Going for their fourth win in the last five games against their crosstown rivals and looking to give Head Coach Eric Luster a win in his first Unity Bowl at the helm of North Forney, the Falcons faced off against the Forney Jackrabbits at City Bank Stadium last Friday night.
Both teams entered the game at 1-2, with each looking to snap their two-game losing streaks. This edition of the Unity Bowl showcased two teams with new coaches wanting to put their stamp on both their programs, and the game itself. What the game lacked in offense, it made up for in solid defensive from both teams, as the Falcons fell to the Jackrabbits, 15-7.
The Falcons, playing without two of their top young wide receivers, faced a steeper uphill climb after starting left tackle, Jake Schwartz, was helped off the field with an injury early in the second quarter. Following a week three loss to the 5A-D1 Brewer Bears, where they managed only 250 total yards, North struggled to gain just 141 against Forney.
While the Falcons seemed to be outplaying the Jackrabbits at the half, they could not find any offensive consistency or momentum in the second half.
For the North Forney defense, it was a completely different story. Although they spent nearly 18 of the 24 second half minutes on the field, with the Jackrabbits’ average start near midfield, the Falcons’ defense gave up only 10 points in the half, an 11-yard strike from quarterback Jake White to Alijah Merkson with just under two minutes left in the third quarter and a 25-yard field goal as time ran out in the quarter.
Falcons quarterback Michael Phillips completed 6-of-17 passes for 72 yards on the night. A second quarter connection with wide receiver DeMarques Taylor accounted for 51 of those yards and the Falcons’ only score against the Jackrabbits. That touchdown gave North Forney a 7-3 lead that they carried into the locker room at halftime.
Phillips, who faced pressure from Forney’s front seven all night, ended the night with two interceptions, one a diving catch by Forney’s Seth Hyder, and the second by linebacker Tanner Howland, who stepped in front of the receiver near the line of scrimmage for the pick. Phillips was also tagged with a fumble on the Falcons’ final offensive play of the game on what looked like an incomplete forward pass.
Falcons’ running back Trey Jones carried the ball 11 times for 44 yards to lead North Forney in rushing. Taylor’s 53 yards on two catches paced the Falcons’ receivers.
On the Forney side, White completed seven passes on 19 attempts, for 76 yards. He had one touchdown and threw a first quarter interception, an overthrow that was picked off by Falcons’ defensive back, Marquis Edwards.
Jon’Richard Washington and Tyler Pruitt led the Forney backfield with 52 and 51 yards respectively, while White had 43 yards on the ground. Merkson’s 41 receiving yards topped Jackrabbits’ receivers.
The Jackrabbits took a 3-0 lead with 43 seconds left in the first quarter when Braden Merchant’s 41-yard field goal skipped off the top of the crossbar and through the goal posts.
It stayed 3-0 until Phillips, who took a big hit as he threw the ball, found Taylor in the right flat. Taylor adjusted to the ball, fighting his way back to make the catch, before outracing the defense for the go-ahead touchdown. The score, with 3-1/2 minutes gone in the second quarter would give the Falcons their only lead of the game.
The final points of the game were scored on a safety by the Jackrabbits’ defense with four minutes gone in the fourth quarter.
The loss drops the Falcons to 1-3 overall and 0-1 in district play. They will head to Crandall for another attempt at their first district win Friday night. Game time is 7:30pm.
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