MARIETTA — Jason Davis rushed for 194 yards and three touchdowns Friday night to lead the Immanuel Christian football team to a 42-8 victory against New Site.
Davis scored on runs of 33, 18, and 93 yards to help the Rams improve to 1-3.
“We were playing an opponent not quite as tough as our first three opponents,” Immanuel Christian coach Greg Watkins said. “But I thought we learned a lot from our first three games. We have Canton (at home) this week and that is a big district game. This win should give us some momentum going into that game.”
Norris Harris had 59 rushing yards, Michael Tate had 79 rushing yards and two touchdowns, and Darius Jones added 34 rushing yards.
Behind a strong effort from the offensive line, Immanuel Christian rushed for 400 yards in the game.
“The biggest part of our discussion from this past week was the offensive and defensive lines,” Watkins said. “The line was the biggest place for inexperience coming into the season. However, we felt if we could get a better surge, it would help us win. The linemen really showed up. We have some talented backs, so when the line plays well we can hit them with more than one offensive threat.”
The Immanuel offensive line includes center Josh Davidson, right guard James Wriley, right tackle Jeremy Davidson, left guard Will Harmond and left tackle Logan Shackelford.
Tate had touchdown runs of 9 and 11 yards, while Jones, who was 1 of 3 for 15 yards, hit KC Cunningham with a 15-yard scoring pass in the third quarter to account for the Rams’ scoring.
New Site, which rushed for 201 yards, scored in the fourth quarter.
Wriley had seven tackles and a fumble recovery, Davis and Harris had five tackles, Zach Kimbrell had four tackles and a fumble recovery, Cody Dunn had a fumble recovery, Davidson had four tackles, and Cunningham had three tackles and an interception.
“After the Canton game, we have an open week, so that will give us a chance to heal some injuries,” Watkins said. “Then we have five games left, so hopefully, we can go into the back part of our season with two straight wins and some more confidence.”
n East Oktibbeha 20, Sebastopol 9: At Crawford, The Titans returned to the win column Friday night in Class A, Region 3 action.
Kortland Petty had 83 yards rushing on six carries and two touchdowns for East Oktibbeha (3-1, 1-0 region). Quarterback Davalyn Bell hit Terrence Rice for an 80-yard touchdown reception and a two-point conversion.
After being shut out last week by North Pontotoc, the Titans trailed Sebastopol (1-2, 0-1) 2-0 at halftime.
“We made some adjustments at halftime,” East Oktibbeha coach Randy Brooks said. “We thought we could run the ball on them. However, we had a tough time getting that going. In the second half, our focus and effort was much better.”
Petty got his first touches at running back position in the final half. The first East Oktibbeha score came when Petty was in punt formation. He bobbled the snap but then ran 54 yards untouched for the score. Bell hit Rice for the two-point conversion and an 8-2 lead.
Sebastopol regained the lead on a 5-yard run by Jake Loper.
The lead was short-lived, as Bell hit Rice for the 80-yard scoring strike on the next possession.
A 7-yard rushing touchdown by Petty closed the scoring in the final minute.
East Oktibbeha will play at Ethel on Friday.
n Hebron 36, Clinton Christian 16: At Pheba, The Eagles rallied from a 16-6 halftime deficit to win their home opener Friday night.
“We came back and played a really good second half,” Hebron Christian coach Tri Nason said. “Anytime you shut an opponent out in a half you are playing hard. We were down, but we fought back and did a great job of turning things around.”
Taylor Coggins led the offense with 175 yards rushing, 23 yards receiving, and three touchdowns for Hebron Christian (2-1). Quarterback Will Corben Rogers was 5 of 9 for 64 yards. He ran for 128 yards and a touchdown. Marquez Robinson rushed for 89 yards and another score.
“We had a tough time getting started,” Nason said. “We made some adjustments at halftime. We blocked better and made more things happen.”
David Kinard and Harley Thompson paced the team with eight tackles apiece. Rogers added seven stops. Kinard had a 58-yard interception return, while Ryan Moore also had two interceptions.
Hebron Christian will play Sept. 23 at Park Pace Christian.
n Manchester Academy 37, Oak Hill Academy 0: At West Point, The Raiders found the going tough Friday night in their home Class AA, Region 2 loss.
The Mavericks (3-1, 1-0) scored on their first three possessions and cruised to the victory.
“We just have to keep pushing and keep working hard,” said Oak Hill coach Benjie Merchant, whose team slipped to 0-4 and 0-2 in the region. “We just don’t have the athletes to compete. Plus, we lost a couple of more athletes to injuries. It’s a tough situation, but you have to keep fighting.”
Oak Hill Academy will play Friday at Winona Academy.
n Hamilton 31, Hatley 18: At Hatley, The Lions (3-1) bounced back from a loss to Kossuth last week to beat their Monroe County rival.
Quarterback Zarrat Sims rushed for 150 yards on eight carries, including touchdown runs of 50 and 38 yards. Sims alternated with teammate Austin Welch thanks in part due to a hand injury he suffered last week’s in a 34-20 loss at Kossuth.
Hamilton took a 17-6 halftime lead. The Lions scored late in the half when punter Caleb Garvin hit Deion Howard on a 55-yard scoring strike on a faked punt. A 4-yard run by Cojuante McMillian upped the lead to 24-6 on the opening possession of the final half.
The Lions also received a 32-yard field goal from Sander Grondman in a 10-point first quarter.
Hamilton will play Friday at Houston.
West Alabama
n Lexington 20, Sulligent 13: At Lexington, Ala., The Blue Devils Sulligent hung tough before falling on a fourth-quarter touchdown in Class 2A, Region 8 action Friday night.
Peter Swanigan ran 12 times for 134 yards and a touchdown for Sulligent (1-2, 1-1). Quarterback John Potmesil also hit Rocky Sides on a 55-yard scoring strike.
Juwan Metcalfe led the team with 12 tackles. Coco Metcalfe and Austin Pinkerton each had eight tackles.
Sulligent will play host to Colbert Heights (2-1, 1-1) Friday in another region game.
n Pickens Academy 41, South Choctaw Academy 7: At Toxley, Ala., The Pirates recorded their first victory Friday night thanks to Josh Lewis.
Lewis rushed for 151 yards and three touchdowns to lift Pickens Academy to 1-3). He scored on runs of 10, 26, and 3 yards. Garrett Estes also added touchdown rushes of 8 and 11 yards.
Daniel Cameron led Pickens Academy with nine tackles, while Hunter Booth had eight tackles and one interception.
Pickens Academy will play host to Tuscaloosa Academy on Friday.
n Lamar County 51, Phil Campbell 20: At Vernon, Ala., The Bulldogs improved to 2-0 in Class 2A, Region 8 play with Friday night’s home win at George Bell Stadium.
The Bulldogs are now 3-0 overall.
Through three weeks of play, Lamar County and Red Bay are the lone unbeatens in the region race. Those teams will meet Friday night in Red Bay, Ala.
n Marion County 56, South Lamar 13: At Guin, Ala., The Stallions South remained winless in Class 2A, Region 8 play with their road loss Friday.
South Lamar (0-3, 0-2) will play host to Brilliant on Friday in another region contest.
n Pickens County 44, Keith 0: At Reform, Ala., The Tornadoes continued their early season offensive assault and pitched a shutout in the process in a Class 1A, Region 4 victory on Friday.
The Tornadoes (3-0, 2-0 region) have scored 149 points in their three victories.
Pickens County will play Friday at Essex in another region game.
n Aliceville 45, Montevallo 24: At Montevallo, Ala., The Yellow Jackets improved to 2-0 in Class 3A, Region 4.
Aliceville (2-1 overall) will step out of region play Friday when it plays host to Tanner.
n Correction: Central Academy’s Drew Pearson had 16 tackles Friday night
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