Carver dominates Vestavia Hills in its Class 7A debut, wins the AHSAA Kickoff Classic
The stars were in attendance for the second night of the AHSAA Kickoff Classic between Carver and Vestavia Hills. Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed and Alabama state champion OJ Howard were in attendance for Carver’s 41-19 victory over Vestavia.
Carver built a 13-0 lead in the first quarter, but Vestavia kept the game exciting and took advantage of the Wolverines’ early mistakes.
Anthony Rogers, who committed to Alabama, did a little bit of everything: He returned kicks on special teams, ran the ball out of the backfield and ended the first half with a passing touchdown.
After holding Vestavia scoreless in the third quarter, Carver emerged victorious in Bobby Carr’s debut as AHSAA coach.
Carver good in the third quarter
With a 21-12 lead entering the third quarter, Carver’s Terrell Russell Jr. threw a 48-yard pass to Texas A&M commit Tristan “TK” Norman on his first drive after halftime.
Defensive back Corey McMean intercepted a pass from Vestavia on the ensuing drive and returned it 67 yards into the red zone. Russell connected with Jacobi Freeman for an 11-yard touchdown to extend the Wolverines’ lead to 34-12.
“We started in March and that was the first time we played together,” Carr said. “You can see we made a lot of mistakes, but the mistakes we made are easy to fix. We’re getting better, I promise you that.”
“Seeing the Lanier kids and how devastated they were by the closure of their school, coming together with the Carver kids and seeing how they accepted me, it filled my heart. I love these kids and look forward to better days with them.”
Vestavia’s problems in the second half
Vestavia came out of the locker room with a lot of pressure in the first half and scored its only touchdown of the game on a trick pass to Luke Stubbs in the back of the end zone.
Two field goals kept Vestavia within one point in the second quarter, but the second half was a completely different game as they allowed two early touchdowns to start the third quarter.
Vestavia was responsible for five turnovers in total, four of which were interceptions in the second half.
“I thought their athleticism overwhelmed us,” Vestavia coach Robert Evans said. “They have so much skill and they showed off. When you’re playing against a team that athletic, you can’t lose the ball. That’s how we started the game – and they’re a real problem for pretty much anyone. Kudos to Coach Carr and his team tonight, they did a really good job.”
Carver stars shine
Russell completed 20 of his 29 pass attempts, achieving 283 yards and three touchdowns. Carr praised his quarterback for his performance.
“He made a lot of good plays, especially with his feet, which you don’t usually see,” Carr said. “I love TJ, man, he’s like a sponge and wants to get better every day. He plays his best football in front of us, I can promise you that.”
Rogers led Carver with nine catches for 83 yards with a touchdown. Zion Crumpton finished with five catches for 79 yards. Norman added two catches for 62 yards and a score. Trey Berry led the running attack with 73 yards and two scores.
On defense, Kendarious Reynolds led the way with two interceptions, and Greg Tate also picked off a pick in the fourth inning. Linebacker Stephon Andrews set the pace, scoring a touchdown on a fumble recovery on the first drive of the game.
