JFK Cavaliers Lose 40-0 in Season Opener

Friday night marked the start of a new season and a new era for the John F. Kennedy Cavaliers football team, but playing under Head Coach Carlos Smith for the first time failed to inspire the Cavaliers to victory, as they lost 40-0 to the Churchill Bulldogs.

"It came down to experience vs. inexperience," Smith said, "and experience won."

The Cavaliers came out strong in the first quarter, holding the favored Churchill Bulldogs scoreless on their home field.

“[Going forward] we have to take how we performed in that first 16 minutes and turn it into a complete ballgame,” Smith said.

JFK forced two early turnovers. The second of which—an interception by senior standout Trey Lafeged—led to a scoring opportunity inside the Churchill red zone. But following a long reception by Lafeged, sophomore quarterback Marvin Galdamez threw an interception and the Bulldogs didn’t look back.

A few game highlights:

• The Bulldogs scored three touchdowns in the final seven minutes of the first half (two rushing TD for RB Curtis Kamara and one TD reception for WR Dominique Williams) to take a 20-0 lead into the break.

• Cavalier Senior Trey Lafeged stood out in a big way for the Cavaliers, playing offense, defense and special teams. He had a few highlight reel catches and an interception, but, according to Coach Smith, still needs to get into “game shape.”

• The Cavaliers suffered from a size mismatch along the offensive and defensive lines; their O-line had difficulty giving their QB enough time to throw, and their D-line failed to create any significant pressure on the other side of the ball. However, looking at the lines from the field, the size difference was more than noticeable, so it would be tough to fault JFK here.

• JFK suffered from a little disorganization and confusion, as there were multiple times when the wrong players were on the field or players were lined up incorrectly. “I think our guys were a little gun-shy at times playing under the bright lights,” Smith said.