NC High School Football: West Charlotte holds off stubborn Palisades on Saturday
West Charlotte High, No. 15 in The Charlotte Observer’s Sweet 16 poll, ran out to a three-touchdown lead and then held on a bit against Palisades in a showcase football game at Memorial Stadium on Saturday.
The Lions, who won 28-19, threatened to turn this game into a blowout early.
To start, West Charlotte got a blocked punt by Elijah Littlejohn, who recovered it in the end zone. Shortly after that, Lions QB KD Smith threw a pretty 73-yard pass to Jae’Vian Carr for a 14-0 lead.
And the Lions weren’t done.
Smith threw another long pass and backed that up with a short scoring run on the next play. But after that, Palisades, down 21-0, tightened up on defense and got going on offense.
Palisades got its own passing touchdown and its defense began to slow down Smith and the Lions offense.
It was 21-7 heading into the fourth quarter, and Palisades looked nothing like a team that had gone 1-9 a year ago in its first season.
West Charlotte’s a trendy pick to make a run in the NC 3A playoffs this season, so what the Pumas were doing in uptown Charlotte was pretty noteworthy.
And late in the game, Palisades gave another example of its new form.
West Charlotte seemed to apply a knockout blow midway in the fourth quarter. Lions QB Smith — a sophomore who is getting Big Ten and ACC recruiting attention, as a defensive back — threw a 52-yard scoring pass to freshman receiver Davion Jones.
Palisades, though, didn’t quit, down 28-7. The Pumas drove on the Lions and senior QB Jarek Patulski hooked up with senior receiver Jayden Brown for their second touchdown of the game. Later, Palisades got a stop and put together another long drive.
Brown finished it by catching a wide receiver screen from Patulski and turning it into a marathon, tackle-breaking 29-yard scoring run.
No, this definitely is not the same Palisades from a year ago.
PHOTOS: West Charlotte vs. Palisades
This story was originally published August 19, 2023 at 6:18 PM.
