Dominant defense leads to historic Spartans victory
BIRMINGHAM -- When told that his team’s 48-0 win over Jackson-Olin was number 400 in program history, Mountain Brook High School head football coach Chris Yeager just said, “Wow.”
“I’m just really proud for the program,” Yeager said.
Yeager said playing 400 games, let alone winning them, is a sign of the commitment the Mountain Brook community has invested in the program and pays homage to the men who have worn the green and gold before.
The historic win on Thursday night came in typical Spartans fashion: a dominant defense and a balanced offense that kept the defense guessing.
Mountain Brook’s defense played its best game of the season thus far against the Mustangs, Yeager said, allowing just 38 yards of offense — half of which came on one run by Jackson-Olin late in the fourth quarter — and forcing two turnovers.
“The defense played suffocating tonight,” Yeager said. “They were flying around and getting to the ball, always one step ahead of them. They showed what they were capable of. We can have as good a defense as we did last year.”
Jackson-Olin quarterback La’marius Byrd finished just 4-of-14 passing with 7 yards and an interception. Only freshman running back Dekarrius Richardson managed to finish with more than 10 rushing yards among six Mustang ball carriers, with 19 of his 27 yards coming on the lone first down Jackson-Olin picked up during the game with about six minutes left to play.
Defensively, the Spartans got key plays from senior linebacker Trent Wright, who had the first sack of the night, followed up by a key open field tackle for a loss of 8 yards. Late in the game, Drew Widener teamed up with Braxton Dean on a tackle for a loss and then grabbed an interception on the very next play. Richard Crommelin also recovered a fumble for the Spartans.
While Yeager said there were some inconsistencies on offense, the Spartans were able to play in the Mustangs half of the field for most of the night and took advantage, scoring five touchdowns, while kicker Reed Harradine went 2-for-3, hitting field goals from 35 and 32 yards and missing from 52 yards.
In the third phase of the game, the Spartans broke through and blocked a punt in the end zone halfway through the second quarter. Following Bennett Kilpatrick’s block, Alex Horn scooped up the loose ball in the end zone to put Mountain Brook up 24-0 at the time.
The Spartans got out to an early lead with a rushing touchdown from Jack King on their first drive, who finished with 21 yards on six carries and a 6-yard reception.
On the Spartans third drive, following a bad Mustangs punt that gave Mountain Brook the ball at their opponent’s 26-yard line, senior quarterback John Colvin rolled to his left, where it appeared he would hit an open receiver for a short gain, but after a Mustangs defensive back came forward anticipating that play, Colvin hit senior receiver Jackson Beatty in open space for a 20-yard gain. That set up another King touchdown, which was followed by a Harradine field goal.
Colvin finished 9-of-13 passing with 76 yards passing. His backup, John Cooper, found Beatty again late in the game for the contest’s final score, a 28-yard touchdown.
Beatty led all receivers with 57 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Running back Cole Gamble led the Spartans on the ground, finishing with 87 yards on 10 carries and a touchdown. Gamble also reeled in three catches for 35 yards.
Mountain Brook moves to 5-0 on the season with the victory. The Spartans take a break from region play next week, as they host longtime rival Hoover next Friday.