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Harold Shader’s 1–yard touchdown run gave Oak Mountain the lead in overtime and the Eagles defense stopped Vestavia Hills on fourth down to seal a hard-fought, hard-hitting 14-7 victory at Heardmont Park, thwarting Rebels coach Buddy Anderson of his 310th win.
Anderson was seeking to break the record for most career wins by an Alabama high school coach. The next chance comes at Hewitt-Trussville on Friday. “They hit us in the mouth in the first half,” said Oak Mountain coach Cris Bell. “Their defense whipped us up front. We were better in the second half. It’s hard to make the mistakes we made tonight and come out with the win and I’m just grateful for that. “Our kids just battled and I couldn’t be more proud of those guys.”
Bell was asked if this was a statement win for his program. “It is if we build on it. We got to come back. We got Hoover next week. Enjoy this tonight and get ready for the orange and black because it’s gonna take every fiber of our being to compete with those guys.” The Eagles trailed 7-0 after Rebels quarterback Landon Crowder scored on a 2-yard run with 1:16 left in the third quarter. But Oak Mountain took the ensuing kickoff and moved it down the field, largely on a 32-yard run by Shader. Quarterback Warren Shader then connected on a rare pass to Daniel Salchert for a 23-yard touchdown and D.J. Garver’s extra point tied the game at 7. It stayed that way through regulation.
In overtime, Oak Mountain’s Josh Gaines picked up 6 yards on first down, then quarterback Shader picked up 3 to the 1. After a half-the-distance penalty against Vestavia inched the ball closer to the goal line, Harold Shader scored what would prove to be the winning points. On Vestavia’s series, the Rebels moved the ball to the 7, but on fourth down the Eagles’ Mitchell Jones hauled down a receiver at the 1 to end the game. Harold Shader finished with a game-high 93 yards rushing.
Bell said his team knew it was a big game with Anderson shooting for the record. “We were tight, I was probably tight. It’s the first time I’ve had to compete against my friend and it wasn’t easy, seeing his wife come up after the ballgame … I hate it for them because like I’ve said there’s nobody in the state, really in the country, I think, that’s got more class and does it the right way than he does. “He’s a tremendous football coach and a great Christian man. He’s the guy I want to be like someday.”
