Haywood routs Crockett behind 380 yards of offense
BROWNSVILLE - Even with starting quarterback Tillman McRae on the sideline with a collarbone injury, the Haywood offense didn’t seem fazed.
Sophomore Deyondrius Hines led the Tomcats to 380 yards of offense and a 41-10 rout of Crockett County at Haywood.
“Tillman can come back, but there is no need to rush him,” Haywood coach Steve Hookfin said. “We are going to need him down the stretch. We are going to let him heal up totally. Hines is more than capable of running this offense.
“Hines gets reps every week. He was our quarterback in the spring. He and Tillman had a heckuva battle in fall camp. We couldn’t have gone wrong with either one of those guys.”
Hines didn’t have to throw much, as he was 1-for-2 for 33 yards and a touchdown, but that was because the Haywood running backs combined for 347 yards rushing.
Sophomore Decourtney Reed scored three rushing touchdowns of 39, 30 and 6 yards, and he rushed for a total of 114 yards.
“I felt the same with Hines in there as McRae,” Reed said. “They are different, but they are about the same handing the ball off.”
Reed scored the first two Haywood touchdowns on the second play of the drives to give the Tomcats the 12-0 lead after one quarter.
“I saw open field, and I went for it,” Reed said. “I had good blocking in front of me with my O-line, and my receivers had some blocks too.”
Hines scored on a quarterback keeper from 24 yards out on the first play of the second quarter.
“Our offensive line is doing a great job,” Hookfin said. “They are our most veteran group. We are young everywhere else, but a lot of that line saw quality action last year.”
As the Haywood offense moved the ball easily, the defense shut Crockett County down. The Tomcats allowed the Cavaliers 39 yards of offense in the first half with four coming in the second quarter.
Haywood got two more touchdowns late in the second quarter as Reed scored his final touchdown and Hines connected with Montavious Pugh for a 33-yard touchdown pass, so the running clock was one point away in the second half.
“We got to keep getting better,” Hookfin said. “We have a tough region, and we have a tough stretch coming up with some really good ball clubs.
“[Crockett County] is a very good team right here. It is just a matter before they hit their stride. They have players, they have size and they have quality coaching. I am proud of my guys.”
On the Tomcats’ first possession of the second half, they drove the ball 58 yards in six plays for the 41-0 lead. The clock ran from that point on as Crockett County scored 10 points in the final quarter to avoid the shutout.
Haywood (5-0, 4-0) travels to Hardin County next week in a matchup of the two unbeaten teams in Region 7-4A play.
“Every week we can continue to get better,” Reed said. “We have to get better before next week.”