Edna Karr quarterback John Johnson has been among the more prolific passers in the New Orleans area this season. But with his team down by two touchdowns, the Cougars used his legs to get things going in a state quarterfinal game Friday.
The junior ran 18 times for 106 yards and three touchdowns in addition to his one touchdown pass as No. 1 Karr defeated No. 8 St. Thomas More 42-14 on Friday at Morris Jeff Stadium.
Johnson, who threw two interceptions before halftime, began running more than usual because of how the St. Thomas More defense covered the Karr receivers.
“They did some things we weren’t used to seeing, rerouting the No. 2 receiver and rerouting the No. 3 receiver,” said Karr coach Brice Brown, whose 11-0 team will host Catholic-Baton Rouge (11-0) in a state semifinal next week.
Johnson said the way St. Thomas More (8-4) used its linebackers in pass coverage gave him room to run.
“Nobody was on me, so I took advantage of that and started running and getting the first down,” Johnson said.
Johnson ran for a pair of first downs on fourth-and-1 and fourth-and-2 during a 12-play drive that ended with senior Daejawn Smith’s go-ahead touchdown on an inside reverse with 11 seconds left in the half.
Johnson (16 of 27 passing, 132 yards) tied the score with his first touchdown run. He ran for two more scores in the second half.
“I was real proud to see John fight through that after starting so rusty,” Brown said.
A key play on defense helped swing momentum for Karr. With St. Thomas More leading 14-0 in the second quarter, the visiting Cougars had the ball with a chance to go up by three scores when Karr senior safety Cody Morris jarred the ball loose for a takeaway.
After the takeaway, a late-hit on a run by Johnson put Karr across midfield. A pass interference penalty on a pass intended for TaRon Francis put the ball at the 25. And Johnson connected with junior Floyd Jones on the next play to make the score 14-7.
The next Karr possession included seven consecutive run plays for Johnson and junior running back Tre Garrison, who combined for all 61 yards on the drive, including Johnson’s 4-yard keeper to the end zone.
The Karr defense didn’t allow much from that point forward, at one point limiting St. Thomas More to one first down over a span of four possessions.
“We just knew we had to take the game over,” Morris said. “The offense came out flat. But at the end of the day, they knew we had their back.”
Garrison rushed 11 times for 74 yards, including a 25-yard touchdown on the first play after the defense a turnover on downs in the fourth quarter.
Karr sophomore Jermond Macklin rushed nine times for 30 yards. And Francis, an LSU commitment, had seven receptions for 99 yards.
St. Thomas More junior quarterback Cole Bergeron (11 of 27, 108 yards) threw a touchdown pass and ran for a score in the first quarter.
Senior linebacker Reed Dupuis put St. Thomas More in good field position for the first touchdown when he intercepted a pass that slipped through the hands of a Karr receiver.
St. Thomas More senior Brian Broussard had the other interception on a fourth-down pass to the 10-yard line.
The win advanced Karr to the state semifinals for the 13th time in a span of 15 seasons. The Cougars last reached the state finals in 2020 and last won a state title in 2019, the last of four consecutive crowns won in Class 4A.
St. Thomas More had won five state titles in a span of eight seasons before this one, four of those in the past five seasons?— including the past two Division II select state titles.
