Missed opportunities doom Patriots in opener
HOMEWOOD – The Patriots left too many points on the field in the season opener, and it came back to bite them.
On Thursday night, the Homewood High School football team fell to Hueytown 32-19 at Waldrop Stadium, despite outgaining the visiting Golden Gophers by more than 100 yards.
“Too many missed opportunities,” Homewood head coach Ben Berguson said following the game. “We’ve got to score when we get in the red zone.”
Berguson pointed to four occasions throughout the game Homewood (0-1) entered the red zone inside the Hueytown 20-yard line. Out of those four instances, the Patriots came away with just three total points on a Nic Burczyk 21-yard field goal in the second quarter.
Despite the failure to cash in on multiple possessions, the Patriots had their chances. It was a one-possession game with 4:37 remaining on the game clock, when Homewood quarterback Pate Owen hit Trae Ausmer down the middle for a 20-yard touchdown. The score cut the Patriots' deficit to 26-19, but disaster struck on Hueytown’s next play.
On the first snap of the ensuing drive, with Homewood needing a quick stop to get the ball back, Hueytown (1-0) star running back Roydell Williams broke loose straight up the middle and ran 73 yards for the final score of the contest.
“I thought we did a good job keeping Roydell at bay until four minutes left to go in the game, but he’s a big time player,” Berguson said.
Williams, an Alabama commit, accounted for three touchdowns on the evening, opening the scoring in the first quarter on a 2-yard run and taking a swing pass 44 yards to pay dirt in the second quarter. He finished the night with 147 yards rushing and 57 yards receiving.
Homewood got a solid game from Owen, who made his second career start as the signal-caller. He eluded pressure much of the night and rushed for 109 yards, while also completing 25-of-40 passes for 236 yards. He scrambled for an 11-yard touchdown in the first quarter to go along with his late throwing score to Ausmer.
“I thought Pate did a great job tonight, staying in the pocket, because he had an awful lot of pressure and he made some great throws with the pressure,” Berguson said.
Ausmer finished with 92 yards on 11 catches, while Len Irvine caught seven balls for 80 yards.
Homewood’s defense returned just one starter from last year’s dominant unit, but the Patriots held their own against the Golden Gophers, limiting them to just 164 total yards before Williams’ game-breaking run.
Hueytown’s Alex Young completed 13-of-21 passes for 170 yards and three touchdowns.
Berguson refused to use the team’s youth and inexperience as an excuse, even with it being the season’s first contest. The Patriots are back at home next week to take on longtime rival Vestavia Hills. The Rebels knocked off Homewood 17-10 on a late interception last fall.
“We’ve got to regroup here and get ready for a big game next week against Vestavia,” Berguson said.
Click here to purchase photos from the game.