Rebels Swat Hornets, 42-13

McKENZIE (November 7) — McKenzie High School hosted Huntland Friday night for the first round of the TSSAA Class 1A Football State Playoffs. On a foggy field, the Rebels pummelled the Hornets, 42-13, to advance to round two.

McKenzie hosts Greenfield Friday night. Kickoff is 7 p.m.

During halftime of Friday’s game, the Touchdown Club presented the J.A. Abernathy awards. The award for a business or non-profit supporter went to McKenzie Church of Christ, accepted by Randy McCadams. The individual supporter award was presented to Tammy Collins.

Also recognized at halftime was the girls cross country team, who a day earlier had secured third place at the state meet. Abigail Wallace was the state runner-up as an individual.

Huntland won the toss and elected to receive the opening kick. They found some success on the ground, earning a pair of first downs and moving into McKenzie territory before stalling out and punting.

The Rebels took over at their own 11 and pounded the ball on the ground on a 13-play drive. On the final snap, the first play of the second quarter, they took to the air with a 15-yard pass from Cole Brown to Lelan Gordon. The PAT missed, but McKenzie led 6-0.

A good return gave the Hornets good starting position at their 37, but on third down, quarterback Grant Jernigan’s pass was intercepted by C. Brown.

Taking over near midfield, the Rebels scored on five plays. Jayden Callis scored from four yards out. C. Brown threw to Jacobi Melton for two points, and McKenzie led 14-0 with 7:28 to play in the first half.

A McKenzie penalty after the touchdown was assessed on the kick, and the first kick went out of bounds, giving Huntland favorable position again at the Rebel 47. Big stops by Maddox Shiell on third down and Mason Batten on fourth gave the Rebels possession.

A shaky drive ended quickly as a second down pass was caught, but then fumbled and recovered by the Hornets at their 39.

Huntland managed a pair of first downs to get to the McKenzie 24, but turned the ball over on downs as Rebel Kason Brown defended a fourth-down pass to the end zone.

McKenzie aired it out for a four-play, 75-yard drive. C. Brown hit Melton for 37 yards, and Aiden Mason hit the PAT for a 21-0 lead with just over a minute remaining in the second quarter.

The Hornets ran five plays before time expired.

The Rebels received the second-half kick, an onside attempt that Fletcher Holt secured at midfield. Four plays later, Cole threw to Avery Brown for a 21-yard touchdown. Mason kicked, and McKenzie led 28-0 early in the third.

Huntland got on the board with a ten-play, 80-yard drive capped by a 15-yard run by Bryant Mooney. Julio Ramirez kicked the PAT, and the Rebel lead was 28-7 with five minutes to play in the third frame.

McKenzie responded with a five-play, 65-yard drive. C. Brown punched it in from seven yards out. Mason kicked, and the Rebels led 35-7 with two minutes remaining in the third.

The Hornets earned a pair of first downs and got as close as the Rebel 16 early in the final frame before turning the ball over on downs. Matteo Tabada made the fourth-down stop on the Mooney run.

Taking over at the 18, the first McKenzie snap resulted in an interception by Caleb Maxwell returned for a touchdown. The PAT was blocked, and the McKenzie lead was 35-13 a minute into the fourth.

Huntland’s second onside kick attempt was recovered by Aiden Legens to give the Rebels another midfield start. McKenzie nearly went three-and-out, but a Hornet player ran into C. Brown on the punt. The penalty made it fourth-and-one, and Gordon converted with a three-yard carry. Timmy Arline, back from an injury early in the season, ran three straight times for eleven, 28 and a nine-yard touchdown. Mason’s PAT put the Rebels up 42-13 halfway through the final frame.

A fumble and two penalties doomed Huntland to a three-and-out.

The Rebels took over with three minutes remaining and ran out the clock.

McKenzie had 466 yards of total offense, 244 in the air and 222 on the ground.

Rebel quarterback Cole Brown was 16 of 18 passing for 244 yards and three touchdowns. He also had eight carries for 52 yards and a touchdown.

Timmy Arline had 14 carries for 137 yards and a touchdown. Jayden Callis rushed four times for 33 yards with one touchdown.

Jacobi Melton had four catches for 83 yards and a touchdown. Avery Brown caught three passes for 48 yards and a touchdown. Lelan Gordon had three catches for 43 yards with one touchdown.

Kason Brown had one catch for 27 yards. Jayden Callis had a pair of catches for 23 yards. Timmy Arline caught three passes for 20 yards.

Mason Batten led the defense with six solo tackles and one assist, including one for a loss. Aiden Legens had five solo and an assist with two for losses. Cole Brown and Lelan Gordon each had five solo and three assists. Dawson Reeder had five solo and two assists. Maddox Shiell had four solo and three assists, including one for a loss. Jayden Callis had four solo tackles.