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Detroit Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown walks off the field after an NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Sunday, Dec. 4, 2022, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)AP
HART – The Hart varsity football team was preparing to take on the Fremont Packers on Friday night in a critical West Michigan Conference battle when their head coach, Joe Tanis, showed them a video.
Detroit Lions star wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown knows a thing or two about beating the Packers and the 23-year-old USC product took to Cameo, a video-sharing website that allows celebrities to send personalized video messages to fans, to give the Pirates a pep talk before their big game.
“I heard you guys have a big year coming up and I know you guys are ready to attack the storm. Your head coach is getting you guys right and I heard you guys have been dedicated to the weight room this whole offseason.
“I heard you guys have a game coming on Aug. 25 against the Fremont Packers and you know how I feel about the Packers. We don’t like the Packers around here, so I expect the same from you guys. At the end of the day, it’s up to you guys, the players, to make that whole thing run. Have fun, enjoy it, and beat the Packers.”
Hart used the motivational pep talk to their advantage, as they responded to a quick score from Fremont with a scoring drive of their own to take an 8-6 lead midway through the first quarter. Both defenses made adjustments from that point on, however, and the game ended with a 2-point victory for the Pirates.
Joseluis Andaverde rushed for 81 yards and one touchdown on 20 carries to lead the Hart offense, while Connor Edwards was 1-for-6 passing for 10 yards and rushed 12 times for 42 yards and Eman Hertzler rushed for 21 yards and added one reception for 10 yards.
Ty Schlukebir, Ty Thomas and Joaquin Flores each registered eight tackles to lead the Hart defense.
Talen Reichert-Slater was 5-for-15 passing for 79 yards to lead the Fremont offense, while Connor Pettis added 53 yards rushing on eight carries, Owen Hertel had 49 yards and one touchdown on 13 carries and caught four passes for 57 yards, Asa Barnhard had 43 yards rushing on nine carries and Khai Noordyk had 40 yards rushing on eight carries.
Owen Hertel and Asa Barnhard each registered eight tackles to lead the Fremont defense, while Kyle Nagel and Connor Pettis each had six tackles.
Hart (1-0) will host White Cloud (1-0) next week, while Fremont (0-1) will travel to Beaverton (1-0).
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