Layton Dudley
Vestavia vs Oak Mountain
Connor Webb runs the ball during a game between Oak Mountain and Vestavia Hills on Friday, Sept. 15, 2017, at Thompson Reynolds Stadium in Vestavia Hills.
This Friday represents a chance for the Oak Mountain High School football team to rebound.
The Eagles (3-1, 1-1 Class 7A, Region 3) have the opportunity to respond from their first setback of the season, a 7-0 loss to Vestavia Hills last Friday, as they host an emerging Thompson team.
Thompson has had the look of a team ready to compete for the Region 3 crown and make a deep run in the 7A playoffs. The Warriors opened the season with a tight 21-20 win over Hapeville Charter (Ga.), before blowout wins over region foes Tuscaloosa County and Mountain Brook.
Last week’s 40-13 thrashing of Mountain Brook raised some eyebrows, but now Thompson will be in front of a road crowd for the first time this fall. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Heardmont Park.
Aside from a hostile road environment, Thompson will primarily have to deal with an Oak Mountain team that is off to a solid start. The Eagles matched last season’s win total in the first three weeks of the season, as they started off 3-0 after last season’s 3-8 campaign.
But last week, Oak Mountain made an early mistake against Vestavia, and it proved costly.
On the second play of the game, Vestavia safety Jonathan Hess picked off a pass. Five plays later on fourth-and-2 at the 14, Rebels running back William Schaffeld ran around the right side toward the pylon and scored with 9:39 left in the opening quarter.
From that point on, the defensive squads for both teams took over in earnest, with only eight first downs recorded by both sides in the first half, and the offenses only got inside their opponent's 20-yard line twice — but the second time almost changed the game.
Near the midpoint of the final quarter, Vestavia Hills pinned the Eagles on their own 1-yard line with a coffin-corner punt that went out of bounds close to the pylon. In the longest drive of the night, the Eagles opened things up a bit. Quarterback Connor Webb fired a pair of longer passes, one for 24 yards to Carson Bobo and the other for 25 yards to Ferguson Smith. The Eagles marched 95 yards on eight plays, all the way down to the host's 4-yard line.
But on third down Oak Mountain coughed up the ball, stopping it cold with 4:47 left to play.
The Eagles had one more chance to pull out the win, driving to the Vestavia 30-yard line on the final possession. But with just six seconds left on the clock, Webb’s Hail-Mary pass was picked off.
Robert Carter contributed to this report.
