By Gary Lloyd
TRUSSVILLE — Another week, another Class 7A top 10 opponent for Hewitt-Trussville.
Oak Mountain visits Jack Wood Stadium on Friday to take on the Huskies at 7 p.m. The Eagles (4-1, 2-1 Class 7A, Region 3) are ranked No. 7 in Class 7A this week.
[VIDEO: Pat Smith previews Friday’s game]
It doesn’t get much more important for Hewitt-Trussville than this game. The Huskies (3-2, 1-2) need this win to keep pace in the region. Hoover sits atop the region with a 3-0 record, while Oak Mountain, Mountain Brook and Tuscaloosa County are all 2-1. Hewitt-Trussville, along with Vestavia Hills and Spain Park, are 1-2. Thompson is 0-3 in the region.
Hewitt-Trussville senior Deontay Wilson runs an end-around against Vestavia Hills earlier this season.
file photo by Ron Burkett
Oak Mountain is turning some heads this fall. The Eagles have already matched its win total from a season ago, when it went 4-6. With just three starters back on defense, Oak Mountain is allowing just 17 points per game, while its offense is churning out 22 points per contest. Oak Mountain likes to run the ball, and when the run is working, it sets up the play-action pass plays. Hewitt-Trussville will need to stuff that running game to make Oak Mountain one-dimensional with the pass.
What was the problem last season for Oak Mountain?
“We need to do a better job making our kids confident,” Oak Mountain head coach Cris Bell said over the summer.
Bell can consider that task completed.
Hewitt-Trussville is playing with a lot of confidence, too. The team has back-to-back road wins over Class 7A top 10 opponents, beating then-No. 8 Spain Park 64-63 in four overtimes and getting past No. 3 Gadsden City last week 31-27.
With that high confidence level, playoff implications, homecoming and what could be the final game at Jack Wood Stadium, expect Hewitt-Trussville to roll to its third straight win. Junior quarterback Zac Thomas said playing the potentially final game at Jack Wood Stadium is “special.”
“I want to go out there and get a W,” he said.
Contact Gary Lloyd at news@trussvilletribune.com and follow him on Twitter @GaryALloyd.
