Homewood finishes regular season 9-1 after 24-15 win

Homewood High School finished the regular season with a 9-1 record after defeating Oak Mountain 24-15 on Friday night at Waldrop Stadium. The final score reflected a game where the Patriots controlled the field but left points on the table in the first half.

Beckham Newell led the Homewood offense with seven receptions for 108 yards and one touchdown. Kamryn Foster also contributed to the passing attack, catching nine passes for 101 yards. The team threw for a total of 238 yards against the Oak Mountain defense.

Head coach Ben Berguson noted that his team should have had a larger lead at the break. Homewood led 7-0 at halftime after a 24-yard touchdown pass from Timothy Roshell to Newell in the second quarter. Berguson said the team was in the red zone two other times and failed to score. He stated, "I was disappointed in the first half. We were in the red zone two other times and should have scored twice. It should have been 21-0 at half. We've got to finish drives."

The Patriots extended their lead in the third quarter. Cyn'Mauree Debruce scored on a 5-yard run, and Jack Myers added a 1-yard touchdown run. Oak Mountain responded late in the period when Charlie Vacarella threw a 31-yard pass to Brody Hughes. The score was 21-7 at the start of the fourth quarter.

Jozy Hicks kicked a 39-yard field goal with eight minutes remaining to make it 24-7. In the final seconds, Vacarella threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to Hudson Brewer. A successful two-point conversion set the final margin at 24-15.

Myers completed 14 of 16 passes for 152 yards for Homewood. The defense held Oak Mountain to 51 rushing yards. Tate Burdeshaw intercepted a pass, Manning Yost recorded a sack, and Michael Luckianow broke up four passes. Oak Mountain went 1 for 8 on third down and 0 for 3 on fourth down.

Oak Mountain head coach Jason Kervin said the offense struggled throughout the season. He praised his defensive line for playing hard despite being outmatched in several positions. Kervin said, "We just struggle on offense, man. Our defense plays hard. We're outmatched in a few positions, but they play their tails off." He added that the program is not changing regions or classifications. Homewood will host Theodore in the first round of the playoffs on Friday, Nov. 6. Oak Mountain finished the season 2-8.