The Maumelle Hornets followed their nearly unstoppable running game to a 59-21 victory over the Jacksonville Red Devils at Hornet Stadium on Friday night.
Led by senior tailback Jacob Aclin's 106 yards and 2 touchdowns, Maumelle rushed for 270 yards. It scored on its first five possessions of the game to take command.
"There were some things that we have to get cleaned up defensively, but overall, the effort was there," Maumelle Coach David Farr said. "We made the connections that have to be made, and there was a lot of execution, especially on the offensive side of the football."
"It was a tough night," Jacksonville Coach Hickingbotham said. "We couldn't stop them in the first half, and we couldn't get rolling offensively. We had some success, but we just couldn't finish drives early. It just kind of snowballed on us. We just never could figure out what we needed to figure out to get our guys in the right positions."
Jacksonville, however, began the second half with a quick touchdown to stay close. Tailback Shawn Ellis' 5-yard run with 10:41 left in the third quarter cut Maumelle's lead to 38-21.
Jacksonville's defense responded to stop Maumelle's next possession on downs, but the next drive for the Red Devils was stopped by an interception by at the Maumelle 11.
On the next play, Aclin turned a simple off-tackle attempt into an 89-yard touchdown run that gave Maumelle (1-0) a 46-21 lead.
Maumelle's next possession ended with a 24-yard touchdown run by junior tailback Cory Jones, prolonged by two separate retreats and field reversals that left Jones as much as 40 yards from the end zone. As he crossed the goal line, Jones was met by senior linebacker Terry Brown, whose hit knocked Jones' helmet off.
Jones collapsed to the field, and there was a 20 minute delay as emergency medical technicians examined him. He eventually rose and walked unaided to the Maumelle sideline where he remained until the end. He later appeared clear-headed but explained that his head still hurt ten minutes after the game.
"They have a lot of speed and athleticism, and it showed," Hickingbotham said. "I mean, they got guys running around from side to side and scoring touchdowns. That's one of those things we have to correct."
Sophomore tailback Danny Smith led Jacksonville (0-1) with 117 yards on 13 carries. Ellis carried 8 times for 97 yards and scored 2 touchdowns. Senior quarterback Brandon Hickingbotham, the Jacksonville coach's son, completed 9 of 15 passes for 93 yards.
"We did some great things, but there's a lot that we need to get cleaned up," Farr said.
SUBIACO ACADEMY 21, LITTLE ROCK FAIR 14
Visiting Subiaco Academy (1-0) survived kickoff returns for touchdowns by Justice Allen and Darius Polk to edge Little Rock Fair (0-1).
Sports on 09/05/2015