NATCHEZ &045; There may not have been enough oxygen in all of Bobby Marks Stadium for Brock Vines after he went 73 yards for a touchdown at the start of the second half.

But hey &045; this he’ll remember.

It was the first game back for the Adams Christian halfback, who took a shot to the head in the jamboree and suffered a concussion. You can bet Friday night was memorable as he helped an Adams Christian running game pound Trinity Episcopal for a 30-20 victory.

It was the Rebels’ third win in as many meetings in the crosstown showdown.

&uot;I took a side shot to the head, and it messed me up for a while,&uot; Vines said. &uot;I didn’t know where I parked my truck or where my locker was. I felt like a little 3-year-old. I definitely felt like sitting out last week and not running any. I was definitely about to die in that first half, but in the second half I had to suck it up and go with it.&uot;

It was memorable for everyone on the Adams Christian side, not only for the win over the rival Trinity but for the controlling fashion on the offensive and defensive lines. The offense didn’t complete a pass &045; didn’t need to &045; but the offense went with its straight power game and finished with 401 yards on the ground.

The Rebels’ defense, meanwhile, contained Stevan Ridley for most of the game and held him out of the end zone until late in the third quarter. The Saints also lost three fumbles and threw an interception.

&uot;He made some beautiful runs, but we contained him real well,&uot; Adams Christian head coach Bobby Marks said. &uot;He’s just hard to get a hold of. I thought Trinity did a heck of a job, and I thought our kids did a heck of a job. It was a good show. David (King) and Matt (Mason) did a good job of getting them ready, but I thought we had more power than they did.&uot;

The defense picked it up late in the game and fell victim to three big plays that set up the Saints’ scores. But late in the game after Trinity cut the lead to 10, the Rebels brought the pressure on Ridley &045; who spent a good portion of the second half at quarterback &045; and kept the Saints off the scoreboard.

On the Saints’ second play of the fourth quarter Ridley had a long pass picked off by Timmy Foster. Ridley touched the ball each time on their next drive and moved the chains on a 15-yard run and a 7-yard pass to Tripp Bryant, but the Rebels pressured him on fourth down late and forced him to throw to an ineligible receiver to end the drive.

The Rebels kept doing late what they did most of the game &045; kept several bodies on Ridley and minimized the 1-on-1 situations.

&uot;Ridley is a very good running back, and it’s hard to one guy to take him down by himself,&uot; Vines said. &uot;They’ve got some other pretty good players, but he’s their main one. We were bringing the ends straight toward him, and our line was going for him. We pretty much covered him and let the strong safety cover everybody else, and that won the game.&uot;

The Rebels led 30-12 at one point in the third quarter after a Tel Faulkner touchdown, but the Saints got a 40-yard pass from Ridley to Bryant on first down to set up a Ridley 3-yard touchdown with 57 seconds left in the third.

Ridley finished the game with 105 yards on 30 carries.

&uot;AC just beat a very poor football team,&uot; Trinity head coach David King said. &uot;That’s all it amounts to. We’re not very good. I think we played hard. Ridley has a long way to go if he’s going to be as good as people think he is. He hasn’t stepped up and been a leader on this team. If we don’t find a leader by tomorrow morning, it’s going to be a long season. AC flat whipped us.&uot;

The other side of the ball was equally impressive for the Rebels, who just pouded away out of their double-tight T formation. Ten different backs carried the football, and Vines had the big play at the start of the second half with his 73-yard run for a score for a 21-12 lead at the 11:11 mark.

Foster booted a 29-yard field goal on the Rebels’ next possession, and the Vines recovered a fumble on Trinity’s next drive to give the offense the ball near midfield.

Eight plays later Faulkner ran it in from 2 yards out for a 30-12 lead with 3:08 left in the third.

The Rebels had to go with 10 players touching the ball after Eric Perry went down with a knee injury before half, David New cramped up late and Cole Bradford wasn’t 100 percent.

&uot;We’ve got to see,&uot; Marks said. &uot;If we run out of backs, I may have to go to an I (formation). I’d love to stay in that T formation and kill that clock. We were trying to keep the ball way from Ridley. Our offensive line is the strongest part of our team, and they work hard out there every day.&uot;

The Rebels got on the board first with two touchdowns in the first quarter. David New ran in from two yards out at the 3:44 mark for a 7-0 lead, and Simon Sullivan recovered a fumble on the Saints’ first play to give AC the ball at the Trinity 31.

New ran it in from a yard out six plays later for a 14-0 lead.

Ridley hit Clint Easom on a 24-yard touchdown pass to cut the lead to 14-6, and Matthew Freeman ran 39 yards for a touchdown to trim the lead to 14-12 at half.