Photo courtesy of Scott Butler
Homewood quarterback Will Myers (11) celebrates a touchdown in a game against Benjamin Russell on Friday, Sept. 22, 2023, at Martin-Savarese Stadium in Alexander City.
ALEXANDER CITY -- There was no stopping the Homewood High School football team Friday night, as the Patriots marched into Benjamin Russell's homecoming and dominated all aspects of the game in a 41-21 victory.
The win is Homewood's second-straight 20-point victory and moves the Patriots to 2-1 in Class 6A, Region 3 play.
"It was a huge win. We're a far cry from where we were a few weeks ago. I really think it just took getting that first one last week. We played well in all phases of the game: offense, defense and special teams. I'm really proud of our guys for how far we've come," Homewood head coach Ben Berguson said. "This win puts us in a great spot in the region. I was worried the loser of this game tonight would be on the outside looking in."
Will Myers collected 204 yards of total offense and accounted for three Homewood touchdowns on the night. The Patriots ran 70 plays in the game to Benjamin Russell's 41, and out-gained the Wildcats 389-274.
Homewood took a 13-0 lead in the first quarter, using 16 plays to cover 123 yards on its first two series, while holding the Wildcats to two three-and-out possessions. Evan Ausmer capped the first drive with a 26-yard touchdown run en route to a 79-yard night on 19 carries. Myers scored the second touchdown on a 1-yard quarterback keeper.
Myers' lone touchdown pass came early in the second quarter on a 13-yard pass to Kylen Newell in the back right corner of the end zone. It was his ninth consecutive completion.
After a botched Wildcats punt gave Homewood the ball inside the 10, AJ Crear scored on an 8-yard touchdown run to cap a two-play drive and extend the lead to 27-0. Three plays later, Will Keown recovered a fumble by Russell running back T.J. Wilson. The turnover set up another Myers touchdown after he recovered his own fumble on third-and-11 and took it 29 yards to the end zone for a 34-0 lead.
Myers finished with 81 rushing yards on 11 carries and completed 11-of-12 passes for 123 yards.
Benjamin Russell capitalized on its final drive of the first half, traveling 75 yards in 10 plays to get on the scoreboard with 30 seconds left in the third quarter. Gabriel Benton found Cederian Morgan on a fourth-down, 12-yard touchdown pass.
The Wildcats scored again to open the second half, as punter Malcolm Simmons pulled down a high snap and took it 80-yards for a touchdown. Caleb Spivey caught a two-point pass to make it 34-15.
Homewood continued to score each time it touched the ball, as Myers got off a screen pass as he was hit. Asumer caught it for a 19-yard touchdown, extending the lead to 41-15 to cap an eight-minute drive.
Benjamin Russell quickly answered again as Benton hit Simmons on a 17-yard touchdown. CJ Tidmore intercepted the two-point pass to keep it 41-21 with 32 seconds left in the third quarter.
Homewood used 19 rushing plays in the fourth quarter to run the clock down. After the Patriots turned the ball over on downs with 4:49 left to play in the game, the Wildcats' only defensive stop, Benjamin Russell moved into the red zone. However, the Patriots' defense stood strong, including a pass break up in the end zone on fourth down.
Next week, Homewood (2-3, 2-1) will travel to non-region opponent Pinson Valley (1-3) for its third straight road game and fourth in six weeks.
