Northside Rams Rock the Berry Wildcats For First Week Win
On a rainy night in north Tuscaloosa County the Northside Rams (1-0) took down the Berry Wildcats (0-1) 37-6 to open the 2021 season with a rivalry game victory. The Rams were dominant in the trenches from the start of the game and capitalized off crucial turnovers to take control of the contest.
The Rams held the Wildcats to -10 yards yards of total offense in the first half and forced three turnovers and a safety to take a 23-0 lead into halftime. In total Berry tallied 36 yards on the evening and gave up four turnovers.
"It's a tough game right, we didn't come out and do all the things that we wanted to do. When you have that many turnovers in the first half it's just tough to pull out a win on that. Guys came out, they did what we asked them to in practice but tonight wasn't our night," said Berry first-year head coach and Northside alum Hunter Mims.
Northside was led by its senior leader Jace McNutt at both the linebacker and running back positions. McNutt took nine carries for 57 yards and two touchdowns while also leading the Rams’ stout defense.
Junior quarterback Braden Green got things done for the Rams with both his legs and his arm. He rushed nine times for 29 yards and a touchdown, he also completed 5-of-15 passes for 121 yards with two touchdowns, including a 40-yard touchdown strike to junior receiver Jayden Roberts. Ethan Smith hauled in Green's second touchdown pass on a 35-yard pass.
"On the offensive side we had probably six guys that this was their first football game. They hadn't played at all, middle school or high school so we've got a lot to work on but they did a good job," said Northside head coach Chris Hilliker.
Colton Cunningham was the only Wildcat to get into the endzone Thursday night, scoring on an 8-yard touchdown run to keep Berry from being shut out.
Davis Perdue came away with a fumble recovery and a safety for the Northside defense, additionally Keiton Camp recovered a fumble and Justin Montgomery hauled in an interception.
The Northside Rams will be back in action next week as they continue out of conference play on the road against the Winfield Pirates. Berry will have the week off and will then jump straight into region play against South Lamar.
Northside Rams Defeat the Berry Wildcats in Week 1 2021
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