Wildcats blank Chilton County
Published 12:00 am Tuesday, September 26, 2006
The Shelby County Wildcats proved that physical, hard nose football still exists as they shocked the Chilton County Tigers at home 12-0 Friday night.
&8220;I have never seen anything like it,&8221; said SCHS head football coach Ryan Herring of the size advantage owned by Chilton County. &8220;They outweighed us an average of 100 pounds.&8221;
Midway through the first quarter, after an SCHS muffed punt, Chilton County took control at Wildcats&8217; 34-yard line.
But the Tigers&8217; shot at the end zone was picked off by SCHS defensive back Dustin Bunn.
The SCHS defense would find themselves with their backs to the wall, again, as play continued into the second quarter.
From the Wildcat 26-yard line, Tigers&8217; quarterback Joe Prokop threw deep into the end zone, but an acrobatic catch by defensive back Michael Trice gave Prokop his second interception of the night.
Defensive back Wesley Howard pounced on a loose ball in the end zone to avert another Chilton County scoring opportunity.
The first half ended with no score. The Wildcats&8217; defense forced three crucial turnovers, while the Wildcats&8217; offense suffered two of their own.
&8220;We went into halftime looking for ways to outflank them.
Our basic offense was allowing us to get opportunities, but we had nothing to show for it,&8221; Herring said.
Shelby County received the ball to begin the second half at their own 24-yard line.
Senior quarterback Aaron Howard would cap off a 76 yard, 16-play scoring drive with a 1-yard quarterback sneak. After the missed point after attempt, SCHS went up 6-0
Fatigue would begin to take its toll on the Tigers as the Wildcats&8217; offense pounded the ball between the tackles in the second half.
After a Chilton County punt, SCHS took control on offense from their own 45-yard line.
Shelby County converted on a crucial third-and-8 when Howard connected with Dustin Wood to keep a drive alive and resulting in a Wildcat first down at the Tiger 42-yard line.
Howard later connected with Wood on an 11-yard touchdown strike to put SCHS on top 12-0.
The Wildcats finished the night collecting 205 total yards offensively with Matthew Stafford and Darian Sutton combining for over 100 yards rushing.
&8220;I am speechless,&8221; Herring said about the win.
I am so proud of our kids and coaching staff. This win tonight says something about the hearts of these players.
They never gave up.&8221;
The 5A Wildcats (3-1,2-1) will take a break from region play next week, but will travel to take on rival and undefeated 3A Calera