Locke Stops Martin and Jefferson, 14-13

There they were, normally the best of friends, but now pitted against each other, guessing what the other might do on a crucial fourth-quarter play.

It was Locke High Coach E.C. Robinson who guessed right when his team stopped Jefferson running back Najiya Martin short of the goal line on an extra-point attempt with less than five minutes left in the game to help seal the Saints’ 14-13 victory over the Democrats Friday at Locke.

“We knew they were going try the fake [kick],” Robinson said. “I know him. He’s one of my best friends, and I knew he was never going to settle for the tie.”

Jefferson Coach Hank Johnson said the fake was unintentional.

“It was a bad snap,” Johnson said. “You could have timed it with a calendar.”

That was the last time Jefferson touched the ball.

Locke, 2-1 overall and 2-0 in the City Section’s Southeastern Conference, took over and was able to run out the clock after running back Donte King made a crucial first down with 1:14 left.

King also intercepted a pass from Jefferson’s Jimmy Ray Brown and returned it 84 yards for Locke’s second touchdown in the first quarter.

Locke’s first touchdown came a three-yard run by George Finau that capped a 73-yard drive kept alive by a successful fake punt Wayne Johnson.

For the Democrats, it was the second time in two weeks that they played a bigger and quicker team and made a game of it. They lost to San Fernando two weeks ago, 35-29.

Against Locke, the Democrats (1-1, 1-2) cut Locke’s lead to one point on a 42-yard touchdown run by Martin. Before that, Locke had contained the 5-foot-2, 130-pound Martin, who finished with 107 yards in 14 carries.

On Jefferson’s final drive, Martin spun, stutter-stepped, and dove to gain four yards. It wasn’t the yardage but how he fought for them that seemed to inspire his teammates and change the momentum of the game.

Said Coach Johnson: “He plays like a giant. He could make a defender miss in a phone booth.”