Alabama Christian and MA were coming off very different weeks as they renewed their rivalry Friday night. ACA blew out Sumter Central, 62-14, in a Region tilt while MA was manhandled by, perennial power, Andalusia, 49-7. The old foes squared off for the fortieth time in the series and ACA was hoping to win its second in a row over the visiting Eagles for just the second time in program history. Those hopes turned to reality as Hayes Hunt led his team to a riveting 33-27 victory, with a heroic performance despite being injured.
Hayes Hunt looks for Preston Hicks on ACA’s first score of the night.
MA received the opening kick and marched 70 yards in six plays, all runs, to take a 7-0 lead with 9:18 left in the first. ACA responded and looked very impressive on its opening drive and tied the game, 7-7. The home-standing Eagles moved 80 yards in five plays, highlighted by a 16-yard run by Otasowie Dion and a 21-yard reception by Avery Stuart (remember 21 yards and Avery Stuart for later). Hayes Hunt bought time as he moved up in the pocket to find Preston Hicks for 33 yards and a touchdown to cap the drive. Hunt’s 39th career touchdown pass moved him into the top spot in program history.
Preston Hicks races to the end zone in the first quarter.
William Milner stopped the next MA drive as he ripped the ball away from the back and Hayes Hunt fell on it to give ACA the ball at MA’s 25-yard line. Three quick plays, an eleven yard run by Corey Landers, an eleven yard pass to Preston Hicks and a three yard run by Otasowie Dion, produced a touchdown in just over a minute to give the Eagles a 13-7 lead. MA responded with three plays of their own that covered 62 yards and took the lead back, 14-13, with still 3:12 left in the first period. As the first quarter was coming to a close, Hunt ripped off three runs that covered 32 yards, mixed with a pass interference call against MA and ACA ended the period at the MA 27-yard line. One of Hunt’s runs was a fake punt around the end for 24 yards as the return team lost any resemblance of containment on the left side of the field. The last run of the quarter brought great concern to the ACA faithful as the senior quaretrback was visibly struggling to put weight on his foot.
Defense helps the stripes know who has the ball.
Hunt started the second on the bench as the offense ran a direct-snap play to Corey Landers, but labored to get back to the huddle on the second play. Amazingly, he connected with Hicks for a 15-yard gain to the opponent’s 10-yard line on his first play back. However, two plays later a bad exchange on the handoff ended up on the ground and MA ended the threat with the recovery. The defense did not allow MA to gain momentum after the turnover although a terrible roughing the passer call did allow them to continue the drive. Josh Kreitz ended the possession as he recovered a fumble at the MA 42-yard line with 6:02 left in the half. Neither team scored for the rest of the half, but there was plenty of drama as we just knew that Hunt would not be on the field for the next drive, but he kept coming back every time for his team. MA led 14-13 as the team’s headed to the locker room.
Josh Kreitz celebrates ending another MA possession.
As the bell rang to start the third period, the Eagles were ready to fight with and for their leader as Hunt led the offense on to the field. Otasowie Dion had two big runs of 35 and 12 yards in the opening drive to help spur the offense. On 4th and 5 from the MA 15-yard line, Hunt found a wide-open David Ortiz-Ramirez in the end zone for the score. Corey Landers pass to a diving Preston Hicks netted ACA two points and the lead was 21-14 with 8:58 left in the third. Once again, MA answered with a five-play, 54-yard drive to tie the score, 21-21. After an ACA turnover on downs, MA took the ball and drove to the Alabama Chrsitian three-yard line as the third quarter ended.
Otasowie Dion helped set the tone for the second half with a 35-yard run on the first play of the third quarter.
MA scored on the first play of the fourth period to retake the lead, but a missed extra point kept the score 27-21. The next ACA drive ended with an interception with 9:05 left in the game and it felt as if the momentum had tilted in the visitors favor. After one first down for MA, a trio of Eagles, Preston Hicks, AC Walters and William Milner, stopped the running back on 3rd and 6 and forced a punt, that was downed on ACA’s own 10-yard line. With 4:49 on the clock and 90 yards away from the end zone, one wondered if ACA had enough time to tie the game, much less win it. Fifty seconds was all that was needed as Hunt connected with Hicks on an 85-yard bomb up the right sideline on the second play of the drive to tie the score, 27-27. As Hicks caught the ball his defender fell down and the senior receiver was off to the races on the longest play of the year.
Special teams enjoy the game-preserving fumble recovery by Jaylan McCovery.
The defense again was asked to stop the potent ground attack of MA and give the offense one last shot at the victory. The unit rose to the occasion as AC Walters ran the quarterback out of bounds two yards short on third down, despite the emphatic first down signal given by the runner, and forced another punt. ACA took the field with 2:32 remaining, 70 yards from the end zone. Dion and Landers combined for three rushes for 43 yards to take the ball to the MA 27-yard line. After no gain on first down, ACA called time with 1:16 left to go. After an incomplete pass, Corey Landers ran for 6 yards to set up a 4th and 4 at the 21-yard line with less than a minute left to play. On the crucial play, Hunt hit Avery Stuart on a slant, but the senior receiver pivoted immediately, after the catch, to the outside and outran three defenders to the end zone for the winning 21-yard reception with just 40.1 seconds remaining. Any fears of a last gasp effort from MA evaporated as the visitors could not secure the squib kick and Jaylan McCovery jumped on the loose ball to secure the win. Hunt and the offense trotted out one last time for the victory formation, the best play in football.
Hayes Hunt getting some love from his coach.
Hayes Hunt finished the night with a career-high 264 yards with four touchdowns and ran for 32 more to lead the offense. Five different Eagles had receptions in the contest led by Preston Hicks and Corey Landers with four catches apiece. Hicks’ catches covered 144 yards and two scores. David Ortiz-Ramirez had two catches for 55 yards and a score while Avery Stuart had two for 42 yards and a touchdown. Otasowie Dion led the backs with 118 yards on 13 carries and a score followed by Landers with 53 yards on 13 attempts.
The team runs onto the field as the clock runs out.
Defensively, William Millner led the attack with nine tackles. Corey Landers and AC Walters both had five tackles followed by Josh Kreitz and Jalen Flowers with four each. Kreitz, Hayes Hunt and McCovery all had fumble recoveries in the contest.
A night to remember for players and fans alike.
Alabama Chrsitian resumes Region play next week as they travel to St James.