Late pick seals Huskies win
VESTAVIA — Vestavia Hills High School head coach Buddy Anderson knew what he was going to do if the play worked out, but Hewitt-Trussville head coach Josh Floyd had his star defensive back right where he wanted him.
Trey Washington’s interception with four seconds left clinched a 42-35 Class 7A, Region 3 win for the No. 4 Huskies over the Rebels in a back-and-forth affair that the Rebels nearly came back and won.
Quarterback Braden Glenn threw a fade route to the right side of the field, looking for Cole Turner, but the Ole Miss verbal commit Washington had position and made the game-winning play.
"I had to be confident, play the ball, not panic, trust my technique and go up for the ball and make the play,” Washington said.
Had the Rebels (1-6, 1-4 in region) scored there, or even on the next play since there was time left, there was not going to be overtime.
"I had already planned that we were going to go for two,” Anderson said.
But it was Washington, who bounced back from losing a fumble in the third quarter that led to a Rebels touchdown, who got the Huskies (6-2, 3-2) one step closer to a playoff berth.
“It’s a 1-on-1 situation and that’s his strength,” Floyd said. "You throw the ball up and you have a guy who will make the play, and fortunately it was our guy who made the play.”
It also meant Hewitt-Trussville’s offensive stars would have a win along with stellar individual performances. Quarterback Cade Ott Carruth completed 13-of-18 passes for 244 yards and three touchdowns — 82 and 30 yards to Omari Kelly and 4 yards to Cayson Zackery. Kelly caught six balls for 202 yards. Sean Jackson ran for 177 yards on 14 carries, scoring on a 1-yarder and punching in Hewitt-Trussville’s final score on a 52-yard romp to make it 42-28. Auburn pledge Armoni Goodwin rushed for 72 yards and a 4-yard score.
Vestavia Hills’ first four scores came on touchdown runs by fullback Landon Neese, who punched it in from 1, 1, 8 and 2 yards. The Rebels got a 14-yard strike late from Braden Glenn to Charlie Hughes. They took over with four minutes left, but Glenn was stripped by Riley Quick and Jamarion White recovered. The Rebels got one more stop and took over at their own 33-yard line with a minute left, but came up just short after advancing to the 16-yard line.
Glenn completed 13-of-24 passes for 159 yards, but was intercepted twice. Hughes caught seven passes for 101 yards. But it wasn’t quite enough for Vestavia Hills, who will likely miss the playoffs in Anderson’s final year.
"It was just one of those things,” Anderson said. "They’re real good. Our kids played their hearts out. I couldn’t ask any more from them.”
One more win likely puts the Huskies in the playoffs, which is a big deal after tough losses last year kept the Huskies home. Hewitt-Trussville also bounced back after losing a lead to Hoover and falling by a point last week.
"Our guys have to stick together after a tough loss and keep things in perspective,” Floyd said. "We’re just trying to get in the playoffs. You try to get in and if you get in, anything can happen. Our region, I don’t think there’s any question, I think it’s the best one top to bottom."
Next Friday, Hewitt-Trussville hosts Gadsden City and Vestavia Hills travels to Spain Park.
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