For the second straight week, the Central Holmes Trojans flexed their muscles on Friday night. The Trojans scored early and often as they beat Ethel 42-7.
The Trojans are now 2-1 on the season and have won two straight after losing to Park Place to open the season.
Second-year Central Holmes coach Jim Crowder was pleased with his team after they won for the second straight week.
“It was a good game for us because we had a good opponent,” Crowder said. “We had good week of practice, so I felt good about us getting better. We are getting better every game and starting to shape our identity a little bit. We are starting to play better run defense and running to the football better. We aren’t where we need to be but have the type of team that we should get better every week. I feel good about some of the position moves we have made. It was the second week for those guys and they are getting more comfortable.”
The Trojans got the ball to start the game and moved down the field with ease. With Brad Robertson at quarterback running the offense, the Trojans went 45 yards on seven plays as Wykece Johnson scored on a 10-yard TD run. Owen O’Bryant booted the PAT and Central Holmes led 7-0.
After each team traded punts, O’Bryant intercepted an Ethel pass to give the Trojans the ball back. From there, the Trojans needed just three plays to go 60 yards as Robertson scored on a 4-yard turn. O’Bryant’s PAT was good and Central Holmes led 14-0.
After another Central Holmes interception, the Trojans needed four plays to go 10 yards as Johnson scored on a 1-yard run. O’Bryant’s PAT gave the Trojans a 21- lead late in the first quarter.
After another Ethel punt, the Trojans scored manga as Johnson completed a three-play, 40-yard drive with a 16-yard run on the second play of the second quarter. O’Bryant’s PAT gave the Trojans a 28-0 led.
The Trojans tacked on another first-half touchdown as they drove 75 yards in nine plays as Lawrence Wiley scored on a 2-yard run right before the half. O’Bryant’s PAT gave the Trojans a 35-0 lead at the half.
“I thought we protected the ball a lot better this week,” Crowder said. “We turned it over a lot the first two weeks and we focused on that all week. We limited the penalties and protected the football. It was a good win for us. They know a lot of our guys and we know them.”
Ethel scored on a 70-yard run on its second possession of the third quarter to cut the lead to 35-7.
But Central Holmes answered back with an 8-yard run by Wiley that capped an eight-play, 80-yard drive. O’Bryant’s PAT made the score 42-7.
“I thought we played well up front and ran the ball well,” Crowder said. “Brad did a good job at quarterback for us. He managed the game and made plays when we needed him to. We wanted to throw a little bit more but didn’t really have to. We are still pretty banged up but have to get some guys healthy and ready to play this week.”
