Nicholson, MUS defense shut out Bartlett in season opener
Owls make statement by forcing six turnovers
Brandon Nicholson read the play the whole way.
He knew with the game almost at halftime and Memphis University School already leading by 31 points, Bartlett was going to put the ball in the air in search of any momentum.
Instead, Nicholson robbed Bartlett’s offense of any chance to score, getting an interception and returning it 37 yards for a touchdown, helping the Owls get a 37-0 win in their home opener Friday night at Stokes Stadium.
“Once I was able to get past the first defender, it was green grass ahead of me,” Nicholson said of his interception return. “It’s always fun to be able to get it to the end zone on defense.”
Before the interception, the final score of the game, Mahki Shaw had a 78-yard interception return for a touchdown.
It’s the statement MUS wanted to make in the first game of the season.
Nicholson, a Stanford football commit, said the Owls (1-0) played with a chip on their shoulder because they weren’t happy with where they were ranked entering Week 1. They wanted to prove they were better, especially playing a team that was ranked higher.
“Our defense is confident,” said Nicholson, the No. 4 player in The Commercial Appeal’s Dandy Dozen. “We’re a dominant unit and I’m just happy we were able to come out here and show it tonight.”
Part of why they’ll rely heavily on their defense is their experience. Along with Nicholson and Shaw, both seniors in the secondary, Hudson Shoaf returns for his senior season at linebacker, and junior TJ Mayes at safety as well.
As Bartlett (0-1) found out, MUS’ defense won’t be easy to play against this season.
“A bunch of great leaders coming
back from last year and just tenacity,” Nicholson said of what makes the Owls’ defense good.
They forced a fumble on the third play of the game and never looked back. They held Bartlett to 161 total yards and forced six turnovers.
“It’s a great start, but we’ve got to keep building on it, week by week,”
Nicholson said.
And it was the best way to honor Dion Stutts.
Friday night was the first game the Owls played since Stutts, a standout defensive lineman, died in a motor vehicle accident this summer. They honored him with his No. 62 decal on their helmets and No. 62 painted at midfield.
“That just only made us play harder,” Shaw said. “We had to prove that we still got it without him. We’re still playing through him and he’s still looking down on us.”
Reach Wynston Wilcox at wwilcox@gannett.com and on Twitter @wynstonw__.