HOLLAND – The Fruitport football team faced what was really a make-or-break game on Friday night.

Playing on the road one week after a crushing last-second loss, without several key players in the lineup, the game represented a big test of the team’s focus and effort.

The Trojans passed with flying colors.

Several players stepped up into new roles, some for the first time on varsity, and helped the Trojans blow by Holland for a 45-6 win, snapping a two-game skid.

“I thought our guys played probably their most complete game as a team,” said Fruitport head coach Nate Smith. “The locker room felt different, young guys really stepped up, the older guys really helped those guys out.

“The stuff that went down last week in our game, we didn’t play nearly as well as we could have down the stretch. It could have torn us apart or brought us together, and I think this team really decided we’re going to make the most of our last two games and let’s see where the chips fall.

“I’m super proud of them. All around, our guys locked in and stepped up.”

Fruitport started a pair of freshmen cornerbacks making their varsity debuts — Jonnie Kempker and Emmitt Renauldo — against the pass-oriented Dutch offense. They held strong as the Trojans allowed just one touchdown, on Holland’s first possession of the game.

“They played tremendously,” Smith said of Renauldo and Kempker. “You talk about guys stepping up, it was amazing to see what they did. I was really proud of them.”

Overall, the Fruitport defense was able to generate pressure and racked up five sacks and a pair of takeaways.

“We just trusted our secondary, guys stepped up and we just got it done,” said Fruitport linebacker/running back Josh Eppard, who had a handful of tackles, recovered a fumble and also scored two touchdowns on offense. “It feels really good to win.”

Junior Alan Jackson, a starter on defense all season, received significant playing time on offense Friday night and made the most of it. Jackson ran for 114 yards, had a 54-yard pass reception and scored two touchdowns.

Coach Smith said that injured senior Carsen Crow, who has experience as a running back, played a key role in coaching Jackson up during practice to help prepare him for Friday’s game.

“Alan is a tremendous athlete, and we ask a lot of him on defense,” Smith said. “We knew he was going to give us some stuff on offense (at some point). This week, we had an injury, so we sat down and said ‘Alan, it’s time for you to step up.’”

The Trojans, now 4-4, will finish the regular season next week at Hopkins. The Vikings are also 4-4 after a loss to Reed City on Friday.

Fruitport opened the scoring just three plays into the game. After a 57-yard run by Jackson, Eppard punched in a 2-yard TD run to put the Trojans up 7-0.

Holland responded on its opening drive with a 15-yard touchdown pass from Xavier Murphy to Tyson Parrish. A missed PAT left the score 7-6, which held through the end of the first quarter.

The Trojans extended the lead with 4:47 left in the half on a 1-yard TD run by Eppard. He also ran in a two-point conversion to make it 15-6 at halftime.

Fruitport added three touchdowns in the third quarter to blow the game open – a 15-yard run by Jackson, with a two-point conversion run by Eppard; a 1-yard touchdown run by Kempker, followed by a Nathaniel Cribley-Cotto PAT kick, and a 54-yard TD pass from Brady Hanson to Jackson, plus one more Cribley-Cotto kick.

It was 37-6 after three quarters.

The lone score of the fourth came on a 3-yard run by Hanson, who also ran in a two-point conversion after a bobbled snap on the PAT, to make it 45-6 with 9:29 to play.

Hanson finished 4-for-6 passing for 90 yards and a TD, plus a rushing touchdown. Jackson was his leading receiver with 54 yards.

Kalan Teeter ran for 116 yards on 11 carries. Jackson had 114 rushing yards, Eppard ran for 65 and two scores and Kempker finished with 53 yards rushing.

Defensively, Teeter, Jackson, David Johnson-Jimenez, Bradley Dekker and Chase Rosema each registered a sack for Fruitport. Johnson-Jimenez also intercepted a pass and Eppard recovered a fumble.