Jayden Whitaker, stingy defense lead visiting Brownsburg past Zionsville
By Tyler Hart
Zionsville – Jayden Whitaker's senior season has been perfect so far.
Brownsburg’s standout quarterback kept it that way by leading the Bulldogs to an impressive 50-3 win at Zionsville on Friday night.
"It's been a great season so far, but it doesn't really matter until you get to the playoffs," Whitaker said. "... The main goal is to keep going, keep the momentum going, keep playing to the best of our ability and keep getting better every week."
The Western Illinois commit added that the work is never done and there is always room for improvement.
Whitaker has been among the state leaders in passing yards all season and kept up that level of performance again on Friday.
With a performance that can only be described as clinical he led the offense to a 36-3 advantage at the intermission after the Bulldogs exploded for 29 second-quarter points.
Whitaker's leadership was on display Friday as he reviewed plays on the sideline with teammates to point out details that everyone, including himself, could work on.
And when Chance Whitfield returned a fumble 75 yards for a touchdown, the quarterback was the first person from the sideline to congratulate his teammate on a great play.
Brownsburg's performance on Friday showed why the Bulldogs have to be considered among the best of the best in Class 6A as well as Indiana. Coach John Hart's squad improved to 7-0 overall and 5-0 in the Hoosier Crossroads Conference.
The Brownsburg defense snagged two interceptions, turned a fumble recovery into a score and limited Zionsville to only a field goal.
"We did some things that were a little bit uncharacteristic of how we expect to play – with some of our run-defense stuff," said Hart, who praised Zionsville's experienced coaching staff for finding ways to attack the Bulldogs. "... We've got another whole level of football that we can play."
The big question about what could have been on Friday happened early in the first quarter when Zionsville senior quarterback Christian Abney, a Ball State commit, left the game with an injury and was replaced by junior Luke Murphy.
Murphy ended up completing 11 of 21 passes for 114 yards and an interception. He made some plays, but it wasn't enough to overcome the surgical offense of Whitaker and the visiting Bulldogs.
Zionsville fell to 4-3 overall and 2-3 in conference play.
Brownsburg at Zionsville football
Tyler Hart photo
