Huntsville got back on the winning track with a 53-25 non-region win over crosstown foe Mae Jemison on Friday night.

The Crimson Panthers defense came up big in the second half, shutting out the Jaguars after giving up 25 points and more than 300 yards in the first half.

Huntsville scored first on a 53-yard touchdown pass from Jacks McClung to Ashton Caldwell to take a quick 7-0 lead. Mae Jemison came right back on Tavareon Langford’s 13-yard run to cut the lead to 7-6. After forcing a Huntsville punt that was downed on the 1-yard line, Jemison marched 99 yards in 15 plays capped by Darrieon Taylor’s one-yard run to give the Jaguars a 12-7 lead.

Hunstville cut the lead 12-10 on a 30-yard field goal. The Jemison lead was 12-10 after one.

The teams traded scores multiple times in the second quarter.

Jemison (2-3, 1-1) scored on a 59-yard run from Taylor to up the lead to 18-10 only to see Huntsville cut the lead to 18-17 on Marlon Jones’ one-yard three minutes later.

Huntsville took a 24-18 lead when Ramon White intercepted Langford and went 70 yards down the side line with 3:52 left in the half. Jemison answered with a 75-yard pass from Jaden Burroughs to Zamarion Mitchell to give Jemison back the lead 25-24 with 2:51 left in the half.

Jemison was able to force a Huntsville punt with only 53 seconds left in the half, but fumbled the ball back to Huntsville (2-3, 1-2) on their first play. That set the Panthers up on the Jaguars’ 23-yard line. McClung hit Chase Carton from six yards out with only 10 seconds left in the half and, after a two-point conversion, Huntsville led 32-25 at the break.

Huntsville dominated the second half, outscoring Jemison 21-0 and holding the Jaguars to only 95 yards after giving up 339 in the first half. Taylor hurt Huntsville on the ground in the first half with 135 yards in the first half but was held to only 57 in the second half.

Star of the Game: McClung was the star tonight with his 239 yards passing and four touchdowns.

Play of the Game: Mae Jemison led Hunstville 18-17 with 4:06 left in the first half and was driving for more, but Burrough’s pass down the sidelines was intercepted by White at the Huntsville 30. His momentum almost caused him to step out of bounds, but instead he was able to race 70 yards for a touchdown to give Huntsville a 24-18 lead with 3:51 left in the half.

Stat sheet: Huntsville — 389 total yards. McClung was 13-of-21 for 239 passing and four touchdowns. Caldwell caught three for 84 yards and two touchdowns. Garner Ferrell caught four for 71 yards. Joe Williams caught one for 18 yards and a touchdown. Jones gained 146 yards on 22 carries and two touchdowns.

Mae Jemison – 434 total yards. Taylor gained 192 yards on 27 carries and scored two touchdowns. Burroughs was 11-of-17 for 163 yards. Mitchell caught three passes for 115 yards and one touchdown.

By the Numbers: 2 – both teams only punted the ball twice. 4 – The lead changed hands four times in the first half before Huntsville took a 32-25 lead into the half.

Coachspeak: “We made some adjustments on defense in the second half that made a big difference. We had some new faces in and just needed to help them get settled in to help them feel comfortable out there to know what to do. This was a big win for us because we’d played really well at times the last two weeks in those two losses and we just really needed this one.” – Mark Fleetwood, Huntsville head coach

What’s Next? Huntsville will host Albertville next Thursday night and Mae Jemison will host Buckhorn on Friday.