Hixson running back Isaiah Robinson had himself a game in just one half Friday night in leading the Wildcats to a 51-20 District 6-AA win at Howard.
Robinson carried the ball 12 times for 195 yards and a 96-yard touchdown through the middle before he earned a 20-minute break.
The senior finished the last night of summer with 15 carries for 22 yards. Teammate Kendrick Bradley provided the Wildcats (3-2, 2-0) with a stout one-two punch. He had 130 yards and two touchdowns before the Hixson -- but not the Howard -- band took the field. He finished the night with 184 yards and three touchdowns.
"We did excellent tonight," Robinson said. "Me and my partner didn't turn the ball over; we blocked for each other and ran hard for each other."
Bradley started the scoring with a simple 2-yard run. He continued it with a 23-yard scamper through the left side.
An 11-play Howard drive stalled just 4 yards from the end zone. Robinson removed the Wildcats from the shadow of their goal line by scooting through and then past the Howard secondary for a 20-0 lead. The only other Wildcats (beside the center) to touch the ball in the first half, quarterback Gill Brown and senior Jordan Johnson, connected on a 57-yard play-action pass just 14 seconds before halftime, giving Hixson a 26-0 lead.
"That's who we want to touch it," Hixson coach Jason Fitzgerald said. "They're our horses and we're going to ride them."
Lorenzo McCauley nixed Hixson's idea of a shutout when he capped a seven-play drive with a 7-yard touchdown run. Howard (1-3, 0-1) gained confidence and improved execution throughout the game.
The Tigers added fourth-quarter scores of 9 yards from quarterback Terrance Brooks -- who rushed for 41 yards and threw for 215 yards -- and a 4-yarder from basketball player Cudjoe Young.
"We're going to be OK," Howard coach Michael Calloway said. "That's our first district loss and Hixson is probably the toughest in the district. If we make tackles, we could finish second."
"We'll get it fixed."
Contact David Uchiyama at duchiyama@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6484. Follow him at twitter.com/UchiyamaCTFP.