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September 4, 2012

Brown hopes his team learns from jamboree mistakes

By Jonathan Deal jonathan@athensnews-courier.com

Huntsville — In May, Ardmore capped a good spring football season with a lopsided win over Westminster Christian on their home field. On Friday, Westminster returned the favor with a 35-14 jamboree victory.

Westminster scored three touchdowns during a seven minute stretch in the second quarter to pull away from Ardmore just before halftime and give the Wildcats a commanding 28-0.

Although it was most of the same players Friday as it was in the Spring game, Ardmore coach Shannon Brown said one thing in particular was different.

“Westminster was more physical than us tonight,” Brown said. “It’s early and you expect mistakes, but we’ve got a lot of work to do. It’s a long season. We’re going to have to maintain our composure and learn from our mistakes.”

To their credit, Brown’s young Ardmore squad bounced back in the second half, outscoring the home team 14-7 in the final two quarters. While it may have been younger, second-string players, the second-half performance gives Ardmore something to build on entering next week’s season opener against rival Elkmont.

Ardmore’s two scores came after the Tigers trailed 35-0 two minutes into the second half. Westminster quarterback Jacob Parker connected with Jay Madison on a 24-yard touchdown to give the visitors their largest lead of the night.

Parker put the Wildcats on the board with a 32-yard run in the first quarter and added another score on a 36-yard scramble with 2:33 left in the first half. As the Westminster offense plowed their way down the field, Ardmore’s offense couldn’t find any rhythm, managing just 46 yards in the opening two quarters.

“It’s discouraging because you want to win every game,” Brown told his team after the game. “But there is a reason why we didn’t. They came out and took it to us. They flipped around what we did to them last spring.”

Ardmore finally gained momentum after Ardmore freshman Braydon Edwards picked up a loose ball at the Westminster 9-yard line. Tyler McCarley broke several tackles on the following play to put Ardmore on the board with a nine yard touchdown run.

McCarley led Ardmore with 13 carries for 60 yards and a touchdown. The senior helped his team move the ball in the second half as Ardmore finished the game with 210 yards of total offense.

The Tigers nearly scored again after Westminster lost another fumble on its next drive inside its own 20-yard-line, but Ryan Green’s 37-yard field goal went just under the cross-bar and was no good.

Ardmore’s managed another score with six minutes remaining in the game when freshman quarterback Zac Free found tight end Hayden Durrett behind Westminster’s defense for a 74-yard touchdown play.

The game ended with a goal line stop by Ardmore’s young defense, something the Tigers will hope to build on entering next week’s rivalry game with Elkmont.

“It’s a huge rivalry game for us,” Brown said. “It’s also about getting off to a good start to the season. They’ve had our number the last few years, so we’re going to have to play better.”

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