterback propels Raytown South past Belton."