The Admirals returned home on Friday night to take on Bearden in the annual Battle for West Knoxville. Both teams carried a 2-1 region record into the game and were looking for the driver’s seat for a home playoff home.
The Admirals won the toss and elected to receive the opening kickoff, looking to establish an early lead. A 42-yard Alec Keathley run proved to be the spark Farragut needed and led to a 12-yard Gavin Wilkinson to Hunter Shopovick touchdown pass. After a mishandled snap on the XP attempt, the Admirals led 6-0 with 7:38 left in the first quarter. The Farragut defense opened the game looking to build on the momentum created by the offense’s touchdown. After giving up one first down, the Admiral defense held strong on 3rd-and-6 to force a Bulldog punt.
An 8-yard Gabe Hensley run on first down looked to be a catalyst for another scoring drive, but a penalty on 3rd down backed the Admirals up and force a Farragut punt. The Admiral defense returned to the field looking to build on their last series. This time, a goal line stand would be in order, as the Admirals stopped the Bulldogs three straight play for no gain. Those three stops by Eli Purcell, Dylan Cosey, and Andrew Doane, gave the ball back to the Farragut offense as the first quarter came to a close.
With their back’s against the wall, the Admiral offense looked to march 97 yards for another touchdown. However, they were unable to establish their run game and a had to punt it away. The ensuing Bulldog drive proved to be more of the same for the Admiral defense, as a three and out gave the ball back to the Admiral offense. After picking up a pair of first downs, the Admirals were unable to convert on 3rd-and-8, forcing another punt. Bearden’s offense would put together their best drive of the night to that point, but were unable to convert it into points, as the Bulldogs missed a 36 yard attempt. The score at halftime remained 6-0 in favor of Farragut.
The Admiral defense returned in the 2nd half looking to continue the shutout. The Bearden offense found a spark after two big pass completions, but the Admiral defense would hold strong yet again, with Eli Purcell coming up with a minus yard tackle, a reverse was stopped by Dawson Brown and Joe Maine, and finally a Alec Keathley came up with a big sack on 4th-and-9 to kill the Bulldog drive. The ensuing Farragut possession looked promising after a 21-yard Eli Purcell run on 2nd down, but a fumble on the next play stopped the drive. The Bearden offense took over and marched down the field, but found themselves in a familiar 4th and long situation, but this time they were able to convert with a 31-yard touchdown pass. This gave the Bulldogs their first lead of the game at 7-6 with 3:21 left in the 3rd. The Admiral offense looked to answer the Bulldog score and a 15-yard Alec Keathley run on first down helped jumpstart the drive.
Keathley found himself at quarterback on 3rd-and-4 and an eleven yard run would allow the Admirals to convert. Five plays later a 28-yard Gabe Hensley touchdown run, and a Gavin Wilkinson to Alec Keathley conversion on the 2-point play, gave the lead back to Farragut 14-7 at the end of the 3rd quarter.
Farragut’s defense returned to the field looking to defend it’s lead and did just that, forcing another Bearden punt. The ensuing drive for the Admirals looked promising after a 23-yard Gavin Wilkinson to Alec Keathley pass completion, but a fumble two plays later ended the Farragut drive. Bearden’s offense returned to the field looking to capitalize on the Farragut mistake and tie the game.
After marching down to the Admiral 31-yard line, an Eli Purcell sack fumble on 4th-and-10 was recovered by Alec Keathley with 2:54 left to play. The Admiral offense took over looking to pick up a couple first downs and run the clock out. They did just that after an 8-yard Gabe Hensley run on 3rd-and-5 sealed the 14-7 victory for the Admirals.
The victory over Bearden lifted the Admirals to 4-4 on the season and 3-1 in region play. It also gave the Admirals the driver’s seat to a home playoff game in the first round. The Admirals are on the road next week as they take on another rival and region foe, Hardin Valley.
A special thanks to Carlos Reveiz and Ashley Wathen of CRFOTO for the action shots from the game. Be sure to checkout CRFOTO.com every week for a full photo gallery from Friday’s game. See a photo you like? They are also available for purchase directly from his website. Click here for this week’s photos.