The North Forney Falcons clung onto a win over Carrollton Newman Smith at City Bank Stadium in Forney, Texas, on Friday night, October 18, 2013.
The North Forney Falcons clung onto a win over Carrollton Newman Smith at City Bank Stadium in Forney, Texas, on Friday night, October 18, 2013.
The Falcons started off the game with a bang. The Newman Smith Trojans received the kickoff and in their first play of the game were intercepted by Armani Watts who returned the ball for a touchdown with only 8 seconds gone in the first quarter.
The Falcons forced a punt on the Trojans next possession and drove the ball 40 yards for another Falcons touchdown with 6:41 left in the first quarter. Newman Smith answered with their own long drive and 16-yard rushing touchdown by Garrett Browne.
The first quarter of the game ended with the Falcons in the lead, 14-7.
The Trojans tied the game with another Garrett Browne rushing touchdown in the second quarter with 7:45 left on the clock. A Falcons failed possession and a Trojans Davonte Galbert 11-yard rushing touchdown gave the Trojans their first lead in the game with 6:31 left on the clock in the second quarter.
The Falcons fumbled the kickoff return and lost it to the Trojans on their own 37-yard line. The Falcons held them until 4th down when the Trojans opted for a field goal which was completed by Hugo Acevedo from 29 yards.
North Forney was able to answer the Trojans touchdown and field goal with a touchdown of their own before the halftime whistle. Quarterback Hunter Herndon connected with Tyrone Morgan for a 46-yard touchdown pass to bring the score to North Forney 21, Carrollton Newman Smith 27 going into the half.
The scoring excitement wasn't over for the game but took awhile to regain momentum. The North Forney Falcons equalized the score with 5:28 left in the third quarter with an Armani Watts pass to Devon Harris for a 48-yard touchdown. The Falcons failed to complete the point after attempt for the 1 point lead.
Kicker Hunter McClain redeemed himself just 4 minutes later with an impressive 43-yard field goal to bring the Falcons back into the lead, 30-27.
North Forney continued their scoring early in the fourth quarter. Hunter Herndon connected with Armani Watts for a 37-yard passing touchdown with 10:47 left in the final quarter bringing the score to 37-27.
Carrollton wasn't able to answer those points until later in the fourth quarter with a Garrett Browne 27-yard touchdown pass to Keith Burse. The point-after kick was good and the Trojans were tracking only 3 points behind the Falcons with 3:51 left in the game.
The Falcons started what appeared to be their last drive of the night on their own 5-yard line. After two running plays and only 3 yards later the Falcons took a nail-biting timeout. When play resumed, QB Herndon could not complete a pass and the Falcons were forced to punt on their own 8-yard line.
The Falcons Robert Molina punted the ball 32 yards but the special teams received a 15-yard penalty. The Trojans now had the ball at the Falcons 25-yard line. The Trojans passed for a gain of zero yards but the Falcons defense was called on another 10-yard penalty, moving the ball to the Falcons 15 yard line and giving the Trojans another first down.
The score was North Forney 37 and Carrollton Newman Smith 34 with the Trojans 1st and 10 and the North Forney 15-yard line. On the Trojans next play, the Trojans fumbled the ball and the Falcons regained possession. The Falcons ran the ball and burned the clock to maintain a win by 3 points, North Forney 37 to Carrollton Newman Smith 34.
The win pushes the Falcons to 2-2 in District 10-4A and one step closer to playoff hopes. The Falcons are now tied for fourth with Carrollton Creekview in their district of eight teams.
The Falcons will next play as the home team against Forney High School at City Bank Stadium in Forney, Texas, for the Unity Bowl. North Forney is hoping for the win to take the trophy from the defending champions of the 1st annual Unity Bowl. Forney High School lost to Terrell High School at Terrell on Friday night, 35-28.