money Holt football earns first win in defensive battle over rival Grand Ledge
GRAND LEDGE – The Holt football program was disappointed in its 0-2 start, including its loss to Mason in last week's Cedar Street Bowl.
A Friday night road rivalry showdown at undefeated Grand Ledge loomed in the distance. For the second year, these two teams would be playing for "The Jack" – a rivalry trophy named for Jack Rarick, who died in 2020 and was an All-American football player at Grand Ledge and football coach at both Holt and Grand Ledge.
Holt won the inaugural trophy game last season with an offensive outburst. This time around, it was the defense that helped Holt retain "The Jack." The Rams forced five turnovers and held the Comets to just one touchdown in a 14-6 win.
"Couldn't be more proud of our defense. (Grand Ledge) is a very tricky offense to stop and our guys prepared all week for it and were able to come out and perform," Holt coach Chad Fulk said. "They won it for us tonight, and this game means something special to me so this is a huge win for us."
Holt senior running back Isaiah Foster got the Rams on the board with a 2-yard touchdown run on fourth down early in the second quarter. Holt later added two more points before the half on a blocked punt that went out of the back of the end zone for a safety.
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Grand Ledge finally got on the scoreboard midway through the third quarter on a 3-yard touchdown run from senior Mason Stocker, but he was stuffed on a potential game-tying two-point conversion. The Comets made a quick stop following its touchdown and had momentum before a bobbled snap wound up as a lost fumble, setting Holt up with good field position.
Fulk then took a chance facing fourth-and-10 from the Grand Ledge 40-yard line. The gamble paid off when senior quarterback Seneca Moore delivered a strike to Charles Thompson for a 14-yard gain to keep the drive alive.
"Gotta have faith in your guys, and sometimes you got to spend money to make money, right?" Fulk said. "I'm known to be a little too aggressive sometimes, but I had a feeling that if we rolled the dice there it would work for us."
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The drive eventually ended in a touchcdown as senior running back Bryce Cornelius scored on a 4-yard run to give Holt the 14-6 lead.
An interception from senior safety Joseph Mitchell and a first-down run from Foster sealed it for the Rams.
"It always feel great to win a trophy and we had a great week of practice, and as a leader I felt like I needed to step up," Foster said. "It all starts with the defense for us. When you have a great defense, your offense will feed off that."
Foster was key for Holt's offense, but his play on the other side of the ball that made all the difference for the Rams. He finished with 13 stops, had two sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
"He's everything for us, and he got to practice a little late at one point this week and my heart kinda stopped because he does everything for us," Fulk said. "He's a leader for us on offense and especially on defense. He's so special and without him I think our team could've been in trouble."
Holt (1-2) will host Okemos (0-3) next Friday, while Grand Ledge (2-1) will host Waverly (3-0)
Contact Nathaniel Bott at nbott@lsj.com and follow him on Twitter @Nathaniel_Bott
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Holt football gets 1st win in defensive battle over rival Grand Ledge
