ADDISON, Ala. – Addison hosted the 2A Decatur Heritage Eagles Friday night and a disappointing performance against their archrivals from Winston County last week, Addison bounced back against the Eagles, taking advantage of multiple turnovers and not committing any of their own to come away with an impressive, 36-20 victory.
The game could not have started any better for the Dawgs as they recovered a fumble on the opening kickoff at the Eagle 36-yard line. Addison took almost seven minutes off the clock before quarterback Kaden Dyson ran one into the endzone from the 5-yard line for a touchdown. One of the key plays on the drive was Dyson hitting receiver Scout Flynn for a 10-yard completion, on third down, giving Addison a chance to continue the drive at the 5-yard line. Zayne Smith ran in the two-point conversion to give Addison an 8-0 lead with 5:53 to play in the first quarter.
It didn’t take the Eagles long to strike back. Decatur Heritage took just five plays to go 63 yards for the score. Quarterback Dylan Germany ran it in from the 2-yard line. The key play on the drive was when Eagles All-State running back Savarius Evans got loose for a 27-yard gain. Ezra Burney kicked the extra point, and the Eagles cut the lead to 8-7 with 3:52 to go in the first quarter.
After an Addison three-and-out, Heritage took over at its own 33-yard line. Germany connected with Paxton Tarver for 25 yards and one play later, Daniel “Budda” Taylor Jr., rambled in from 42 yards out for the touchdown. Burney’s point after pushed the Eagles ahead 14-8 with only nine seconds remaining in the opening quarter.
It didn’t look good for the hometown team, but Addison’s Owen Pratt brought the stadium back to life as he took the ensuing kickoff and returned it 52 yards down to the Eagles’ 21-yard line. Addison ran five plays, four of them runs by Smith as he accounted for 21 yards. Smith finally cashed it in for the touchdown from 1 yard out, but the two-point conversion was no good and at the 9:24 mark we were all tied up at 14. Both teams were still knotted at 14 when they went to the locker room at halftime.
Addison received the second half kickoff and struck quickly. Facing a third down and eight, Addison’s Dyson rolled out right and threw back across his body finding Mr. Pratt and he took it to the house from 72 yards out. Smith ran in the two-point conversion and Addison took a 22-14 lead over the Eagles.
Decatur Heritage struck right back as they fed the ball to Evans and after nine plays they had moved 77 yards down to the Bulldog 1-yard line. However, the Eagles fumbled the ball going into the end zone and it was recovered by the Bulldogs, giving the ball to Addison’s offense on its own 20.
Later in the drive on second and nine, Addison ran a Utah pass and Dyson flipped it to Seth Hammack who ran 61 yards down to the Eagles’ 18-yard line. Five plays later, Smith ran it in from the 3-yard line for the score. Smith then hit Elijah Roberts for the two-point conversion pass and Addison stretched its lead to 30-14 with 2:11 to go in the third quarter.
On the ensuing kickoff, Decatur Heritage fumbled the ball once again and the Bulldogs recovered. Three plays later, Hammack ran 27 yards, untouched, into the endzone for the touchdown to put the Dawgs up 36-14. The two-point conversion was no good and with 12 seconds left in the third quarter Addison was in complete control with a 36-14 lead.
The Eagles were not giving up and it only took them two plays to score. On first down, Evans went 55-yards down to the Bulldogs’ 1 where Germany ran it in for the touchdown on the next play. After the two-point conversion was no good, Addison led 36-20 with 11:55 to go in the game.
After the Eagles forced an Addison punt, they mounted another drive. It went 11 plays and got all the way down to the Bulldogs’ 12-yard line. An Eagle touchdown here would have made it a one-score game, but linebacker Brodie Willingham stepped in front of a Germany pass and intercepted it at the 6-yard line. Addison ran out the final 2:47 to secure a huge, 36-20 win.
After a disappointing season opener, this win could create a lot of momentum for the Bulldogs going forward. Addison moves to 1-1 and will host region foe Shoals Christian next week.
Unofficial stats
Addison’s Dyson went 5 for 5 through the air with 164 yards and a TD. Elijah Roberts went 4for 5 with 17 yards. Decatur Heritage’s Germany went 6 for 9 with 87 yards and an interception.
Addison had 41 rushing plays for 191 total yards. Addison had 10 passing plays for 181 total yards. Addison ran 51 total plays for 372 total yards. Decatur Heritage had 30 rushing plays for 258 total yards. Heritage ran 9 passing plays for 87 total yards. Heritage ran 39 total plays for 345 total yards.
Addison was led in rushing by Dyson with 13 carries for 51 yards and a TD. Hammack had 10 carries for 43 yards and a TD. Joey Wilson had 2 carries for 38 yards. Smith had 8 carries for 30 yards and 2 TDs. Decatur Heritage was led by Evans with 18 carries for a game high 180 yards. Taylor Jr. had 3 carries for 73 yards and a TD. Germany had 8 carries for 10 yards and 2 TDs.
Addison was led in receiving by Hammack with 3 catches for 72 yards. Pratt had 1 catch for 72 yards and a TD. Smith had 2 catches for 15 yards. Heritage had Tarver with 4 grabs for 52 yards. Harrison Hardy had 2 catches for 22 yards. Nash Thomas had 1 for 13 yards.
On defense, Addison’s Dyson led with 8 tackles. Judah Wilkins had 4 tackles. Flynn, Jaxson Williams, Roberts, Wyatt Anderson had 3 tackles each. Wilkins and Roberts each had a fumble recovery. Willingham had an interception. Bobby Williams and Dyson shared a sack. Casen Hill had a sack.
Heritage was led in tackles by Zavier Johnson, Thomas and Taylor Jr. with 7 each. Ian Wickwire had 4. Dalton Gay, Germany, Tarver and Levi McGee had 3 each. John owen Vincent had a sack.
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