Adam Fulton connected with Jacob Warren on a 30-yard touchdown pass with 2 minutes, 49 seconds remaining as Farragut High School’s football team outlasted visiting Bearden 28-27 on Friday at Bill Clabo Field.
Joe Doyle’s ensuing extra point gave Farraggut its only lead of the game. It’s the Admirals fourth consecutive victory over their biggest rival and their 17th win in the past 19 games in the series.
Fulton finished with four touchdowns, including passes of 6
yards and 43 yards to Jaden Gibbs. He also connected with Davis Simmons on a 41-yard TD pass as the Admirals rallied from a 20-point deficit in the first half.
His decisive pass to Warren came four plays after Bearden was stuffed on fourth-and-1 at the Farragut 9-yard line. The Bulldogs could have extended their lead to nine in the final minutes if they had instead kicked a field goal.
Fulton’s heroics overshadowed a stellar debut for Bearden freshman quarterback Collin Ironside, who threw four touchdown passes in his first start. His final pass attempt on fourth down was incomplete as Farragut survived.
Jordan Ferguson helped Bearden take control early, outjumping a Farragut defender on touchdown catches of 19 and 23 yards in the first half. He sparked another score by intercepting a Fulton pass in the end zone, before throwing a 38-yard pass to freshman London Stephney.
Ironside then connected with Stephney on a 45-yard TD pass two plays later. John Matthew Lee’s extra point was blocked as Bearden raced to 20-0 lead.
Fulton responded with second-quarter touchdown passes to Jaden Gibbs (6 yards) and Davis Simmons (41) to cut the deficit to 20-14.
Fulton pushed the Admirals to the Bearden 5-yard line in the final seconds but was sacked by Sam Coffin to end the half.
The game underscored a scary moment in the first half, when Farragut senior wide receiver/defensive back Alex Hazlewood was carted off via ambulance after making a special teams play. He laid still on the turf while trainers attended to him, but raised his right arm to the crowd before being transported to University of Tennessee Medical Center. He was released a short time later following the game.
Chris Thomas covers high school sports and is the prep sports editor for the Knoxville News Sentinel. Follow him at twitter.com/prepxtra
A special thanks to Carlos Reveiz of CRFOTO for the action shots from the game. Every week be sure to checkout CRFOTO.com 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.
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