HOOVER, Alabama -- The IMG Football Academy defeated Hoover 32-21 Friday night at the Hoover Met. One team has a lot of division one talent and one team has the heart of a champion.

Hoover down 23-0 at halftime, the Bucs outscored IMG Academy 21-9 in the second half and showed that they will fight for four quarters no matter who they play. "For God be the Glory to have the opportunity to play in this game while some people might wonder why we play this game and this is why," said Bucs Head coach Josh Niblett. "You just found out what we are made of. We go into halftime with our back is against the wall. Our D played well and the second half our offense showed what we can be. I'm proud of the kids effort. Now we get ready for the playoffs."

IMG Academy (7-0), the pipeline to college football, scored first in the game when running back Noah Cain broke a few tackles and ran into the end zone from 15-yards out for an IMG touchdown. Cain has around 22 division one offers and showed why he one of the top running backs of 2019. With the touchdown, IMG led 7-0 with 7:57 left in the first quarter. Cain finished the game with 115 yards on 19 carries.

With 2:49 left in the first quarter, Aiden Swanson hit a 26-yard field goal and IMG led 10-0 late in the first quarter. Midway through the second quarter, the IMG defense setup the next score when Charles Thomas, Michigan recruit, picked off a Bucs pass and returned it to the Hoover 5-yard line. Thomas would have scored but a little hot dog in him during the return cost him a TD as George Pickens tracked him down deep inside Bucs territory. On the first IMG offensive play, Trey Sanders, an Alabama verbal commit, ran it in for a 4-yard touchdown run and IMG had a big 17-0 lead late in the second quarter. "I liked the way we came out and played, very focused," said Ascenders Head coach Kevin Wright. "We played well on both sides of the football, then I think we relaxed and you can't do that against a good Hoover football team. We talked at halftime that Hoover would come out and really give us their best shot and they did that."

The Ascenders forced a Bucs three and out right before halftime and took the ball around midfield with less than three minutes in the half. With 1:59 left in the half, Zack Annexstad hit Jermaine Burton on a short pass but went 34-yards for an Ascenders score and IMG led 23-0 at the half. "We didn't get going on offense like we needed to at the beginning of the game," added Niblett. "That really put us in a hole when we struggled offensively in the first half."

In the second half, Hoover showed what they are made of as the offense kicked into gear and tried to get the Bucs back in the game. With 8:31 left in the third quarter, Jalen Parker threw a fade route to Pickens in the corner of the end zone for a Bucs score. With the TD, Hoover trailed 23-7 midway through the third quarter. IMG came right back on a long kickoff return to setup Sanders on a 4-yard touchdown run. With the IMG score, the Ascenders led 30-7 with 8:09 left in the third quarter. "We knew that we were going to see a hostile crowd," said Alabama verbal commit Sanders. "This was a great experience for us. I've never played in a baseball stadium like this. In a packed house, I had a few jitter-bugs when I first came out, but we did what we had to do."

With Hoover forcing a Ascenders punt, the Bucs offense made a few big pass plays and a few plays later Larry McCammon scored on a 4-yard touchdown run around the left end and the Bucs cut the IMG lead to 30-14 with 6:04 left in the third quarter. With 8:09 left in the game, IMG scored a safety when the Bucs snap on a Hoover punt sailed over the punter out of the back of the end zone and IMG led 32-14. 

Hoover scored the last touchdown of the game when Chase Brown blocked an Ascenders punt and setup the Bucs offense. With 4:12 left in the game, Parker hit Shedrick Jackson on a 10-yard touchdown play and Hoover cut the IMG lead to 32-21 late in the game. The Bucs defense played their hearts out as defensive linemen Devin Scott (6-2, 245 lbs) and Greg Russell (5-11, 190 lbs) had to go against IMG O-lineman Daniel Faalele (6-8, 400 lbs). "It means everything to us to still be undefeated playing so many great teams across the country," said Ascenders offensive lineman Faalele. "It feels good as a team us coming together and getting the job done. We want to keep this going and finish strong. It's been fun with all the support the people coming up to us, speaking to us and taking pictures with us. This is such a great environment to play a high school football game in."

Parker completed 11-of-27 passing for 138 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. McCammon had 75 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown. Jackson had two catches for 47 yards and a touchdown and Pickens had seven catches for 91 yards and a touchdown. "Hoover's two receivers (Jackson & Pickens) and running back (McCammon) are as good as any players we have played against across the country," added Wright. "Those three guys are really, really good. Just as good as we have seen. They have a great chance to win the state. Those guys give them a great chance to be successful down the road."

Defensive back Chase Brown had an interception and a blocked punt in the game coming off a pick-6 against Thompson last week. For IMG on defense, Taron Vincent, an Ohio State verbal commit, played well in the game. Walking off the field when the game was over, Vincent gave his shoes away to a fan that asked for them as he walked away to the locker room in just his socks. Class act!

Up next for Hoover is a home game with Sparkman in the first round of the playoffs.