Good Hope QB Bailey Quick looks for receiver vs. Arab. / Johnny Thornton
FAIRVIEW – Good Hope coach Alan Scott and Fairview coach George Redding were pleased with the performances their teams gave Friday in a 7-on-7 passing competition at Dafford Smith Stadium.
Involved in a round-robin format with Arab, Falkville and Hayden, the Raiders and Aggies compiled the top two records on the day. Good Hope was 4-0 in competition while Fairview went 3-1.
The games were played from the 40-yard line to the end zone. Games were going on at the same time with a 20-minute running clock. Each team averaged four possessions a game.
Good Hope, in its first 7-on-7 for the summer and under guidance of new offensive coordinator Mitch Witcher, edged Arab 7-6, got past Fairview 14-7, downed Falkville 19-12 and had a come from behind 26-20 win over Hayden.
Fairview brushed aside the Good Hope defeat with three consecutive triumphs, defeating Falkville 21-13, Hayden 21-20 and Arab 20-14.
"It was a good day for us," Scott said following the competition. "We won two of these games on our last drive. I'm proud of our group. We competed and play hard. Coach Witcher did a great job in calling plays, and we were able to move the football downfield."
This was the Aggies' third 7-on-7 for the week, and they showed progress, according to Redding. "We wanted our players to prove to themselves they are getting better. We did a good job this week. At times, a non-competitive spirit would creep in. Then we overcame that and got better."
In the Raiders' first game, Arab broke a scoreless tie on its third series when Drew Hudson threw a 40-yard strike to Kyle Hardin, who made a diving catch in the end zone to lead 6-0.
Good Hope answered on its fourth possession with a 10-yard TD pass from Bailey Quick to Kyle Carlton. The conversion pass to Preston Bagwell was good to put the Raiders in front 7-6. The Raiders stopped the Knights on their final series as time ran out.
Defense was the name of the game between Good Hope and Fairview. The first four series ended in interceptions with the Aggies getting a pick in the end zone.
Fairvew got on the scoreboard first when Dane Black threw a 20-yard pass to get them to the 5-yard line. The Aggies scored on the next snap and led 7-0.
Good Hope got three consecutive completions from Quick and a touchdown to even the score at 7-7 on the following series.
Another interception by the Raiders enabled them to get momentum and break a tie with a touchdown on a 25-yard fade pass in the corner of the end zone on their final series. The Raiders kept the Aggies out of the end zone after that and Good Hope was halfway done at 2-0.
While the Raiders set out on the third rotation, Fairview used great passing by Black, who hit on 7-of-8 for three touchdowns against Falkville and a 21-13 win.
The Aggies scored on 3-of-4 opportunities with the last series critical as Falkville was right with them before Black led them to the end zone for a little breathing room.
Good Hope got behind Falkville twice then scored and hit the conversion pass to gain the lead at 13-12. The defense came up with an interception that allowed them to move downfield and tack on an insurance score against their rival from Morgan County.
Fairview faced Hayden, with both battling it out in Class 5A, Region 6. The two matched each other score for score, with the difference being a failed conversion point by Hayden after its second TD, leaving the Wildcats a point behind.
Hayden trailed 21-13 and closed to 21-20 late with a 40-yard touchdown bomb. But Fairview was able to chew up the rest of the time with a couple of completions and take confidence into its final outing against Arab.
The Aggies scored on the first snap as Black got into a good rhythm, finishing strong once the competition ended. The Aggies went ahead 13-7 before Arab scored.
A touchdown in the closing moments upped the margin to 20-7 with Arab scoring on its last series to narrow the deficit to a one-score game. Fairvew ran out the clock and concluded the day on its turf with a 3-1 mark.
Good Hope was like Fairview in its last game. The Raiders led 7-0 by a TD on the first snap and had to overcome a 20-13 deficit late in the contest.
Two touchdown drives by Quick were key with good receptions from Bagwell, Carlton and Mason Moniz. An interception allowed the Raiders to take over with less than 2:00 remaining.
Running the hurry-up offense to perfection, the Raiders put it into the end zone on a 25-yard pass by Quick, and a conversion. The game was over and the Raiders left the stadium with confidence after playing hard and well the first day of this summer format.
Fairview got plenty of reps from running backs Jeremy Cloud and Ethan Satterfield and wide outs Scott Bennett, Garrett Dunn, Ethan Hollins, Grant Howard and Mason Black. They began to click from the first game through the last, catching throws from Dane Black, who is similar to Tim Tebow, being a left-hander.
With AHSAA All-Star Sports Week next week, no competition is allowed. The teams can work on conditioning, which both plan to do. Good Hope will play at Danville July 26 and Oakman July 27 to close out the 7-7 series.
Fairview is trying to get a trip to Brewer on the 26th. The Aggies went to Florette earlier this week.
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