By Dan Smith

It is the general consensus that it is more fun to win than lose, and there is no doubt the bus ride for the Trojans of Charles Henderson High was short and loose following an important 42-14 win over Class 5A, Region 2 rival Eufaula Thursday night.

The Trojans played their most dominating game of the season on both sides of the ball in Thursday’s televised contest.

CHHS scored a touchdown the first four possessions of the game, and the clock was the only thing that stopped the offense before going into the locker room for halftime.

In the second half the Trojans scored a touchdown on their first possession, another on defense, then elected not to attempt a field goal from 25 yards out with the score 42-7, and turned the ball over on downs. Their final possession resulted in a knee down to end the game.

The punters for the Trojans never got a chance to kick, which is a good thing.

Senior quarterback Austin Ingram was also at his best.

Ingram was 12-19 in passing for 148 yards and three touchdowns, hitting 9-of-11 attempts in the first half. With all due respect to an outstanding arsenal of young men that can catch the football and make big things happen once they get it, at least three passes were dropped that were accurate throws and sure catches.

Earlier in the week CHHS head coach Brad McCoy said that the success of the offense must begin at the line of scrimmage, allowing running backs to move the chains which will in turn open up the passing game.

Thursday night the Trojans gained 136 yards in rushing and 148 in passing for a balanced attack.

Senior running back Mondaris Dixon added another 100-yard night with 103 yards on 28 carries, including one TD reception, one TD rushing, and 158 yards of total offense. Dixon has 1,234 yards of total offense on the season, 683 rushing, 245 receiving, 111 in punt returns and 195 in kickoff returns.

A bright spot offensively was the wildcat formation running of senior linebacker Richard McBryde, who punished defenders for 38 yards on four carries and one touchdown. While leading the team on defense with 84 total tackles, 12 for loss and five sacks, the senior Auburn commitment adds a powerful threat to an already dangerous offensive backfield.

The Trojans are winners of four games in a row, after starting the season 1-2. With a 5-2 overall and 3-1 Region 2 record CHHS has their sights set on a playoff berth, which can be done with victories over remaining region foes Rehobeth and Booker T. Washington.

Eufaula slipped to 4-3 overall and 3-1 with their first region loss.

Greenville is unbeaten in Region 2, earlier claiming a 19-16 win over CHHS, and the Tigers have remaining region games against Sidney Lanier, Eufaula and Rehobeth.

CHHS needs to defeat Rehobeth to keep their playoff plans intact, as the top two teams in the region will advance. Rehobeth entered Friday’s game with B.T. Washington with a 5-2 overall record and 2-1 in the region.

Booker T. is 1-5 overall and 0-4 in region play.

CHHS and Rehobeth play in Troy’s Veterans Memorial Stadium next Friday, Oct. 17, 7 p.m. Rehobeth has two tough final games against the CHHS Trojans and Rehobeth will also host Greenville.

“We have Rehobeth at home, Booker T. on the road, then Northview in a non-region game at home to finish the season,” said McCoy. “We don’t have a crystal ball to look to next week, but we definitely have been playing better each and every week the last four weeks.

“We definitely moved one step closer to playing at home in the playoffs. We still have to come back to practice on Sunday, watch this film and make corrections, and these kids are up to that.

“We have answered the challenge, and I am extremely proud to be a part of this football program.”