If the first game of the season was a coming out party for Daniel Hutcheson, the second was a statement. An apparent star has been born.

Hutcheson followed up his 132-yard, two-touchdown performance in the opener with an even bigger performance in Week 2. Bowling over and sprinting past would-be tacklers, the Houston sophomore rushed for 252 yards and five touchdowns as the Tigers hammered Cuba 61-22 Friday at Tiger Stadium.

Hutcheson reached his rushing total on just 12 attempts – averaging 21 yards per carry. He scored on touchdown runs of 41, 2, 54, 17 and 59 yards. Those numbers were a big chunk of the Tigers’ 628 yards of total offense – 478 on the ground – as they scored the program’s most points in a decade.

“I’m thankful he’s wearing the black and red,” HHS coach Eric Sloan said. “I think people in southwest Missouri are starting to learn a little bit about him.”

Hutcheson’s numbers look like they belong on a video game, not a high school football field.

In two career starts on the offensive unit, he is just 16 yards shy of 400 yards and averaging 14.8 yards per carry. He has found the end zone seven times – or every 3.7 touches

He has the second-most touchdowns in the state and fourth-most rushing yards through two games, according to MaxPreps. The players above him are all seniors.

“We knew in eighth grade he would be a pretty good ballplayer,” Sloan said. “Fortunately last year we were able to let him play defense and special teams. This year it’s go time.”

And against Cuba, he was hardly alone.

Senior fullback Aiden Sawyer rushed for 90 yards on eight attempts and found the end zone for the second straight week. Freshman Bailey Hurst had 96 rushing yards, highlighted by a 60-yard scoring scamper in the fourth quarter.

{{tncms-inline alignment=”right” content=”<p><strong>Week 2 scores</strong></p> <p>Houston 61, Cuba 22</p> <p>Cabool 42, Chaffee 0</p> <p>Willow Springs 34, Marionville 14</p> <p>Bolivar 20, Liberty 14</p> <p>Thayer 52, Doniphan 14</p> <p>Ava 31, Hallsville 0</p> <p>Strafford 42, Mtn. Grove 6</p> <p>Dexter 28, Salem 20</p> <p><strong>Week 3 games</strong></p> <p>Houston at Salem</p> <p>Cabool at Willow Springs</p> <p>Thayer at Liberty</p> <p>Mountain Grove at Ava</p>” id=”7254a4ea-c22c-4c7f-bb1d-a72804b484a6″ style-type=”bio” title=”SCA GAMES” type=”relcontent” width=”half”}}

Junior quarterback Dakota Burchett was 7-of-12 passing for a career-best 154 yards and his first touchdown pass of the season. Connor Wilson had three catches for a career-high 84 yards and his first-ever score.

HHS, which beat Sarcoxie the opening week, won its first two games for the first time since 2015, which was Sloan’s first season leading the program. It will go for its first 3-0 start since 2008 on Friday when the Tigers open conference play at Salem. HHS has lost 37 straight games in the matchup dating back to 1980.

“I know what’s sitting in front of us. I was reminded by a lot of people tonight,” Sloan said. “We probably won’t celebrate this one too long. We’ve got to get the monkey off our back.”

Houston’s 61 points were the most since the Tigers scored 62 in the 2008 regular-season finale. It was also against Cuba. And HHS needed them all.

The Wildcats (0-2) totaled 478 yards of their own – the biggest chunk by sophomore quarterback T.J. Bright, who competed 21 of his 40 passes for 425 yards and two scores. Wideout Gavin Sparks, who came into the game leading the region in receiving yards, had nine receptions for 155 yards.

But Bright was burnt by a Houston defense that intercepted him four times, highlighted by a 79-yard pick-six by senior Paydon Dixon at the end of the second quarter. Burchett snatched his state-leading third and fourth interceptions of the season.

Hutcheson put Houston ahead less than three minutes into the game when he took a reverse – his first touch of the game – 41 yards down the left sideline and into the end zone. CJ Lee’s kick was good.

Cuba quickly responded when Bright hit Sparks for a 64-yard touchdown strike less than two minutes later. But the Wildcats wouldn’t score again in the half.

Hutcheson’s two-yard run made it 15-6 and after a Cuba fumble that stalled a drive inside the 10-yard line, Hutcheson broke loose for a 54-yard score.

“He kept banging on his chest and saying, ‘Give it to me and I’ll get it done for you,’” Sloan said. “Stats don’t lie. He proved to be right tonight.”

Burchett picked off Bright after Cuba moved into the red zone on its next possession. The Tigers then covered 60 yards on 10 plays and on fourth-and-goal from the 20-yard line, Wilson took a tunnel screen – called a “jailbreak screen” by the Tigers – and weaved through defenders into the end zone.

Dixon concluded the first-half scoring with an interception on the HHS 21-yard line and sprinting the other way for a defensive score. HHS led 34-6.

Sawyer’s 30-yard run capped a quick scoring drive on the Tigers’ first possession of the second half. Hutcheson added a pair of third-quarter touchdown runs. Houston’s final points were Hurst’s long run with 9:55 remaining in the game.

BOX SCORE

HOUSTON 61, CUBA 22

Cuba 6 0 16 0 – 22

Houston 15 19 21 6 – 61

First Quarter

HOU – Hutcheson 41 run (CLee kick), 9:47

CUB – Sparks 64 pass from Bright (pass failed), 8:19.

HOU – Hutcheson 2 run (Dixon run), 5:17.

Second Quarter

HOU – Hutcheson 54 run (CLee kick), 10:21.

HOU – Wilson 20 pass from Burchett (kick failed), 5:02.

HOU – Dixon 79 interception return (kick failed), 3:10.

Third Quarter

HOU – Sawyer 30 run (kick failed), 10:37.

CUB – Bright 1 run (Sparks pass from Bright), 8:50.

HOU – Hutcheson 17 run (CLee kick), 6:14.

CUB – O’Neal 1 run (Bright run), 5:36.

HOU – Hutcheson 59 run (Dixon run), 4:51.

Fourth Quarter

HOU – Hurst 60 run (kick failed), 9:55.

––––––

CUB HOU

First downs 20 18

Total yards 478 628

Rushes-yards 32-53 43-474

Passing 425 154

Punt returns 0 0

Kickoff returns 72 55

Comp-att-int 21-4-4 7-12-0

Sacked-yards lost 3-34 0-0

Punts 2-26.0 0-0

Fumbles-lost 3-1 2-2

Penalties-yards 7-43 10-85

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INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING – Cuba, Gipson 8-28, Lafferty 6-20, O’Neil 5-17, Bright 13-(minus 12). Houston, Hutcheson 12-252, Hurst 9-96, Sawyer 8-90, Dixon 8-26, Burchett 6-10.

PASSING – Cuba, Bright 21-40-4 425. Houston, Burchett 7-12-0 154.

RECEIVING – Cuba, Sparks 9-155, O’Neal 3-103, Pfeiffer 6-96, Shockley 1-46, Bayless 2-25. Houston, Wilson 3-84, Sawyer 3-35, CLee 2-35.

Week 2 scores

Houston 61, Cuba 22

Cabool 42, Chaffee 0

Willow Springs 34, Marionville 14

Bolivar 20, Liberty 14

Thayer 52, Doniphan 14

Ava 31, Hallsville 0

Strafford 42, Mtn. Grove 6

Dexter 28, Salem 20

Week 3 games

Houston at Salem

Cabool at Willow Springs

Thayer at Liberty

Mountain Grove at Ava