CULLMAN, Ala. – After hitting the road for their first two games of the season, the Cullman Bearcats hosted Decatur in their home opener Friday night and opened region play with a 41-17 win over the Red Raiders. Cullman trailed 17-7 at the half but a dominant performance from the Bearcats’ offensive line and defense in the second half allowed them to come from behind and not only take the lead but pull away in convincing fashion. Quarterback Max Dueland was the beneficiary of several strong Cullman drives, finishing the night with five touchdowns on the ground.
The Bearcats were held to just 72 yards rushing and 98 yards total in the first half, but the backfield and the offensive front found their rhythm in the second half, racking up 248 yards on the ground in the final two periods. Jayden Sullins led Cullman with 158 yards and a touchdown while Jaylen Hughey added 125 yards himself. The Red Raiders went into the halftime break with 184 yards of offense and the lead but finished the night with 222 total yards and their third loss of the year.
Decatur struck first in the opening quarter on a 27-yard touchdown run to go up 7-0 and stretch the lead to 10-0 late in the first. A 16-yard touchdown pass early in the second quarter gave the Red Raiders a 17-0 lead, but the Bearcats took over from that point and scored the first of 41 unanswered points when Dueland punched one in from a yard out midway through the second quarter. That score made it a 17-7 game at the break.
The momentum began building for the Bearcats as soon as the second half got underway. Another 1-yard touchdown from Dueland capped off a Cullman drive that included 57 rushing yards from Hughey and cut the lead to 17-14 early in the third quarter. The ensuing kickoff landed in front of a Decatur returner and the Bearcats were able to fall on the ball and take over possession once again. After driving down a short field, it was Dueland that punched it in for his third score of the night, giving Cullman its first lead of the night at 21-17 midway through the third.
The Bearcats continued to smother the Red Raiders defensively and get the ball into the hands of their offense. Dueland finished another scoring drive for Cullman late in the third quarter when he juked past a Decatur defender to score from 4-yards out and give the ‘Cats a 28-17 lead before the start of the fourth quarter. Duleand’s fifth and final rushing touchdown of the evening came with just under eight minutes to play in the fourth from a yard out that put Cullman up 35-17. After the Bearcats defense forced a turnover on downs, Sullins put the game away with a touchdown from 7-yards out that made it a 41-17 game and put things out of reach for the Red Raiders.
Cullman’s scoring and rushing output surpassed what the Bearcats posted in their first two games combined and they’ll look to keep riding this wave of momentum when they travel to take on Columbia next Thursday.
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