After a tough couple of weeks on the road, the Ooltewah High School football team was ready to return the favor when it returned home.
The unfortunate visitors Friday night were the Soddy-Daisy Trojans, and the Owls rolled 27-7 to even their record at 3-3 with the nonregion victory.
Ooltewah ran out to a 21-0 lead in the first half, and coach Scott Chandler said the result was more indicative of his team's potential this season.
"Coming into tonight's game, we watched film of the last two weeks," Chandler said of losses to Bradley Central, 45-7, and McMinn County, 56-14. "Those were two good teams, but we also watched ourselves, and we felt we were our biggest opponent. We said, 'Look guys, we're not going to ask you to do anything we think you can't do.'
READ MORE: Final scores and photos from Friday night's Chattanooga-area high school football games
"Despite the last two weeks, I've felt like we have a good team, so hopefully this gives them some confidence."
Senior quarterback Fisher Perry set the tone for Ooltewah's offense with two rushing scores in the first quarter. The first came on a 27-yard scamper with 6:29 to go in the quarter, and the second was from 1 yard out with just more than a minute and a half to go.
Perry did not find the end zone again but continued to conduct an efficient offense, making quick decisions on option and read plays. He finished with 82 yards on 11 carries, plus another 161 through the air despite some passes to open receivers finding the turf.
"Last week our O-line said they'd step it up, and we had a good practice week," Perry said. "We transferred what we practiced into the game."
While that group opened up running lanes, Ooltewah's defensive line did not have a quiet night, either, often putting pressure on the Trojans' passing game. Ooltewah had four sacks and added an interception, a fumble recovery on a sack and a fourth-down stop with just a yard to go inside the 20.
Soddy-Daisy went into the second half without anything to show on the scoreboard, and both teams had the third quarter pass them by without putting any points up. Ooltewah threatened, chewing clock on its way to the 1-yard line, but a fumble ended the drive.
"We were disappointed not to get anything there, and we challenged them between quarters," Chandler said. "They answered that challenge, and we got one there in the fourth to put it away."
That touchdown came from Tacoda Jones, who broke off 14-yard run with 9:19 left.
Soddy-Daisy (1-4) scored its only touchdown a few minutes later on a 16-yard pass from Isaac Barnes to Will Ackerman. Barnes threw 36 passes, completing 26 of them for 145 yards, and he added 53 yards on the ground.
Contact Idris Garcia at sports@timesfreepress.com.