Unilke his lacrosse career, Jacob Todd’s football run at Severn School has had few highlights. Saturday, Todd and the Admirals had their finest moment.
The Admirals outlasted host Annapolis Area Christian School, 42-41, to clinch first in the MIAA C Conference. Todd, a senior quarterback, erupted for 248 yards rushing and five touchdowns.
Todd, who will play lacrosse for Princeton University in the spring of 2024, rallied his football mates with a pair of fourth quarter scoring runs.
For the first time since 2003, Severn (7-2 overall, 4-0 MIAA C) is MIAA football champions.
“The defense came up clutch, made a few good plays including the fumble and a few stops, and I think that’s what allowed our offense to win,” Todd said.
The Admirals trailed 33-29 in the fourth when Todd scored on a quarterback sneak and converted a defensive fumble recovery into a 14-yard touchdown run, giving Severn a 42-33 advantage with four minutes, 15 seconds left in regulation. Annapolis Area quickly answered as Xavier Essex drove the Eagles down the field and scored on a seven-yard touchdown run, followed with a two-point conversion pass, bringing the hosts to 42-41 with 3:09 left.
The Admirals kept the ball in the hands of Todd, who converted a pair of runs into first downs, to bleed the final minutes and secure the first championship since Baltimore professional sports icon Ray Lewis and Cal Ripken Jr., were entrenched in their Hall of Fame careers for the Ravens and Orioles, respectively.
The Admirals’ last title was B Conference tri-champion with St. Paul’s and Archbishop Curley. After going 8-3 in 2017, Severn had three consecutive losing seasons, including 0-9 in 2002.
Demetrius Ballard, a longtime youth coach in the Severn area and former Archbishop Spalding assistant, took over the reigns this season.
“They were 0-9 last year, so we just came in and simplified stuff,” Ballard said, also crediting younger players for stepping up as the Admirals have been riddled with injuries over the past week.
“I think the coaches have built a new culture here and that has brought everyone together, so I think that’s why we were able to win this year,” said Todd, who went six-of-15 passing for 132 yards and a touchdown.
The 6-foot-1 signal caller opened Saturday with a 58-yard touchdown run after Essex launched an 85-yard touchdown pass to Elijah on the second snap of the game. The Admirals had a 22-12 advantage in the second, courtesy of a safety and a four-yard touchdown by Todd.
The Eagles, who lost, 56-40, at Severn a few weeks ago, came back behind Essex. He found Butler from 19 yards and followed later with a 10-yard touchdown score, giving Annapolis Area a 25-22 halftime lead.
After Todd broke three tackles en route to a 57-yard touchdown to start the second half, Ethan Locker regained the lead for Annapolis Area with a three-yard touchdown run.
The Eagles, however, had no answer for Todd, who scored twice in the fourth quarter to give Severn the lead for good. Essex finished the afternoon seven-of-14 passing for 254 yards and two touchdowns plus two rushing scores.
“I just think they fought from the first minute of the game all the way to the last minute of the game,” Annapolis Area coach Marcus Bell. “I’m extremely proud of the way that they competed here today and we came up short, but I think we showed great progress throughout the season and to get to this point shows a lot.”
Severn won just three games between 2018 and 2021. Sixty-players came out for football tryouts in August, the largest turnout in recent years.
“All I could offer a lot of these kids is work ethic,” said Ballard, whose team plays rival and No. 6 St. Mary’s next weekend in its season finale. " We’re coming to work every day and you’re going to see I’m going to lay out a plan from Point A to Point B… kids like this – when they know you have a plan – and when they see the endgame, they’re all in.”
Severn 42, Annapolis Area Christian 41
Severn 13 9 7 13 - 42
AACS 12 13 8 8 - 41
First quarter
AACS - Elijah Butler 85 pass from Xavier Essex (run failed)
Severn - Jacob Todd 58 run (run failed)
Severn - Jack Shields 17 pass from Todd (Nick Sotiropoulos-Lawrence kick); 4:32
AACS - Zahire Mike 36 run (kick failed); 1:22
Second quarter
Severn - Safety (Mike tackle in end zone)
Severn - Todd 4 run (Sotiropoulos-Lawrence kick)
AACS - Butler 19 pass from Essex (Ethan Locker kick)
AACS - Essex 10 run (kick failed)
Third quarter
Severn - Todd 57 run (Sotiropoulos-Lawrence kick)
AACS - Locker 3 run (conversion run good)
Fourth quarter
Severn - Todd 1 run (pass failed)
Severn - Todd 14 run (Talin Krashoc kick)
AACS - Essex 7 run (conversion pass from Essex)
