No. 6 Hough stops No. 3 West Charlotte with powerhouse defensive effort
Jeremiah Jones doesn’t get his hands on the football much for Hough, but when the senior back does, things seem to happen.
Jones ran for two touchdowns and the Huskies’ defense kept previously-undefeated West Charlotte off balance most of the game in taking a 23-7 victory Friday night in a battle of top-five Sweet 16 teams.
Nolan Hauser also made three field goals — of 52, 27 and 39 yards — as well as a pair of extra-point kicks for fifth-ranked Hough (6-1, 4-0 Queen City 3A/4A), which moved atop the conference standings with a matchup against long-time rival Mallard Creek coming up next week.
Jones, a 5-foot-9 senior, had just six carries Friday against the third-ranked Lions (6-1, 3-1), but put up 93 rushing yards and the two scores. His first carry was a 48-yard TD run with 4 minutes, 23 seconds left in the second quarter that put the Huskies ahead 13-0.
Jones followed that with a 1-yard TD run with 6:41 left in the third quarter – and that was set up by two long runs, a 34-yarder on his second carry, followed by an 11-yarder that put the ball at the West Charlotte 1.
“He’s has plays here and there, but he’s starting to find his way,” Hough head coach DeShawn Baker said of Jones. “He’s had some knick-knack injuries here and there.
“I was proud of the guys on offense, getting the ball in the end zone. I thought we did a better job in the red zone this week … but we’ve got to clean our holes up. That stuff will kill us against a good team like West Charlotte.”
The Huskies’ defense also did their part, holding the Lions — who had averaged 34.5 points per game this season — to just a touchdown, coming on Donte Nicholson’s 23-yard pass from K.D. Smith (and Deng Chengkuach’s extra-point kick) with 2:43 left in the first half.
Hough sacked Smith twice — by James Nesta and Eli Anders — and Anders also recovered a West Charlotte fumble midway through the fourth quarter.
“Our defensive staff, they worked limitlessly to get us to do what we needed to do to get our kids in the right situations,” Baker said. “The front seven played outstanding.”
West Charlotte finished with just 200 yards total offense, just over half coming from senior back Scottie Cooper, who ran for a game-high 104 yards on 14 carries. Smith threw for 64 yards on 8 of 17 passing, with Nicholson catching six passes for 50 yards.
“In games like this, we’ve got to be comfortable trying to win the game 10-7 or 13-7, and we weren’t able to do it,” Lions head coach Sam Greiner said of the Huskies. “We got out of our comfort zone when we got down, and we had to do some uncharacteristic things. It got us out of our game plan.
“They’re a great football team, but sometimes it takes some humble pie to adjust and figure out who you really are. We’ll only grow from this. It’s a loss, but sometimes you have to take things like this in order to get to the greater goal.”
Three who made a difference
Nolan Hauser, Hough: The Clemson signee added to his national high school record for career field goals, upping his total to 64 after seven games this season, in which he’s now 10 of 13 on field goals.
Jeremiah Jones, Hough: The Huskies’ senior back is second on the team in rushing this season (287 yards) and is No. 1 in rushing touchdowns with five.
Scottie Cooper, West Charlotte: The Lions’ senior running back had the game’s longest run, a 62-yard dash in the second quarter that helped set up West’s lone touchdown.
Worth mentioning
▪ One thing Hough will need to work on in the days before its next game is cutting down on penalties. The Huskies had 13 in Friday’s win for 95 yards — and saw three potential touchdowns nullified. While Hough was able to make up for the missed chances with two of Hauser’s field goals, it’s not a habit Baker wants to see continued as the season winds down.
▪ West Charlotte’s players wore pink pants and jerseys with pink numbers (and some even sported pink cleats) in honor of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Hough’s players also sported some pink — primarily arm and ankle wraps, gloves and towels.
What’s next?
West Charlotte hosts Harding University in a Queen City 3A/4A game Friday, Oct. 13; that same day, Hough goes on the road to face conference rival Mallard Creek.
Scoring summary
West Charlotte 0 7 0 0 — 7
Hough 3 10 7 3 — 23
H — Nolan Hauser 52 FG, 2:20 1st.
H — Hauser 27 FG, 7:46 2nd.
H — Jeremiah Jones 48 run (Hauser kick), 4:23 2nd.
WC — Donte Nicholson 23 pass from K.D. Smith (Deng Chengkuach kick), 2:43 2nd.
H — J. Jones 1 run (Hauser kick), 6:41 3rd.
H — Hauser 39 FG, 6:02 4th.
