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Everyone entering Friday night’s showdown between Oakland and CPA expected Craig Tutt to have some sort of impact on the outcome of the game.
That came to fruition as the four-star Ole Miss pledge scored twice on the night to pace the Oakland offense. However, Tutt was far from alone.
The addition of Columbia transfer Justis Haggard once again gives the Patriots a deadly one-two backfield punch. The bond they built on and off of the field was on full display Friday night as the duo scored three times in a 28-14 win over the defending two-time DII-AA champions.
“This has been a process for sure coming from Columbia,” Haggard said. “It’s been a challenge and it’s pushed me but that’s why I came to Oakland. I came to be pushed.
…Craig helped me move in when I got here and we’re tight. He was taking me to practice when I needed a ride and we’ve been training together. It’s definitely been a good thing being around him.”
A tale of two halves
Everyone expected a physical game from the start and that’s exactly what the Patriots (1-0) and Lions (0-1) gave them.
Early on it was CPA receiver and Alabama commitment Owen Cabell who looked like he would steal the spotlight. Cabell scored the first touchdown of the night and again later in the half as the teams would just exchange touchdowns through the first 24 minutes.
That production would be limited in the second half though as Tutt and the Patriots defense locked the Lions offense down.
Watching his new teammate and best friend establish a punishing ground game to control the clock, Tutt was all smiles once the final horn went.
“That’s my brother,” Tutt said. “He came here to get a championship and that’s what we are going to do.”
What’s scary for future opponents is figuring out what the duo will accomplish once they’re both back to full health.
Tutt got banged up early in the game but was still able to close things out with some key plays on both sides of the ball. As for Justis, he was also able to make some key contributions despite not being at 100%.
“Craig played really well on defense, and we had to take him back on offense to finish the deal for us,” Oakland head coach Kevin Creasy said. “Justis is still recovering from an injury and should be fine in time. They should be a good one-two punch.”
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