Howard takes down Mount de Sales in Macon Touchdown Club Middle Georgia Kickoff Classic
Last season was a tough one for the Howard Huskies. They finished with only one win and lost nine games, including a defeat to FPD in the Macon Touchdown Club Middle Georgia Kickoff Classic.
The Huskies matched last year’s win total Saturday in the Kickoff Classic by knocking off Mount de Sales 21-8. The Huskies and Cavaliers are both 1-1 after their first two games of the season.
Howard used a 15-point second quarter to lead 21-2 at the half and held off the Cavaliers in the second half.
Three who mattered
Jeremiah Kelly: The Howard running back had 152 yards on 12 carries and scored on a game-changing 80-yard run in the second quarter.
Kody Burrell: The Howard place-kicker hit two field goals in the first quarter — 29 yards and 33 yards — after the Huskies’ offense bogged down and couldn’t get into the end zone.
Coleman Roberts: The Mount de Sales receiver had five catches for 60 yards, including a touchdown and was a tough cover when the Cavaliers went to him.
Turning point
Mount de Sales trailed 6-2 and had a drive deep into Howard territory to get closer or take the lead. But the drive stalled, and the Cavaliers missed a field goal. On the Huskies’ first play on their next drive, Kelly darted through the middle for his long touchdown run.
Observations
Strong ground game: Behind Kelly, Howard had success running the ball. The Huskies had 35 carries for 200 yards, an average of 5.7 yards per carry.
Growing at quarterback: Dexter Williams, just a sophomore, showcased some skills for the Cavaliers from his quarterback spot. He completed 7-of-16 passes for 103 yards and ran for 27 yards.
They said it
Howard head coach Barney Hester on the win: “I was pleased with the way we played. Defensively, I thought we played good all night long. Offensively, we had opportunities to score, but we didn’t. I give credit to Mount de Sales for that, though. I thought that they played well and played really good defense. We like to run the sweep, and we couldn’t get outside on them. They did a good job defending us.”
Mount de Sales head coach Keith Hatcher on the loss: “I’m proud of the way we competed. Obviously, never happy with a loss and felt like we could have executed better, especially offensively, but to see our guys bounce back in the second half and certainly never gave up, played hard to the end and really had a chance, just couldn’t get the play we needed late. But we did see some good things, and we’ll continue to improve from here.”
What’s next?
Mount de Sales hosts Social Circle on Sept. 8, while Howard faces Central on Friday.
This story was originally published August 27, 2017 at 1:15 AM with the headline "Howard takes down Mount de Sales in Macon Touchdown Club Middle Georgia Kickoff Classic."