Making a change at quarterback in the middle of a season is a risky move any time it happens. Coach Chris Manning made that move this week at Hopkins County Central and this time it turned out pretty well.
After the Storm struggled last week in a loss at Union County, Coach Manning moved Sylas Gunn to the QB spot and with that move shifted Isac Earl to a back. The move paid off in the form of a solid night for Gunn at quarterback and a three touchdown night from Earl as the Storm handled Webster County 29-0 on a rainy Thursday night in Mortons Gap.
Gunn finished 7 of 12 through the air for 106 yards with one touchdown and no picks in leading the Storm to the big win.
Earl seemed to relish his new role, carrying the ball 11 times for 108 yards and two touchdowns, he also caught 2 passes for 40 yards, including a circus catch for a 23 yard score late in the 4th quarter.
Webster County opened the game with a drive that chewed up almost six minutes of the clock. The drive, however, bogged down and the Trojans were forced to punt, pinning Hopkins County Central back at their own 6 yard line.
The Storm then thundered down the field on a 94 yard drive in just six plays, capped off with an 18 yard run from Isac Earl that put Hopkins County Central up 7-0 with 4:06 to go in the half.
Webster County quickly went 3 and out on the next possession and lightning struck for the Storm in the form of Sylas Gunn. Gunn took the Trojan punt and flew 71 yards down the field for the score as Hopkins County Central took a 14-0 lead with 2:51 to go in the first.
The Storm appeared on the way to extending the lead even further midway through the second quarter. Marching on a five minute plus drive, Hopkins County Central short-circuited the drive with a bad snap that was recovered by Webster County on its own 25 with 6:11 to go in the half.
Neither team was able to get much done for the rest of the half as Hopkins County Central took a 14-0 lead into the break.
A third quarter miscue by the Trojans allowed the Storm to essentially put the game away. After the teams traded possessions, Hopkins County Central was stopped for a second time in the half and punted the ball away. The Trojans muffed the punt and the Storm’s Isaac Manning recovered the ball at the Webster 15 yard line.
After a penalty set the Storm back 15 yards, Isac Earl scored his second touchdown of the night, breaking off a 30 yard run to give Hopkins County Central a 22-0 lead with 4:50 left in the third. The Storm picked up the 2-point conversion after rescuing a bad snap on the extra-point attempt.
The score would stay 22-0 until 2:04 to go in the game when Sylas Gunn hit Isac Earl in the corner of the end zone to wrap up the scoring for the night.
The Hopkins County Central defense was on its game Thursday night, giving up just 106 total yards for the night. The Storm offense piled up 349 yards.
In addition to Earl’s 108 yards on the ground, the Storm got 90 yards on 13 carries from Zay Parker.
The one negative for the Storm on the night was penalties. Hopkins County Central was flagged for more than 130 penalty yards on the night.
Hopkins County Central (2-4) goes on the road next Thursday night to take on McLean County.
