A.L. Johnson faced American Christian Academy on the Patriots’ home turf in Tuscaloosa Friday night, but unfortunately the Eagles failed to take the win back to Thomaston.

The first five minutes of the first quarter were considerably calm, though the Eagles’ defense kept ACA from completing very many yards. After ACA’s Chris Smelley failed to complete a pass to ACA’s #1, the team attempted to go for it on the fourth down, but A.L. Johnson stopped their run.

The Eagles had control of the ball for just a few plays, gaining only a few yards, before punting to ACA. Then, in the last few minutes of the first quarter, the Patriots made the yards and scored the first points of the game when ACA’s #16 kicked a field goal.

At the end of the first quarter: A.L. Johnson 0, ACA 3.

The Eagles got in the game at the start of the second quarter when ALJ’s Michael McGhee completed a pass to ALJ’s Robert Henton who ran the ball to the Patriots’ 36 yard line. After the crowd-pleasing run, A.L. Johnson brought the ball to the 16 yard line in the course of five plays. On a fourth down, the Eagles went for it, gaining the one yard they needed for a first down.

Eagle fans roared with excitement as ALJ’s Brandon Fritts ran the ball to the one yard line. After three attempts to push the ball into the endzone, ALJ’s #2 scored the first touchdown of the game. A.L. Johnson failed to complete a two-point conversion, leaving the score at A.L. Johnson 6, ACA 3 with 5:19 on the clock.

The Patriots made a come back after an A.L. Johnson kick-off when ACA’s #25 ran the ball 22 yards. ACA then completed several long passes, including a touchdown pass from ACA’s #7 to ACA’s #5. The drive ended with a field goal by ACA’s #16. The Patriots were back on top: A.L. Johnson 6, ACA 10.

Unfortunately, things didn’t start looking up for A.L. Johnson after ACA’s first touchdown. The Eagles completed a few short runs, and then fumbled into ACA’s hands. During the interception, A.L. Johnson’s Henton was injured. The Patriots didn’t make it any better when Smelley completed a touchdown pass to ACA’s #11. ACA went for two, but failed.

The Patriots made a bad move when they kicked-off to the Eagles. ALJ’s James Robinson caught the ball and ran for 40 yards. The run was to no avail after the following plays only gained a few yards for the Eagles, inevitably forcing them to punt.

At the end of the second quarter: A.L. Johnson 6, ACA 16.

Both teams completed scoreless drives at the start of the third quarter, but ACA charged ahead for the remainder of the game. The Patriots’ #44 completed the team’s third and fourth touchdowns, and both were topped off when ACA’s #16 completed two more field goals.

A.L. Johnson, 6, ACA 30.

ALJ’s Robinson had a rough start after receiving the ACA kick-off, but eventually gained confidence and ran to the ACA 3 yard line. ALJ’s Fritts attempted several passes, but the Eagles just couldn’t make the points.

The Patriots received the ball, and soon fumbled right into the hands of A.L. Johnson. Not long after, the Eagles returned the favor by fumbling back to ACA’s #25 who ran in for a touchdown, followed by yet another field goal.

At the end of the third quarter: A.L. Johnson 6, ACA 37.

The final quarter brought no signs of victory to the Eagles. The Patriots topped off their lead with another touchdown by ACA’s #4 and another field goal by ACA’s #16. A.L. Johnson pushed until the end, but the players just couldn’t connect.

A.L. Johnson Head Coach Mose Jones said that while some of his players hung in there, he was disappointed. “They didn’t play ball well at all,” he said, “We’ve gotta get back to the drawing board.”