St. Andrews School defeats Bethesda Academy Savannah football team

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Zayden (left) and Zyere Edwards of St. Andrew's

Brothers can work together. A pair at St. Andrew’s certainly did.

Zayden and Zyere Edwards proved to be the difference in host St. Andrew’s School’s opening night, a 27-20 victory over Bethesda Academy in a tight battle between rivals Friday night.

Quarterback Zayden Edwards transferred this school year from Bethesda to St. Andrew’s, where Zyere already was a basketball standout. Their father, Harold “Zion” Edwards, is an SAS assistant coach formerly at Bethesda.

The victory was the first for the Lions’ new head coach Blake Henry. Former head coach Doug Dixon stepped down in March and joined Bethesda as the Blazers’ defensive coordinator.

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Blake Henry is the new football coach at St. Andrew's

Zayden Edwards, a freshman, helped engineer a comeback in which the Lions scored 27 unanswered points after a sluggish start had them down 14-0.

Bethesda quarterback Triston Randall scooped up his own fumble and rambled 28 yards for a score on the opening drive of the game. After St. Andrew’s fumbled on its possession, Bethesda’s Adrian Okee — who ran for a game-high 173 yards — broke free on a 36-yard scamper two plays later for a 14-0 advantage.

Zayden Edwards answered back for the Lions when he connected on a 1-yard touchdown pass to Alec Waters on a fourth-and-goal, and later hit a wide-open Ethan Wilkins for a 21-yard scoring strike that knotted the game at 14 at halftime.

The freshman quarterback struck again when he scored on a 2-yard run on the opening possession of the third quarter that capped an 11-play, 56-yard drive.

Zyere Edwards delivered the final blow when he took a handoff deep in the backfield and sprinted 35 yards for the Lions’ final score with 10:53 left in the game.

After St. Andrew’s failed to run out the clock in the closing moments, Randall connected with Justin Washington down the sideline for a 34-yard score in the final 30 seconds. The Blazers, however, failed to recover their onside kick, securing the win for the host Lions.

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Key play

Bethesda had a legitimate chance to tie the game when Romond Robinson recovered Ethan Bland’s fumble on his 12-yard line. But Okee lost the ball on the 13 and Bland redeemed himself with a recovery on the 22.

Robinson recorded a sack of Edwards for a 13-yard loss, but the elder Edwards sealed the victory with his 35-yard run on the next play.

Key stats

The Edwards brothers combined for 290 yards of total offense. Zayden Edwards threw for a pair of scores with 115 yards passing and 18 rushing yards, while Zyere had 75 yards receiving and 84 yards rushing.

Bethesda was plagued with 10 penalties — several for delay of game — for 65 yards.

“We had some good things happening, but penalties and turnovers helped stall our offense,” said Bethesda Academy head coach Antwain Turner. “We can build on some good things we did tonight, but we also have to work on some things.”

What we learned

Lions can roar: With the addition of Zayden Edwards, St. Andrew’s has two potential playmakers with the Edwards brothers. Bland also will be a key figure in their running game,as he added 55 yards on the ground.

Okee-dokey: The Blazers’ Adrian Okee had a great night running the ball, and broke several long runs in his 173-yard performance. The senior had 20 carries, and he appeared ready to be the team’s workhorse this season.

Both teams can make some noise: St. Andrew’s found itself in the second quarter and looked like a cohesive unit on both sides of the ball. Bethesda Academy started strong before faltering. But the Blazers showed resilience by bouncing back late in the game,

They said it

“I got a little worried when we got down 14-0 right away, but our guys dug in their heels and made some big stops on defense. We also got some good performances from the Edwards brothers and got those guys in space.” — SAS coach Blake Henry.

“We got punched in the mouth early and then we punched them in the mouth. This win was a great morale builder, and we’ll go from here.” — Zyere Edwards.

“I couldn’t have done this without my teammates. I know there was a lot of intense talk with us going back and forth with me and my brother transferring from there. But it is all love from everybody.” — Zayden Edwards

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