Hopkinsville opened the football season with a loss to 6A Ballard for the second season in a row on Friday, and just as they did last season at the Stadium of Champions, the Tigers struggled to move the ball against a swarming Bruin defense in a 22-0 defeat.
Hoptown’s Daisjaun Mercer was a bright spot despite a 28-3 setback last year, but the Bruins kept him bottled up on Friday in Louisville. Mercer was held to 20 yards of offense on seven rushing attempts and three catches. The Tiger offense managed just 57 yards on 50 plays and turned the ball over three times.
Hopkinsville’s defense kept the game scoreless early on, but the Bruins broke through on a one-yard scoring plunge by Kannon Wyche with seconds left in the first quarter.
After forcing a turnover on downs, Hopkinsville drove to midfield after an 11-yard pass from Zach Moss to Isaiah Manning, but a Mercer fumble ended the drive. Ballard wasted no time making the Tigers pay, with Journey Wyche scoring on a 21-yard run for a 13-0 advantage with less than five minutes to play in the half.
Mercer encountered double coverage all night, but was still able to draw a pass interference penalty to give the Tigers the ball at the Ballard 25-yard line with time running down in the 2nd quarter. However, with Moss forced out of the pocket and throwing on the run, Ballard’s Gavin Willis stepped in front of the pass to end the half with an interception.
After the break, the Hopkinsville defense repelled the Bruins for four downs inside the Tigers’ seven-yard line to force a turnover. But punting from his endzone, Moss stepped out of bounds to give Ballard a safety for the only points of the third quarter.
Ballard’s final touchdown of the game came on another Tiger special teams error. With Moss banged up on the previous play, Trushaun Matt came on to punt. A low snap got away from him, and he was forced to fall on it at the Hoptown three-yard line. On 1st down, William Elliott got in the endzone for a 22-0 Ballard lead.
Both teams finished with eight 1st downs, and the Tigers held an edge in time of possession. Hopkinsville was penalized eight times for 60 yards.
Devin Coleman rushed 16 times for 35 yards for the Tigers, and Moss picked up 22 yards on the ground on six attempts.
Javon Mills led the defensive effort with eight tackles, followed by DeAnthony Brown and Jarvis Gatlin with five each.
Things don’t get any easier for Hopkinsville in week two with a trip to Mayfield up next. The Cardinals were 36-0 winners over Graves County on Friday.
