Tigers rout Munford to push record to 2-0

The Hardin County Tigers easily picked up a 48-3 victory over Munford in their home opener of the 2010 season. The victory improved their overall record to 2-0 and gave them a win in their first district matchup of the season.

Senior Coty Eanes had a big night for the Tigers in every facet of the game. Eanes scored two defensive touchdowns, one touchdown on a punt return, and also ran in for a score in the game for Hardin County. Eanes also had a total of four interceptions in the matchup against Munford.

“He had one of those nights that you usually just dream about. It was a career night. I can’t believe they kept throwing the ball toward him. I think he only touched the ball six times in the game, and he returned four of those for touchdowns,” said Tiger head coach William McAdams.

The Tigers took advantage of a Munford miscue on the opening kickoff and used that momentum to build a 35-3 lead at halftime. Munford fumbled the opening kickoff to give the Tigers the ball at the Cougar 36-yard line. Eight plays later, running back Steven Rich scored on a 2-yard run on fourth-and-goal to put the Tigers on the board. After the PAT kick by Eddie Espinoza, the Tigers led 7-0 at the 8:37 mark of the first quarter.

Eanes added a 15-yard rushing touchdown later in the first quarter to expand the Tiger lead. Hardin County faced a third-and-goal from the 15-yard line when they called a quarterback draw for Eanes, who went untouched into the end zone. Espinoza added the extra-point to give Hardin County a 14-0 lead at the 2:04 mark of the first quarter.

After Munford kicked a 34-yard field goal in the second quarter, Hardin County added to their lead once again. Hardin County took advantage of a Munford turnover and used a five-play scoring drive that totaled 80 yards. The biggest play of the drive was a 66-yard pass play from Barker Burnham to J.D. Clausel. Rich picked up the touchdown a few plays later on a 2-yard run. Espinoza added the PAT to give the Tigers a 21-3 lead.

Eanes added a pair of touchdowns later in the second quarter to give Hardin County a 28-point lead at halftime. Eanes scored on a 10-yard interception return on Munford’s next offensive possession. He also added a 65-yard punt return for a score later in the second quarter. Espinoza added the extra-point kick on both of Eanes’ scores to make the score 35-3 at halftime.

The Tiger defense added to the lead in the fourth quarter. Junior Brennan Haugen scooped up a Munford fumble and returned it 36 yards for a Tiger touchdown. Eanes also came up big in the final quarter on defense with his second interception return for a score. This time Eanes caught a Munford pass at the 40-yard line and returned the interception for a touchdown. Espinoza added one of the extra-point attempts to set the final score at 48-3.

McAdams was very pleased with not only the result of the game but also with how his team made some corrections from their first game of the season. “It was just one of those nights that everything went our way and nothing went their way. I was pleased the most with the fact that we cut out some of those penalties and mistakes that we made in our first game,” said the Tiger head coach. Burnham completed 5-of-10 passes in the game for 110 yards. Clausel had two receptions for 83 yards. Daniel Avila finished the game with 101 rushing yards on 14 carries.

Steven Rich paced the Tiger defense with 13 total tackles. Josh Ivey was second in the game with 12 total stops. Jopp Bizzell had nine tackles in the game. Camron Yarbro finished with seven tackles, and Dakotah McFerson had six total stops. Hardin County is now 2-0 overall and 1-0 in district play this season.