Palisades beats Chambers, earns best varsity football start in school history
Jonathan Simmons has slowly been building Palisades’ varsity football program towards success.
The Pumas took a big step forward Friday night with their 14-7 victory over former state champion Chambers.
Led by a big second quarter from Lincoln Wise and Cole Hough, Palisades scored all of its points in the period to take the lead, then held off the Cougars’ rally in the fourth quarter to win their third straight.
It also gives Palisades (3-1) its best start to a season since the school opened – and Simmons started working on the Pumas’ football program – four years ago.
“We’ve been building for it,” Simmons said. “We knew back really in March or April what we had, we just had to put it together. We also had some guys who came on and are really helping.
“The biggest thing is the guys are starting to learn how to sacrifice for one another. Obviously, everybody always wants to contribute to a win, but some guys are able to tuck in their pride a little bit and focus on the big picture. That’s a beautiful thing.”
Wise was a big part of that, rushing for a season-high 104 yards on 17 carries and a touchdown – a three-yard burst up the middle early in the second quarter to give Palisades the early lead.
Hough, the Pumas’ junior quarterback, tacked on Palisades’ second touchdown with a 10-yard keeper later in the second quarter, with Wise tacking on a two-point conversion run for a 14-0 halftime lead.
“We’ve just been focusing on ourselves, and doing our jobs,” Wise said. “We’re all family out here. Nobody’s above anybody else out here.”
Chambers (3-1) started to show some life in the second half, taking advantage of a pair of forced fumbles on the Pumas’ end of the field. But the Cougars only managed to turn one of those into points, off Tahj Brooks’ 10-yard touchdown run and Wes Palacios’ extra-point kick midway through the fourth quarter.
“We just didn’t come out and execute in the first half,” Chambers head coach Captain Munnerlyn said. “On third down, we didn’t play well on defense at all. Offensively, we’ve got to go back to the drawing board. We couldn’t move the ball.
“(Palisades) played a great football game. We already knew they were stingy on defense. We’ve just got to go back to the drawing board and see what happens.”
Three who made a difference
Lincoln Wise, Palisades – The Pumas’ senior running back had just 14 carries and 128 yards in his first three games this season, with two touchdowns. He more than doubled his touches Friday against Chambers, and will likely be the starter once conference play begins in two weeks.
Cole Hough, Palisades – He had 16 rushing yards on eight carries, and 93 passing yards and an interception – and also had the two fourth-quarter fumbles, but his QB keeper up the middle gave the Pumas a cushion.
D’Kari Thompson, Chambers – The Cougars’ senior defensive lineman made the highlight reel play of the game, reaching up at the line of scrimmage to pick off Hough’s pass in the first quarter and nearly returning it for a touchdown.
Observations
Chambers was looking to get off to its best start since the COVID-19 season in the spring of 2021, when the Cougars opened with five straight wins en route to a 10-1 season, capped with a 35-14 victory over Rolesville for the NCHSAA 4AA state championship.
Up next
Both teams will play at home next Friday in their final nonconference games. Chambers will host Ardrey Kell, while Palisades will face Independence.
Scoring summary
PALISADES 0 14 0 0 – 14
CHAMBERS 0 0 0 7 – 7
Second Quarter
P—Lincoln Wise 3 run (pass failed), 10:41.
P—Cole Hough 7 run (Wise run), 2.7.
Fourth Quarter
C—Tahj Brooks 10 run (Wes Palacios kick), 6:46.