By Bryan Kress
Sometimes, it's not about how you start, it's how you finish.
Despite the 20-0 lead going into the 2nd quarter, Delphos Jefferson found a way to make the game interesting. However, the Pirates were able to close the door and win their 3rd consecutive game to start the season, 37-28.
Bluffton got on the board with a Keshaun Hughes 3-yard touchdown run. The team had only 71 yards rushing on the day, but had 4 touchdowns on the ground. Hughes had 19 of those 71 yards.
Bluffton's second score came on a 44-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Hunter Joseph to RJ Stratton. Joseph had another solid night in the air, completing 14 passes out of 23 for 262 yards and the lone touchdown.
The 1st quarter was closed out by another 3-yard touchdown run, this time by Jeremy Basinger. Basinger had 20 yards rushing and contributed 10 tackles on defense.
The shutout would end on Jefferson's first possession of the 2nd quarter, when runningback Curtis Miller broke a 16-yard run for a touchdown, making the score 20-6 when the PAT failed.
Bluffton's offense would pick up where they left off when Noah Stratton rushed for a 12-yard score.
Jefferson quarterback Austin Jettinghoff answered back with a 20-yard touchdown pass to Ross Thompson. Jettinghoff then completed a pass for a 2-point conversion. Jettinghoff completed 9 of his 16 passes for 136 yards, but burnt the Pirates' defense for only the 1 touchdown.
The Bluffton offense wasn't done yet in the 1st half. Joseph snuck the ball into the endzone from a yard out to end the half 34-14 after a RJ Stratton interception. The Pirate's seemed to be on the fast track to a victory, that is until the 2nd half started.
Both defenses held each other in check until a Joseph pass was intercepted leading to Curtis Miller running for his second touchdown with 3:53 left in the 3rd quarter. Jettinghoff completed another pass for a 2-point conversion.
The next Bluffton drive stalled deep in Jefferson territory, however they were still able to come up with 3 points when Matt Deter made his first career field goal from 31-yards out. Making the score 37-22.
That would be it for Bluffton's offense, but not from Jefferson. On the next Jefferson drive, Miller would run for his 3rd rushing touchdown.
The PAT failed and that put Jefferson down by 9 instead of the 8 they had hoped for, meaning they had to score twice. Miller ended up rushing for a solid 109-yards and the three touchdowns.
Bluffton's defense focused up to finish the game, stopping 2 4th down conversions. The defense gave up over 300 yards total, but in crunch time they were able to get the job done.
At 3-0 the team will be at home Friday to try to make it 4-0 against Crestview (1-2).
