Bulldogs alone at the top after more happy returns from Cameron Jones
By Jason Gurente — MikeDragoSports.com senior correspondent
LEBANON – The magic of Cameron Jones’ returns is they make you believe the extraordinary should happen every time. Once the ball’s in his hands, the next stop should be the end zone.
Fans aren’t the only ones who think this way. So do Jones’ teammates. So does Jones himself.
“I feel like all of them are going to the house,” he said.
So far, six already have. Two more went there Friday night.
Jones returned a punt and a kickoff for touchdowns and sparked Wilson past Cedar Crest 49-24 in a Lancaster-Lebanon Section 1 game at Earl Boltz Stadium.
The 5-11, 165-pound junior has four punt returns and two kickoff returns for TDs through eight games. All of them traveled at least 51 yards.
“Every time he touches it, I always have that feeling,” quarterback Brad Hoffman said. “He’s gonna take this one to the house.”
See? Everyone’s thinking it.
The first return Friday was a highlight reel special. Jones was wrapped up shortly after catching the punt, shrugged off the tackler, reversed course and burst up the sideline. He went 69 yards for the game’s opening score.
Jones couldn’t even see the field while he was dodging the initial tackle. He couldn’t have known where the other defenders were located. Instinct took over. He has been returning kicks since he was little.
“Our blocking team is really good,” Jones said. “The potential that we have is just amazing. Our guys are really buying into the special teams this year. They know it’s a really big game-changer for us.”
Wilson coach Doug Dahms didn’t realize what he had in Jones last year. It took an injury for the sophomore to have a chance to return some kicks at the end of the season.
That’s when the light bulb turned on.
“He had never shown it,” Dahms said. “We didn’t know. We had a pretty decent return guy. We put him in because somebody was dinged and it was like, ‘Whoa.’ We knew coming into this year he was special.”
Jones alters the game even when he never touches the ball. Punts sail out of bounds. Kickoffs bounce on the turf. Opponents are afraid to give Wilson’s return man a shot.
The second touchdown came in the third quarter. Jones scooped up a kickoff and bolted through the first wave of tacklers. He juked the last defender and went 91 yards untouched.
Cedar Crest (1-2, 3-4) had just pulled within 28-17 and had a chance to make the second half interesting. Jones stole that momentum away.
“He sets up his blocks,” Dahms said. “The fake he had on the sideline, the guy had no clue. He has the extra gear to accelerate. He glides and then bursts. He’s a big part of why we’re winning these games.”
Wilson battled through its own mistakes to pull away. The Bulldogs lost four fumbles and committed 11 penalties for 113 yards. When they weren’t dealing with self-inflicted wounds, they moved the ball at will.
Hoffman had 195 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Jadyn Jones had 162 yards rushing and a score. TJ Flite caught a 35-yard TD pass. Cameron Jones had a 3-yard touchdown on a direct snap.
Wilson (3-0, 5-3) has won three in a row and now, after Hempfield’s win Friday over Manheim Township, is alone in first place in Section 1. It closes the regular season against Hempfield and Manheim Township the next two weeks.
Jones will be lurking every time a kick goes into the air. Maybe those won’t turn into six points but everyone knows they might.
“His speed burst is crazy,” Hoffman said. “I feel like he baits kids to come and tackle him and he has that sneaky speed. He runs away from dudes.”
Six times, and counting, he ran all the way to the end zone.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Wilson | 14 | 14 | 7 | 14 | 49 |
| Cedar Crest | 7 | 3 | 14 | 0 | 24 |
Scoring summary
| 1 | Wilson | C. Jones, 69 punt return (Rada kick) | 6:41 |
| 1 | Cedar Crest | Richards, 14 run (Zacherl kick) | 3:35 |
| 1 | Wilson | Hoffman, 60 run (Rada kick) | 2:45 |
| 2 | Wilson | J. Jones, 26 run (Rada kick) | 10:10 |
| 2 | Wilson | Flite, 35 pass from Hoffman (Rada kick) | 5:36 |
| 2 | Cedar Crest | Zacheri 26 FG | 3:16 |
| 3 | Cedar Crest | Heisey, 35 pass from Huber (Zacheri kick) | 9:00 |
| 3 | Wilson | C. Jones, 91 kickoff return (Rada kick) | 8:47 |
| 3 | Cedar Crest | Richards, 55 fumble return (Zacheri kick) | 6:01 |
| 4 | Wilson | C. Jones, 3 run (Rada kick) | 11:46 |
| 4 | Wilson | Hoffman, 44 run (Rada kick) | 3:59 |
Team statistics
| Wilson | Cedar Crest | |
| First downs | 17 | 10 |
| Rushes-yards | 41-375 | 25-119 |
| Passing yards | 56 | 116 |
| Total yards | 431 | 235 |
| Passes | 6-11-0 | 12-28-0 |
| Fumbles-lost | 4-4 | 2-1 |
| Punts-average | 4-28.3 | 8-32.6 |
| Penalties-yards | 11-113 | 4-20 |
Individual statistics
RUSHING
Wilson: Hoffman 14-195, J. Jones 23-162, C. Jones 2-14, Lenart 1-7, Flite 1-(-3).
Cedar Crest: Richards 13-101, Gonzalez 4-14, Rolon 2-12, Abreu 3-4, Team 1-(-1), Huber 2-(-11).
PASSING
Wilson: Hoffman 6-11-0–56.
Cedar Crest: Huber 12-28-0–116.
RECEIVING
Wilson: Flite 2-41, J. Jones 2-12, C. Jones 1-4, Kline 1-(-1).
Cedar Crest: Heisey 4-50, Groff 4-40, Koehler 2-5, Richards 1-15, Schomp 1-6.
