NOTRE DAME 55, CCS 14Star: Auston Banks ran eight times for 122 yards and scored three TDs for the Irish.Up next: Notre Dame faces Upperman or York; CCS ends its season at 4-7.
Notre Dame football coach Charles Fant said he has challenged his team to start fast and play hard from the opening whistle. If the past two weeks are any indication, the challenge has been accepted.
Notre Dame scored 27 points in the first quarter and 48 in the first half on its way to a 55-14 Class 3A playoff win over Chattanooga Christian on Friday night. The Fighting Irish have scored 69 points combined in the first quarter the past two weeks, outscoring their opponents by a grand total of 123-27.
"We've started slow in the past, but not this bunch. They start quickly," Fant said. "This was fun. I feel like we played just as well (as last week against Grundy County)."
After the first quarter ticked below 10 minutes, Notre Dame scored four times in just over six minutes. Auston Banks ran in the first score from 32 yards out, and two minutes later fellow senior Kareem Orr caught a perfectly placed 34-yard pass in stride.
The Irish then scored on a blocked punt that landed in the hands of Kealey Green, who took it 32 yards into the end zone. The ensuing CCS possession led to another punt, which Jared Andrews picked up on a bounce. He bolted for an 83-yard touchdown.
Notre Dame's Ricky Ballard (5) reaches for a pass in the end zone as Chattanooga Christian School's Zach Mercer (11) and Ben Moore (24) defend on Friday at the Fighting Irish's home field.The defense chipped in, too, holding the Chargers to six points in the first half, coming on a 7-yard reception by Phillip Sneller. Notre Dame went into the break with a 48-6 lead and a chance to give its reserves more playing time after three second-quarter touchdowns.
"We know in the playoffs it's going to take a whole team to win," Fant said. "We're very fortunate to come in healthy, and the past several weeks we've had the opportunity to rest a lot of guys."
CCS received the second-half kickoff and did not relinquish the ball for the entire third quarter. However, its effective, 20-play drive came up empty as Caleb Edwards picked off a pass on the goal line.
"That killed us. We would have liked to have scored there," CCS coach Rob Spence said. "We got into a good offensive rhythm and moved the ball."
The Chargers scored again when Matthew Mercer connected with Will Sabourin, but the Irish answered with a pick-six after their only punt of the game. Anthony Flemister took his second interception of the game 85 yards to punctuate the win.
Banks rushed for 122 yards on just eight carries and scored three total touchdowns. Notre Dame quarterbacks were a perfect 8-for-8 with 129 yards, and Andrews added a touchdown pass to go with his punt return.
"I don't think he's ever played quarterback before this year, but he's really taken the position on in practice, since our second-string quarterback got injured last week" Fant said. "He's an amazing football player."
Contact Idris Garcia at sports@timesfreepress.com