https://www.instagram.com/p/BYhUHCfBfQc/
By Michael V. Hannigan/HCN
The Athens Hornets opened up the refurbished Bruce Field with a 6-0 shutout of Mexia Friday night.
Here are 12 things I saw from the sidelines:
– Obviously defense was the key to the win, but it was the toughness shown by the Hornet defense in the second half that was impressive. Three times Mexia drove into Athens territory in the third and fourth quarter, and three times the Hornets held their ground. Fittingly, the final play of the game was Athens stopping Mexia on second and goal from the Athens 9.
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– Victor Dawson recovered a fumble in the third quarter to stop one of those drives.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BYhYF6yB93q/
– Nathan Sims stopped another of those drives with a sack in the fourth quarter. Rylan Benge also had a sack, his coming on Mexia’s first drive of the night.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BYhkyCyBXmP/
– The Athens defense was dominant in the first half, holding Mexia without a first down on four drives.
– Sophomore Jerquindon Taylor was a workhorse in the backfield and scored the game’s only touchdown on a 6-yard run, which he set up with a long catch-and-run the play before. (Video at top of column.)
– Although the offense only scored 6, the Hornets were THIS CLOSE to hitting for a big play several times during the game. The new Athens offense has potential and it will be fun to see if they can gel as the season progresses.
– Senior QB Xavius Fulton might not have had a huge night on the stat sheet, but he had a couple of potential touchdowns dropped and he showed he is well-suited to trigger this spread offense. He also had a big night punting and flipped the field multiple times.
– The first pass reception of 2017 was made by Jordan Mayhall.
– Fulton showed he is a dual threat behind center with some nice moves on the run.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BYhjoIDhhYk/
– Junior Dakota Anderson missed a 35-yard field goal attempt wide left, but he didn’t miss it by much and he had enough leg to have tried from 45. He could be a weapon for the Hornets this season.
– This is just the second time the Hornets have won their opener under Coach Paul Essary. The last time was in 2013.
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– The emotion shown by the Hornets after the game made it clear they felt the weight of being the first team to walk out of the new Athens ISD Hornet Field House and wanted to win not just for this season, but for posterity. They came out of the field house in twos, arms linked together.
The Hornets will be home again next week, hosting Fairfield for Civil Service Night. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
It was a great game! Prelude to a great season!