Pucker Up Close Your Eyes Kiss Your Winning Streak Goodbye
The message on the breakaway banner the cheer team had made was clear, even though it had been split in two after the Forney football team raced through it during their entrance: the Jackrabbits were there on a mission.
As the highest-ranked team in the school’s history (16th, now 12th, in the state and 2nd in the district), the Jackrabbits were making their first semifinal trip in over two decades. The Royals had a breakout season as well, with the most wins in school history (a perfect 12-0 record) and were vying for their second fourth-round appearance in program history. Both Forney and Richland had extremely high stakes in the game, and losing would mean the end of their best seasons ever.
Although the Rabbits were expected to win, the Royals didn’t intend to make things easy, as shown by the Royals defense holding sophomore running back Javian Osborne to 4 yards and senior quarterback Kyle Crawford to one on the first two downs. Despite the fact that Royal junior defensive back Brayden Riffle had both arms around him, senior wide receiver Kofi Eduful caught Crawford’s 7-yard ball for another first down. Even after a fiveyard penalty, Osborne took advantage of the opportunity to score, sprinting 56 yards to the endzone for a touchdown with less than three minutes remaining, and senior kicker Asher Wall put the Rabbits up 7-0. The Royals now had the ball but lacked the Rabbits’ tenacity, failing to score despite having three first downs (the second credited to four-star junior running back Michael Turner’s 23-yard run to the Jackrabbit 45, and the third due to a 5-yard penalty against Forney). After two incomplete passes ended Richland’s possession, it was Forney’s time to score. The Royals defense, however, now had their sights set on Osborne, as Royal junior linebacker Roddrick Roberts held Osborne to
a net yardage of 3 yards across three downs (5 positive, 2 negative), putting the ball back into Royal hands. But the Darkside Defense stepped up, with Rabbit junior linebacker Kelvion Riggins holding Turner to 3 yards, senior defensive back Joshua Gatlin influencing an incomplete pass, and senior defensive back Aaron Flowers preventing Turner from rushing to the endzone. However, with 1:17 remaining in the first quarter, senior quarterback Drew Kates connected with Xaver Johnson for 15 yards to the Rabbit 0. With 1:10 left in the first quarter, a missed PAT run put the Royals slightly behind at 6-7. But the quarter wasn’t finished until after Eduful caught Crawford’s pass, bringing the score to 14-7 (after Wall’s kick).
The Jackrabbits had a big second quarter, putting up 33 points with six possessions. The Royals failed to score on their opening possession, and the Rabbits provided a masterclass, with Crawford completing two big throws for 43 yards to senior wide receiver Ben Perin and 36 yards to Eduful. Eduful’s reception put the Rabbits at the Royals’ 1, but a 5-yard penalty sent them back to the 6. Osborne gained 4 yards on the ground and 0 yards on the ground against a desperate Royal defense. He did, however, get by them on third down for a 2-yard score, and Wall’s kick put the Rabbits up 21-6 with 8:12 left in the first. Junior linebacker Bryce Lott, senior linebacker Kellen Wolverton, and senior defensive back Seth Hyder all stopped the Royal offense, and the ball was back in Rabbit hands in less than 30 seconds. Despite another 5-yard penalty, Crawford’s deep pass to junior wide receiver Orin Gee, who received the ball at the 35 and sprinted 81 yards to the endzone, gave the Rabbits another 6 points. Following that, senior linebacker Jaxon Barwick recovered the ball for the Rabbits, and sophomore wide receiver Imari Jehiel found senior Alijah Merkson for a 45-yard throw into the endzone for a 34-6 score. After losing a yard (due to Rabbit senior defensive lineman Tristan Bennet and junior linebacker Xzavier Young) and an incomplete pass (thanks to Royal junior wide receiver Deon Jones completing a 27-yard catch in the endzone), the Royals eventually scored. With 5:02 remaining in the second quarter, Royal freshman kicker Beck Spivey converted an extra point to make the score 34-13. The game rapidly swung back and forth, with Osborne rushing for 6 yards to push the Rabbits to the 49-yard line and Eduful breaking a tackle and running to the endzone after catching Crawford’s pass at the 20. Wall put Forney at 41–13. The Royals counboth tered with a touchdown of their own when Turner caught Kates’ vertical pass, making multiple defenders miss and breaking through multiple barriers to get to the endzone. With 3:23 remaining, senior kicker Keaton Soltis put the score at 41-20. Neither Forney nor Richland scored on their subsequent drives; however, following Bennett’s deflection out of Kates’ hands, the Rabbits scored another possession, a fumble recovery by the defense. A 6-yard pass to Eduful put the Rabbits up 47-20, capping off a strong first half for the Rabbits.
After halftime, the Royals came out swinging, scoring on their first possession. Turner dived over the defense for a touchdown, and Spivey’s kick made the score 47-27 within the opening two minutes of the fourth after Johnson’s 45-yard catch put the Royals’ offense at the 1-yard line. Neither side scored for the remainder of the third quarter, but defenses played well. Osborne was stopped for a loss of three yards by Royals linebackers senior Ty McFarland and junior Brayden Johnson. Roberts broke up Crawford’s QB scramble for a 6-yard loss, defensive lineman Brandon Merino stopped Osborne for a 2-yard gain, and junior defensive back Cam’ron Jones tackled Merkson and caused an incomplete catch. On the Jackrabbit’s side, Hyder forced Jones out of bounds, Flowers stopped Turner, and they both made another tackle each after that. Bennett stopped Kates just short of a first down. Crawford began their final third-quarter possession with three consecutive first-down passes to Merkson, Gee, and Perin, demonstrating the potency of the Jackrabbit offense. Osborne raced for 35 yards for a touchdown, and Wall extended the Rabbits’ lead to 54-27. To add insult to injury, Gatlin retrieved a fumble for 16 yards, thus ending the Royals’ possession, and Osborne carried for 7 yards for another touchdown. After junior running back Kenyan Long raced for 7 yards (but Young blocked Soltis’ kick) and Kates rushed for 4 yards (and Spivey’s kick was good), the Royals added two more touchdowns, but their efforts were ineffective as the game ended 61-40.
Following a huge upset, the Lancaster Tigers defeated the Longview Lobos (who were ranked first in the district) 27-24 at City Bank Stadium, ensuring that the Rabbits will face the Tigers again in the Regional Final. The last time the two teams met, Forney triumphed in overtime by one point. Although Forney is predicted to win, the results of the previous week’s games have demonstrated that anything may happen. The Jackrabbits, on the other hand, are looking forward to facing the Tigers again and keeping their sights set on the prize: the program’s first state championship title.
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