By Kyle Parmley
TRUSSVILLE – Spring practice has come and gone for Hewitt-Trussville. The Huskies wrapped up the offseason portion of the schedule with a 25-21 loss to Minor on Friday night at Hewitt-Trussville Stadium.
“Tonight, it was just good to get some competition,” Hewitt-Trussville head coach Josh Floyd said. “We did some really bad things at times but I thought we had some good plays.”
Hewitt-Trussville QB Zac Thomas hands off to Elliott McElwain
photo by Ron Burkett
The night began with Hewitt-Trussville holding true to its “Husky Fast” motto, marching down the field with a pair of completions from quarterback Zac Thomas and strong gains from running back Jarrion Street. The drive stalled once the Huskies moved inside the Minor 30-yard line, turning the ball over on downs.
Minor’s Jaylond Adams responded with a 56-yard touchdown run to give Minor the early 6-0 lead.
Then the rain came. An aesthetically pleasing sunset was quickly replaced by a torrential downpour and made it tough for the Huskies to find consistency in the passing game, which they planned to emphasize all along. There were several drops committed by Husky receivers throughout the evening.
“The rain affects you no matter what you say,” Floyd said. “We wanted to come out and throw the football.”
Hewitt-Trussville got the running game going to put its first points on the board. Thomas’ 16-yard scamper immediately followed a 17-yard run from Street in which he carried a defender the final five yards. Street scored from seven yards out after making a would-be tackler miss in the backfield, giving his team the 7-6 edge.
On the defensive side of the ball, linebacker Bailey McElwain made his presence known in the second quarter. With the Tigers holding possession deep in their own territory, the rising senior disrupted the play and the swarming defense forced a fumble, with Nathan Helms making the recovery.
Thomas scored a few plays later to give Hewitt-Trussville its first lead of the game at 14-13. The Huskies would cap off the first half with a stellar 10-play, 70-yard drive capped off by a two-yard burst from Street, to go into the locker room up 21-13.
McElwain showed up again on the first play of the third quarter, bringing down the Minor quarterback. He did not think his team performed up to its standard in the loss, but was excited to be playing a game.
“It feels really good to come back out here and show what we’ve got,” he said. “We didn’t play well tonight but we are going to learn from it.”
The Husky defense is adjusting to a new defensive coordinator in Rudy Griffin, who was promoted in January after coaching the defensive line last season. So far, the reviews have been positive.
“If I could describe him in one word, it would probably be ‘intensity.’ He loves to hit and be fast-paced, but he also wants us to keep our composure. He knows the balance,” McElwain said.
Hewitt-Trussville coach Josh Floyd
photo by Ron Burkett
Both teams’ starters played through the end of the third quarter, with Minor scoring a pair of touchdowns in the frame to claim the victory. Despite the loss, Hewitt-Trussville accomplished its goal for the spring session: gathering more information on each player.
“The main thing is you’re trying to evaluate kids,” Floyd said. “You’re trying to get better. We’ve had a really good spring. We’ve been able to give a lot of kids (repetitions.)”
The fourth quarter saw the Huskies score four touchdowns. Josh Lipscomb got several carries and scored from a yard away. Simon Miskelley hauled in a 50-yard pass. Andrew Holt picked up a 25-yard touchdown reception. Davis Burgin and Jordan Long split time at quarterback, with Long on the delivering end of Holt’s score and won the race to the corner pylon for a score on the final play of the game.
Floyd delivered the message to his team afterwards that they have worked too hard to be 5-6 again, Hewitt-Trussville’s record last fall. He believes this team has the potential to be great.
“I think this is a special group,” he said. “We just have to keep improving and keep getting better. I like our senior class. I think they have the potential to be good leaders.”
The Huskies begin their season on August 21, as they host Montgomery Bell (Tenn.) at 7 p.m.
