In the first quarter of Friday night’s game against Hardin Valley, Bearden senior Jaheim Merriweather was knocked out of the game with an ankle injury.
While losing a running back committed to play in the Big 10 next year would normally devastate a high school football roster, there was no such panic on the Bearden sideline.
Sophomore tailback Jayzon Thompson took over as the lead back propelling the Bulldogs to a 41-9 victory behind his 171-yard, three-touchdown performance.
Getting the vast majority of carries isn’t something that Thompson is used to, as he has generally been a part of a system at Bearden (2-2, 1-0 Region 2-6A) that has multiple running backs split carries in order to tire down the opposing defenses. This system allowed for Thompson and Merriweather to rush for a combined 331 yards in a 45-27 victory over defending 4-A state champions Anderson County on Sept. 1.
“Good players make a good coach, so getting to coach two guys like Jaheim and Jayzon is a dream,” Coach Josh Jones said. “You just give them some instruction, and they handle the rest.
“They are different types of players but are both naturals at the position.”
Merriweather’s injury leaves him as a question mark going into Thursday night’s rivalry game against Farragut at 7. Thompson may go into the night as the lead back, something that he has prepared for all off-season.
“He dedicated himself to the weight room this offseason,” Coach Jones said. “He added 20 pounds of muscle and got much faster, and he also takes practice much more seriously than he did last year, which has allowed for him to improve greatly as a player.”
Added junior offensive guard Isaiah Harvey: “Jayzon has gotten much stronger over the off-season, and it has definitely changed the way he runs. Last year, he bounced the run outside a lot, but he has put his head down and fought for yards more this year.”
Doing the dirty work behind the six touchdowns in the past two games is the offensive line, who replaced four starters from last year’s team. This is a group that has faith in the guys that they get to block for.
“I believe in Jayzon,” junior center Jaxson Davis said. “He will have to step up Thursday night, but we have seen him do that in the past two games so I believe that he can.”
With a lot of new faces around, this offensive line had to get on the same page in the off-season to be prepared for the tough schedule the Bulldogs were tasked with this year.
“We hung out a lot over the off-season and hit the weight room as a group a lot, so that allowed us to get faster and stronger while also building up team chemistry,” Davis said.
Thursday’s game is one that Bearden players, coaches, and fans have circled on their calendars since the schedule was released. Farragut (2-2, 0-1 Region 2-6A) has won the previous four meetings between the two teams, with the last two being decided by a combined 10 points.
“You can’t ignore what this game means for this team,” Coach Jones said. “It’s a rivalry that goes back to who knows when, and I’m just excited I get a front row seat for it.”