Big plays key to Longhorns’ victory over Cougars
A failed onside kick to open the second half and a fumble recovery a few plays later were instrumental in swinging momentum in favor of the Longhorns in their game against region rival Southern Academy on Friday night.
With the Longhorns up 21-0 at the end of the first half, the Cougars attempted an onside kick that was recovered by Landon Houlditch at the 50-yard line. On the next play, Weldon Aydelott raced in from 50 yards out to stretch the Longhorn lead to 27-0 after a failed PAT attempt. The Cougars returned the ensuing kickoff near the 50-yard line. But two plays later the Longhorns recovered a Cougar fumble at the 50. After a short gain and a penalty that pushed the ball back to the Longhorns’ 49-yard line, Hayden Megginson cut through the defense for a 51-yard touchdown run. The PAT pushed the Longhorns to a 34-0 advantage.
The meeting of the region rivals began with several swapped possessions. However, just before the 6:00 mark, Jacob Beck picked off a Cougar pass and raced 66 yards to the end zone. Megginson’s PAT gave the Longhorns a 7-0 lead with 5:56 to go in the first quarter. The quarter ended with the Longhorns holding the 7-0 lead.
Less than 30 seconds into the second quarter, the ‘Horns recovered a fumble at the Cougar 38. On the next play, Beck found a wide open Gavin Tate for a 38-yard touchdown. The PAT was good, giving the Longhorns a 14-0 lead with 11:36 to go in the second quarter.
Later in the second quarter, the Cougars came up one yard short on a fourth-and-four to turn the ball over to the Longhorns. Several key runs moved the ball to the Southern 16-yard line with a little over two minutes to go in the half. Megginson got the call and carried the ball in from there and added the PAT for a 21-0 lead for the Longhorns.
The third quarter began with the failed Cougar onside kick and Aydelott run, which gave the ‘Horns a 27-0 lead after a failed PAT. The fumble recovery and ensuing Megginson 51-yard scamper and PAT pushed the Longhorn lead to 34-0 with 9:39 to go in the third.
The Longhorns’ first fourth quarter score came at the 9:38 mark with Cameron Peppenhorst taking it in from the 1-yard line. Megginson added the PAT for a 41-0 Longhorn lead.
Less than a minute later, Robert Tutt forced a Cougar fumble that was picked up by Jacob Beck who returned it 55 yards for the touchdown. Another successful Megginson PAT rounded out the scoring for the night, giving the ‘Horns a 48-0 region win over the Southern Academy Cougars.
The Longhorns rushed 37 times for 292 yards and completed four passes for 91 yards, giving them a total of 383 yards of offense. They were penalized six times for 50 yards.
Megginson led the ‘Horns ground attack with six carries for 107 yards with two touchdowns. Aydelott added six carries for 96 yards and one touchdown. Beck was 4-for-5 for 91 yards with one touchdown. Houlditch had one catch for 43 yards. Gavin Tate had one catch for 38 yards and a touchdown.
Daniel McCray paced the defense with seven tackles, five assists and one fumble recovery. Gavin Thompson added seven tackles with three assists. Tutt added four tackles with five assists, a forced fumble and an interception.
“They played with more enthusiasm and really got after us more than we got after them in the first half,” Longhorn head coach Webb Tutt said of the Cougars.
“We always talk about that,” Tutt said of the Cougars’ decision to go with the onside kick to open the second half. “I’m surprised they did it, but fortunately, it went right to Landon and he did a good job of covering it up.”
Tutt said the play could have been a big momentum play for the Cougars had they recovered it.
“We challenged them at half-time – that half is gone; it’s about now.” Tutt said. “We came out with more intensity and had a couple of big plays, big runs that broke the game open.”
The Longhorns (2-1, 1-1) travel to Tuscaloosa next week for their first meeting with another region rival, North River Christian.
