Independence playoff road continues. Patriots knock off East Forsyth in 4A playoffs
Independence gave up 448 yards Friday night — and it might have been the Patriots’ best defensive game of the season.
The Patriots made two huge plays on defense and got a high-octane performance from their offense, stunning host East Forsyth 34-28 in a 4A second-round playoff game.
Independence (9-3) will travel to second-seeded Watauga (12-0) for a third-round contest next week.
“That team is good,” Patriots’ coach D.J. McFadden said of the seventh-seeded Eagles (10-2). “They’re loaded with big-time players. We knew they’d break some plays, but I thought our guys did a good job against them.”
East Forsyth moved the ball well against the Patriot defense. But Independence, the 23rd seed, stopped the Eagles when it counted.
The biggest play came late in the third quarter.
Independence was leading 19-14, but the Eagles and their standout junior quarterback, UNC commit Bryce Baker, moved to the Patriot 3. On first down, an Independence defender punched the ball out of Baker’s arms on a quarterback keeper. Patriot defender Chris Clark scooped up the ball at the 5 and rocketed 95 yards for a touchdown.
That was the second time Independence forced a turnover in its red zone.
Late in the second quarter, with the Patriots up 13-7, East Forsyth drove to the Independence 8. That time, a defender knocked the ball loose on an Eagle running play, and Independence recovered.
There were other big moments for the Patriot defense – and several of them came on a drive when Independence gave up a touchdown.
It was the Eagles’ final possession, and they drove 80 yards for a touchdown that cut the Patriot lead to six points. But thanks to dogged defense by the Patriots, the Eagles needed 13 plays to score. Patriot defender Bryce Lofton single-handedly frustrated East Forsyth, breaking up three of Baker’s passes.
By the time East Forsyth scored, there was only 2:04 remaining.
“That was the key for us,” McFadden said. “We wanted to stop them from getting the big plays, and on that drive, we forced them to use up more time than they wanted.”
Independence recovered the onside kick, and running back Jayden Jones had big runs of 13 and 15 yards to run out the clock.
Jones had a huge game, carrying 28 times for 175 yards and two touchdowns.
On his 18-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter that gave Independence a 34-21 lead, Jones carried five defenders at least 10 yards. On a run in the second quarter, he had four Eagle defenders trying to stop him on what turned out to be an 11-yard carry.
Three who made a difference
Jayden Jones, Independence: A sophomore running back, Jones carried 28 times for 175 yards and two touchdowns. He had 100 yards in the second half.
Brandon Sutton (East Forsyth: A senior running back, Sutton also had a big night, rushing 19 times for 141 yards. He ran for a touchdown and caught a pass for another.
Bryce Lofton (Independence): Lofton had five pass break-ups, including three late in the fourth quarter. His defense forced East Forsyth to run 13 plays before scoring.
Worth noting
▪ It could be argued that Independence junior quarterback Justin Little outplayed his heralded East Forsyth counterpart, junior Bryce Baker, a UNC commit. Baker completed 19-of-36 passes for 249 yards and three touchdowns. But Little was an efficient game-manager, completing 10-of-18 passes for 137 yards. He only needed to throw the ball five times in the second half, because the Patriots’ ground game was working so well.
“Sometimes, you get caught up in looking at the stats,” McFadden said. “Justin did a really good job of managing the game and keeping our offensive moving.”
▪ Little threw a scare into Independence fans in the closing minute, when he mishandled a snap while the Patriots were trying to run out the clock. But he landed on the ball.
▪ One area the Patriots need to work on is the kicking game. East Forsyth blocked two Independence conversion kicks, and that put the Patriots in a sticky position late in the game, nursing a six-point lead.
▪ East Forsyth finished with 448 yards’ total offense, while Independence had 341.
What’s next
Independence travels to Boone, facing unbeaten Watauga next Friday. East Forsyth, which most of its skilled players returning in 2024, is finished for the season.
Game summary
Independence 7 6 14 7 – 34
East Forsyth 7 7 7 7 – 28
First quarter
I – Vontrez Burch 27 pass from Justin Little (Lyric Kopera kick)
EF – JP Gilcrest 19 pass from Bryce Baker (Ridge Whisnant kick)
Second quarter
I – Brian Crowder 16 pass from Little (kick blocked)
EF – Brandon Sutton 18 pass from Baker (Whisnant kick)
Third quarter
I – Jayden Jones 16 run (kick blocked)
I – Chris Clark 95 fumble return (Little run)
EF – Sutton 5 run (Whisnant kick)
Fourth quarter
I – Jones 18 run (Kopera kick)
EF – Jaire Richburg 17 pass from Baker (Whisnant kick)
