Stratford dominates John Milledge despite venue change in 42-7 win at Mercer’s Five Star Stadium

There was suspense after all.

The John Milledge of 2024 has rarely looked like the John Millege of the past decade or so. It looked like nothing had changed Friday night, until 43 minutes had passed.

Alas, the suspense had little to do with a win or a loss, as it revolved around whether Stratford would be able to close things out with its second shutout of the season. The Trojans turned in a surprising, for 2024, monster drive that lasted 23 plays and ate up the final 5:20 of the third quarter and 9:59 of the fourth quarter for their bright spot and Stratford’s lone sore spot.

John Milledge scored with 2:01 left, but the night belonged to Stratford in all phases of a 42-7 win on its Homecoming at Mercer’s Five Star Stadium in Macon.

That last score was about the only thing that could draw the ire of Stratford head coach Paul Carroll.

“Every touchdown, they get five gassers,” he said of the defense’s punishment. “We couldn’t get off the field. Get off the dang field.”

John Milledge head coach J.T. Wall saw the potential for such a drive earlier.

“It’s a 35-point difference, but the first half, I thought we were really, really close,” he said. “We’re one block away, or one tackle away.”

But the 1-6 Trojans had some trouble with basic tackling against the Eagles and playmakers Connor Fitzpatrick and Tyler Stephens.

Fitzpatrick completed only four passes, but they went for 67 yards. He ran five times for 72 yards ,while Stephens carried nine times for 96 yards.

Some stats were odd. Stratford (6-1) ran only 33 plays for 303 total yards, while John Milledge had 66 offensive snaps for 177 yards and only two three and outs. Stratford got a short field much of the night, with three touchdown drives of four plays or less.

Fitzpatrick hit sophomore George Dunn for a 36-yard touchdown on fourth and 3 at the 3:48 mark of the first quarter. Stephens went for 38 yards on Stratford’s next first down play, setting up a 14-yard scoring pass from Fitzpatrick to Jett Johnston for a 14-0 lead 38 seconds into the second quarter.

Sal Phillips then read a quick pass to the left and stuffed the Trojans for a 3-yard loss on fourth and 1, giving Stratford the ball on John Milledge’s 38-yardline. Six plays later — including a John Milledge offsides on fourth and 4 — Stephens went around the right side through some weak tackling for a 16-yard score.

The Trojans moved from their 33 to Stratford’s 36 but came up two yards short on fourth down in the final minute of the half.

“Offensively, we have not avoided the drive-killers,” Wall said. “Defensively, we have not avoided the big play.”

A short kickoff and then a pass interference call put Stratford back in scoring range immediately in the third quarter.

Stephens went right, stopped on a dime, then left a Trojan in position weak-kneed and falling to the turf as he sprinted 36 yards for a touchdown 37 seconds into the quarter.

Later, a block in the back call nullified a 59-yard touchdown run by Fitzpatrick, but Chase Spencer went in from the 8 three plays later. The Trojans’ only turnover came on its first play of that next drive, a fumble, and Spencer carried players with him to the end zone from three yards out with 5:02 left in the third.

“I thought on film, they’re pretty dang good on film,” Carroll said. “They’re not a 1-5 football team. They did what they could.”

Other than that last drive — ending with an 11-yard pass from David Todd to Asa Wall — Carroll had to dig a little bit to find some issues.

“We’ve got to be able to stop the run, we really have to stymie the run,” he said. “They sit there and they drive it and drive it and drive it, we’ve got to be able to step up and make a play when it’s fourth and 2, fourth and 3.

“We did it the first half, but we didn’t do it in the second half.”