Red Devils improve to 2-0 after 28-6 win at Phillips

The Vina High School varsity football team (2-0, 1-0) took care of business again on Friday night, traveling to Bear Creek to dispatch the Phillips High School Bears (0-2, 0-1) by a score of 28-6 as the Red Devils picked up their first Class 1A Region 7 win of the 2024 campaign.

“I don’t think there was any sort of lack of motivation throughout the week this past week to prepare for Phillips,” Vina’s second-year head coach Cody Renfrow said. “It was a game last year that we felt got away from us. Our players understood that, and our coaches did a great job of getting everyone prepared and that definitely showed.”

Senior running back Trevor Baker, last week’s Franklin Free Press Athlete of the Week, opened up the scoring in the first quarter with a five-yard touchdown run that capped an eight-play drive. The Red Devils added to their advantage in the second quarter with a similar drive, once again finished off by a touchdown sprint by Baker, this one from six yards out. Vina closed out the first half with a touchdown run by another senior running back, Cai Lawler, to give the visitors a three score advantage at the break.

“Offensively we came out of the gates strong,” Renfrow said.

“Our guys came ready to play from the opening snap, and I’m extremely proud of them,” he added.

In the second half, Vina scored again to take a 28-0 lead with Phillips’ lone consolation touchdown coming with less than five minutes to play. The Red Devils’ final points were scored by senior quarterback Christian McCarley, a player that stood out to Renfrow for his performance in the final 24 minutes.

“He really stepped up in the second half. We faced a little bit of adversity when we had some guys banged up,” Renfrow said. “He took on a much larger role offensively in the second half. He ended up with 127 yards rushing and added a touchdown, as well. He also had an interception on defense that was pretty big for us.”

The win over Phillips marks the Red Devils first victory over the Bears since 2019 and Vina’s first 2-0 start to a season since 2016. Renfrow said these are feats to celebrate but no reason to rest on their laurels to this point. The Red Devils still have plenty of work to do, he said.

“It’s great to get 1-0 in the region. It’s a big win for our program, and it’s great to open up 2-0 for the first time in a long time. It’s exciting and it’s an exciting time to be a part of this program, but at the same time, we know there’s still more out there that can be achieved,” Renfrow said. “We’re proud of where we’re at, but we also know there’s a lot more work ahead of us.”

Next Friday the Red Devils host their next region opponent in Shoals Christian at Franklin-Hester Stadium. It will be another great opportunity for Vina to build on what it’s accomplished so far, Renfrow said, but the Red Devils will have to keep on top of their preparation if they want to continue their current success.

“We’re looking forward to Shoals Christian this Friday night, and that’s another big region game for us, so I don’t think it’s any time to relax,” he said. “Our message is going to be the same one that it’s been the last few weeks. We’ve got to establish the run, which I feel like we’ve done a pretty good job of so far this season. Defensively we’ve gotten so much better between week one and now. But really we’ve got to stay focused and not get too caught up in being 2-0 for the first time in a long time.

“Right now’s not the time to say we’ve won two games for the first time in a while and be satisfied with that,” he added. “We want to go be 3-0, we want to be 2-0 in the region, so we’ve got to make sure our guys stay focused and understand that there’s more out there that can be accomplished.”