OAKLAND — Led by junior quarterback Colvin Leonox, Oakland has become known for an air raid offense that can rack up points in a hurry. On Friday night, McClymonds ensured that the Mack House was a no-fly zone.
Behind senior Prince Staten’s two interceptions, McClymonds (8-2, 5-0) recorded five interceptions and four sacks in a decisive 39-6 victory over Oakland, finishing the regular season with six consecutive victories.
“It took us a minute to get started,” said McClymonds head coach Michael Peters. “Right now, our ball club starts off slow. Their quarterback, great quarterback. I love him. He gets the ball out. We wore down them.”
“The score didn’t reflect the game,” said Oakland (8-2, 4-1) head coach Terry Hendrix Jr. “The ill-advised interceptions, the pass interference, the callbacks, just different things. We had opportunities within the game to make it a better game and we didn’t.”
Along with Staten, sophomore Jessie King Jr., senior Dominic Davis and senior Lamont Williams had an interception apiece.
King and Davis both left their imprint on the offensive side of the ball as well. Davis totaled two touchdowns and 239 rushing yards on 23 carries, one of his touchdowns coming on a 51-yard run, while King hauled in a 29-yard pass from senior quarterback Berell Staples for a receiving touchdown.
Senior Keian Davis-Jimenez had two touchdowns of his own and totaled 91 rushing yards on just four carries. During McClymonds’ final offensive possession of the game, Davis-Jimenez reeled off runs of 51 and 24 yards on back-to-back plays to put the exclamation mark on a decisive victory. Staples had a rushing touchdown in addition to his passing touchdown.
Jermaine Benson was responsible for Oakland’s only points of the night, getting his team on the scoreboard in the final minute of the first half with an 85-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.
McClymonds scored the night’s first 12 points on Staples’ 29-yard touchdown pass to King in the first quarter and Davis’ one-yard rushing touchdown in the second. Michael and Marcus Peters’ defense held Oakland in check from scrimmage, but Benson’s kickoff return cut McClymonds’ lead to 12-6 and allowed Oakland to go into the half only trailing by one possession.
In the second half, McClymonds proceeded to score 27 unanswered points and have the game in hand by the start of the fourth quarter. Staten’s interception with nine minutes left in the third paved the way for Davis-Jimenez’s first rushing touchdown, paving the way for a decisive second half.
“We couldn’t execute tonight,” Hendrix said. “Sometimes the lights can be too big, too bright for certain kids. We’re still young. We have several opportunities within the flow of the game to make it a game and keep the door open and we didn’t. We didn’t execute. It came down to playing catch, tackling and playing high percentage football and we didn’t do it tonight.”
