By Matt Jones
Homecoming is always a special week. This year the West Blocton community celebrated and acknowledged all the decades of graduates that graduated in a year ending in 3. The West Blocton Tigers took on the Holt High School Ironmen for this year’s homecoming showdown. The atmosphere before the game was electric. Fans were packed into the home side of the stadium. The “Judy” dogs were being sold faster than they could be made in the concession stand. The music was rocking, and the “Bloc” was hot.
The offense for the Tigers against Holt got to see a lot of players. The offensive line played great. Carson Champion also made his return to play at his right guard position. The ground game for the Tigers ended with over 200 yards. Nate Barron had 49 yards on 3 carries and 2 touchdowns. Markel O’Neil made his presence known on the ground as well with 2 carries for 103 yards and 1 touchdown. Another highlight on the night was watching freshman running back Charles Graham. Charles got most of the attention for the offense in the second half. He had 13 carries for 73 yards and 2 touchdowns. He was plowing his way over Ironmen as he ran the ball all night.
The defense for the Tigers had some great moments in the game Friday night. The secondary for the Tigers had some players that performed well. Nick Kelley made some great tackles on the night. Brayden Morrison made a big impact as well from his linebacker position. He was flying all over the field with at least 6 tackles and 1 sack on the night. Young guys also got some playing time. Freshman cornerback, Jasper Lightsey, also made his presence known. He had an interception on the night with a big return. Freshman defensive end, McCord Sloan, played great as well. He shut down the run game to his side and made multiple tackles on the night.
The special teams for the Tigers got a lot of great work and scored a lot of points. Kevin Montgomery, on the opening kickoff, returned the ball89 yards for a touchdown. Later in the first half, Hiler Spencer got a punt block and scored a touchdown. Christopher Fernandez went 6 for 6 on his field goals.
The West Blocton community supported their team well on Friday night. The band was electric all night. The cheerleaders did a great job getting the excitement up in the crowd. The student section also showed a lot of support for their team. This week expect a packed visitor’s side at American Christian Academy as the West Blocton Tigers take on ACA for a big region showdown.
Coach King’s thoughts on the game:
“That was a great win for these young men. A win we needed going into this next week.”
