By PATRICK BYRD
News Sports Writer
The Escambia Academy Cougars traveled to Alabama State University on Friday, August 25, to play their first AISA game of the season against the Warriors of Valiant Cross Academy of Montgomery.
The Cougars gained 2 points after taking down the Warrior carrier in the end zone for a safety. A quick fumble by the Cougars, however, gave the Warriors the ball back, and they soon retaliated with a touchdown with 5 minutes left in the first quarter. A good kick following the touchdown brought the score to Warriors 7-2.
The Cougars finally marked themselves on the board with a 10-yard pass from Keller Coston (#3) to Luke Bell (#9). The kick by Grant Sasser (#24) was good, giving the Cougars a 9-7 lead.
The third quarter consisted of a turf war; this ended when the Cougars picked up a Warrior fumble after a punt with 5 minutes left in the game at the 7-yard line. A 5-yard pass following this from Coston to Odom gave the Cougars 1 more touchdown – and a good kick from G. Sasser brought the score up to 16-7.
Coston managed to break through the Warrior defensive line with 3 minutes left in the game and make a 57-yard run for a touchdown. G. Sasser once again made a good kick, bringing the final score to a Cougar win of 23-7.
Quinten Odom finished the game with the most receiving yards at 63, followed by Luke Bell at 36. These yards came from Keller Coston, who also had the most rushing yards at 57; he was followed in rushing yards by Yadarius McNeal (#7). Most tackles, with 5 each, were made by Quinten Odom, who also had a tackle-for-loss and an interception, and Luke Bell, who had an additional 4 assists, 2 tackles-for-loss, and a fumble recovery. The 2 are followed by Charlie Sasser (#56) and Zeke McElhaney (#57), who each had 2 tackles and an assist.
The Cougars will kick off the first home game of the 2023 season on Thursday, August 31, against the Clarke Prep Gators. This will be the first region game of the season as well, so be sure to come out and support the team! The game will also be livestreamed on EA’s Facebook and YouTube pages.