Fourth-down conversion seals win for Lions

BIRMINGHAM — Briarwood Christian School head football coach Fred Yancey talked about the fourth-down play as if it were a routine run up the middle.

It was far from it.

Clinging to a 12-7 lead with fewer than five minutes to play, the Lions head coach had a decision to make.

“I think this will work,” he said after calling timeout.

So, the play was drawn up right there, on the spot. It was fourth-and-four from the Chelsea 33-yard line. Junior running back JR Tran-Reno took the snap, rolled right, sold the defense on the run and lobbed a pass to a streaking Carson Eddy for the touchdown that sealed a 19-7 season-opening win for Briarwood.

“We just gave it a whirl, and we got us a pretty little play,” Yancey said.

The throw from Tran-Reno, a former quarterback, was right on the money.

“We actually hadn’t practiced that,” Tran-Reno said. “We just drew it up right there. It just kind of happened. My offensive line did a great job of protecting me.”

The game got off to a sluggish start for both teams. Briarwood senior quarterback Michael Hiers, a first-year quarterback, lost fumbles on the Lions’ first two possessions. Chelsea lost a fumble two plays after Briarwood’s second fumble.

Briarwood found its groove late in the second quarter when Hiers threw a beautiful pass over the Chelsea defense, hitting Eddy for a 25-yard touchdown, giving the Lions a 6-0 advantage at halftime.

Late in the third quarter, Briarwood (1-0) went up 12-0 when Hiers connected again with Eddy, this time on an 18-yard route. The two-point conversion attempt was intercepted by Chelsea’s Carter Burleson.

Chelsea (0-2) then mounted a 13-play, 71-yard drive capped by a 22-yard touchdown throw and catch from Turner Griffin to Lando Nichols. Tanner Middleton’s point after made it a 12-7 game with 9:32 to play. Briarwood's next drive was the backbreaker for the Hornets, ending in Tran-Reno’s fourth-down touchdown pass to Eddy.

The win snaps Chelsea’s three-game winning streak over Briarwood.

“We had so much fight,” Tran-Reno said. “We weren’t going to let them beat us.”

Tran-Reno finished with 93 rushing yards on 25 carries.

“He understands running under control,” Yancey said. “He’s patient and he’s explosive. He’s going to bust some before it’s all over. No doubt.”

Eddy had a huge night, catching eight passes for 105 yards and three touchdowns.

“He’s a playmaker,” Tran-Reno said. “When you have a playmaker, you get him the ball.”

Hiers finished 14-of-18 for 143 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 31 yards.

“He showed that he overcame adversity,” Tran-Reno said. “That’s what we really need out of our quarterback. He makes great plays.”

For Chelsea, Griffin was 10-of-18 for 110 yards, one touchdown and an interception. He was intercepted by Briarwood's Jonathan Hill on Chelsea’s final drive. Kendrick Simpson rushed eight times for 35 yards. Collier Blair chipped in with 19 yards on the ground. Will Hayes and Hunter Offord had fumble recoveries for Chelsea.

Defensively, Briarwood's Patrick Blythe recovered a fumble and had a couple tackles for loss. Prior to the game, he was awarded the Matt Johnson Character and Courage Award, given each year in honor of a former Briarwood football player who died of leukemia in the early 1990s. Blythe broke his leg in the second game of the 2016 season.

“He never gave up on coming back, and he demonstrated the kind of courage, character that it takes to overcome a bad break,” Yancey said.

Yancey said his defense was a key to beating Chelsea. Linebackers Gabriel Russell and Mark Hand had great games, as did Carson Donnelley, Dalton Brooks, Carson Kolb, Blythe and others.

“Those were guys that were relentless all night in their pressure on the quarterback,” he said.

Yancey believes that Chelsea, which has scored just 17 points through two games, is a much improved team from just a week ago, when it lost 21-10 to Oak Mountain.

“They’re going to shock some folks as they keep going because they did improve," he said.

Briarwood travels to Moody next Friday for its first Class 5A, Region 5 game, while Chelsea hits the road for Wetumpka for a Class 6A, Region 3 matchup.