Oak Mountain head coach Jerry Hood needed only to look in his backfield Friday night to find a way to defeat John Carroll.

Using the power running game of Eagles’ senior James Hope and junior Nick Anderson, Oak Mountain was able to defeat the Cavaliers, 27-7, in the first round of the AHSAA 6A playoffs.

Hope finished the evening with 145 yards while Anderson added 60 of his own

and a score for the Eagles.

&8220;I thought we played very well,&8221; Hood said. &8220;Both Nick and James played excellent for us. They’ve been a force in the backfield all season long.&8221;

The Eagles held John Carroll to one score in the game, a second quarter touchdown pass for four yards from quarterback Zac Salter to receiver DeMarcus Covington.

&8220;The defense did their job very well,&8221; Hood said. &8220;They hustled to the ball and pressured the quarterback all night. Any time you give up seven points in a game you should be able to win.&8221;

Eagles’ kicker Ryan Shoemaker added two field goals of 43 and 37 yards in the win.

The Eagles will travel to Decatur (10-1) this Friday in the second round of the postseason and Hood said he is aware of just how good a team the Eagles are up against.

&8220;They’re very good at every position,&8221; he said. &8220;But our guys are fired up and excited just to be here.&8221;