HONAKER — Honaker’s high-powered aerial attack bombarded Grundy with 52 first-half points on the way to a 58-6 rout on Fuller Field at EMAT’s Stadium last Friday night.
The Musick sounded sweet for the Tigers, who received six touchdown passes from junior quarterback Peyton Musick for the second week in a row. Musick tied his school record Friday night with all six scoring strikes coming in the first half.
“He has done a great job all year,” Honaker coach Todd Tiller said about Musick following his performance in the win over Grundy. “He made the right reads and got out of the pocket to escape pressure with his feet. It was a great job by Peyton.”
Tiller said he was proud of his entire team for how they came out and executed against the Golden Wave, who ended their season last year in the first round of the Region 1D playoffs at Grundy.
“We did a good job of spreading the ball around,” Tiller noted. “Malachi Lowe had a couple of great catches. Parker Bandy did a great job. Aidan Lowe also had a great game. Brayden Marsh has come on, and he is faster than I thought. With a couple of injuries in the backfield, Brayden got some carries, and he did a great job tonight, running and catching the ball and blocking. He is a player. We are not just a one-man show, it is a pleasure to coach these kids.”
It appeared as if the banged-up Golden Wave, without star players Logan Lester, Ethan Roberts, Lucas Boyd, and Carson Deel, would hang with the undefeated Tigers.
After Peyton Musick connected on his first touchdown pass of the game, a 33-yard touchdown strike to Brayden Marsh, Golden Wave speedster Trey Taylor took the ensuing kickoff 76 yards up the Grundy sideline for a touchdown to tie the game at 6-6 with 8:01 still to play in the first quarter.
Honaker’s second offensive possession ended in Musick’s second touchdown pass, this time to Tyler Stevens, from seven yards out as the Tigers went on top 14-6 with 7:02 remaining in the opening quarter.
Grundy’s next possession ended horribly as Honaker’s Austin Clayburne blocked a Golden Wave punt to give his team the ball back with a short field at the Grundy 35-yard line.
Musick wasted no time connecting with tight end Malachi Lowe for his third touchdown pass, this time from 23 yards out, expanding the Tigers’ lead to 22-6.
Grundy’s offense began the second quarter with the ball, and the tough Honaker defense forced another punt. A 35-yard run by senior all-purpose back Aidan Lowe quickly moved the Tigers across mid-field down to the 36-yard line. One play later, Musick connected with Malachi Lowe for the second time from 36 yards out to go up 30-6.
Musick picked up his fifth touchdown pass of the first half, hitting Aidan Lowe on a screen pass towards the Honaker sideline, and Lowe broke several tackles before reaching the end zone from 56 yards out to give the Tigers a 36-6 lead.
Honaker was not finished. Musick connected with his favorite receiver, Parker Bandy, for his sixth touchdown pass of the game. Bandy made an outstanding catch, going up overtop a Golden Wave defender, snagging the ball at its highest point, and getting a foot down in the corner of the endzone to give his team a 44-6 advantage.
“We had a good week at practice considering we lost Avery (Musick, Peyton Musick’s brother and a talented receiver who has begun the season on a hot start),” Peyton Musick said. “We came out and connected. We have practiced hard, and this group is meshing well.”
Musick also credited his entire team and coaching staff for his outstanding start to the season.
Bandy made the score 52-6 at the end of the first half after returning an interception 65 yards for a touchdown for his second score of the game.
Bandy would hit the trifecta, scoring a touchdown on offense and defense before scoring the only touchdown of the second half on special teams. Bandy, the holder on the Tigers field goal team, made a heads-up play, pulling down a high snap on a 40-yard field goal attempt and scrambled in for a touchdown with over seven minutes remaining in the third for the final score of the game as Honaker went on to capture the 58-6 win.
“Starting the year off 5-0 is how we wanted to go,” Bandy said following the win. “We have stayed late after practice and have worked hard all summer for this.”
Honaker was lights out defensively, pitching a shutout as Grundy’s only score came on special teams. Bandy, who had one of the several interceptions tonight for this unit, said the improvement in their tackling was an emphasis heading into the game, and it paid off. “We came out tonight and tackled a lot better Bandy added. “We read our keys and played strong as a team.”
Tiller said his defense front was key in the dominant performance led by Tyler Cole, Elijah Musick, Aiden Gilbert, and Malachi Lowe.
Bright spots for the Golden Wave were the second-half running of Taylor and Shaiem Gordon, who each moved the sticks for head coach Keegan Bartley’s team after another injury to a key player struck early in the first when talented all-purpose back Tristan Ellis went down with a knee injury.
Bartley said the loss was tough, and he talked with his team at halftime about the lack of enthusiasm in the first half compared to what they showed last week in the win over Hogoheegee District power Patrick Henry.
“The second half was much improved as far as the adrenaline and the enthusiasm we were hoping for from the get-go. We will bounce back, correct some stuff, and be better.”
Honaker will host Chilhowie next week, and Grundy will travel to Bulldog Stadium to face the Tazewell on Friday night.