Bucs shine on big stage
ATLANTA, Ga. – The Hoover High School football team crossed the state line and, after a couple shaky possessions to start the game, asserted itself as the superior team.
Hoover (1-0) pummeled North Gwinnett of Georgia 38-14 in the Corky Kell Classic on Saturday evening at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, home of the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons.
“I saw exactly what I thought I’d see, playing to a standard that we demand every day of ourselves and accountability,” Hoover head coach Josh Niblett said following the game. “That’s a tough team with a lot of really, really good players.”
North Gwinnett (0-1) quarterback Ethan Washington broke free for a 73-yard touchdown on the game’s third play to give his team a quick 7-0 lead. Hoover’s first drive featured two drops by the wide receivers and resulted in a quick punt.
From then on, the Bucs dictated the proceedings. Hoover was the first team from outside of Georgia to be invited to the season-opening event, and put forth a terrific showing.
New Hoover quarterback Bennett Meredith — who transferred from Spain Park — threw the first of three first-half touchdowns on the Bucs’ second drive of the game. He hit Cotton Peters on a short ball and Peters took it the distance for a 44-yard score to tie the game at 7-7.
KJ Law broke free after catching a bubble screen from Meredith, scooting 82 yards to the house to give Hoover a 14-7 lead.
The next time Hoover had the ball, Meredith found a wide open Peters in the end zone for a 30-yard touchdown. Lamarion McCammon then hauled in a long pass to set up Meredith’s 4-yard scramble, as the Bucs extended the lead to 28-7.
“You could see the nerves on the first drive, we had two dropped passes, but we came back and executed after that. We all played with good energy. That’s what happens when we play with good energy,” Meredith said.
Peyton Argent booted a 40-yard field goal and North Gwinnett struck on a long pass to make it 31-14 at the half.
The only scoring of the second half came from Ahamari Williams, who burst up the middle for a 34-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.
Hoover dominated a North Gwinnett team that won nine games last fall, despite having about five starters out due to injury.
One of those starters was electrifying receiver RJ Hamilton. Despite not having his top target, Meredith finished 16-of-26 for 333 yards and the three touchdowns. Peters was his go-to guy on the night, as he hauled in seven passes for 137 yards.
“He did a really good job of protecting the football,” Niblett said. “He did a really good job on third down. Our guys did a good job of getting open. When we were able to take some shots, he didn’t miss. We dropped a couple early that we’d like to have back but that’s part of it.”
Williams had a big game in his own right, rushing for 118 yards on 14 carries. Niblett raved about his offensive line for creating the push up front and holes for Williams to plow through.
Hoover’s defense, in its first game under new coordinator Chad Merrill, played extremely well outside of the two big plays it allowed for touchdowns. North Gwinnett gained 293 yards of offense, but over half of that came on two plays.
Jeremy Cook intercepted a pass in the third quarter that set up Hoover’s final touchdown and nearly picked off another one later in the game. Paul Thompson, Terrell Jones and Corey Warren each had four tackles in the game to lead the Bucs. Markus Clark and Michael Nixon each registered a sack, while Jones and Andrew Parrish finished with a half sack each.
Meredith said Mercedes-Benz Stadium ranks at the top of places he’s played. The Bucs handled changing circumstances well, with limited warmup time and a kickoff over an hour later than originally scheduled.
“We were super excited just to get out to Atlanta and play some different competition. This is the best of the best, it doesn’t get any better than this,” he said.
Next week, Hoover plays another team from the state of Georgia. The Bucs will host Alpharetta, which is coached by former Hoover offensive coordinator Jason Kervin.