Ads sink Dawgs in rivalry battle
With five minutes, 20 seconds left in Farragut’s annual region rivalry matchup with Bearden, the junior tailback stretched across the goal line and landed in the east end zone.
After a 20-yard field goal from Caleb Bell and an interception from Easton Lear to put Farragut in prime field position, Haag’s TD all but secured the Admirals’ 10-0 victory on Friday, Sept. 25, in their first victory of the 2026 season.
Shawn Raines’ interception of Bearden tailback Paxton Parrott on the next drive put the game away for good, and the ensuing victory formation cued up a field-storming to celebrate the Ads’ sixth win over the Dawgs in the last eight tries.
With the victory, FHS now leads the series 44-24.
“We knew it was going to be a four-quarter war — that’s what this game always is,” Farragut coach Geoff Courtney said amidst the chaos. “There’s been times where they’ve been better than us, times we’ve been much better than them, and it’s always come down to the fourth quarter.
“Two 0-5 teams coming in tonight, and look at this place. Our crowd, their crowd, a big game that’s important to both communities. We knew we’d have to continue to make plays into the fourth quarter and they continued to do that.”
Indeed Farragut did, overcoming a rough start in the process. FHS turned the ball over on its first play from scrimmage, one of two interceptions on the night.
But Bearden proved unable to capitalize, as both teams traded possessions throughout the first half.
Finally, with 6:09 left in the third quarter, Bell’s kick
broke the stalemate to cap a 12-play, 65-yard drive that was aided by a Bulldog personal foul penalty.
Self-inflicted wounds continued to hamper both teams into the fourth quarter, as a Parrott run was called back going into the final frame.
Two plays later, Lear leaped for the play of his freshman year by snagging an Aidan Thacker pass and returning it 36 yards to the Bearden 34-yard-line.
The drive looked as if it might fizzle out, but Elijah Sadler turned a 3rd-and-11 into a gain of 12 before Haag took four of the next five carries.
The last one ended in a game-icing score on what Haag called “the best feeling I’ve had as a football player.”
“He did not want to come out of the game,” Courtney added of Haag. “Our guys kept wanting to run behind our offensive line, and with three seniors, those guys did a great job. We needed to punch it in and stretch out that lead, and Brenton has been the bell cow so he wanted it.”
Haag’s night ended with 17 carries for 43 yards and the score, while Cruz Williams took the ball as many times for 69 yards.
Bearden made one more push, driving 68 yards to reach the Admiral 5-yard-line.
But when Parrott rolled out to pass on a trick play, Raines made an interception to go with his nine tackles. That tied Dylan Parks for most on the night.
“In position, doing their job, playing with depth,” Courtney said of Raines and Lear alike. “We got pressure on the one, and that forced him into throwing the ball underneath. Our defense has made plays all year.
“Everyone knows our schedule, and we’ve been up against some tall tasks and a lot of those guys are undersized. We were without Mason Swor tonight too, and hopefully we’ll get him back. Carter stepped in tonight: Easton stepped in some dime package stuff — they just made plays.”
Conversely, the moment encapsulated a tough night for a Bearden offense that proved unable to reach the end zone against Farragut’s front.
“Our guys played their tail ends off,” Dawgs coach Brad Taylor said. “Just a couple self-inflicted wounds offensively, and we’ve got to fix that. Really proud of a lot of guys who played really hard; we just have to be able to get it into the end zone. Hats off to Farragut — I know
that’s big for them, so congratulations.”
Going forward, Bearden will look to regroup against Oak Ridge this week. Meanwhile, Farragut has a quick turnaround with a Rivalry Thursday matchup against Hardin Valley.
