WEST POINT — Collins Brown can’t remember a more dominating defensive performance in his playing career at Oak Hill Academy.
But Brown wasn’t surprised by the Raiders’ effort Friday night.
While all coaches and players incorporate film study into their preparation, Brown is adamant the Raiders rely upon it heavily, partly because they have to; the Raiders only have 16 players on their roster.
So when Oak Hill Academy played host to Tupelo Christian Prep and its spread passing offense, Brown and his teammates stuck with their base defense and relied on their game plan that required players to read the keys they learned from film study.
The lessons the Raiders learned filled up the stat sheet and helped them roll to a 49-7 win and a 2-0 start to the season.
Oak Hill Academy held Tupelo Christian Prep to -25 yards rushing on 22 carries and 50 yards of total offense. The Raiders forced four fumbles and recovered three, intercepted a pass, recorded 15 tackles for a loss, and notched six sacks, all of on 42 snaps.
“Drew’s brother, Drake (Riley), had me under his wing when I started, taught me how to play the linebacker position,” Brown said. “Then, it’s just reads. We watch film, we believe in it, knowing what they’re gonna do. I could pick what they were doing and tee off on it.
“We thought their line was strong, but coach instilled in us that these guys aren’t sleeping on us, they’re gonna come in here and try and beat us. We believed it, went out there and made it happen.”
Despite the dominating performance, Tupelo Christian Prep looked like it was going to tie the game at 14 in the first quarter. After Brown fumbled near midfield, Tupelo Christian Prep responded with a scoring pass from Caleb Kitchens to Jack Gilmore to cut its deficit to 14-7. Brown then fumbled the ensuing kickoff, and despite starting at the Oak Hill Academy 25-yard line, Tupelo Christian Prep lost yards on three straight plays, including sacks by Caleb Roberson and Drew Riley before turning the ball over on downs.
“We started off sluggish on defense, but after the two fumbles, we knew we couldn’t let them score,” Riley said. “We had to pick up the defense. They had a good quarterback, and we couldn’t let them pass. We stayed in base the whole time. We played great defense, second through the fourth quarter.
“We don’t let those two fumbles get behind us. We stayed behind each other.”
Oak Hill Academy coach Chris Craven wasn’t fazed by the team’s back-to-back fumbles in the first quarter. He implored the team to recapture momentum. None of the players criticized Brown for the mistakes. They couldn’t afford to, and lifting teammates and players on a team with so few players takes a unique approach, Craven said.
“The fumbles are disappointing,” Craven said. “On Friday night, the most important thing is the football. In our program, we teach the importance of a lot of things, but the football is important. But we also teach humility, focus and execution — we say it over and over — and they’re buying in. Hats off to them for buying in and believing what we have going on.
“It’s ironman football, and these kids have heart to lift themselves up and keep going. They have to.”
While the Raiders stayed primarily in their base defense, they made a key adjustment after Kitchens missed two deep passes to open receivers that would have resulted in scores in the first quarter. The Raiders put more players on the defensive line to shoot gaps and stymied further attempts by Tupelo Christian Prep (1-1) to move the ball.
“It helped us get pressure on the quarterback,” Craven said. “Our linebacker corps is very athletic, too. We suit our defense to suit our skills. Our scheme puts them in a position to make plays. Our defensive coordinator, Carl Middleton, does a great job calling plays and being sensitive to position on the field.”
Riley had 16 carries for 153 yards and three touchdowns. Quarterback Ken Dill had 112 passing yards, 72 rushing yards, and three touchdowns.
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