Ads battle back versus Maryville
But the game wasn’t without its hopeful sign for the Admirals.
FHS lost to the Rebels 42-17 to fall to 0-5 overall, 0-2 Region. But the Admirals’ aerial game was effective, as Noah Haag and Corbin Hobson combined for 226 yards, completing 14 passes on 28 attempts.
“We didn’t come out like we should have, taking control of the game early enough” Admirals’ coach Geoff Courtney said. “We put ourselves in a hole once again. But proud of our guys for battling back.”
“They threw the ball well,” said Derek Hunt, MHS coach. “They’re better than a winless record. Coach does a good job. They play us well; they’re hard to prepare for.”
Maryville built a 21-0 lead by the end of the first quarter, scoring on all three possessions. When FHS tried a fake punt early in the second on fourth and nine from its own 32, Haag’s pass was incomplete, and the Rebels were right back in business.
They needed but two plays to make it 28-0, the score coming on a 33-yard pass from Will Jones to Julian Douglas with 10:06 left in the half.
“We gotta execute it a little bit better,” Courtney said. “But at that point we’re already down three scores 14 minutes into the game. It is what it is.”
The Admirals’ offense finally got going on the ensuing possession. On third and four from their own 26, Haag hit Max Garfield on a slant over the middle, and Garfield took it to the end zone.
The half ended with MHS leading 35-10.
A score on the second half’s opening drive might have changed the game’s momentum for the Admirals, but a promising drive ended with a fumble and gave MHS the ball on its own 20.
On second down from the 26, Jones took it all the way on a keeper. The 42-10 score triggered the mercy-rule continuous clock, which continued the rest of the game.
The Admirals’ Ethan Farhat caught a 24-yard touchdown pass from Hobson late in the game to reach the final score.
FHS’s success through the air was countered by an equivalent difficulty running the ball. The Admirals could muster just 8 yards on the ground in the first half, 45 for the game on 23 carries.
“They’re a good defense,” Courtney said, “We’ve seen a lot of good things from different guys. We feel like we should be able to run the football eventually down here.
“We got a good football team; we gotta go back to work. We’ve got a big region game with Bearden … we gotta go get ready.”
The game between the archrivals is Friday night at Bearden.
