MONTGOMERY, Alabama -- TJ Russell threw for three touchdown passes as the #3 Carver-Montgomery Wolverines defeated the Vestavia Hill Rebels 41-19 in the 2024 Kickoff Classic at the Cramton Bowl on Friday night. The Carver-Montgomery offense had about 400 yards in the win, and they got the big win against 7A power Vestavia Hills.
Running backs Tre Berry and Anthony Rogers, wide receivers Zion Crumpton, TB Norman, and CJ Cargill did the most damage for the Wolverines offense. "We made some big plays on offense, and the defense caused five turnovers," said Wolverines head coach Bobby Carr. "We started this thing back in March, and we made some mistakes, but they are things that we can fix. I thought we were prepared. Hats off to our defense, and we made the big play when needed. TJ made a lot of good plays and extended plays with his feet. He wants to get better every day, and his best days are in front of him. To see these Lanier kids, Carver players and me coming here and it all coming together. I love these kids."
Carver-Montgomery (1-0) scored first in the game when Stephon Andrews scoped up a Rebels fumble and raced 41-yards for a Carver-Montgomery touchdown. With 11:19 left in the first quarter, the Wolverines took a 6-0 lead. With 3:13 left in the first quarter, Tre Berry rushed for a 2-yard touchdown run. Harry Welch kicked the extra point and Carver-Montgomery led 10-0.
With :12 seconds left in the first quarter, running back Carson Purdy connected with wide receiver Luke Stubbs on a 25-yard touchdown pass. Carson made a perfect half-back pass to the wide open Stubbs for a Rebels touchdown. The two-point conversion failed and Carver-Montgomery still led 13-6. With 9:50 left in the second quarter, Owen Simpson kicks a 35-yard field goal and the Rebels still trailed 13-9. With 4:52 left in the half, Simpson kicked another field goal. This time a 25-yard field goal and the Rebels trimmed the score to 13-12 Wolverines.
With only :52 seconds left in the half, Russell throws a perfect throw to running back Anthony Rogers on an 11-yard slant play in the back of the end zone. Russell had a tight window between two defenders and Rogers kept a foot in bounce for a Wolverines touchdown. With the score, Carver-Montgomery led 19-12. On the two point conversion, Russell found TK Norman running across the end zone and found him wide open for the two-point score. Right before halftime, Carver-Montgomery led 28-12.
Vestavia Hills kept the deep ball away from the Wolverines for most of the first half, but Rogers hit Norman on a 48-yard touchdown pass down the middle of the field to start the second half. The Texas A&M commitment had two catches for 62 yards and a touchdown. With 11:41 left in the third quarter, Carver-Montgomery led 28-12. With 9:50 left in the third quarter, Russell hit Javoski Barnes on an 11-yard touchdown pass over the middle who was left wide open by the defense. Barnes who has great speed just snuck out of the backfield wide open for the score. With the touchdown, the Wolverines led 34-12.
With 8:22 left in the game, Berry scored on a 1-yard touchdown run and the Wolverines led 41-12. The Rebels scored with 6:38 left in the game, Price Lemaster screen play to Noah Boylan for a 35-yard touchdown pass play. With the score, the Rebels still trailed 41-19.
In the game, Russell finished the game 18-of-27 passing for 270 yards and three touchdowns with an interception along with 38 yards on nine carries. Berry had 71 yards on 25 carries and two touchdowns. Rogers had seven receptions for 65 yards and a touchdown. Zion Crumpton had 5 receptions for 79 yards for the Wolverines.
