Rick Lanier
Opelika Observer
The Beauregard Hornets used a well-balanced offensive game plan (28 pass plays/30 run plays) combined with a stellar defensive effort and timely adjustments by the coaching staff to notch another victory, this time over the 6A Russell County Warriors in a non-conference road game Friday night.
The fact that the Warriors were playing their first game of the season hampered Beauregard’s preparation. Head Coach Rob Carter spoke about the difficulties of getting prepared for this week’s game: “We don’t really have anything from this season we can look at, so we have to just look at what coach Mark Rose has done in the past.” The strategy worked well as Beauregard seemed to have the answers all night.
After trading possessions with the Warriors in the first quarter, Beauregard found its rhythm on offense and got things rolling. With a little more than six minutes to go in the second quarter, RB Trent Jones scored from four yards out to cap off an impressive 70-yard drive putting the Hornets on the board first. The point after try by senior Kicker #30 Cason Santa Anna was good, and the Hornets led 7-0.
Then, late in the second quarter, Beauregard’s defense made a key stop to give senior quarterback #15 Gavin Prickett (17-28, 1/1) the ball back with enough time to connect with senior wide receiver #1 Keyshon Tolefree for a 33-yard touchdown pass with 31 seconds remaining in the quarter. After another good kick by Santa Anna, the Hornets headed to the locker room up 14-0 at the half.
Senior defensive lineman #48 Ethan Smith made play after play all night to anchor a very stingy Hornet defense. “Our defense did a great job,” Carter said, “we bent a little bit and gave them some bad field position but they continued to work hard and made some great plays and tackles. I’m just proud of them for being able to make those stands when they did get close.” In fact, Smith’s and the rest of the Hornets’ defensive efforts were so dominant that Russell County was limited to just 81 yards rushing, zero yards passing and a paltry average of only 1.8 yards per play for the entire game.
After a scoreless third quarter, the Hornets struck again at the 8:39 mark in the fourth as senior running back #23 Trent Jones took the handoff, broke free and scampered 59 yards for another touchdown to make the score 21-0. For good measure, Beauregard’s special teams logged another two points with a safety as the Warriors attempted to punt the ball away, effectively putting the game out of reach with five minutes remaining.
After the game, Coach Carter had high praises for his senior quarterback, “Gavin has gotten better each week,” Carter said. “He did a great job of studying what we needed to have, or what they were going to give us and it was on the money.” Carter also praised the overall effort. “We didn’t prepare for anything they were going to do,” he stated, “They did a great job, the kids and my assistant coaches, being able to adjust during the game. It feels great to get a win right here.”
The Hornets (3-3 overall, 1-2 region) are on the road again as they take on the Tallassee Tigers (1-4 overall, 1-1 region) Friday, Oct. 2, 2020. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. CST. Tallassee High School is located at 502 Barnett Blvd, Tallassee, AL 36078.