By Heath Walley
After Bay Springs’ first drive of the football game, there was no question as to who was going to dominate it. The question was just how bad was it going to be?
Head coach Dan Brady and his Bulldogs did what they wanted at Morton Friday with their power running game and easily dominated the Panthers 45-14. Brady was pleased with the victory but knows there are some things his team can freshen up before hosting 5A West Jones next Friday night.
“We just kept pecking away; we didn’t play our best ballgame, but we never got our head down and kept playing. I think that’s a sign of maturity. Last year, at that point, we would’ve have turned this into a dogfight, but we just kept pecking away and took care of business,” he explained.
“Going forward, West Jones will be the best defense we’ll play all year . . . bar none. They do a great job. We are going to do what we do. We are just going to play football and try to make it a game like it was last year. Slow the pace of the game down. We can’t out-platoon them. We are two deep at every position, and West Jones is three and four deep. They’ve got an offense and a defense. We are going to get better at the things Bay Springs does, and we are going to be ready for a fight next Friday night. West Jones is much improved, but I think we are too. I’m expecting a great atmosphere and a great game.”
Bay Springs senior running back Jamarious Hosey went into beast mode against Morton, ripping off four touchdown runs in the first half, two inside the first six minutes of the game. On the Bulldogs’ opening drive, Hosey capped a 75-yard drive with a 5-yard touchdown run to give Bay Springs a 6-0 lead. He then rolled 39-yards for a score following a Derrien Lee interception to extend the lead 12-0. Later in the second quarter, Hosey cut loose on a 56-yard touchdown run and an 11-yard scoring romp.
Quarterback Adrian Cole and Lee also contributed to the Bay Springs scoring spree in the first half. Cole found Lee on 14-yard touchdown strike at the beginning of the second quarter and then hit Lee again just before halftime on a 39-yard touchdown connection to give the Bulldogs a 38-7 cushion at the break.
Morton’s Vaughn Jennings scored his second rushing touchdown of the game on a 14-yard run midway through the third quarter, but Bay Springs, with a younger crew on the field, answered when Chase Wilson polished a 70-yard drive with a 4-yard touchdown run to put the final score on the board.
Bay Springs forced Morton into five turnovers. Two of those turnovers turned into early points for the Bulldogs. Lee’s interception early in the first led to Bay Springs’ second touchdown of the game, and Jaccorio Ducksworth picked off a pass that also led to a score in the first quarter. Cole intercepted a pass to end the first half, and the Bulldogs also scooped up two fumbles.
Bay Springs dealt out 420 total yards against the Panthers. Hosey finished with 183 yards on 14 carries with the four touchdown runs. Anson Windham rushed 12 times for 102 yards. Cole was 8-of-9 through the air for 110 yards and two touchdowns. Lee hauled in 5 passes for 86 total yards and a touchdown.
Bay Springs (3-0) will host West Jones (2-1) next Friday night. The Mustangs topped Quitman 36-7 Friday night. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.
