SALEM –– The first two weeks of the season were not good ones for the Houston football team. That changed in the conference opener.
On the road to face undefeated Salem on Friday night, HHS took an early lead –– its first points of the season –– and stayed close throughout the game. The 25-12 defeat was one coach Eric Sloan said his team could build on after opening the 2016 season with 35- and 42-point losses.
“I am pleased with the way we responded,” Sloan said. “It was good to see us fight because we were pretty much whipped the last two weeks. To see us fight through some adversity and rise to the occasion –– it was just good to see us battle.”
The matchup of Tiger teams appeared to be a lopsided one on paper. Salem (3-0, 1-0 South Central Association) had given up a conference-low 12 total points in two easy victories while HHS had failed to score a point while giving up 77. Salem had also won the previous 35 meetings between the teams.
But Houston had its best performance in what appeared to be its toughest matchup of the young season. The Tigers made a goal-line stand in a scoreless first quarter and had their first points and first lead of the year when senior Chance Hunter plowed into the end zone at the beginning of the second quarter.
Although the lead didn’t last, HHS (0-3, 0-1 SCA) had plenty of positives. Among them were 228 yards of total offense to top the first two games combined while holding Salem to its lowest scoring output of the season.
“We told the kids we aren’t judging their effort on the scoreboard, but their willingness to fight,” Sloan said. “We saw the kids keep plugging along and battle.”
Hunter led the Houston offense with 17 carries for 116 yards and three receptions for 64 yards. Both were team highs. Sophomore Paydon Dixon, who had an 11-yard rushing score in the fourth quarter, was 7-of-15 passing for 78 yards.
The Tigers’ defense forced a pair of turnovers as Dixon picked off a pass and junior Josh Hurst recovered a fumble.
Salem’s Xavier Elwood had touchdown runs of 8 and 61 yards to highlight his eight carries for a game-high 148 yards. Quarterback Zak Eplin threw for 91 yards and ran for 62. Senior Eli Floyd had his 20th career interception –– tied for the sixth-most in state history.
Salem attempted to add to its point total in the final seconds as coach Brian McNamee called a reverse from the Houston 9-yard line on the last play of the game. It went for no gain.
“That’s disappointing,” Sloan said. “The game is over and they don’t even have to snap the ball. You just don’t do that.”
Salem threatened to take an early lead by marching to the Houston 2-yard line midway through the first quarter. But on two consecutive plays, the Tigers’ defense stuffed Eplin for no gain. The second time he fumbled, and Hurst pounced on the ball.
It was the second goal-line stand in three games for Houston.
“When we line up correctly, we do some really nice things,” Sloan said.
The HHS offense then converted the turnover into points by covering 96 yards with an impressive drive. The biggest chunk came as Hunter snuck out of the backfield on third down and caught a high-arching pass from Dixon for a 64-yard gain down the left sideline to the Salem 35. Four plays later, Hunter muscled into the end zone to give Houston a 6-0 lead.
“It felt good,” Sloan said of the early advantage. “The kids were bouncing around and had some adrenaline going. It’s fun to see the kids having a little fun.”
Salem answered with a six-play scoring drive capped by Elwood’s 8-yard run to go ahead 7-6. After recovering a fumble, Salem scored again less than four minutes later on Eplin’s 9-yard run.
Houston was still within striking distance before a special teams miscue with less than a minute left in the first half. A low snap on a punt attempt from the HHS 15 led to a blocked punt. Salem took over on the 3-yard line and scored on the next play –– a run by Jimmy Hobson –– to go ahead 19-6 just 45 seconds before halftime.
Houston was down 25-6 in the fourth quarter when the Tigers put together another long scoring drive. This one covered 82 yards on 12 plays and ended with Dixon’s 11-yard touchdown scamper on a double handoff.
Considering the way the week began –– with 10 players missing Tuesday’s practice for a winless team –– Sloan said he was pleased with his team’s effort in the SCA opener.
“It had potential to be disastrous. It wasn’t the best week of practice,” he said. “I like the direction we’re starting to go.”
BOX SCORE
Houston 0 6 0 0 6 – 12
Salem 0 19 6 0 – 25
Second Quarter
HOU – Hunter 1 run (kick failed), 11:56.
SAL – Elwood 8 run (Floyd kick), 9:08.
SAL – Eplin 9 run (kick failed), 6:30.
SAL – Hobson 3 run (pass failed), 0:45.
Third Quarter
SAL – Elwood 61 run (run failed), 6:52.
Fourth Quarter
HOU – Dixon 11 run (run failed), 2:25.
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HOU SAL
First downs 9 14
Total yards 228 352
Rushes-yards 38-150 37-261
Passing 78 91
Punt returns 0 -1
Kickoff returns 44 39
Comp-att-int 7-15-1 9-15-1
Sacked-yards lost 2-17 2-11
Punts 3-32.0 3-25.3
Fumbles-lost 3-2 3-1
Penalties-yards 8-75 10-92
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INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING – Houston, Hunter 17-116, Sawyer 2-25, Richardson 6-22, Alston 3-6, Clayton 1-0, Dixon 9-(minus 19). Salem, Elwood 8-148, Eplin 20-62, Hobson 8-51, Floyd 1-0.
PASSING – Houston, Dixon 7-15-1 78. Salem, Eplin 9-15-1 91.
RECEIVING – Houston, Hunter 3-64, Root 2-7, Clifton 1-6, Richardson 1-1. Salem, McGowan 3-46, Elwood 2-20, Hobson 3-18, Cook 1-7.
Week 3 games
Salem 25, Houston 12
Liberty 32, Thayer 0
Willow Springs 19, Cabool 18
Mountain Grove 26, Ava 0
Week 4 games
Cabool at Houston
Salem at Thayer
Willow Springs at Mountain Grove
Liberty at Ava