HACKLEBURG, Ala. – In what was probably the premier matchup in 1A North, the 6th ranked Addison Bulldogs traveled to play No. 5 Hackleburg at lovely Ray Family Stadium in front of a packed house Friday night. Addison dominated for much of the game and came away with an impressive, 46-16 victory over the Panthers to move atop the region 7 standings.
Addison deferred to the second half and the Panthers took the opening kickoff and drove down to the Bulldog 39-yard line. A crucial penalty went against the Panthers and instead of a first and goal at the Bulldog 9-yard line, the Panthers had a first and twenty at the Dawg 41. The Panthers went for it on fourth and five from the 26 but Panther QB Maddox Vickery was sacked by Bulldog Judah Wilkins giving the Dawgs the ball at their own 38.
Addison used eight plays, all runs, to drive the 62 yards for the first touchdown of the game. Dawgs running back Zane Smith and QB Elijah Roberts split the carries with Roberts sneaking it in from a yard out for the touchdown. The extra point was no good and with 4:25 to go in the first quarter, Addison led 6-0.
What looked like an unintentional onside kick off had the line drive striking a Panther up back and Addison’s Joey Wilson recovering the football giving Addison the ball at the Panther 46. Addison could not capitalize on the turnover.
Both defenses settled in and after four consecutive punts, Addison took over at the Panther 40. Addison’s Roberts found TE Major Snoddy for a 7-yard touchdown pass and the two-point conversion was good as Connor Lane found Michael Lee for the pass and catch. The ball actually bounced off a Panther defender and right into the hands of Lee.
Hackleburg missed a golden opportunity as a wide open, no one was within fifteen yards of the receiver, Panther had a Vickery pass go through his hands that would have been an easy fifty-yard touchdown catch. Two plays later, Lee had a sack forcing a fumble. Brye Dollar recovered the loose ball at the Panther 48 and this gave Addison excellent field possession. The Panther defense stiffened and held the Bulldogs on fourth down at their own 24.
Hackleburg then went nine plays, with a solid mixture of run and pass to move 86 yards for their first touchdown of the evening. Vickery found Reid Purser from 5 yards out for the score. Vickery then found Cam Ingram for the two-point conversion and with 1:46 seconds to go in the first half, we had a ballgame again. The half ended with this score and both teams had to feel frustrated as they had both moved the ball, but penalties and mistakes had kept them both from capitalizing on scoring opportunities.
As the second half opened with Addison receiving the kickoff, a key play for momentum had the Panthers forcing Addison into a key third down and eight at the Bulldog 28. Roberts found Judah Wilkins for 23 yards and a first down. Addison would continue driving until Roberts ran it in from seven yards out for a touchdown. This drive took up half of the third quarter. The two-point was no good and with 6:03 to go in the third quarter, Addison led 20-8.
The Panthers were not going to quit, and it only took them two plays to go 69 yards for the touchdown. Vickery found Ingram for 63 yards and a touchdown. Ingram must have been invisible because not a Bulldog was withing half a football field of him when he caught the ball. The two-point was good and the Panthers, even being dominated on the line of scrimmage, were still in this ballgame at 20-16 with 5:48 to go in the third.
The Bulldogs answered the call and rode the legs of Smith as he carried the ball seven times for 61 yards and tacked on a 15-yard scoring run. The two-point was no good and Addison led 26-16 with one minute left in the third. The crucial play on the drive was Roberts finding Lane for 16 yards on a third and seven.
Addison effectively nailed the coffin door shut as Tanner Gaither picked off a Vickery pass and returned it to Panther 28. The pass actually deflected off the Panther wide receiver. You had to feel for the Panther QB as he was running for his life most of the evening. Addison scored again on a Smith 5-yard run to up the Bulldog lead. The extra point was no good and Addison led 32-16 with 8:53 to go in the game.
The Panthers are a quality team but their offensive line could not handle the Bulldog front on this evening as another Hackleburg drive was cut short as Brye Dollar sacked Vickery on another fourth down play.
The Bulldogs drove 24 yards in four plays as Smith scored his third touchdown of the night, this time from 11 yards out. Lane kicked the extra point and with 5:51 to go Addison led 39-16
After holding the Panthers on another failed fourth down attempt, Addison had young Ben Bridges, a freshman, score from 21 yards out to give the Bulldogs the final tally of 46-16. Lane had added the extra point.
The game would end this way, and a game ball would have to go to the Bulldog offensive front and the entire Addison defense as they controlled the majority of the game.
Addison will host 4A power Good Hope Raider next Friday at A.G. Hicks’ Stadium in what should be a matchup of a top five team in 1A against a top five team in 4A. Addison moves to 5-0 (3-0 region play) and takes sole possession of first place in the Region.
Unofficial stats
Addison had 52 running plays for 332 total yards. Addison had 15 passing plays for 76 total yards. Addison ran 67 total plays for 408 total yards. Hackleburg had 20 running plays for 19 total yards. Hackleburg had 26 passing plays for 179 total yards. Hackleburg ran 46 total plays for 198 total yards.
Addison’s Roberts had 7 completions in 15 attempts for 76 yards with a touchdown. Hackleburg’s Vickery had 15 completions in 26 attempts for 179 total yards with 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions.
Addison had Smith with 20 carries for 135 yards and 3 touchdowns. Roberts ran 21 times for 121 yards and 2 touchdowns. Seth Hammack had 6 carries for 31 yards. Judah Wilkins had 2 carries for 21 yards. Bridges had 1 carry for 21 yards and a touchdown. Wilson had 1 carry for 4 yards. Hackleburg had Aiden Pimentel with 8 carries for 22 yards. Daughtry Gober had 2 carries 10 yards. Vickery had 9 carries for (-13) yards.
Addison had Wilkins with 4 catches for 33 yards. Snoddy had 2 catches for 27 yards and a touchdown. Lane had 1 catch for 16 yards. Hackleburg had Ross Hudson with 6 catches for 69 yards and a touchdown. Ingram had 4 catches for 77 yards and a touchdown. Gober had 4 catches for 33 yards.
On defense Addison was led by Wilkins with 6 tackles. Scout Flynn with 5 tackles. Trennon Burns, Tucker Hayes, Silas Frazier, Snoddy, Wilson and Carson McCaleb with 3 tackles each. Lee and Smith had 2 each. Lee had 2 sacks, Wilkins and Dollar each had 1. Dollar and Wilson recovered fumbles. Lane and Gaither each intercepted a pass.
Hackleburg was led by Ross Hudson who had a game high 7 tackles. Kross Weeks and Noah Tubb had 6 each. Ingram and Kannen Cheatham had 5 each. Sawyer Johnson had 4. Gober had 3. Dominyck Patterson and Blaine McDuffa had 2 each.
