ACHS vs. West : Battle of football elites changes on one play

October 11, 2023

One series, one play.

The West High School Rebels and the Anderson County High School Maverick football teams showcased defense Friday night.

And in what appeared to be another gem of a defensive play being choreographed on the field, the Rebels turned it to their advantage for the deciding score in an 8-7 win at the Bull Ring.

Friday night’s game lived up to the hype: The 2022 undefeated 4A state champions against the 2022 undefeated 5A state champions; the red hot Mavs, winners of four straight, hosting a team whose 21-game win streak had been snapped the week before by Alcoa.

Friday night’s game was a battle of elites.

The Mavs held a 7-0 advantage at the half.

The Rebels almost got on the board in the first quarter. West attempted to convert an interception into a field goal, but a bad snap on the attempt translated to nada.

After trading punts the Rebels hauled in their second interception of the quarter and tried make something out of it, but only netted two yards.

The ensuing punt gave the Mavs the ball 82 yards away from the end zone with time dwindling in the first quarter.

A Nick Moog run for six yards, then Zae Hall connections with Evan Pyatt for 29 yards and Moog for another 16, and the Mavs were in serious business at the West 31. The quarter ended with an incomplete shot to the end zone.

After the teams swapped a couple of 10-yard markers, the Mavs were still at the 31 with a first down. Moog gained a yard on first down.

On second down the Mavs set up a perfect screen pass with Hall tossing to Moog, who followed his blockers to the end zone for a 6-0 lead with 10:38 left in the first half.

Tyler Radcliffe made it 7-0 with the point after.

The rest of the half was defense.

Landon Engle busted up a West attempt to go for it on fourth down when he hunted down Rebel Devin Jamison on a sweep/pass to the flat/scamper and get rid of the ball play — Anderson County’s defensive pressure created chaos and Engle made it stand.

The third quarter saw the Mav defense bend a little. While it didn’t break, it gave West an advantage in field position so that when the visitors punted for the second time in the quarter, the Mavs had a first and 10 at the their own nine-yard line.

West had attempted a screen of its own before the second punt, but junior Trent Strickland skied to tip West quarterback Hunter Dance’s offering, setting up a fourth-and-10.

From the nine-yard line, West crashed the line with everybody, and Moog lost a yard.

From the eight, Hall set up to pass, found trouble in his own end zone, danced out and was brought down shy of a safety.

It didn’t matter.

A holding call in the end zone gave the Rebels two points with the safety.

After the Mavs punted, West set up shop at its own 41.

Marshaun Bowers moved the ball to the Mav 30 on two carries, a five-yarder, and then a 24-yarder.

A penalty and a Jamison dive for one yard set the ball at the 34 with West facing a second-and-14.

A Dance attempt downfield couldn’t have been caught by the fireworks guys, but the Mavs were flagged for pass interference. A Dance toss to Syxx Hoard picked up five.

At the 15, Dance swung a pass to Bowers, who caught the ball at the 19 and then was greeted by a Mav defender.

At first glance, it was a four-yard loss, but Bowers’ knee didn’t touch the turf, just the Mav who had greeted him in the backfield.

So he pulled himself up and ran for the 15-yard score (19 if you want to go from point of contact) and a 8-7 lead with 55.7 seconds left in the third quarter.

The Rebels opted to try for a two point conversion, but the attempt failed.

There was no scoring in the fourth quarter.

Anderson County will resume its quest for its seventh-straight district title when the Mavs close out the 2023 regular season with home district games against Gibbs (Oct. 20), and South-Doyle (Oct. 27).