Bucs fall to Mountain Brook

HOOVER – Mountain Brook High School showed its run game can play up to the Class 7A level on Friday night. The Spartans rode Cole Gamble and the ground attack to the tune of 223 rushing yards and four touchdowns in a 34-24 win over Hoover.

The win was Mountain Brook’s first against Hoover since 2011.

“We have been close so many times over the years,” said Spartans’ head coach Chris Yeager. “This game means a lot to our players, past and present.”

“I was about six years old when that happened,” quipped the senior Gamble on the program’s last win over Hoover. “I am so proud of my guys and love them.”

Mountain Brook (5-1) has now won five straight games and has shut out its opponents in 13 of the last 16 quarters.

Hoover wasted no time getting on the board with a 65-yard strike from Noah Schuback to Jordan Woolen on the game’s opening play. Woolen streaked behind the defense for the 65-yard score.

Mountain Brook scored less than 90 seconds later, as Gamble gashed the Bucs defense on a 55-yard TD run.

Hoover strolled downfield to retake the lead the next drive. Schuback completed his first six passes of the game and found Christopher Warren on a 12-yard connection to cap off the drive.

The Spartans rattled off a nine-play drive to bring the score to 14-14 before the opening frame ended. Gamble’s second score of the game came on a direct snap from the 2-yard line.

Mountain Brook’s defense opened the second quarter with a big play, as Hudson Young broke through to block a punt and give the away side excellent field position at the 24-yard line. The Spartans used eight plays and two fourth down conversions to go ahead. Gamble finished the drive from a yard out, but a blocked extra point left the score at 20-14.

The Spartans tacked on one more to score to close the half. John Cooper threw a pass over the middle to Young, who caught it at the 5-yard line and muscled his way in to extend the lead to 27-14 at the break.

The third quarter’s only score was a 30-yard field goal by Hoover’s Matthew Daibes to cut the deficit to 27-17.

After being pinned deep by a punt, the Spartans engineered a 14-play scoring drive, chewing away over six minutes of game clock. Cooper converted a fourth-and-12 with a 22-yard pass to Stuart Andrews and Gamble sliced through the right side of the Bucs defense on the next play for a 14-yard score. Mountain Brook led 34-17 with 3:52 remaining.

JJ Moultrie gave Hoover a sign of life with a 95-yard kickoff return touchdown as he sprinted and tip-toed down the right sideline to make it a 34-24 game. The hosts could not recover the onside kick and the two sides traded turnovers on back-to-back plays a few moments later to ice the game for the Spartans.

Gamble finished with 223 total yards on 39 touches with 108 rushing yards coming in the first half on 18 carries.

“Our offensive line did an incredible job and their endurance throughout the game is what won it for us,” said Gamble.

Cooper completed his first seven passes of the game, with his first incompletion occurring due to a receiver slipping. He finished 10-for-12 for 146 yards.

“Early in the year, I felt like he was pressing,” Yeager said. “We kept telling him just to function within the system. Take what they give you. Whatever is routine, just do it in an exceptional way, and that is what he did.”

Schuback completed 12-of-18 throws for 210 yards passing, while Woolen led all players with 5 receptions for 85 yards.

This was Hoover’s (1-5) third straight loss. Hoover still maintains an all-time series edge of 35-9.

Mountain Brook is off next week, while Hoover will be back home against Oak Mountain.

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Editor's note: This story was updated at 11:39 a.m. on Sept. 30 to correct a statement late in the story about the number of straight losses for Hoover. This was the third straight loss.