Rebs annihilate Akins

Hays running back Torrance Smith lets out a Rebel yell after scoring one of his three touchdowns during Hays’ 41-20 win over Akins. A 27-point second quarter keyed the Hays win, as the Rebels forced three key turnovers to turn an early deficit into a 27-6 halftime lead. (Photo by Tony Smith)

By JASON GORDON

Hays has its swagger back.

In their first game since snapping a 23-year streak of non-losing football seasons in 2009, multiple miscues cost Akins dearly and led to a huge Rebel second quarter in the season opener for both teams.

Hays took advantage of an interception and three Akins fumbles to erase an early deficit en route to a 41-20 win at Burger Stadium.

“We have a new swagger this year,” said Hays running back Torrance Smith, who finished with 120 yards rushing and three touchdowns. “It’s a 2010 swagger.”

The Rebels trailed 6-0 when Hays caught its first big break of the game after Akins’ Tony Vega fumbled a punt and Stephen Luna recovered just inside the Eagles’ 20-yard line.

From there, Smith zigzagged his way through the defense for a 15-yard touchdown that tied the score 6-6 on the first play of the second quarter.

Hays’ Alan Marin recovered a bad pitch by Akins quarterback Kenny Davis on the Eagles’ subsequent drive, and on the next play Mason Cervenka used a play-action pass to find a wide open Michael Romero for a 64-yard score to make it 13-6.

Kurt Timmons made the next big play for the Hays defense, picking off a Davis pass and returning it 30 yards to set up a powerful 12-yard Smith touchdown run.

Hays capped off its impressive second quarter after Akins fumbled a snap on fourth down. The Rebels were able to make the Eagles pay when Cervenka lofted a middle screen to Tony Garza, who burst free up the middle for a 55-yard scoring run, and Hays led 27-6 at the break.

The victory was a turnabout from the first game of the year in both ’08 and ’09, when the Rebels lost games to Bastrop.

“Our ability to create turnovers was key,” Hays head coach Bob Shelton said. “We’ve lost the last couple of season openers, so it was important to get this win.”

D’Auuhndre Raindle, who finished with 101 yards rushing for Akins, had runs of 19 and 16 yards to set up his own 7-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter for the Eagles.

Garza added the final touchdown of the contest for the Rebels, a 7-yard run on fourth down midway through the final quarter.

“This is gives us a lot of momentum heading to the rest of the season,” Marin said. “Now we have to build off of this the next few weeks so we’re playing our best in district.”

Cervenka left the game late with a knee injury, and coaches said he will likely be held out of this week’s home game against Anderson and will only be available in an emergency situation. Unfortunately, one of Hays’ captains and starting linebackers, Jordan Jennings, may be lost for the season with an apparent torn ACL in his knee suffered early in the game against Akins.

“I think we were all a little nervous when the game started,” Cervenka said. “When we started to loosen up and realize it’s the same game we’ve been playing since we were little, we started to play like we’re capable of. I think my knee’s going to be fine. Losing Jordan will be a big loss. He was the quarterback of our defense and now someone has to step up and fill his shoes.”

Both Hays quarterbacks, Cervenka and Caleb Kimbro, who battled all summer for the starting job, led the offense efficiently as Rebel coaches switched out the signal callers every other series.

After Cervenka’s two first half touchdown passes helped Hays build its lead, Kimbro led Hays on both its scoring drives in the second half. He had a perfectly-timed option pitch to Smith, who converted it into an 11-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, and Kimbro’s 25-yard pass to Granger Studdard on third-and-long set up Hays’ final score.

Hays hosts Anderson Friday night at Shelton Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.