Springville Overwhelmed In Gadsden, Loses To Southside 50-13

By Loyd McIntosh, For the Tribune

GADSDEN – Springville’s dreams of ruining Southside’s homecoming were quickly dashed Friday as the Tigers fell to the Panthers, 50-13, on the road.

Credit: Loyd McIntosh

While Springville showed some big-play potential and the ability to stop Southside’s running game in the first half, the Tigers had no answer for Southside’s wide-open passing game and failed to establish any sense of rhythm on offense en route to a 37-point loss.

The third quarter was especially brutal as the Tigers gave up 15 points and managed to run only three offensive plays for negative 34 yards. During the third period, Springville committed a penalty in their own end zone for a safety, fumbled a kickoff return, and gave up two touchdowns to a Panther squad whose only loss came to Clay-Chalkville in mid-September.

Despite the loss, Springville Head Coach Jeff Lumpkin said he was proud of the way the team continued to grind and battle long after the result was a foregone conclusion.

“We’re battlers, and we’re gritty. When things are going good, and when they’re going bad, our kids are always battling and fighting,” said Lumpkin. “They never let up, and I appreciate that about them. They’re always giving their best.”

Springville received the kickoff; however, a holding penalty on the return forced the Tigers to start their opening series from their own ten-yard line. The infraction was an omen for Springville for the remainder of the game as penalties, turnovers, and fundamental miscues put the Tigers behind the proverbial eight-ball early.

After a quick three-and-out and Springville punt, Southside started their opening series from the Springville 49-yard line. The Tigers’ defense looked strong initially, however, Southside converted a fourth down and short from the Springville 39-yard line.

On the next play, Southside quarterback Christian Morris connected with receiver Adrian Devenport on an excellent corner route for a 34-yard touchdown pass. At the 7:33 mark of the first quarter, Southside led, 7-0.

Springville countered on their ensuing possession. After grinding for short yards and several first downs, the Tigers hit paydirt. Quarterback Cash Mobley hit receiver Franklin Tripp on a screen pass, who then broke multiple tackles and galloped down the right sideline for a 59-yard touchdown.

The point-after attempt was no good, however, and Springville trailed by one point, 7-6, with just under four minutes to play in the opening quarter.

At that point, it was all Southside all the time.

Unable to get much going with the run game, the Panthers trusted the offense to the capable arm of Morris. The Panthers’ sophomore quarterback tossed an eight-yard touchdown to receiver Christian Houston with 1:27 to play in the first quarter, extending Southside’s lead to 14-6.

Following another short Springville possession, Southside scored on its first play of the second quarter on a beautiful 24-yard pass from Morris to Davenport. At the 11:18 mark of the second quarter, Southside led 21-6.

Morris threw his fourth touchdown of the first half on a 26-yard completion to Anderson Hassell, extending Southside’s lead to 28-6 at halftime.

Springville’s defense held the Panthers offense to a three-and-out to open the second half. However, the Tigers’ comeback efforts quickly crashed on their first play of the third quarter.

Starting the series from their own six-yard line, Mobley was forced out of the pocket and, with his feet in the end zone, tossed the ball out of bounds on the Tigers’ first play. After the officials deliberated for a couple of minutes, the referee announced an intentional grounding penalty on Springville, resulting in a two-point safety for Southside. With 9:29 on the clock, Southside held a commanding 30-6 lead.

By rule, Springville kicked off to Southside following the safety. The Panthers responded with their first rushing touchdown of the night on an eight-yard score by Miles Rickles, extending Southside’s lead to 37-6.

Springville fumbled the ensuing kickoff, giving the ball to Southside on the 17-yard line. Four plays later, Mobley threw his fifth touchdown pass on a five-yard toss to Davenport. The extra point attempt was blocked, giving the Panthers a commanding 43-6 lead.

Southside backup running back Malil Clay added a three-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter, giving a the Panthers a 50-6 lead over Springville early in the fourth quarter.

On the ensuing drive, Springville achieved its second big play of the night as workhorse running back freshman Kyler Lee broke free for a 59-yard run to the Southside four-yard line and punched it into the end zone on the next play. After a successful extra point, Springville cut the deficit to 50-13 midway through the fourth quarter.

Southside controlled the ball for the rest of the game, running the clock to secure the victory.

As the game rolled on, tempers became somewhat elevated, as each team committed multiple personal fouls. While some of the activity can be attributed to aggressive play, Lumpkin admits, frustration played a significant part, especially in the second half.

“Things got a little chippy, and the officials tried to get control of the game, but it was both ways. We were guilty, too,” Lumpkin said. “We’ve got to clean that up. It was an ugly game.”

With the loss, Springville drops to 1-5 overall, 0-3 in 5A Region 6 action. Springville will host Oxford in another key region matchup on Friday, October 9.