CULLMAN – Three days after the Hartselle varsity defeated Cullman 27-17 at J.P. Cain Stadium, the Tigers' junior varsity came to Oliver Woodard Stadium and returned home 28-3 winners.
Quarterback Luke Godsey completed eight of 13 passes for 233 yards and three touchdowns, showing great ability as the Tigers' sophomore signal-caller. Godsey, the son of Hartselle head coach Bob Godsey, had a string of seven consecutive completions in the first half.
His passing netted the Tigers 194 yards by halftime and a 21-3 advantage with Hartselle scoring on its first three possessions. The Tigers ended the first half turning the ball over on a fumble at the Cullman two-yard line that kept them from another score.
Cullman started the game well with a drive from its 35 thanks to Bailey Quick with a couple of runs netting 16 yards and throwing for six yards to Dylon Wallace. But a pass going deep downfield for Wallace was intercepted by the Tigers' Gunner Wiggins at the Hartselle 22, ending the opportunity to get on the scoreboard.
In six plays, the Tigers scored when Godsey found Mac Meyer open down the right sideline for a 34-yard touchdown. The conversion from Andrew Demastus made it 7-0 with 3:44 left in the first quarter.
Cullman's second series ended with a punt and the Tigers marched downfield 65 yards with two plays. Godsey launched a deep throw to Meyer to cover the 65 yards and the Tigers had a 14-0 lead when time ran out for the opening stanza. Hartselle amassed 143 yards in the first quarter, 118 by air from Godsey to 22 for the Bearcats.
Good field position after a Cullman punt early in the second allowed Hartselle to extend the margin. A pair of throws from Godsey gained 19 yards with the TD coming on a one-yard run on third down by Adam Hampton. The kick from Demastus pushed the lead for the visitors to 21-0 at 3:49 of the second period.
Cullman then got a good drive executed with a 34-yard pass from Quick to Brayden Scroggins, followed by a 17-yard gain to Wallace that got them inside the Hartselle 20. However, the drive stalled and the Bearcats scored on a 34-yard field goal and trailed at the break 21-3.
The Bearcats struggled at times to move the ball downfield, suffering three losses for 24 yards in the final period when they were trying to get into Hartselle's end zone.
Cullman's David Miller recovered a Hartselle fumble at the Tigers' 28 with 1:22 remaining in the game. Three runs from AJ Coffey netted a couple of first downs with the Bearcats reaching the Hartselle two as the final seconds were ticking off the clock.
But a bad snap from the center in the shotgun formation to Quick dropped him for a five-yard loss to the seven. Then after a timeout, the final play ended with another high snap and a one-yard loss on a pass to Scroggins.
The 'Cats best chance to score a touchdown ended with no points and a 28-3 defeat to open the junior varsity season.
Quick accounted for 118 yards in the air on 10 of 16 passes. He had two interceptions that killed a pair of scoring chances.
Wallace caught five passes for 53 yards, Scroggins had two catches for 35 yards leading the Cullman receivers. Coffey ran 10 times for 56 yards anchoring the Cullman ground attack.
Middle linebacker Abraham Tekulve joined Miller in recovering a fumble. His came on the next to last snap in the second quarter from the Cullman two-yard line. The Bearcats held the Tigers to minus five yards of offense in the fourth quarter.
The next game for the JV Bearcats will be Aug. 29 at 6 p.m. against the Guntersville Wildcats at Oliver Woodard Stadium.
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