FORNEY, Texas — The Forney Jackrabbits (5-0, 2-0) haven’t seen 5-0 in a few years. That is a distant memory after Friday night’s big win against the South Garland Colonels (0-5, 0-2) at Homer B. Johnson Stadium in Garland, Texas.
FORNEY, Texas — The Forney Jackrabbits (5-0, 2-0) haven’t seen 5-0 in a few years. That is a distant memory after Friday night’s big win against the South Garland Colonels (0-5, 0-2) at Homer B. Johnson Stadium in Garland, Texas.
Forney pushed their District record to 2-0 with the 48-14 victory, setting up a showdown next Friday at City Bank Stadium with the Poteet Pirates (4-1, 2-0). In the past two weeks, Poteet has upset two of the district’s top contenders — Rockwall-Heath and West Mesquite.
The Jackrabbits pounced early and gained a 14-point lead, courtesy of two touchdown passes from Luke Skipper to AJ Atnip, both from 13 yards out. South Garland closed the gap to 14-7 on an impressive drive in the second quarter led by quarterback Ashtyn Baker, who hit receiver Jerminic Smith with a 6-yard pass midway through the second quarter.
The Forney offense responded with a drive of their own that ended with a 1-yard run by Junior Quarterback Luke Skipper to push the halftime lead back to 14 points, 21-7.
All three phases of the Forney team came into play in the third quarter and put the game away. The scoring started with AJ Atnip who scored his third touchdown of the night on a 1-yard run after Chazz Slatinsky returned a punt 50-plus yards to inside the Colonels 5-yard line. The defense then took a turn and forced the Colonels back deep in their own territory for the second straight possession and Slatinsky finished what he began the previous return with a punt return of 65 yards for a touchdown.
Forney was able to play some backups after taking the 41-7 lead. Senior Quarterback Cory Marr and Junior Running Back Mylan Agent capped off another impressive night for the Jackrabbit offense with rushing touchdowns of their own. Those two scores accounted for the final 14 points of a 48 point night for Forney. The Jackrabbit defense was once again very stout only allowing 14 points from South Garland.
The Forney defense harassed Colonels Quarterback Ashtyn Baker all night long, only allowing him to complete 9 passes for a paltry 132 yards. Defensive Ends EJ Newman and Cameron Black led much of the pressure as they repeatedly got free around the edges. Senior Linebacker Blake Boyd had a nice game as well, with several sacks and tackles for loss as he cleaned up after much of the initial pressure was applied.
The Jackrabbits will need all three phases to click again if they hope to upset the Poteet Pirates at 7:30 p.m. on Friday night at City Bank Stadium.