Photos by Shawn Bowles.
Left: Hewitt-Trussville wide receiver Jadon Loving (1) sprints down the sideline for a touchdown in a game at Heardmont Park on Sept. 8. Right: Quarterback Peyton Floyd (7) looks to pass downfield in a game at Hewitt-Trussville Stadium on Aug 26.
Most Trussville residents should be familiar with Floyd-Bradford Road, a winding stretch of blacktop connecting Roper Road to U.S. 78 in Irondale. But perhaps the road deserves to be renamed Floyd-Jadon Road, in honor of Hewitt-Trussville High School quarterback Peyton Floyd and his favorite wide receiver, Jadon Loving.
Thus far this fall, the dynamic duo of Floyd and Loving are competing on another level. The 2023 edition of the Huskies is looking solid defensively and has a cache of weapons on offense, with the Floyd-Loving connection proving to be especially deadly to opposing defenses. Their propensity for big plays and quick strikes also makes them exciting to watch, including for Hewitt-Trussville announcer Chad Summers.
“Jadon is an explosive playmaker with good hands, burst and speed. Peyton knows his dad's [head coach Josh Floyd’s] offense like the back of his hand, able to get the ball where it needs to go,” Summers said. “Put those two together and the result is fun to watch. There's a big play coming, you just don't know when. But it's only a matter of time.”
Floyd threw 10 touchdowns in the season’s first four games, six of them to Loving, eclipsing their total of five scores in 2022. They connected for three touchdowns in the second game of the year (a 42-27 victory over Gadsden City), including a 48-yarder, their longest of the season.
They hooked up for a 42-yard score during their 42-7 win over Oak Mountain and twice more in their 42-7 thumping of Tuscaloosa County on consecutive plays. Floyd hit Loving with a dart for a 10-yard score midway through the first quarter against the Wildcats. The next time the Huskies touched the football, less than two minutes later, Floyd and Loving took advantage of a mismatch for a 32-yard touchdown.
The touchdown is symbolic of the sense of trust and near-telepathic connection the duo have forged since they began playing football together in elementary school. These days, Loving said he and Floyd “know what’s going to happen before it happens.”
“Peyton and Jadon have been playing ball since youth league, and I've been seeing them throw touchdowns since they were in fourth and fifth grade,” Josh Floyd said. “It pays off in the long run.”
Loving and Peyton Floyd became fast friends once the Floyds moved to Trussville in 2014. Loving and Floyd say they began developing their sixth sense for football in Trussville’s youth football league shortly thereafter. Over the years, they have developed as friends and teammates and have worked tirelessly, motivating each other and building a sense of trust that is leading the Huskies to new heights.
“Me and Peyton go way, way back,” Loving said. “We've been playing together since he first got here. He's accurate, he's a great quarterback and we have a great connection. It takes work, and just hanging out and getting to know each other, and getting to know each other on and off the field.”
“Ever since I moved to Trussville in third grade, we were in the same class, so he was one of my first friends,” Floyd added. “We always played football growing up together, and I feel like our friendship just grows each and every year. … We love each other, and we've got a lot of confidence in each other.”
Hewitt-Trussville will look to finish the season strong in November, as the Huskies prepare for a playoff push.
