VESTAVIA HILLS, Alabama -- Vestavia Hills rebounded from a tough loss last week in commanding fashion, rolling to a 42-24 victory over Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa at Thompson Reynolds Stadium in a key Class 7A, Region 3 showdown. The Rebels, now 3-1 overall and 1-1 in region play, took control early and held on despite a late surge by the Patriots.

From the opening whistle, Vestavia Hills looked fast and sharp. "I saw a lot of toughness; that is a good football team," said Rebels head coach Robert Evans. "They are coming off an emotional victory, and we are coming off an emotional loss, but that is life in this region. You have to respond and rebound."

Vestavia Hills quarterback Charlie Taaffe wasted little time making an impact in the Rebels' win. With 9:26 left in the first quarter, Taaffe, following the blocking created by lineman Copeland Styles and tight end Will Ainsworth, raced 26 yards for the first score of the game, and the Rebels led 7-0. With 6:15 left in the first quarter and the Rebels' second possession of the game, Carson Purdy came off left tackle for a 9-yard touchdown run and Vestavia Hills led 14-0. 

On the Rebels' third possession of the game, with 3:56 left in the first quarter, Taaffe hit quarterback/wide receiver Price LeMaster on a short out pass, and he shed a defender, racing 56 yards for a Rebels touchdown. With this score, Vestavia Hills led 21-0, and Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa had a big hill to climb to get back into this game.

Early in the second quarter, the Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa got the offense going. Wide receiver Kahden Smith caught a long pass to give the Patriots some good field possession for the first time in the game. A few plays later, Jordan Shambley threw to Jacobi Harris on a screen pass, Harris broke a tackle, and he raced 35 yards for a Patriots touchdown to cut the Rebels' lead to 21-7 with 8:03 left in the second quarter.

The Patriots' defense made a stand late in the second half to give the ball back to the offense, and with 3:30 left in the half, Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa scored on a 40-yard field goal, and the Patriots only trailed 21-10. Instead of going into having time only down 11 points, the Vestavia Hills offense put it into gear once again and scored with only 1:05 left in the half. Taaffe found a wide-open Braxton Hunt on a 15-yard touchdown pass play, and the Rebels led 28-10 going into halftime.

The Patriots didn't lie down in the second half as they were the only team to score in the third quarter. Harris and a great diving catch by Jaylin Cooke set up another Patriots touchdown. With 26 seconds left in the third quarter, Shambley scored on a 1-yard touchdown run, and the Rebels' lead was cut down to 35-18. The Rebels, though, responded on offense like they did all game, and with 4:44 left in the game, Taaffe scored on a 1-yard touchdown run, and Vestavia Hills led 42-18. 

With 3:53 left in the game, the Patriots scored one more time on a Shambley pass to Austin Cherry on a 36-yard touchdown pass play. With the touchdown, the Rebels led 42-24. 

"Charlie played well, he is a baller," added Evans. "As he goes, we go. Charlie is playing at a high level of football. If he is on the field, good things happen for us." Taaffee finished the game, completing 8-of-17 passes for 147 yards and two touchdowns, while also rushing for 143 yards on 21 carries & three touchdowns. Purdy had 67 yards on 12 carries and a touchdown. Noah Boylan had 48 yards on nine carries. Hunt had three catches for 68 yards and a touchdown for Vestavia Hills.