Devils Down Hawks In Opener
8.28/2010
Andy Hill

I have watched a lot of Red Devil football in my lifetime.  I have even done quite a bit of research on our program's history.  However, I think a "first" happened last night in the Devils opening game as they hosted the Central Talbotton Hawks.  The Red Devils scored touchdowns on each of their first two offensive plays to open the season.  If that has happened before I am certainly not aware of it.  The Red Devils grabbed an early 14-0 lead on two Hawk miscues and never looked back as they sprinted to a 28-0 win.  The game, as all ten games are this year, was a region game.

A late August rainstorm threatened the game but moved out of the area at approximately 6pm.  Threatening skies were around Bobby Gentry Stadium but no more rain ever fell during the game.  The rain in fact cooled the temperatures down which helped the players and game officials.  The only thing still really hot for the 7:30pm kickoff were the Devils.  After the Hawks received the kickoff, the Devil defense came out smoking and stuffed the Hawks on the first three downs.  On the 4th down punting attempt, the snap was not good and the punter was forced to scramble, but an alert defense tackled him for a big loss and his own ten yard line.  Not to be outdone by the defense, quarterback Earl Dupree led his team onto the field intent on keeping the heat turned up.  That they did.  On first down behind outstanding blocking of the offensive line, Fabian Forrest sprinted nearly untouched ten yards for a TD.  Don Vickers began his perfect night with the first of four PATs.  The Devils led 7-0 with 9:56 remaining in the first quarter.

On the next Hawk possession the Devils defense once again made a big play.  Facing a 3rd and 14 the Hawks quarterback was under fierce pressure when he attempted a pass.  Deion Colson stuck his big "paw" into the air and snatched the interception at the Hawk 29 yard line and returned it to the 22.  On first down the Devils went for the "homerun".  Dupree ran a beautiful play action pass and rolled to his left.  He found Brandon Adams wide open in the end zone for a 22 yd TD pass completion.  Adams was so open he appeared to be taking a lonely early morning stroll on the beach!  Don Vickers once again added the PAT.  The score was now 14-0 with 8:18 left in the first quarter.

Later in the first quarter the Devils had a first down at their own 45 yard line.  Fabian Forrest took a handoff and sprinted and weaved all the way to the Hawk five yard line.  A face make penalty moved the ball to the 3 yard line.  Once again, on first down Fabian covered the 2 yards untouched for a TD with 2:11 left in the first quarter.  The PAT by Vickers split the uprights.

The second and third quarters were sluggish by the Devil offense.  Some opportunities were presented but the Devils could not get any more points.  A pass interception and an untimely fumble stopped two would be Devil drives.  The Devil defense kept the pressure on the visiting Hawks and forced punt after punt.  In fact, the Hawks never made a serious threat to score the entire night.

Midway through the 4th quarter and still holding a 21-0 lead the Devil had a 4th and 2 at the Hawk 33 yard line.  This time they would not be denied.  Forrest took an Earl Bell handoff and behind great blocking by Dylan Folds, Mart McCleod, and Tyler Forrest, Fabian sprinted off left tackle.  He hit a seam and using some suddenly found energy and adrenalin simply sprinted away from the field and into the end zone for the final touchdown of the night.  Vickers then put an exclamation point on his perfect night as he split the uprights for his fourth consecutive extra point.

The Devil backups got very valuable playing time late in the game and the Devil defense earned the shutout.  Preliminary statistics are as follows:

                         HHS               CT
First Downs           9                   2
Rushing Yds         178                19
Comp-Att            2-4               0-12
Pass Yds              27                 0
Pass TD-Int         1-1               0-1
Fumbles-Lost       4-2               4-0
Punts-Ave           6-31            9-35
Penalties-Yds      5-45             4-18

Individually Fabian Forrest had 18 carries for 171 yards and 3 TDs.  Brandon Adams added 8 carries for 34 yards and caught a 22 yard TD pass from Earl Dupree.  Final defensive statistics are not available until tape review but preliminary results show the Devil defense registered at least four sacks and had in excess of twelve tackles for loss.  Brandon Adams had two passes broken up.

The Devils travel to Columbus next Friday night to take on the Pacelli Vikings.  The Vikings lost their season opener to Schley County by a score of 35-16.  They are led by Jordan Reese who registered two touchdown passes in the loss to Schley County last night.  Reese was named to the preseason Dandy Dozen Team and published by the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer.

Senior Football Players

Senior Cheerleaders

Your 2010 HHS Red Devil Cheerleaders
8/20/2010

Devils vs. Royals Preseason Scrimmage
8/14/2010
Andy Hill

The Bleckley County Royals hosted the Red Devils at Shelly Hayes Field in Cochran last night for a preseason scrimmage and came away with a 37-7 win over the error proned Devils. The game was tight with the Royals holding a 16-7 lead midway the 3rd quarter when the roof caved in on the Devils. The Royals have gotten a quick 14-0 lead midway through the first quarter after two Devil fumbles, one coming on the game's third play and deep inside Devil territory. A nifty run by Elvine gave the Royals a 7-0 lead. Shortly after, the Devils just inside Royal territory on a Fabian Forrest run and then fumbled once again on the next play. The Royals then hit a deep pass on first down for a TD. Late in the first quarter with the Devils sitting 3rd down at their own 47, quarterback Earl Dupree found Fabian Forrest locked in one on one coverage and hit him perfectly in stride for a 53 yard TD pass. Jack Bell, subbing for the injured Don Vickers, hit the PAT and the lead was 14-7. Just before half, the Devil punting team bobbled a snap in the end zone and the Royals blocked the punt for a safety. It stood 16-7 at half.

The second half was marred by penalties on both teams -- enough to make Sam Barrs and Cam Black lose sleep -- and the Royals pulled away and iced it with a couple of TDs in the 4th quarter.

So where does that leave the Devils? There are expectations coming into this season and last night was simply not our best night. In this writers' opinion, there was both good and bad for the Devils. First the good:
  A. Quarterback Earl Dupree had a successful debut. After shaking off some obvious early game jitters, Earl show a presence in the pocket and the ability to buy time and find an open receiver. Like any other first game quarterback, I am sure he made his share of mistakes and the coaches will work with him to correct those. He showed a strong arm and as I mentioned earlier, the ability to move around in the pocket. Overall, a successful first game.

  B. Senior running back Fabian Forrest looked to be in mid season form. Though the Devils ran primarily from the shotgun most of the night, Fabian had some nice runs and caught the one TD pass. In fact, all the senior players put up a good effort.

  C. Youngsters Sam West-Jackson and Dontavious Grace showed some "giddyup" and nice running ability in their limited appearances. I suspect we will see more of both in 2010.

  D. Defensively, the Devils were put in horrible position many times during the night. They held the Royals at bay after the early onslaught for two quarters. There were some blown coverages and the like but nothing that cannot be corrected with some dedicated practice time. The Devils manned up and stopped one or two Royal 4th down attempts.

Now, the bad:
  A. Ball security. The Devils lost at least 4-5 fumbles (I don't have completed and official stats as of yet). Some of these were due to hard tackles by the Royals but you simply must protect the ball and your defense if you want to win at this level. At least one or two fumbles came on botched exchanges between the quarterback and running back.

  B. Special teams play. Though the coverage teams for both the kicking and punting teams did not give up a long return, there were two blocked punts. One of those came as it appeared the punter bobbled the snap and the other as the blocking broke down. The Devils were without regular punter Don Vickers, but nevertheless, there is work to be done in this area.

  C. Penalties. As I stated earlier, both squads were heavily penalized. However, even if you take away the questionable penalties, there were still enough miscues to make a coach's hair turn gray. Many times, particularly in the second half, the Devils had positive yardage called back due to one infraction or another.

  D. Injuries. The Devils team was hit hard this week with some injuries and other absences. Senior all state candidate Trevis Lawson was on the sidelines in street clothes along with record setting placekicker and punter Don Vickers. There were three other absences as well.

All in all, while I am disappointed in last night, my overall excitement for the 2010 Devils is unchanged -- this team will compete for the region title barring some sort of catastrophe. The pieces to the puzzle or the parts to the engine are there. They are not finely tuned and are not beating on all cylinders in rhythm at this time. The mistakes have got to be cut down -- and they will be. To use one or two words to describe the performance last night, I would say the Devils were not "crisp", or rather, were sloppy. There is good reason to be high and excited about this season. We are better than that -- you know, I know it, and the players and coaches know it.

The pieces to the puzzle will start to fit better in a couple of weeks. Mark that down.

Go Big Red!

Devils Scrimmage Bleckley Co. Friday Night @7:30pm
Andy Hill
8/10/2010

2010 Football Schedule
07/21/2010
Andy Hill

*=Region
**=State Playoffs

Injury Bug Bites Former Diamond Devil
07/10/2010
Andy Hill

NEW MEMORIALS PAGE
02/02/2010
Andy Hill

We are now offering a memorials page. If you would like to donate money to the HHS Booster Club in memory of a former Red Devil, you may do so on this page

MEMORIAL PAGE

100% of all monies donated will go to the Red Devil Booster Club and your contribution will be noted on the page. What a great way to honor our Red Devils that have passed on

Brand New Email Subscription System
8/20/10
Shelly Berryhill

In addition to updating our website, we are in the process of updating our email subscription system. Please sign up (on the left) to receive updates on schedules, stats, alumni, and everything Red Devil Sports. You may even receive discounts on Red Devil Merchandise from our sponsors. Don't miss out on any news - sign up today. You will receive a confirmation email and don't worry - your information remains private with us!

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