Recap
Niceville, FL — Built around the most dominant O-Line in The Panhandle β take a bow David Hedges and Aaron Daniels β Niceville's heavy package of Joe Hanson, Kevin Downing, Colin Sorensen, Donovan Dark, Landon Campbell, Paxton Haywood, Christian Caballero and JP Mikhael is nearly impossible to counter.
Just ask the main beneficiary, Micah Turner. Or better yet, how about you ask 2022's first victim: North Miami Beach.
The visiting Chargers could only watch as Turner lined up in the wildcat, followed his blockers and scored a school-record five times to help lead the Eagles to a season-opening 42-6 win Friday night at Eagle Stadium.
The only other Eagles to score five touchdowns before him? That'd be Ozzie Willhite in 1989 and Dom Annichiarico in 2019.
"Look, you can call Dom Annichiarico and ask him," Niceville head coach Grant Thompson said. "Whoever gets those carries back there when we have a good offensive line, sometimes they can get a lot of touchdowns. We really like our offensive line. We're big and athletic."
By night's end, Turner finished with 98 yards on 13 carries. De'mon Allen tacked on a team-best 105 yards and a score on 17 totes, the Eagles rushing for 244 yards total while getting a steady performance from previously injured quarterback Harrison Orr.
After missing the spring and preseason games with fluke setbacks, Orr completed 10-of-11 passes for 143 yards and ran for another 27 yards.
"It's good to have him out there," Thompson said. "The sky's the limit for him. He just has to stay healthy."
The sky's the limit for this Eagles defense as well. After allowing a touchdown on the opening drive after some double-pass trickery, Niceville's defense locked down and didn't allow a single red zone trip or score after. By night's end the Charges rushed for just 24 yards.
"They responded well," Thompson said of his defense. "Look, that's tough on the first play β a double pass. We tried to hold our own and they got us on the comeback. We stiffened our neck and responded."