Aug. 23 — Green means go, and on Friday night the Hartselle Tigers never took their foot of the gas.
In the season opener against Austin, Hartselle went 71 yards on the opening drive for a touchdown and never looked back, beating the Black Bears on their home field 39-7
“This was a big win for our kids. They had this game circled for a year and wanted it really bad,” Hartselle head coach Bert Newton said, referring to last year’s 35-34 loss to Austin. “We got after them on defense, we ran the ball just good enough, and Carter Lee was phenomenal.”
Lee, who was making his first start at quarterback for the Tigers, was indeed phenomenal. The senior finished 11-for-16 passing for 175 yards and two touchdowns.
“After I completed my first pass, I just really got going,” Lee said. “My first touchdown pass, I got hit when I threw it, but when I heard the crowd roar, I knew it was a touchdown. It was a sweet feeling.”
Jayden Morris finished the game with 55 yards rushing and a touchdown for Hartselle, while Jaheim Pruitt added 34 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Cain Falciani hauled in four catches for 72 yards and a touchdown and Braden Weathers had a touchdown catch of 39 yards.
Aidan Davis led Austin with 63 yards rushing, while quarterback Qadir Lyle scored the team’s lone touchdown on a 1-yard run.
Hartselle’s defense had a strong night, holding Austin to just 127 yards of offense. Carson Jett and Malik Mitchell each had an interception for the Tigers, while Cole Miles recovered a blocked punt for a touchdown.
“We only have three starters back from last year, but we have 15 guys that played meaningful minutes in games just like this one,” Newton said. “The defensive group ran to the ball all night. They kept coming, and when one missed, 10 more were there.”
On the other side, it was a rough night for a young Austin team.
“We made way too many mistakes in the first half, and we have to learn how to handle things better,” Austin head coach Jeremy Perkins said. “This team has a chance to be good, but we have a lot of growing up to do.”
Health will be a priority ahead of next week’s rivalry game at Decatur as Austin played the majority of the second half without its starting quarterback, running back and top wide receiver.
“We don’t have a lot of depth, so we have to find a way to get them better and back out there. Other guys are going to have to step up as well,” Perkins said.
Hartselle will be at home next week against Jackson-Olin.
