Spartans speed past Oak Mountain
MOUNTAIN BROOK — Strother Gibbs gets ready for football games by listening to music from groups such as Lynyrd Skynyrd, AC/DC and Metallica.
So it only made sense that Mountain Brook High School's quarterback came out ready to rock and roll against Oak Mountain on Friday.
Gibbs, a junior, scored touchdowns on his team’s first three drives to set the tone in a 42-14 victory at Spartan Stadium in a Class 7A, Region 3 contest.
“We came out fast,” Gibbs said. “We had a great game plan coming in.”
The plan included a heavy dose of Gibbs.
He capped the Spartans’ opening possession with a 29-yard touchdown pass to Logan Brewer, capped the second possession with a 22-yard rushing score and capped the third possession with a 20-yard touchdown strike to Paulson Wright.
Gibbs completed his first seven passes for 120 yards.
“I felt like we had some spring in our legs,” Spartans head coach Chris Yeager said. “I told our guys you want to have the same excitement and energy that we had in game one.”
Gibbs’ only real hiccup came midway through the second quarter with Mountain Brook leading 21-0. Oak Mountain’s Cam Atkinson intercepted him near midfield, setting up a 19-yard touchdown run from Judah Tait.
Tait's legs produced the Eagles only points of the opening half. Mountain Brook’s defense held Oak Mountain to 71 yards through two quarters and forced punts on its first four drives.
“Our defense holds our own, but our offense is having a great year,” Spartans defensive back Blake Pugh said. “We can’t take all the credit.”
Pugh widened Mountain Brook’s lead early in the third quarter. He picked off Oak Mountain quarterback Evan Smith on the Eagles’ first drive of the second half and returned it 18 yards for a touchdown.
“Coach made a good call so I could jump the quick route,” Pugh said. “It hit my facemask, and I was like, ‘Oh God I can’t drop another pick.’ Once I caught it, I just took off.”
Oak Mountain responded on its next possession when Jonathan Bennett bolted for a 48-yard touchdown run on fourth down. Bennett led his team offensively, totaling 127 rushing yards on 13 carries.
Gibbs answered with a 2-yard touchdown run that gave the Spartans a 35-14 lead through three quarters. Sam Higgins closed out the scoring with a 10-yard scamper in the final frame.
Gibbs and Higgins combined for 287 rushing yards, with Gibbs going for 159 and Higgins going for 128 on 20 carries apiece. Gibbs also completed 8-of-12 passes for 117 yards.
“I credit the offensive line and Strother Gibbs making great reads on the runs,” Yeager said. “He was eliminating some of those guys with reads and stuff like that. Sam Higgins ran great behind his pads and made great decisions. It was blue-collar football.”
Oak Mountain compiled only 212 yards of total offense, and Smith went 3-of-9 through the air for 27 yards.
The Eagles drop to 2-4 overall and 0-4 in Region 3. Mountain Brook moves to 6-0 overall and 4-0 in the region and is all but assured of a playoff spot. The Spartans will host Hewitt-Trussville next week, while Oak Mountain will host Tuscaloosa County.
“We’re ready for the rest of the season,” Gibbs said.
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