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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The Oak Mountain band performs at halftime in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
Oak Mountain's Luke Percer (12) runs with the ball in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
Oak Mountain's Hunter Martinez (23) in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
Oak Mountain's Brett Cruce (47) attempts to break up a pass in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
Oak Mountain's Daniel Salchert (26) in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
An Oak Mountain coach in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
Oak Mountain's Jackson Murphy (14) makes a tackle in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The Oak Mountain band performs at halftime in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The Oak Mountain band performs at halftime in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The Oak Mountain band in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
An Oak Mountain receiver attempts to make a catch in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The Oak Mountain band performs at halftime in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The teams meet at midfield in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
Oak Mountain runs onto the field in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The Oak Mountain band performs at halftime in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The Oak Mountain band performs at halftime in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The Oak Mountain band performs at halftime in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The Oak Mountain band performs during halftime in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The Oak Mountain band performs at halftime in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The Oak Mountain band performs at halftime in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The Oak Mountain band performs during halftime in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The Oak Mountain band performs at halftime in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The Oak Mountain band performs at halftime in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
Oak Mountain's Daniel Salchert (26) takes the pitch in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
Oak Mountain's Jaylin Gaines (5) hauls in the pitch in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
Oak Mountain's Wyatt Legas (8) is tackled in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
Oak Mountain's Jacob Feenker (64) seeks a block in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
The Oak Mountain band performs at halftime in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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Dan Starnes
Oak Mountain Football
Oak Mountain's Garrett DeAraujo (4) runs with the ball in a game between Oak Mountain and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Friday, August 26, 2016, at Roy Johnson Jr. Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Oak Mountain rallied in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to overcome a 34-point halftime deficit Friday night, as the Eagles fell 41-21 on the road to the Class 6A fourth-ranked Hillcrest Patriots.
“I was proud of the way we competed. We certainly had opportunities we could have laid down at halftime, especially when they got that score right before halftime, but the kids battled. I thought we got better from Week 1 to Week 2,” said OMHS head coach Cris Bell.
Oak Mountain held the Patriots on their first two possessions, including one following an Eagles’ fumble at their own 37. However, Hillcrest found the end zone with 5:17 to play in the opening quarter on a 60-yard play-action pass from Cole Frederick to Torin Mayhew. The extra point missed wide for a 6-0 Pats lead.
Hillcrest pounded the ball on the ground with Brian Robinson and Jahi Brown combining for 189 of the Patriots’ 326 rushing yards. Robinson, a University of Alabama commitment, punched in three touchdowns of 1, 3 and 1 yards in the second quarter and finished with 106 yards on 12 carries. Frederick also added a 10-yard touchdown run on a quarterback keeper, Hillcrests’ third score of the game, following a fumble by Oak Mountain quarterback Wyatt Legas.
The Eagles gave up three turnovers, turned the ball over on downs and had a punt blocked in the first half, leading to 28 of the Patriots’ first-half points. The final turnover was an interception deep inside Hillcrest territory with a minute left in the half. The pick set up Robinson’s third touchdown as time expired for a 34-0 Patriots’ halftime lead.
“That was a tough one. We could have just sat on it and held it right there but we were trying to do something positive and work on our 2-minute game,” Bell said. “We’ve got a lot of little things we’ve got to clean up. We’re really young, particularly on the defensive side. I thought we tackled a little better than we did last week, but we’ve still got to improve. Offensively, we’ve got to move the sticks.”
Oak Mountain moved the ball better in the second half with Jaylin Gaines finding the end zone twice on runs of 6 and 1 yards. Gaines finished with 111 yards on 16 carries to lead Oak Mountain, followed by 90 yard from Daniel Salchert. His touchdowns bookended Hillcrests’ final score, a 9-yard TD run by Brown with 3:09 remaining in the third quarter.
Hillcrest played its backups in the fourth quarter, with back Dermonte Burrell picking up 77 yards on the ground. While the Pats reserved moved the ball well, Oak Mountain forced a fumble on a sack by Max McLaughlin, recovered by Matthew Pflaum at the Eagles’ 34. Luke Percer followed a few plays later with a 46-yard touchdown run with 3:18 to play.
The Eagles (0-2) will look to erase its first two loses when Class 7A, Region 3 play begins next week at Huffman.
“The fortunate thing for us is it’s two non-region games. The season starts new next week, and we’ve got to have some great leadership from our kids and our staff has to do a tremendous job coaching this week,” Bell said.
