Five takeaways: Beech trips out of the gate

Beech suffered a 38-28 loss to visiting Wilson Central in Friday’s season opener. The loss broke the Buccaneers’ five-game winning streak in season-opening contests.

Beech

Five things to know from the Buccaneers’ loss:

Early errors

Turnovers and crucial mistakes on special teams put Beech in a hole early in the first quarter. Spencer Welch returned the opening kickoff for Wilson Central to the 8-yard line where the Wildcats capitalized with a 4-yard run from Tyler Bowes. Beech fumbled the ensuing kickoff, and on the next play Wilson Central took advantage again, with a 51-yard pass from Blake Meadors to Colton Dowell. Beech quarterback Nelson Smith fumbled a snap on the following drive, eventually contributing to a 25-0 deficit for the Bucs early in the second quarter.

No Vanzant

Senior running back Alex Vanzant was not dressed out during warmups and did not receive any playing time. Head coach Anthony Crabtree did not comment on the status of Vanzant at the time or when he may return.

Williamson’s chance

To fill the void of Vanzant, running back Chaz Williamson stepped up with a big performance. The junior rushed for 174 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries and a touchdown, with 117 of his yards coming in the second half.

“I just wanted to run the ball hard and work hard to help my team accomplish what they could,” Williamson said. “There was a lot of miscommunication in the beginning of the game, and as the game went on we fixed it, and although we were down by a lot early on we put things together and started coming back. Our defense played together, and so did our offense.”

Smith recovers from early miscue

Quarterback Nelson Smith had a big night for the offense as well, scoring three touchdowns. Two came on the ground in the form of 19-yard and 6-yard runs. Smith also threw a 27-yard pass to tight end Ty Moore in the third quarter.

Promising recovery

Despite the rough start, Beech outscored Wilson Central 28-13 over the final three quarters. Crabtree was pleased with the fight his team continued to show through the course of the entire game.

“I don’t think we ever stopped fighting,” Crabtree said. “We just made two or three crucial mistakes to start the game. There was less than four minutes off the clock and they’re up 18-0. That’s tough to over come, especially against a really good 6A team like them. I’m just proud of our guys for the fight they had. We just need to go back to work on Monday and try to get better.”