By Staff
Lindsay Vaught, Sports Correspondent
A winless season that started full of hope and anticipation finally came to an end for Brewer last Thursday night. Arab secured second place in Class 5A, Region 7 with a 56-34 win over Brewer.
It marked the second time in the last three years the Patriots finished 0-10. The Patriots have now lost 13 games in a row and the losing was apparently too much for Head Coach Robert Peppers who announced early in the week this would be his last game as football coach. He will stay on as teacher until the end of the school year.
As has been the case most of the season, Brewer's defense provided little resistance. Arab scored on every possession until the fourth quarter and only punted once, late in the game.
Arab scored an early touchdown on a 7-yard pass from Patterson to Evan Shipp with 6:47 left in the first quarter. The Knights held Brewer on downs early in the second quarter then drove 83 yards on 11 plays with Drew Coley going in from the 5-yard line. Brewer briefly made a game of it when quarterback Sam Mason connected with Travis Boyd on a 28-yard touchdown pass.
Arab struck back quickly as Guess scored on runs of 5 and 10 yards. A botched punt attempt by Brewer ended up with a punt going into the stands and Arab taking over at the Brewer 40-yard line. Three plays later Patterson hit Drew Blevins on a 15-yard pass to give Arab a 35-6 halftime lead.
Two quick third quarter touchdowns by Arab blew the game open. First, Patterson hit Drew Guess on a 20-yard pass. On Arab's next possession Drew Coley bolted up the middle 80-yards for his second touchdown of the game. Brewer fought back when Sam Mason, playing his last game, scored from 45 yards on a quarterback scramble. He later hit Boyd on a 25-yard touchdown pass. In the fourth, Doug Webster scored on a 2-yard run and Joseph Burton shook off a season's worth of rust and broke free on a 73-yard touchdown run. Burton, who was to be the feature back in the offense, had his best game of the season finishing with 144 yards on 18 carries.
Peppers' farewell message to his team was simple. "Keep working and good things will happen to you," he told his players in an emotional scene at midfield.
The players were caught off guard by the announcement.
"It was a surprise when he told us" said Boyd. "I just hope they get a good coach."
Peppers said that his decision to step down was mainly due to his desire to spend more time with his wife and family.
"I have mixed feelings about leaving. I'll miss it. I'll miss the kids. That's what you miss most. But I wanted to announce it now so they can get a search committee together and get the best coach," said Peppers, 54, who had a 1-19 record in two years as head coach.