The Jackrabbits opened 8-5A action last Friday night with a frustrating 61-21 loss to crosstown rival North Forney Falcons. City Bank Stadium was as packed as allowed by State of Texas and UIL mandates, with the bands and drill teams from each of the high schools seated behind the end zones and on the track. It was a loud, festive, hardhitting and exciting contest, but unfortunately the Rabbits couldn’t pull off a Unity Bowl win for this year.
The game opened quickly with the veteran Falcons, who are ranked #7 in the area, taking advantage of some good field position for a 21-0 lead by the end of the first quarter. The second quarter saw the young Jackrabbits make some progress as they struck back with a 65-yard pass from Noah Garcia to Braden Benjamin for a touchdown, followed by a North Forney miscue that the Rabbits turned into a 21 yard run for Jon’Richard Washington which brought a second touchdown. The Falcons turned a couple of interceptions into points and held the Jackrabbits scoreless for much of the remainder of the game until Garcia hit Benjamin again on a nice crossing route for a 35 yard touchdown at the end of the fourth quarter to wrap up the Rabbit scoring for the game.
Though seemingly lopsided, there were many bright spots defensively for Forney High School. Cade Crawford, Peyton Negri (sophomore), and Benji Ramirez each were responsible for a quarterback sack. Cannon Donlay continued his solid defensive line play by accounting for two solo tackles, two assisted tackles, a quarterback hit and was credited by his coaches for his extra effort. Defensive end Chase Berg had two tackles for losses, and Jack Mayhall continued to improve at defensive end. Dal Ndzishangong is quickly becoming a linebacker that offenses have to be concerned about this season. He recorded five assisted tackles and six solos on the night. Junior Caden Cross continued to make plays with a team high seven solo tackles. In the secondary, Josh Stephens tallied 4 and 4, Seth Hyder (freshman) added 3 and 4, and Jaden Belina-Ayers recorded 3 and 2 as well as a tackle for a loss. Freshman Elijah Merkson recorded 5 tack les as well as a pass breakup, and Aaron Flowers, also a freshman, recorded five tackles and made his very first varsity interception.
On offense, quarterback Noah Garcia also had a “first”. This was his first varsity start with the Jackrabbits, turning in a solid opening performance with 9 out of 16 for 112 yards and two touchdowns. Junior running back Jon’Richard Washington carried the ball 11 times for 69 tough yards and a touchdown. Senior Jayln Phillips added nine carries for 40 yards and blocked well through the night. But it was the senior wide receiver, Braden Benjamin, who led all receivers for the game with three catches for 106 yards and two touchdowns.
Wide receivers Brayden Kirkland and Andrew Gafford added two catches each on the night. Senior offensive lineman Adam Long played well upfront for the Jackrabbits, and junior Reece Mercer continued racking up pancake blocks from his left guard spot.
Cameron Newell continued to shine on kickoffs. He recorded another touch back and placed his kicks very well. Dylan Patrick also played well on kicking teams with several big hits and two tackles. Andrew Gafford, Brayden Kirkland, and Gage Simmons did a great job handling the return duties on kickoff. Each of these guys made sure the Rabbits secured the high pooch kicks and gave the team the best field positions they could get.
The Varsity Jackrabbits will travel to Corsicana this Friday, October 19th, for a 7:30 p.m. game. This game could go far in determining future playoff positions in the 8-5A race. Any Jackrabbit fans who are interested in making that trip can find ticket info on the team website, www.jackrabbitathletics. com. For anyone unable to attend in person, the game will also be livestreamed on sportsgram.net as in weeks past.
No matter how you keep up with the game, continue to root for your Forney Jackrabbits! This young team is becoming battletested, and they are improving daily. Remember, the Unity Bowl was just the first district game, and there is still a lot of Forney Jackrabbit football left to play in 2020!
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