Commanding performance: Ed White shuts out Baldwin in regular season football finale

Raines has the decades of tradition. Jackson has the Super 11 superstar.

But when it's time to list the most fearsome defenses in Duval County public schools, White safety Joshua Patterson doesn't want people to forget about a certain district champion in green and gold.

"We've got four shutouts on the season, best defense in the city," he said. "Now we've got to get ready for playoffs."

Starting the night with a pick-six and slamming the door the rest of the way, White capped its high school football regular season in style with Friday night's 28-0 shutout of Baldwin.

Joshua Patterson took an interception to the end zone, older brother Davaughn Patterson found the end zone himself and the Commanders (7-2) made a statement in a battle of district champions — all while carrying on a bit of a family tradition.

Just a few years ago, it was Jaison Patterson, eventually a Bowling Green signee, pushing White football into the postseason. Now, it's two younger brothers helping to carry the load for a Gateway Conference team that nobody will relish meeting come playoff time.

"We knew they were going to be heavy run and our guys came out and played physical," White head coach Lawrence Johnson said. "We kind of beat them at the line of scrimmage, and they didn't get much on us."

Golden night for Orel Gray: University Christian high school football tops Bishop Kenny

Bayou time: Trinity Christian sophomore quarterback Colin Hurley commits to LSU, reclassifies to 2024

'1 percent attitude': Sharif Denson receives All-American jersey, still locked in with Gators

TURNOVERS TURN GAME FOR WHITE

A sure sign of success for the Commanders' defense: More Baldwin passes found their way into defenders' hands (two) than to their intended receivers (one).

A defense that had already forced 26 turnovers through nine games added a couple more Friday, none bigger than Joshua Patterson's game-changing pick-six on Baldwin's opening drive. The visitors had marched inside the White 5 when quarterback Jalen Hitchens tried to throw a pass into traffic.

Patterson was there, pouncing on a quick slant route to intercept the ball and return it 97 yards to the opposite end zone for his second defensive touchdown of 2022.

"I'm reading the quarterback and I know we need a stop," said the sophomore safety, who already has multiple Division I college offers. "I'm seeing the slant coming, and I just jumped it and took it to the house."

Tavales Thomas added another pick later in the first half to squash another Baldwin drive, and White's Tony Williams also blocked a second-half punt.

COMMANDERS SLOW BALDWIN GROUND GAME

The ground game has carried Baldwin's offense this year, and for the first quarter and part of the second, quarterback Hitchens looked like keeping the winning run going for B-Town.

Hitchens ran for 76 yards in the first half before the Commanders clamped down on the quarterback. He gained only 9 yards the rest of the night, amid heavy pursuit from Davaughn Patterson, Shawn Neloms, Javon Johnson and a swarming White defense.

Only two Baldwin plays all night picked up more than 11 yards, one of them a Hitchens scramble for 34 yards on the opening possession, and the Commanders limited their foes to 7 yards passing.

The shutout list for White: Parker, Riverside, Westside and now Baldwin.

"With any team on the Westside, we play that game with a lot of enthusiasm and a lot of energy," Davaughn Patterson said. "We came out there, we made plays and we came up victorious."

DEPTH DELIVERS FOR WHITE

For White's running backs, the individual numbers weren't stunning — but they were more than enough.

The backfield-by-committee that has carried the load for the Commanders since a season-ending ACL tear to quarterback Isiah Teal against Riverside delivered once again.

Thomas carried for 91 yards, Davaughn Patterson picked up 45, Joseph Williams gained 50 and Benny Lewis zipped through traffic for 59, including a darting 29-yard score in the third quarter that put the game away.

White even had time to recognize injured quarterback Teal, bringing him onto the field for a final kneel-down.

From here, Baldwin (8-2) advances to the Region 1-2S playoffs as champions of District 5-2S, while White will be looking forward to a Friday night playoff in what looks like a dog-eat-dog Region 1-2M.

"I know whoever they match us up against is going to be a tough opponent," Johnson said. "We've got to get our guys ready."

Clayton Freeman covers high school sports and more for the Florida Times-Union. Follow him on Twitter at @CFreemanJAX.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: High school football: Baldwin-Ed White, 2022 Week 11 in Jacksonville