BROWNSTOWN — Brownstown Central’s football team had a powerful ally against county rival Seymour on Friday night: Mother Nature.

Strong, gusting winds and driving rain made the night difficult for both squads, but Seymour’s passing game bore the brunt of the weather as the defense-led Braves blew away the Owls, 27-0.

The shutout was the first ever recorded by BC in the county showdown’s 24-game history. The series’ only other shutout was a 20-0 blanking by Seymour in 1971, the last year the two teams played each other before rebooting the rivalry 36 years later in 2007.

“I thought our defense played lights out,” Brownstown head coach Reed May said. “Coach (Clay) Brown called a great defensive game plan. (The weather) helped us quite a bit, obviously. It hurt them more than it did us. Luckily, our offense, we don’t have to throw the ball. I told our kids this morning, you can’t control the weather, you just gotta go out and play. I’m pleased. I mean, to win this game after losing two years in a row, I’m very proud of our kids and coaches.”

Seymour entered with a two-game winning streak against the Braves. But the opening kickoff portended a long night when senior Jaylan Johnson’s return, with featured the 6-foot-3 senior carrying multiple would-be tacklers 10 yards downfield, ended in a fumble that was recovered by BC’s Trevor Branaman.

That turnover was the beginning of a nightmarish first quarter that saw the Owls’ first three possessions end in giveaways. Following Johnson’s fumble, Seymour’s next two drives were cut short by a fumble recovered by Brock Dean at the Owls’ four-yard line and an interception by Evan Stahl at the Owls’ 20.

“Our turnovers gave them a short field. They played on our side of the field quite a bit,” Seymour head coach Tyson Moore said. “Obviously, with the downpour and the wind, it was hard to throw the football. The fact that we couldn’t run the football hurt us. We kind of went into panic mode early on, and that obviously never helps.”

Brownstown’s stingy defense, difficult to handle in any kind of weather, saw its effectiveness amplified by Friday’s conditions.

Seymour lost 38 yards due to fumbled snaps and handoffs, 14 yards due to sacks, 23 yards on rush attempts that were stopped behind the line of scrimmage and another seven yards on pass completions in which the receiver was tackled for loss.

In all, the Owls had 82 negative yards on 15 plays. They ended the game with just three total offensive yards on 44 plays.

“Our defense was really focused all week,” BC’s Gregory Hutcheson said. “We knew this was going to be a big game. Obviously, the weather helped us a lot, but we knew what we had to do, and we just came in here and did it. (Getting the shutout) was great because you know how much hard work you have to put into it.”

Hutcheson was the eye of the storm for Brownstown. Defensively, his tackle for loss on a fourth-and-2 Nick Wheeler run at midfield ended what to that point had been Seymour’s best drive.

Moments later, the senior ran for 24 yards on fourth-and-8 to give the Braves a first down at Seymour’s three-yard line. He then finished the drive with a touchdown run that swelled BC’s lead to 21-0 just before halftime.

Hutcheson ran for a game-high 86 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries. He currently leads Brownstown runners with 740 yards and 12 TDs in six games.

“(Hutcheson) just puts his head down and is a hard-nosed football player, which I love,” Brownstown quarterback Micah Sheffer said. “(Preston) Garrison doesn’t get enough credit (for Hutcheson’s success). He’s on the left side always blocking for him. And the left side of the offensive line, they always do a great job blocking for him as well.”

Sheffer had his best running game of the season, gaining 54 yards on 13 carries. Garrison added 37 yards, including a 30-yard run on third-and-11 in the fourth quarter that helped the Braves seal the game’s outcome.

In all, Brownstown finished with 236 offensive yards, 224 of them through its wind-resistant rushing attack.

Seymour’s Johnson, the focus of Brownstown’s defensive game plan, touched the ball just six times. Three of them were fourth-quarter rush attempts that yielded seven yards. The other three were kickoff returns for 57 yards. He was targeted by quarterback Mikey Wright six times, but none was completed.

“It wasn’t necessarily anything (Brownstown) did,” Moore said of Johnson. “We definitely tried to take some shots, we just couldn’t get it to him. It was just one of those nights. We just couldn’t get the ball out to him.”

Wright gamely fought the elements throughout and ended with four yards on 6-for-17 passing. Logan Shelly’s single reception for seven yards led the Owls’ receivers.

Brownstown’s first touchdown of the night came midway through the first quarter after Dean’s fumble recovery at Seymour’s four-yard line. The Owls’ defense held against the Braves’ first three attempts to punch the ball into the end zone.

On the fourth attempt, Hutcheson lined up in the quarterback position, took the snap and bullied his way in for the game’s first score with 6:37 to go in the first quarter.

BC extended its lead to 14-0 after an impressive nine-play, 67-yard drive ended on an eight-yard Jack Pace rushing touchdown.

Hutcheson’s second TD came with just 28 seconds on the first-half clock and sent the Braves into the locker room with a commanding 21-0 lead.

Seymour’s defense solidified after halftime, not allowing the Braves a second-half touchdown for the first time this season. The Owls forced punts on BC’s first two third-quarter drives and recovered a muffed punt by the Braves.

“Our kids showed maturity (in the second half),” Moore said. “At halftime, we talked about how we dug ourselves a hole and we can either try to dig out of it and make plays or we can sulk and coast. They played till the end.”

Denied access to the Owls’ end zone, the Braves instead got the first two field goals of the season from Nathaniel Conyer. The sophomore, who has made 35 of 42 extra points so far this season (83 percent), boomed a 25-yard kick with 1:37 left in the third quarter and then nailed a 29-yarder with 5:25 left in the game to bump the score to 27-0.

Friday’s victory strengthened Brownstown’s record against Seymour since the series restarted in 2007. The Braves are 10-8 during that stretch. When the 1966-71 games are included, the Owls hold a 14-10 overall advantage in the rivalry.

With three shutouts on the season, Brownstown’s record improved to 6-0 with games against Madison, Scottsburg and Silver Creek coming up.

“The back end of our schedule is looking tougher,” May said. “Madison is a lot better than they were last year. And Scottsburg’s on a roll right now. It’s good, it’ll prepare us for the tournament.”

Seymour, meanwhile, slipped to 2-4 on the season and faces contests with Jennings County, New Albany, and Bloomington South to close out the regular season.

Braves 27, Owls 0

Seymour (2-4);0;0;0;0;—;0

Brownstown Central (6-0);7;14;3;3;—;27

First quarter

BC-Gregory Hutcheson 2 run (Nathaniel Conyer kick), 6:37

Second quarter

BC-Jack Pace 8 run (Conyer kick), 9:26

BC-Hutcheson 3 run (Conyer kick), :28

Third quarter

BC-Conyer 25 field goal, 1:37

Fourth quarter

BC-Conyer 29 field goal, 5:25

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing: Seymour-Jaylan Johnson 3-7, Traysean Hawkins 2-4, Nick Wheeler 5-(-3), Mikey Wright 17-(-9), Totals 27-(-1). Brownstown-Hutcheson 15-86, Micah Sheffer 13-54, Preston Garrison 9-37, Pace 9-36, Trevor Branaman 2-6, Brock Dean 1-3, Evan Stahl 1-2, Totals 50-224.

Passing: Seymour-Wright 6 for 17, 4 yards, 1 interception. Brownstown-Sheffer 1 for 3, 12 yards.

Receiving: Seymour-Logan Shelly 1-7, Hawkins 3-3, Alexx Milliken 2-(-6). Brownstown-Easton Branaman 1-12.