Bucs outlast Mountain Brook
MOUNTAIN BROOK – The Spartans put up a fight, but the Bucs did what they had to do with the game on the line.
“We got a stop when we needed to get a stop. We got a score when we needed to get a score,” said Hoover head coach Josh Niblett.
The Hoover High School football team held off a second-half charge from Mountain Brook on Friday, holding on for a 31-21 win at Spartan Stadium in the Class 7A, Region 3 opener for both teams.
“Hats off to Mountain Brook,” Niblett said. “Every time we play them, it’s one of those where it’s a one-score game going down to the end. Their staff does a heck of a job. Their kids believe in what they’re doing."
Mountain Brook (2-1, 0-1 Region 3) had the ball twice in the fourth quarter with a chance to take the lead, but the Bucs defense stood tall each time. On fourth-and-3 from the Hoover 26-yard line, quarterback Hamp Sisson was dropped for a 5-yard loss. The Spartans were forced to punt on their next drive, leading to Hoover’s gut punch.
Vonte’ Brackett’s 11-yard touchdown run with 4:20 to play put the game out of reach, giving the Bucs the 31-21 edge. They got the stop they needed, and the score they needed.
“That game exposes things you need to work on,” Mountain Brook head coach Chris Yeager said. “It exposes your strengths and weaknesses. I love playing Hoover and I hate playing Hoover.”
After taking a 24-7 lead into the halftime break, the Bucs (2-1, 1-0) found the going much tougher in the third and fourth quarters, as Mountain Brook made its push.
Sisson scampered in from 28 yards out on a critical fourth-down conversion late in the third quarter to trim Hoover’s lead to 24-14.
On the Spartans’ next drive, AJ Gates had one of his most impressive runs of the evening, juking a defender and leaving him in the dust, as Gates scored on a 54-yard run to make it 24-21 early in the fourth quarter.
Mountain Brook pooched the ensuing kickoff short and the Hoover returner was smacked instantly after catching the ball, resulting in a fumble. Collin Bussman came out of the pile with the ball, and the Spartans had the ball on the Hoover side of the field with plenty of time to make something happen.
That’s when Greg Russell blew up Sisson’s run attempt on fourth down, on the same play he scored on in the third quarter.
“Just a heck of a play there,” Niblett said.
Mountain Brook’s defense responded and created a turnover on the ensuing possession, with Sean Doud falling on a Hoover fumble. But the Spartans were stopped on the next drive.
Hoover jumped out to a 14-0 lead quickly, scoring on its first two possessions. Larry McCammon capped a four-play drive with a 5-yard run on the Bucs’ first drive. The junior back finished with 77 yards on 14 touches.
Shedrick Jackson notched a 5-yard touchdown reception on the next drive, as he caught three balls on the march down the field and led the Bucs with 101 yards on eight grabs.
Mountain Brook responded with four consecutive explosive runs to cut the deficit in half. Harold Joiner ran for 15 and 20 yards, and Gates relieved him and scooted 19 and 26 yards, the latter one resulting in a touchdown to make it 14-7.
Joiner and Gates each eclipsed the century mark on the ground, with Joiner gaining 132 yards on 23 carries. Gates finished with 118 yards on nine runs.
Hoover quarterback Jalen Parker commanded the offense well, according to Niblett. He was extremely efficient, completing 16-of-22 passes for 178 yards and two scores. Nick Davis was on the receiving end of a second-quarter touchdown.
Next week, the Bucs travel to crosstown rival Spain Park, while Mountain Brook travels to Thompson.