VINEMONT —
After enduring a 34-6 beating by Hanceville last week, Vinemont (4-1, 2-1 in Class 3A, Region 7) took out its frustrations on mostly hapless Brewer (0-5, 0-3 in Class 5A, Region 7) Friday night, with star running back Ty Jones running wild for two touchdowns and more than 200 yards in a 21-0 shutout win on homecoming night.
“It was a great game for us, bouncing back from last week,” Eagle coach Alan Scott said. “These guys worked hard and deserve everything they’ve earned.”
Vinemont’s rushing attack got the job done for much of the night, as Jones led the pack with 204 yards on 29 carries, and senior quarterback Duncan Hopper wasn’t asked to do too much other than hand it off during his final homecoming as an Eagle. Tyler Boland was an effective change of pace as Vinemont’s second leading rusher, amassing 52 yards on 10 carries.
Scott said he was pleased with his team’s running attack and was glad to see his line get a push in the trenches against a 5A opponent.
“Our offense controlled the line of scrimmage, but we did have a few missed opportunities,” he said. “But, overall, we did well.”
More than anything, Scott said he was most proud of his defense — which managed to pitch a shutout, despite some turnovers that allowed Brewer to creep into the red zone three separate times.
“Hats off to our defense,” he said. “We turned the ball over a couple of times and put them in some bad situations, but they rose up and played like a team.”
Brewer, now riding a 15-game losing streak dating back to last season, managed to keep it close early, down just 6-0 in the second quarter following an early touchdown by Jones. But, a two-minute scoring drive by Vinemont to close out the first half gave the Eagles a 13-0 lead and all the momentum they needed heading into halftime. With the clock winding down, the Eagles’ rushing attack finally found some creases, breaking off big runs and finding the end zone on an 18-yard blast by Jones to cap a 70-yard drive.
Though they gave up a few big plays on the ground, the Vinemont defense bent but didn’t break, keeping Brewer out of the end zone to close the first half 13-0. The Eagles kept the early lead intact with a leaping interception in the end zone by Tyler Boland with just 5:48 to go in the second quarter on a fade route tossed up by Patriots’ QB Weston Pritchett.
Though he piled up the yardage, Jones also choked up two fumbles — including one on the Patriots’ 10-yard line with 7:40 to go in the third — but the Eagle defense made enough big plays to keep Brewer off the scoreboard.
After shutting down the Patriots’ offense once again, the Eagles drove all the way down to the Brewer 1-yard line with a minute to go in the third, but Jones’ dive up the middle was stuffed on 4th and goal.
The Eagles notched their final score on an 11-yard sweep by receiver Tyler Johnson, who found the edge and high-stepped into the end zone to put the game out of reach with 11:13 to go in the game.
After holding off a last ditch Patriots’ effort by swatting down a fourth-down jump ball with just 2 minutes remaining, the Eagles assumed the victory formation and called it a night.
Vinemont will try to keep up its contender status in Class 3A, Region 7 next week at home against a dangerous No. 5 Hamilton team.
‰ Trent Moore can be reached by e-mail at trentm@cullmantimes.com, or by telephone at 734-2131, ext. 220.
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