Vestavia Hills rolls to 35-10 victory over Mountain Brook
Mountain Brook, AL – Vestavia Hills quarterback John Paul Head rushed for three touchdowns and threw for another as the Class 7A Rebels secured a 35-10 victory over Class 6A No. 4 Mountain Brook, in front of a packed house, Thursday night at Spartan Stadium.
Sixth ranked Vestavia Hills (1-0) faced a three-and-out during the initial possession of the game. This allowed the Spartans to seize an early 3-0 lead with a 30-yard field goal from Harrison Fell. The Rebels retaliated with a 10-play, 80-yard drive that concluded with a 2-yard touchdown run by Head. Subsequently, they extended their lead to 14-3 on their next possession with a 29-yard scoring run from Head.
In the second quarter, Mountain Brook recovered a fumble on a strip-sack. However, they only managed to gain three yards before punting back to the Rebels. Vestavia Hills faced a three-and-out in the subsequent possession but recovered a muffed punt at the Spartans’ 22-yard line. Tennessee commit Jordan Ross caught a 5-yard touchdown pass from Head four plays later, increasing their lead to 21-3 at halftime.
Mountain Brook advanced deep into Vestavia Hills territory at the start of the third quarter, but eventually turned the ball over on downs. Yet, Mountain Brook’s Hampton King intercepted a pass from Head, granting the Spartans possession at midfield.
Three plays later, Mountain Brook returned possession to the Rebels with a Kohen Nelson pick of Spartan quarterback John Cooper. Vestavia Hills then executed a 59-yard drive in 10 plays, resulting in Head’s third and final touchdown of the game and a 28-3 lead.
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After a failed fourth-down conversion by the Rebels early in the fourth quarter, Mountain Brook (0-1) managed to score with a 5-yard touchdown run from Stuart Andrews. The celebration was brief as Vestavia Hills’ Chase Webb returned the ensuing kickoff for a 98-yard touchdown.
Head finished the game 13-of-18 passing for 125 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. He also led the rushing attack with 23 attempts for 118 yards and three scores.
William Tonsmeire carried the ball 11 times for 64 yards, followed by Bruce Littleton with 24 yards, and Cross Tonsmeire with 15 yards. Keown Richardson made five catches for 74 yards, while Ross had two receptions for 13 yards and a touchdown, along with a sack. Mountain Brook’s Cole Gamble had an exceptional performance on the ground, rushing for 213 yards on 24 attempts. Andrews finished with nine carries for 33 yards and the sole Spartan touchdown. Cooper completed 10 of 27 passes for 127 yards, one interception, and Clark Sanderson and Hudson Young each had two receptions, combining for 61 yards.
Vestavia returns to action next week with a road trip to Homewood. Mountain Brook travels to Madison to take on the James Clemens Jets.
