CAHOKIA聽鈥斅燭he final home regular season game of the season couldn鈥檛 have gone any better for quarterback Zion Taylor and the Cahokia Comanches.
Taylor threw for 250 yards and accounted for three touchdowns Friday night as Cahokia moved a step closer to earning home field for a first round playoff game in two weeks, stopping Collinsville 26-9.
He completed 12 of 17 passes, finding Hartles Holman for a 65-yard score in the first quarter and hitting Cornelius Griffin for a 6-yard touchdown in the third quarter. Taylor ended the game鈥檚 competitive phase on a 1-yard score with 1:51 remaining in the game, high-stepping into the end zone.
鈥淚t means a lot, man,鈥 he said. 鈥淭o lead my boys to a win 鈥 I like this. It feels good.鈥
Taylor鈥檚 passing was not only efficient, it was necessary. The Comanches (7-1), who won their sixth game in a row, managed just 16 yards in 15 first half rushes as the Kahoks (4-4) won the line of scrimmage consistently. But they couldn鈥檛 mount enough pressure on Taylor to keep him from connecting with open receivers.
His first touchdown strike was a mix of great protection and Taylor鈥檚 ability to read a defense. Taking advantage of a coverage bust, Taylor moved around in the pocket until Holman flashed open deep down the middle.
鈥淚've got some of the best wide receivers in the state,鈥 Taylor said. 鈥淚鈥檝e just got to get them the ball. I knew (Holman) was going to come open because they didn鈥檛 have a safety over the top.鈥
While that play was impressive, a better piece of work was a 15-play, 77-yard drive just before halftime that erased the only lead Collinsville had, a 9-6 edge achieved on Chase Reynolds鈥 7-yard keeper at the 6:13 mark of the second quarter.
Taylor methodically worked the defense, hitting 6 of 8 passes for 66 yards that culminated in Donald Collier鈥檚 3-yard burst up the middle with 1:14 left in the half.
鈥淶ion works really hard and has attention to detail with the game plan, so I think that鈥檚 why he has the success he鈥檚 had,鈥 Cahokia first-year coach Darien Donald said. 鈥淪eeing us walk the ball up and down the field was impressive. We preach the pre-snap read and seeing him being confident in his throws was impressive.鈥
Cahokia鈥檚 goal-line defense was just as impressive. The Kahoks marched into Comanches territory on all four first half possessions. Three times, they penetrated the 10. Only once did they find the end zone.
The biggest failure might have been after time expired. A roughing the passer call as the clock hit zeroes gave Collinsville an untimed down from the 5. Coach Colton Rhodes eschewed a 22-yard field goal and went for the touchdown but Reynolds鈥 throw under duress fell incomplete in the end zone.
鈥淕oing to have to look at the film and see what happened,鈥 Rhodes said. 鈥淚 know our red zone execution has been up and down this year. If we score three touchdowns there, we鈥檙e up 21-14 at the half and it鈥檚 a different game.鈥
Instead, the Kahoks played from behind for the game鈥檚 remainder and didn鈥檛 really sniff the goal line in the second half. They managed only 82 yards in the half and their best drive stalled out at the 37 with 5:55 remaining when Reynolds鈥 fourth down throw was knocked away by Corrion Raiford.
Collinsville faces a win-or-else scenario in next week鈥檚 regular season finale at Triad. A victory probably lands the Kahoks in the postseason because its opponents owned 37 wins going into Week 8, a huge number.
A loss means they collect equipment the next day.
鈥淥ur playoffs,鈥 Rhodes said, 鈥渟tart a week early.鈥
Quarterback Zion Taylor (7) of Cahokia throws a pass on a two point conversion against Collinsville at Cahokia High School in Cahokia on Friday, October 18, 2024. Paul Baillargeon