The Central Holmes Trojans finally got to kick off the football season this past week.
And while the Trojans showed signs of promise, Brookhaven used an explosive offense and opportunistic defense to take a 40-14 win over Central Holmes on Friday night at Copiah-Lincoln Community College.
Central Holmes, now 0-1, will now travel to Ti-County Academy this week.
Central Holmes coach Mitch Womack said he saw some positives and negatives from the game.
“We have got some kids who are probably out of position,” Womack said. “Some of the things I was upset about on Friday night weren’t as bad as I thought after watching the film. We were in position to make some plays and didn’t. Attitude and aggression will be addressed when we get back to practice.”
Brookhaven used an explosive offense throughout the night. Two plays into the game, the Cougars scored on a 67-yard touchdown pass to take a 7-0 game.
The Trojans answered right as they went 80 yards in five plays. The Trojans capped off the drive when Noah Steen hit Lamarion Buchanon on a short pass that turned into a 64-yard touchdown. John Ward ran in the two-point conversion and Central Holmes took an 8-7 lead.
But Brookhaven needed just three plays to find the end zone as the Cougars scored on a 45-yard touchdown run to take a 14-8 lead, a score that held until the end of the first quarter.
The Cougars added two more scores in the second quarter, taking advantage of a Central Holmes fumble to take a 27-8 lead at the half.
“We turned the ball over four times and you can’t do that against good football teams,” Womack said. “I don’t think the score was indicative of how we played. We could have easily played two or three more touchdowns. We had some stops but had some kids that were playing for the first time. Brookhaven has a really good quarterback and a good receiver. He placed the ball where his guys could make plays. It’s just part of the game and that’s why you play games to see what you have.”
Brookhaven went up 34-8 with a 38-yard touchdown pass before Central Holmes added its last score. The Trojans went 80 yards in eight plays as Steen hit Ward on a 35-yard touchdown pass. The try for two failed and Brookhaven led 34-14.
The Trojans had 112 yards rushing and 185 passing for 297 yards of total offense. Jurdan Engle led the rushing attack with 41 yards on 15 carries while Lamarion Buchanon had 34 yards on nine carries. John Ward had 20 yards on seven carries. Steen was 9-of-15 passing for 185 yards while Buchanon had two catches for 74 yards. Ward had 66 yards receiving on three catches while Barrett Fondren had thee catches for 41 yards.
“I thought we had a good night throwing the football and made some good decisions,” Womack said. “When we throw for 185 yards, we have to get the win. We just have to be more aggressive on defense and more sound on the offensive line in the run game.”
On defense, Steen had eight tackles and a fumble recovery. Buchanon had five tackles while Engle, Mason Wiysel, and Aiden Adcock had four tackles. Ellis Harris also had three tackles. Sean Harrell also had a fumble recovery.
This week’s game
The schedule does not get any easier for the Trojans this week as they travel to Tri-County Academy.
Tri-County is 2-0 on the season with a 47-7 win over Indianola and a 44-0 win over Bowling Green.
“We are going right into the fire again,” Womack said. “They are very physical and have a great scheme on offense and defense. You don’t have to talk to their kids about being physical, they are born into it. It’s going to be a little faster game and they will play downhill and attack you. They are a very physical football team and may be one of the most physical teams in the whole MAIS.”
