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Photo by Ron Pride
Mountain Brook's Stuart Andrews (10) carries the ball in a game against Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
Mountain Brook QB Cayden Hofbauer (11) looks for pass during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
Mountain Brook WR John Colvin (20) receives pass during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
Mountain Brook RB Stuart Andrews (10) runs play during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
Mountain Brook team lines up during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
Harris Crumpton (27), DB of Mountain Brook, sets up during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
Mountain Brook players go after tackle during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Mountain Brook Assistant Coach Brad Easley during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
Mountain Brook team on the line during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Mountain Brook LB Hampton King (38) celebrates play during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
Mountain Brook defends QB Stuart Andrews (10) during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
Mountain Brook team during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
Sunset during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
Mountain Brook DB Harris Crumpton (27) prepares to run during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Mountain Brook TE Stephen Ledoux (80)in a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
Mountain Brook team talks with coach during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Mountain Brook Team makes a play during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Mountain Brook line during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Mountain Brook lines up against Hueytown during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
Mountain Brook team lines up during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
DB of Mountain Brook Cannon Mussafer (24) attempts to stop ball during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
Mountain Brook team lines up during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
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Photo by Ron Pride
Mountain Brook WR Boyd Cooper (19) runs during a game between Mountain Brook and Hueytown on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at Hueytown High School.
HUEYTOWN -- Mountain Brook head coach Chris Yeager had preached to his team throughout its early-season preparation that it would need to grow up quickly to be successful this season and just such an opportunity presented itself late in the Spartans’ 23-21 win over Hueytown Friday night.
After dominating the first half, the Spartans found themselves trailing 21-20 with 1:25 to play and facing fourth-and-10 from the Hueytown 22. There Yeager called on junior kicker Anderson Roberts — who had earlier missed a 29-yarder and a point-after try — for a 40-yard field goal attempt that would most likely decide the game.
The kick wouldn’t have been good from much further out but had enough to just squeeze over the crossbar and move Mountain Brook to 2-1 on the season.
“We’ve been talking about the need to grow, and I do feel like we grew up a lot tonight,” Yeager said. “Our kids showed a lot of resilience and played through some adversity. We were down and this gave us an opportunity to play through that. It was a great opportunity for us to grow as a team.
Led by the junior duo of quarterback Cayden Hofbauer and running back Stuart Andrews, the Spartans dominated on the ground and controlled the first half. Led by Andrews’ 113 yards on 19 carries and Hofbauer’s 96 yards on six carries, the Spartans put up three touchdowns and seemed to have things well in hand after one half.
Andrews finished the night with 166 yards rushing on 33 carries, and Hofbauer finished with 107 yards on 14 carries as the Spartans rolled up 302 total yards on the ground.
Hofbauer opened the scoring with 51 seconds left in the first quarter with a beautiful 41-yard run around left end and then two sweet cutbacks that took him into the end zone. Roberts’ first of two successful PATs made it 7-0 Spartans.
They went up 14-0 when Andrews crashed over the left side from 1 yard out at 7:08 of the second quarter to cap an 11-play, 81-yard drive on which he also contributed runs of 14, 10. 12 and 14 yards.
Hueytown’s AJ Robinson cut it to 14-7 with a 20-yard run up the middle with 4:17 left in the half, but Mountain Brook responded, moving deep into Gopher territory as the clock ticked down. Facing second-and-22 from the Hueytown 23, Hofbauer handed it to fellow junior Lawson McKnight and he carried the ball and bunch of defenders up the middle and into the end zone. Roberts’ PAT sailed wide right, but it was still 20-7 at the half.
A huge boost from its special teams and major adjustments along both sides of the line made Hueytown a much tougher team in the second half.
Senior JuQuarius Brooks provided a spark right off the bat as he took the second-half kickoff back 85 yards to make the score 20-14. Hueytown then took the lead with 10:21 left in the game as senior QB JeBron Ellington found receiver Ji'Quez Daniel in the left flat, and Daniel weaved his way into the end zone for a 43-yard score. The PAT by Jesus Sosa gave Hueytown a 21-20 lead that would stand up until Roberts’ heroics in the game’s final 90 seconds.
Taking over at their own 47 after fair catching a punt with 5:12 remaining, the Spartans moved 31 — all on the ground — to set up Roberts for the game-winning shot.
Mountain Brook next moves into Class 6A, Region 6 play with a home game against Pell City next Friday night.
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