No. 1 Hough crushes No. 3 Independence in second round

CAMERON WILLIAMS | THE CHARLOTTE POST

Hough High football coach Deshawn Baker talks to his team after the Huskies' 47-3 win against Independence in the second round of the North Carolina 4A playoffs on Nov. 22, 2024.

CORNELIUS – This could be the Hough Huskies’ year.

The Huskies, No. 1 in the Magnificent Seven rankings, dominated Independence from start to finish in a 47-3 second round win in the North Carolina 4A playoffs. After years of playoff disappointment, this may be the team capable of winning it all.

“I think this all stems from the family atmosphere we’ve built here,” head coach Deshawn Baker said. “You can just look at [the players] and tell it is one big family. It doesn’t matter if it’s the offense or the defense who steps up and has a good game, they do not care who gets the credit. All they care about is getting the win and seeing one another succeed. I think that is the biggest thing that this team has that others haven’t had in the past.”

The Huskies’ (11-1) last two trips to the playoffs ended in Greensboro to the Grimsley Whirlies. Baker was the head coach last year and on the staff in 2022, so he knows they will likely have to scale that mountain when the comes time.

Hough’s defense has been stout all year, not giving up more than 14 points since week one when they lost to South Carolina power Northwestern. The Huskies allowed Independence just eight first downs and held Patriots (10-2) running back Jayden Jones under 30 yards rushing when he came in averaging over 194.6 yards per game.

“We got tired of hearing everybody talking about Jones is going to run for 250 [yards] and he is going to do this or that,” Baker said. “Our defense came out and not only accepted that challenge but thrived with it. They played lights out. We were sound on the run all game. [Jones] may have had 20 yards; I don’t know for sure. But, both our offensive line and defensive line took control of the game and just dominated from start to finish.”

Hough’s third round opponent will either be Queen City 3A/4A rival Mallard Creek — who the Huskies beat in the regular season — or Watauga. The Huskies would host Mallard Creek but would have to travel to Watauga. The game between the Mavericks and Pioneers won’t be settled until Nov. 23 due to a forecast of precipitation in the Boone area.

Either way, Baker feels his team will be ready.

“You know with Mallard Creek it is a rivalry game,” he said. “It doesn’t matter what happened in the regular season. They are going to come out and give us something because it is Mallard Creek. It is a rivalry and even though we know what to expect from those guys. They are still good, and it is the playoffs after all, so we can’t go into that game thinking it is going to be the exact same as last time. As far as Watagua, we don’t know much about them yet other than they are undefeated. [If they win] we will get a scout on them and be ready.”

Comments