Straughn dominates Headland
Published 7:32 pm Saturday, September 13, 2014
The 2014 Headland Rams won’t likely remember the Straughn Tigers as hospitable hosts.
The Tigers scored on nine of 12 offensive possessions and also scored a defensive touchdown on a recovered fumble to dominate the Rams, 58-15, at home Friday night.
“We actually played well,” SHS head football coach Trent Taylor said. “Our kids, we talked after the game. We still have a lot of things to work on.”
Taylor said a win was something the team needed.
“We did some good things,” he said. “It was nice to play at home.”
Rollin Kinsaul started, but Taylor rotated his B-team quarterbacks, Brock Hammett and Ethan Wilson, late in the third quarter and the entire fourth quarter. Each scored at least once.
“That was another good thing about tonight,” Taylor said. “We got to play a lot of younger guys. They play on Monday nights, but they really want a chance to play on Friday nights. That made it even better.”
Straughn scored on five of its seven first-quarter possessions to take a commanding 33-7 lead in the first half
On its first possession, the Tigers started at the Headland 48. Quarterback Rollins Kinsaul worked with Daryl George, Ethan Wilson and Brice Scott to get within scoring range. On first and goal from just inside the 10, Kinsaul ran an option play to the left side to score. The kick was no good, and the Tigers were up 6-0 with 6:57 in the first.
The Tiger defense held the visiting Rams to only three yards, forcing the punt on fourth down. Lane Sirmon called for the fair catch at the 36.
On third and sixth, it appeared the Tigers would quickly score again, but Headland picked off a Kinsaul pass to stop the drive.
The Tigers’ defense again limited the Rams to three plays, and Headland punted away.
Kinsaul started the next drive by send Daryl George up the center for 15 yards. A pass interference call against Headland moved the Tigers closer to the goal. On third down, Daryl George went up the gut four yards for paydirt. C.J. Philpott’s kick was good, and the Tigers were up 13-0 with 1:03 in the first period.
Headland answered on its next possession, scoring on a seven-play drive. The kick was good, and the Rams closed the gap to 13-7 with 11:28 left in the second.
It was the last time the Rams would threaten for a long time. Straughn appeared to score on its next possession when Allan George broke loose and went untouched. But an illegal procedure penalty backed the play up, and the Tigers were eventually forced to punt.
Four plays later, they took possession again, and this time they upped the points. Lane Sirmon returned a Headland punt to set his Tigers up on the 47. Seven plays later, on second and four from the 30, Daryl George found paydirt. Philpot kicked good, and Tigers were up 20-7 with 4:14 left in the half.
The offense rested for only four plays before Kinsaul had them back in the huddle. Kinsaul called on Marshall Farley, D. George and Brice Scott to get inside the Rams’ 20. Then on third and five he went around right end to score again. The kick was good and the Tigers were up 27-7 with 1:40 left in the half.
But the Tigers weren’t done. On fourth down with only 1.2 seconds left in the half, Headland fumbled. Jon Spivey recovered and took the ball all the way to put the Tigers up 33-7 at the half.
Halftime didn’t change anything for the Tigers. On their first offensive play of the third quarter, D. George went almost 70 yards for a touchdown to extend the lead to 39-7.
The Tigers again limited the Rams to four plays before regaining possession. On the third pay of the drive, Kinsaul made it inside the five, but fumbled. Four plays later, the Tigers regained possession when the Rams were forced to punt. Sirmon returned to the Ram 10, and two plays later, D. George scored again. The kick was no good, and the Tigers were up 45-7.
The Rams’ next possession ended when Josh Crenshaw recovered a fumble to set up the Tigers’ next score. Hammett, who was in at quarterback, scored on a keeper to up the score to 51-7 with 11 minutes left in the fourth.
Two possessions later, Headland got its only other points, scoring from the short yardage. Their conversion was good, and they narrowed the scoring gap to 51-15.
The Tigers scored again on their next drive, this time with Wilson at quarterback. Wilson connected with Jaquan Samuels on third down to put the Tigers in range, then Wilson found a hole and went 44 yards to score. With two minutes left in the game, the scoring ended at 58-15.
Although the Tigers dominated, they weren’t without mistakes, and the kicking game was off. The Tigers missed five field goals.
Taylor added that it’s easier to work on those mistakes after a win.
“Headland is going to be good in the future,” he said. “Sometimes you’re like that and you have to play through it. It was nice to get back on the left side of that column, though.”
Straughn, now 3-1, is at home against Trinity Presbyterian next week.