Left or right. Run or pass. It didn’t matter. Nothing worked offensively for Houston.
The offensive numbers – or lack of – told the story Friday night as the Tigers were shut out 42-0 by St. James at Tiger Stadium.
HHS had minus-18 rushing yards and just two first downs against St. James’ aggressive defense. The Tigers were sacked five times and 12 of their 28 running plays were stopped for negative yardage.
“I’ve never experienced anything like this in 14 years of coaching,” Houston coach Eric Sloan said. “We asked (the offensive linemen) at halftime what they thought we could do up front, and they didn’t have an answer.”
Houston finished with 10 total yards against a St. James team that blanked Cuba 60-0 last week.
GAME AT A GLANCE
HHS PLAYS OF THE NIGHT
• Sophomores Connor Wilson and Dakota Burchett both had interceptions deep in Houston territory.
TELLING STATS
• HHS was held to minus-18 yards rushing on 28 attempts and just 10 total yards of offense.
WHEN GAME WAS DECIDED
• St. James quarterback Ryan Harlan hit Carter Keeney for touchdown strikes of 37 and 46 yards on the team’s first two drives.
“They are fast, physical and run so well,” Sloan said. “They close holes that were there for a second.”
A big part of the problem, Sloan said, was the offensive line’s inability to create running lanes. He said St. James had success blitzing defenders in every gap.
“I’m not sure why the confusion,” Sloan said. “To be honest, we’re running a middle school playbook up front. We can’t progress because we can’t – for whatever reason – run the base plays correctly.”
HHS quarterback Paydon Dixon was 3-of-10 passing for 28 yards with one interception. John Lane had two catches for 25 yards.
Tristan Leier had one carry for six yards and freshman Chris Cichon had one for four yards to lead the Tigers’ ground game.
The Tigers’ defense forced four turnovers. Sophomores Connor Wilson and Dakota Burchett both had interceptions. Wilson also forced a fumble.
“The longer it goes, the more freshmen and sophomores you see out there on the field,” Sloan said. “The young kids are doing some positive things. You’re seeing the future right now.
St. James quarterback Ryan Harlan, who threw for 228 yards and three scores, hit Carter Keeney for scores of 37 and 46 yards in the first quarter.
A safety for St. James (2-0) gave the visiting Tigers a 15-0 first-quarter lead.
Harlan’s 1-yard run with 6.1 seconds in the half made it 22-0 at the half.
Houston didn’t get a first down until Dixon hit Lane on a 20-yard slant with 2 minutes, 20 seconds left in the third quarter. The Tigers trailed 35-0.
St. James’ Michael Higginbotham returned an interception 60 yards for a score on the first play of the fourth quarter for the final points.
Houston, which lost the season opener 36-14 at Ash Grove, opens conference play at home Friday against Salem.
“Our non-conference schedule is just as brutal as our SCA schedule,” Sloan said.
GAME NOTES
TIGER TIDBITS: HHS senior Evan Richardson, a two-way starter, missed Friday’s game against St. James for disciplinary reasons. …CJ Lee averaged 31.2 yards on his nine punts against St. James. The average was hurt by a high snap that forced one kick for minus-8 yards. …The Tigers’ secondary has three interceptions in two games.
LIVE COVERAGE: Watch the Tigers’ game Friday against Salem beginning with the pregame show at 6:45 p.m. at www.houstonherald.com/live.
GAME NOTES
NEXT OPPONENT: Salem has won 36 consecutive matchups against Houston. …Salem is 1-1 after beating Sumner 38-30 in Week 2. The Tigers opened the season with a 19-6 defeat at McDonald County. …Salem had 446 yards offense against Sumner as quarterback Cameron Camden rushed for 90 yards, while passing for 134 yards – including two receptions to tight end Dawson Wynn for 116 yards and a TD – and halfback Chandler Gray ran for 158 yards. … Three starters who missed the first two weeks of the season will return to the field for Salem against HHS. …Friday’s matchup is the South Central Association opener.