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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Constantine Hontzas (38) celebrates his winning field goal during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Constantine Hontzas (38) makes the final field goal to win the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Kory Warren (16) picks up a fumble during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Anthony Hayes (6) carries the ball during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Hoover defenders take down Central-Phenix City during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Robby Ashford (16) looks for an open teammate during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Maurice McConnel (47) celebrates after a play during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Hoover takes to the field after multiple weather delays during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Kory Warren (16) runs a recovered ball during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Jeptha Kilgore (51) leaves the field after ripping his jersey during a play during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Seth Parker (9) takes down Central-Phenix City during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Hoover cheerleaders celebrate a touchdown during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Members of the Hoover Buccanettes don ponchos while dancing during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Marcus Williams (5) takes down the Central-Phenix City quarterback during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Kory Warren (16) and Aarren Smith (7) celebrate after a play during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Anthony Hayes (6) runs the ball during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Luke Godwin (74) plays defense during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Cooper Tullo (12) celebrates a touchdown during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Robby Ashford (16) holds up four fingers to signal the start of the fourth quarter during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
RJ Hamilton (80) misses a catch during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Ray Hampton (15) and Cooper Tullo (12) get amped up before the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Malik Thomas (11) carries the ball during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Central-Phenix City and Hoover players scramble for a fumbled ball during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Hoover takes to the field after multiple weather delays during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Josh Smith (17) dives for a tackle on Central-Phenix City during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Central-Phenix City intercepts a pass to Jamari Buye (2) during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Hoover defense takes down Central-Phenix City during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Kory Chapman (3) leaps for a catch during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
RJ Hamilton (80) runs the ball for a touchdown during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Hoover takes to the field after multiple weather delays during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
The Hoover Marching Band performs during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
The Hoover Marching Band performs during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
The Hoover Marching Band performs during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
The Hoover Marching Band performs during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
The Hoover Marching Band performs during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
The Hoover Marching Band performs during the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Hoover poses with the game trophy after the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Juan Sparks (79) and Anthony Hayes (6) celebrate after the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Hoover celebrates their win after the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Hoover celebrates their win after the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
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Sarah Finnegan
Hoover VS Central Phenix Football 2019
Constantine Hontzas (38) holds the game trophy as he celebrates with his teammates after the AHSAA Kickoff Classic against Central-Phenix City on Friday, Aug. 23, 2019, at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery.
MONTGOMERY – Constantine Hontzas admitted to being a little nervous, but it was impossible to tell.
In his first game as the starting varsity kicker for the Hoover High School football team, the junior drilled a 30-yard field goal as time expired to lift the Bucs to a 17-14 win over defending Class 7A state champion Central-Phenix City on Friday night at Montgomery’s Cramton Bowl.
Hontzas trotted onto the field after the Hoover offense marched 84 yards in 10 plays in just over four minutes. Central-Phenix City then used its final two timeouts in an effort to ice the rookie.
It didn’t work.
“Nothing really (was going through his mind), I was just focused on making the field goal,” Hontzas said, after being named MVP of the AHSAA Kickoff Classic game.
Hontzas has big shoes to fill as Hoover’s kicker, particularly following the likes of Barret Pickering and Will Reichard, who are now kicking at Nebraska and Alabama, respectively.
The compliments Niblett showered upon his kicker in the preseason may have seemed like lip service to some, but the head coach liked what he saw in Hontzas.
“Everybody wants to talk about the guys we’ve had, and we’ve had some really good kickers, but I don’t think anybody believed me when I told them this guy could be really special,” Niblett said. “He can because he has that mental disposition that no moment is too big.”
The game-winning drive was one of Hoover’s most impressive of the evening, as quarterback Robby Ashford connected with Malik Thomas on a 28-yard pass and with Jamari Buye for 20 yards four plays later. Ashford also ran for 13 yards to get the Bucs within Hontzas’ range. Ashford, a senior, finished the evening 9-of-21 passing for 140 yards.
Thomas and Buye are part of a Hoover receiving corps that all began the season with the same amount of career receptions: zero.
“They’re young,” Niblett said. “We don’t have one receiver back with a varsity catch. We had some drops that we’d like to have back, that Robby made good throws on them, but that’s part of it.”
After a shaky first half, the receivers made critical plays in the second half. Cooper Tullo’s 17-yard touchdown grab late in the third quarter helped the Bucs tie the game at 14-14, but it was a pair of plays by freshman RJ Hamilton that turned the tide of the contest.
Central-Phenix City held a 14-0 halftime lead on a pair of Tucker Melton touchdown passes. Melton connected with Peter Jakes for a 7-yard score in the first quarter and again with Eddie Williams for 13 yards in the second quarter. Melton, a Bowling Green commit, connected on 10-of-21 passes for 92 yards.
Midway through the third quarter, Hoover’s defense came up with the first of a few big plays in the second half. Josh Smith sacked Melton and forced a fumble that was picked up and returned inside the 20-yard line by Kory Warren.
The Bucs capitalized on a reverse pass, as Hamilton took a handoff and deftly delivered an 8-yard touchdown pass to Ashford. Hoover’s defense forced a quick three-and-out, and Hamilton electrified the crowd again, this time with a 50-yard punt return to set up Tullo’s tying score.
“We got that one and we kept fighting,” Niblett said.
Central-Phenix City (0-1) threatened to put the game on ice with a long drive late, running 14 plays until Kory Chapman forced a fumble inside the 5-yard line. Josh Smith fell on it at the 3, and the Bucs offense began its final march to victory. Chapman forced the ball from Joseph McKay’s grasp, the last carry for the Central runner on a dominant night. McKay had 177 yards on 27 carries in the game.
The defense largely redeemed itself in the second half. In the first half, the Bucs jumped offsides a handful of times, allowing the Red Devils to convert key first downs without running a play.
“The defense just hung in there and kept making plays, getting some stops for us,” Niblett said.
The game didn’t kick off until 9:07 p.m., as thunderstorms passed through the area and delayed the start due to repeated lightning strikes. Even though Hoover got off to a slow start, the Bucs persevered and eventually found their footing.
“We’re young,” Niblett said. “When you play in a game of this magnitude and you’ve got to sit around for two hours to play, then we had some opportunities to make some plays and we just couldn’t connect a couple times.”
The Bucs were playing the defending state champs and coming off a 9-4 season, but Hoover rose to the occasion. Next, the Bucs head across state lines to face Cocoa (Florida) at Milton High School in Georgia next Friday night as part of the Freedom Bowl.
“This is a big win for us and a big win for our program because I don’t think many people gave us a chance,” Niblett said.
Click here to purchase photos from the game.
