By By Adam Prestridge
A long road trip to the Birmingham metro area turned out to be an early night for the Escambia Academy Cougars (6-4, 5-2) as violent thunderstorms and an extra point put an early end to their night.
The Cougars were halfway through the first quarter of their contest against Bessemer Academy (7-3, 5-1) when the Rebels’ place kicker struck a transform on an extra point knocking the lights out to the entire stadium.
The power outage wasn’t the only factor that played a role in the Cougars’ loss.
Gibson said the team was already on Interstate 65 past the City of Hoover en route back to Atmore just before 8:30 p.m.
When the game was cancelled, the Cougars were already down 14-0 with just over six minutes to play in the first quarter.
That’s when the extra point knocked the lights out.” Gibson said that weather forecasts were so bad prior to kickoff that he officiating crew had them change in the gymnasium for safety precautions.
Although the game lasted only a few minutes, Gibson’s first impression of the Rebels was impressive.
As for the record books, Gibson said he learned don the trip home that the game is a loss for the Cougars.
Though the team returned to Atmore earlier than anticipated Friday night, Gibson was dropped off in Montgomery for a playoff meeting with other head coaches in the AISA and officials.
Escambia Academy will travel next week to take on Springwood in the first round of the AISA state playoffs. Gibson said Springwood is very similar to his Cougars.