Callaway blows out McNair, wins fourth region title in five years

Published 10:33 pm Friday, October 27, 2023

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Callaway claimed its fourth region title in five seasons after a 51-12 beatdown of McNair on Friday night.

“I’m really proud of our community and especially our football team,” Callaway coach Pete Wiggins said. “We have overcome a lot of adversity this season and the guys kept working hard and staying focused. I’m excited about where our team is at right now.” 

It was a homecoming to remember for the Cavaliers who put the game to bed early.

The scoring started early for Callaway when DeShun Coleman blazed up the field for a 67-yard touchdown run on the second play from scrimmage for the Cavalier offense.

The senior quarterback was poised and precise early and got himself an early rest.

The offensive line was opening up massive running lanes regardless of who was toting the rock.

Tyren Buggs doubled Callaway’s lead with under two minutes to go in the first half on a short touchdown run, making it 14-0.

“Our offensive line was really physical tonight and guys like Avery Bartlett, Jojo Shuman, Josiah Garrett, (Tyrone) Fitten and Elijah Rowe did a great job all night,” Wiggins said. “I can’t forget Koryon Hoard who helped open up some holes as an H-back.”

Zai Hart got in on the fun, scoring two rushing touchdowns in the second quarter to make it 28-0.

The Cavaliers were not done there in the first half as backup quarterback Blake Harrington came in and led a drive late in the first half. He found Treyonn Tucker on a short touchdown pass to cap off the drive.

A McNair fumble on the ensuing kickoff gave the ball right back to Callaway with under a minute to go in the first half and they made McNair pay when Cam Tucker rumbled into the end zone.

The opening drive of the second quarter was all Buggs as he led the team down the field and found paydirt from five yards out for his second touchdown of the night.

“All three of our running backs (Buggs, Hart and Tucker) are extremely talented, but they also all work extremely hard,” Wiggins said. “It doesn’t just happen overnight, those guys work so hard and have for a long time.”

McNair eventually found the end zone with three minutes to go in the third quarter against the reserve defense for Callaway.

It was another extremely strong showing from Dusty Hubbard’s defense.

“Coach Hubbard and the defensive staff built a great game plan coming in and I think our defense has done a good job this season developing more depth,” Wiggins said. “We have some injuries on that side of the ball and have had to fight through that.”

A Greyson Batchelor 34-yard field goal halfway through the fourth quarter pushed the Cavaliers over 50 points.

McNair got another garbage time touchdown as the clock expired in the game.

“It has been a great week at Callaway High School from the fall festival to the parade,” Wiggins said. “It built a lot of excitement for the students and we were able to deliver tonight.”

Callaway (6-2) (5-0) will host Landmark Christian in a tune-up game for the Cavaliers as they ready for the first round of the state playoffs. Callaway will host a playoff game the following week.