THURSDAY PREPS: Trinity shuts out ACA; Tallassee rolls behind Daniels; Autauga wins opener
Alabama Christian quarterback Hayes Hunt fires a pass ahead of the rush of Trinity’s Jack Patty in the Wildcats win on Thursday. (Tim Gayle)
STAFF REPORT
It was an exceptional effort on defense, but Alabama Christian Academy coach Michael Summers couldn’t help glancing at the scoreboard following a 6-0 loss to Trinity as he reflected on an offense that has failed to score a point in its last two games against the Wildcats.
“To give up six points and lose is a hard pill to swallow,” he said. “That’s like scoring 50 and getting beat.”
Offense was a rare commodity on both sides as Grayden Flowers booted field goals of 22 yards late in the first half and 32 yards late in the second half to account for all the points scored at Ragsdale-Boykin Field in the 2021 season opener for both teams on Thursday night.
“Coach Summers is a phenomenal football coach and ACA is a really good 4A football team,” Trinity coach Granger Shook said. “They are at least a second or third-round (playoff) football team. They’re very athletic and they play hard.
“A win’s a win. You know you’re making strides when you’re not really happy about a win. We got a goose egg on the board against a really good team and we’re still not happy about it. I’m proud of our boys because you can tell that they know they didn’t play as well as we had hoped. But it’s a ‘W,’ we’ll enjoy it tomorrow and get back to work.”
The two teams combined for just 16 first downs and 278 total yards, an average of 2.9 yards per play. In a game where one touchdown would likely determine the winner, ACA put three of its seven first downs in one drive, using a six-yard scramble by quarterback Hayes Hunt to give the Eagles the deepest penetration by either team, reaching the Trinity 5-yard line on the third play of the fourth quarter.
With the outcome hanging in the balance, ACA tailback Corey Landers was tackled by Webber McClinton for a five-yard loss, the Eagles were penalized for illegal procedure and Landers was stopped for a two-yard loss to bring up fourth down. Hayden Castro’s 34-yard field goal attempt was low and blocked after a low snap to Hayes, the holder, threw Castro’s timing off.
“Great effort right there,” Shook said. “Really, really proud of how our guys executed there.”
“We had a running back go the wrong way one time, we had a bad snap on the field goal,” Summers said. “We did not do a very good job of blocking all night. Down there, it was just an unblocked guy. They didn’t run a single front we hadn’t gone over” in practice leading up to the game.
The loss spoiled the debut of Summers, the former ACA player and defensive coordinator who was promoted to head coach in May. His offense struggled for any consistency, albeit against a quality defense, with Landers gaining almost half of his yards on the first carry of the game.
He finished with 35 yards on 16 carries.
“Too many dropped passes, too many missed blocks,” Summers said. “We had a screen in the first quarter where if we block one guy, we probably gain 40 yards. We’ve definitely got to figure out what it will take physically, particularly up front, in order to be able to move the ball a little more effectively.”
For ACA, the loss stings a little more as the Eagles’ offense was shut out for the second straight year -- last year’s touchdown in a 24-7 loss came on the game-opening kickoff return -- as the lopsided rivalry saw Trinity win for the fourth straight year and the 19th time in the last 22 meetings. But Trinity couldn’t do much celebrating, either, as the leading rusher was quarterback Coleman Stanley, who picked up 31 of his game-high 50 yards in a fourth-quarter drive against a clearly exhausted ACA defense.
“We weren’t nearly as crisp,” Shook said. “Any time you’ve got a new signal caller back there, the cadence is a little different. Our center went down -- he’ll be back next week -- but the new center’s snap was a little different.”
Flowers’ final field goal, with 1:53 remaining, gave ACA possession of the ball at the 34-yard line, 66 yards away from victory but with skill players too exhausted from playing both ways to break loose. Four passes from Hunt to Preston Hicks left the Eagles a foot short of a first down, turning possession back to the Wildcats with 73 seconds remaining.
“It’s hard playing skill positions both ways and most of our skill guys play both ways,” Summers said. “We knew we were going to have cramps. The cramps didn’t cost us the game by any means. I don’t think it was a hydration issue, I don’t think it was an in-shape issue, it was just a matter of time before it happened.
“My biggest question was would we hold up defensively up front because that’s a good offensive line. We did.”
Trinity (1-0) remains home to play Montgomery Academy next Friday, while ACA (0-1) returns home to play host to Highland Home.
Tallassee 34, Reeltown 13
REELTOWN – The Tallassee Tigers spotted Reeltown an early lead but scored 21 unanswered points behind the rushing attack of Jalyn Daniels on the way to a season-opening victory at Webster-Nix-O’Neal Stadium on Thursday.
Daniels finished the night with 328 yards rushing and four touchdowns on 31 carries including a 95-yard jaunt to lead the Tigers to their first win.
Tallassee threw just one pass in the game and it was for no gain. The Tigers finished with 341 yards in rushing.
Dakarian Hughley and Jeffery Thompson scored touchdowns for the Rebels (0-1).
Tallassee plays host to Wetumpka in the home opener next Friday. Reeltown goes to St. James on Friday.
Autauga Academy 40, Tuscaloosa Academy 9
PRATTVILLE -- The Autauga Academy Generals defeated the Tuscaloosa Academy Knights 40-9 on Thursday night after an explosive night on offense from Autauga transfer seniors Karl Ligon and James Wright.
Ligon, who played last season at G.W. Carver, rushed 14 times for 113 yards and two touchdowns, while Wright, who played at Jemison, rushed twice for seven yards and one touchdown, while also recording three catches for 46 yards and two touchdowns.
Autauga quarterback Robert Rose, making his debut after starting last year at Wetumpka, was a big factor as well on offense, completing 12 of 17 attempts for 219 yards along with three touchdowns.
Junior Joshua Palmer was on the receiving end of six of those passes for 91 yards and one touchdown. The biggest player on defense was Deuhn Carroll, with one fumble recovery, one QB hurry and two sacks for a total of 11 yards lost.
Autauga got on the board first after Ligon recorded his first rushing touchdown of the game, but the point-after was missed. Tuscaloosa countered with a field goal on its first possession. Both teams then went three and out, but another Ligon rushing touchdown, along with a successful two-point conversion, gave Autauga a 14-3 lead at the end of the first quarter.
For the remainder of the game, the Knights struggled to contain the General’s explosive offense and trailed 40-3 by the end of the third quarter. However, toward the end of the fourth quarter, the Generals were forced into a fourth down in their own territory. Their ensuing punt was blocked and the Knights converted the miscue into a turnover and extra point for the final points in the game.
The Generals received several penalties in the first half of the game, and the loss of yards impacted their offense at the start of the game.
“We are always looking for things to improve on,” Autauga head coach Bobby Carr said. “Everything that went wrong are easy fixes and those things are what we need to work on.”
Wright and Ligon both had a great game, and Carr knows that these are two special players on a team that is full of talent.
“We have some great talent, but still need to play with an unselfish attitude, and those two are always happy for each other,” said Carr. “Ligon is a special talent, and Wright transferred in from Jemison High School and has been a great player for our team.”
The General’s defense continued to improve as the game went on, and Carr believes that his defense will be a big factor this season.
“I think our front seven is as good of a group as we’ve had in a long time,” he said. “They’re pretty solid and they will continue to get better.”
The game marked the debut of Tuscaloosa Academy coach Josh Wright, the longtime Bessemer Academy coach who led the Rebels to the finals nine times in 13 years, winning four state championships. Tuscaloosa (0-1) is off next week while Autauga (1-0) travels to Tallahassee, Fla., to play Louis Chiles High.
Kickoff Classic: Handley 55, Guntersville 21
Defending Class 4A state football champion Handley High School of Roanoke opened the 2021 season with a 55-21 victory over Class 5A Guntersville Thursday night at Cramton Bowl in the 16th annual AHSAA Kickoff Classic.
The Tigers (1-0) scored four touchdowns in the first quarter and rolled to a 48-0 lead by halftime.
Handley’s talented running back Tae Meadows left the game following an injury, but the Tigers finished the game with 385 total yards and 17 first downs with 195 yards rushing and 190 passing. Cannon Kyles was 9-of-10 for 186 yards and three TDs. Quadae Lewis had three catches for 85 yards and a TD while Jamerqui Lewis and West had one catch – both touchdown receptions. Elijah Goss had 109 yards rushing on 19 carries. Devon Dean led the Tigers defense with six tackles.
Guntersville QB Cole McCarty was 7-of-16 for 130 yards and a TD with Davidson hauling in four catches dor 69 yards and his TD. Defensively, Ben Biddle has 12 tackles and E.J. Havis had nine stops.