By PATRICK BYRD
News Sports Writer
The Cougars of Escambia Academy made the haul to Toxey, Alabama to take the field against the South Choctaw Academy Rebels, Friday night, October 21. The teams last went head-to-head in the 2019 season when the Cougars traveled to the Rebels to take home the 47-0 win.
The Cougars have finished region play for the season with a 1-3 record, finishing #4 in AISA Class II Region 2.
Jacob Lee (#1) and Samorion Clark (#22) represented the Cougars as captains at midfield to meet the referees and Rebel captains for the coin flip, which they won. The Cougars chose to receive in the first half.
The game started off fast when Devin Kelly (#5) made a 60-yard pass reception in the second play of the game. Grant Sasser (#24) made the kick, bringing the score quickly to 7-0.
Twenty seconds later, Luke Bell (#9) made a fumble recovery to gain the ball back. This led to Carson Wilson (#8) catching a 30-yard pass and running it into the end zone for another touchdown with 11 and a half minutes left still. Sasser’s kick was no good, leaving the score 13-0.
A 20-yard carry made by Christian Crook (#3) with 5 minutes left in the first quarter brought the Cougars their third touchdown of the game. The PAT was unsuccessful, leaving the score at 19-0 for the first quarter.
South Choctaw first put themselves on the board with 11 minutes to go in the second quarter with a 20-yard pass. The PAT was no good, making the score 19-6.
With 7 minutes left in the second quarter, Jacob Lee made a 50-yard run to take the ball into the end zone, gaining another Cougar touchdown. Sasser’s kick was good, gaining the extra point on the 26-6 scoreboard to finish off the first half.
With 1 minute left in the third quarter, Kelly received a 5-yard pass from Lee to earn another touchdown; Sasser made the kick, making the score 33-6.
Two minutes into the fourth quarter, the Rebels earned a safety after bringing down Clark in the end zone for 2 points. The score was 33-8.
With 8 minutes left to go, Lee stripped the ball from the Rebel defense at the Cougar 6-yard line and ran the ball for a 94-yard touchdown. Sasser’s kick was good, bring the score up to 40-8.
With 40 seconds left in the game, the Rebels would attempt one last blow after picking up a Cougar fumble and making a 15-yard run for a touchdown. The kick was no good, making the final score Cougars 40-14.
Offensively, the Cougars gained 153 yards throughout the ball game. Ninety-five of these were passing yards by Lee, 60 of which received by Kelly. The 58 rushing yards were completed by Lee and Crook. Defensively, Bell had the most tackles with 4 tackles, an assist, and 1 tackle for loss. Crook followed second with 2 tackles; Nick Cain (#60) also picked up 2 fumble recoveries in addition to 1 tackle.
“We definitely had a bounce-back this week; we had to get some momentum,” Head Coach Gex Billups said referencing the previous week’s game against Patrician Academy. “We came out really fast and really strong. We just kind of got sloppy there in the first half, second quarter. We came out in the second half and started a little slow, but then we started to pick it up. They had a good team. They were physical, but I think we played well. We have to focus on the positives, fix the negatives going forward, and get ready for next week.”
The Cougars are now ranked #4 in AISA Class II Region 2. While brackets are unofficial, the Cougars are currently scheduled to play the Chambers Academy Rebels in La Fayette, Alabama on Friday, November 4.
This week, the Cougars will be on the road again for their last season game against the Fort Dale Academy Eagles in Greenville. This game will be streamed on EA’s Facebook and YouTube pages and broadcasted on WBZR 105.9, so be sure to tune in!