Four scores and 200 yards: Aydelott propels ‘Horns past Patrician

September 22, 2016 Jeremy D. Smith

9-22-16 -- Linden, Ala. -- Marengo Academy's Weldon Aydelott (35) scores the first of his four TDs on the night as DJ Nettles makes sure the path to the endzone is clear. — 9-22-16 — Linden, Ala. — Marengo Academy’s Weldon Aydelott (35) scores the first of his four TDs on the night as DJ Nettles (61) makes sure the path to the endzone is clear.

LINDEN — It was a contest marked by missed opportunities on one side and an extraordinary individual effort on the other as Marengo Academy (5-1, 3-0) downed region rival Patrician 35-7 Thursday night.

The Saints were unable to capitalize upon their only three trips into the Marengo red zone while Longhorn senior Weldon Aydelott ran for 214 yards and four touchdowns on 21 rushes to carry his team’s offensive effort.

9-22-16 -- Linden, Ala. -- Marengo Academy's Austen Day (84) brings down a Patrician Academy runner as William Drake (6) closes in. — 9-22-16 — Linden, Ala. — Marengo Academy’s Austen Day (84) brings down a Patrician Academy runner as William Drake (6) closes in.

“I felt like our kids came out and they played fairly hard. But, at the same time, we’ve got to learn to capitalize on some opportunities. There’s some dropped balls here and there,” Patrician coach Jonathan Lindsey said. “Mistakes. Mistakes. Mistakes. You can’t have mistakes and be able to win ball games, especially against a team like Marengo. Marengo is well coached. They do the little things right.”

The Longhorns forced a fumble on the first play from scrimmage as D.J. Nettles pounced on the loose ball to set up the game’s opening score. The Longhorns went 36 yards on four plays, punctuating the march with a 5-yard touchdown run from Aydelott.

“They were just stacking the outside so much, so we just said we were going to run the track. We’ve got to get better at taking what the defense is giving us,” Marengo coach Webb Tutt said of the game plan that allowed Aydelott to show off his rushing prowess. “We should’ve attacked the weak side more, but again, that’s one me. We’re going to work at it. We’re going to keep plugging along.”

After forcing a three-and-out, Marengo drove 58 yards on 10 plays and finished the effort with a 1-yard plunge from quarterback Jacob Beck to advance the lead to 14-0.

Patrician redirected the tone of the game with 8:03 left in the second quarter when Blake Reid hit Jordan Brownlee for a 76-yard catch-and-run touchdown to cut the deficit to 14-7.

“I saw when they were running a three deep zone that they were soft in some areas. We were able to exploit that. Then they went to a man coverage,” Lindsey said of the look from the MA secondary.

9-22-16 -- Linden, Ala. -- Marengo Academy's Jacob Beck eludes one would-be tackler and sizes up another during the Longhorns' game against the Patrician Academy Saints. — 9-22-16 — Linden, Ala. — Marengo Academy’s Jacob Beck eludes one would-be tackler and sizes up another during the Longhorns’ game against the Patrician Academy Saints.

“When you line up, we call a coverage and we don’t run the coverage, that helps,” Tutt added, reflecting on the 211 passing yards his team surrendered on the night. “We’re very soft there now. I’m pleased with the win, but we’ve got a lot of work to do. If we’re going down the road and we face teams that can throw the ball like South Choctaw and all that, we’ve got to get better. We’ve got blinders on.”

The Longhorns answered with a 10-play drive that covered 63 yards and ended with a 12-yard touchdown run by Aydelott to make it 21-7.

Undaunted, the Saints fired back with the arm of Reid. During the ensuing drive, Reid hit three different receivers while completing five passes and moving 47. Reid hit Brantley Ward on a 9-yard strike to move the ball to the MA 3 before the drive stalled.

With 6:24 to go in the third, the Longhorns opened it to 28-7 when Aydelott sprinted 50 yards for a score on the lone snap of the possession.

Reid then went back to the air to move his team to the Longhorn 26 before the Saints lost 16 yards on the next three plays and were forced to punt. Aydelott then rubbed salt in the wound with a 58-yard run to highlight an 80-yard drive that ended with his own 9-yard touchdown sprint and made it 35-7.

9-22-16 -- Linden, Ala. -- Marengo Academy's Robert Tutt attempts to break the tackle of a Patrician Academy defender during the Longhorns' victory over the Saints. — 9-22-16 — Linden, Ala. — Marengo Academy’s Robert Tutt attempts to break the tackle of a Patrician Academy defender during the Longhorns’ victory over the Saints.

The Saints had a negative rushing total until Ward ran 55 yards on an end around in the fourth quarter to get the ball to the Marengo 6. The next play saw a pass bounce off the arm of a Saint receiver and into the hands of Beck, who returned the interception 45 yards to quell the threat.

The Longhorns ran the ball 55 times for 335 yards while limiting Patrician to 53 yards on 20 carries. Reid ended his night 14 for 22 through the air for 211 yards to lead the Saint offense.

Marengo visits Sumter next week where Tutt hopes his team ratchets up its intensity.

“Our intensity, that’s on me. I’m frustrated with me. Every mistake we make is on me. We’re going to try to change some things up and get people in the right positions,” Tutt said.

As for Patrician (1-4, 0-2), the Saints will host Southern Academy.

“I told the guys I felt like after last week that we were down a lot. In this game, with a couple of key moments, we could have been right there in this game. I feel like we did get better this week. The scoreboard doesn’t dictate that, but we did get better and that’s all I can ask for,” Lindsey said.

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