By Loyd McIntosh, Sports Editor
CENTER POINT — And then there was one.
The Center Point Eagles advance to the second round of the ASHAA playoffs following a suffocating win over Jackson-Olin, 26-8t. With the win, Center Point is the only 6A Region 6 team advancing to the second round following early exits from Clay-Chalkville, Pinson Valley, and Oxford Friday night.
The two-headed monster on offense, quarterback Jabari Collier and running back Troy Bruce, were productive as always, however, the Eagles’ defense was the star of the show, holding the athletic Mustangs offense to just 111 total yards, 29 in the first half.
Additionally, the Eagles’ defense intercepted three Jackson-Olin passes, two by sophomore defensive back Antonio Garfield and one by Jamari Johnson. The vast majority of the Mustang’s total yards came on a 74-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter during garbage time.
Despite the effort on defense, Center Point Head Coach George Bates, ever the perfectionist, sees room for improvement. “They’re playing well we’re just missing some gaps,” Bates said.
“I don’t like that we gave up that big ball. But, on the same token, the same kid, sophomore Antonio Garfield, that gave up the big play came back with two interceptions,” Bates added. “He really did what a DB does forget about the last play and made the next two.”
Offensively, the Eagles didn’t get as many big plays as normal, instead relying on a solid rushing attack and short passing game to dominate in total yards and time of possession. Center Point gained 269 yards of total offense and held the ball for an astounding 30 minutes, and 43 seconds on the night.
Center Point received the opening kickoff and started their first drive from their own 38-yard line. The Eagles put together a methodical 62-yard drive, eating up almost six minutes of the opening quarter. The drive was capped with a 16-yard touchdown pass from Collier to Bruce. The two-point conversion was successful, putting Center Point on top 8-0 with 6:15 to play in the first quarter.
After forcing the Mustangs to a quick three-and-out, Center Point began their second drive from their own 26-yard-line. This time, the Eagles needed only six plays to find the end zone. With just under one minute to play in the first quarter, Collier found Bruce on a nifty over-the-middle route.
Breaking through multiple tackles, Bruce kicked into turbo for a 49-yard touchdown. Another two-point conversion put Center Point up 16-0.
After a scoreless second quarter, Center Point’s special teams contributed, blocking a Jackson-Olin punt, recovered by Kemarius Horne on the Mustangs’ 16-yard-line. Two plays later, Bruce scored his third touchdown of the night on an 11-yard run with 9:52 to play in the third quarter. Following the extra point, Center Point’s extended their lead, 23-0.
Collier completed 11 of 17 passes for 172 yards in the air. Bruce ran for 84 yards on 17 carries and one rushing touchdown and had four receptions for 115 hards and two touchdowns. Center Point improves to 9-1 overall and will face an undefeated Hartselle squad in the second round.
“We were going to do what we had to do to win the ball game,” Bates said. “We wanted to make sure we got out of the game with the guys healthy. We knew if we were fortunate enough to get by we were going to have to go up against an amazing program next week with Hartselle.”
Tempers flared late in the third quarter as the J.O. offense scuffled with Center Point defense, leading to an ejection for an Eagle offensive lineman. The Eagles also had ten penalties for 85 yards. Bates attributed some of the sloppiness to the unscheduled week after the cancellation of the regular season finale with Leeds.
“We didn’t play last week so a lot of what I saw tonight was due to rust,” Bates said. “But, we got a kid ejected tonight, so we’ve go to respond better. We talk about not reacting and responding to stuff. Those are things that we don’t do and not what this program is about.”
“We’ve got some things to clean up,” he added, “but I’ll take an ugly win over a pretty loss.”
Center Point is the last team standing in what has been the toughest region in recent years. Clay-Chalkville, Pinson Valley, and Oxford have accounted for the last five-consecutive state titles – all three lost their first-round playoff games. Center Point is the last team from Region 6 remaining in the playoffs, a remarkable accomplishment in their first year back in 6A after four seasons in 5A.
Center Point will face Hartselle (11-0) in round two of the 2022 AHSAA Football Playoffs on Friday, November 11.