Elkmont may have been down Friday night, but the Red Devils were never out — not by a long shot.
Joel Schrenk’s squad overcame a 13-0 deficit to eventually pull out a 22-20 home win over St. John Paul II — giving the first-year head coach his initial win with the program.
“Being 1-0 is certainly better than the alternative,” Schrenk said. “We had some turnovers early and they got up 13-0, but our kids just fought and our coaches kept working. We got back into the game and went ahead just before halftime (22-13). Credit to them, though. They did a good job at making adjustments. But we didn’t turn the ball over in the second half and held them to a late touchdown.
“We were able to run the ball somewhat efficiently down the stretch — making them burn timeouts and running the clock out. It’s such a big thing for our town. Our goal is to try and make a program that everyone wants to be a part of and that the community can be proud of.”
Athens 21, Mae Jemison 6
The Golden Eagles kicked off their 2024 season with a standout defensive performance.
Athens will host Buckhorn next Friday night in its home opener.
Westminster Christian 42, East Limestone 20
East Limestone trailed by just one at halftime, but the Wildcats took control of the final 24 minutes — outscoring the Indians 28-7 during that stretch to pull away.
Quarterback Jake Cochran threw a pair of touchdowns to Mark Guerrero and Laken Wilder. He also added a score on the ground and finished with 172 total yards.
Adrian Villa, meanwhile, added 93 yards on 19 carries.
East Limestone travels to Hazel Green next week.