Farragut Scores 28 Unanswered to Beat Oak Ridge, 31-14

Watch as Varsity All Access Mic’d up Coach Courtney during the pregame speech and recaps the Admiral’s 31-14 victory over Oak Ridge.

The season is still young, but Farragut High School already appears to be in the driver’s seat in Region 3-5A.

Tanner OR — Tanner Thomas run for a long gain against Oak Ridge. PHOTO CREDIT: Carlos Reveiz, CRFOTO.com

The Admirals, trailing 14-3 midway through the second quarter, scored 28 unanswered points to shock top-ranked Oak Ridge, 31-14, Friday night at Farragut.

“I’m proud of our kids,” said Farragut coach Eddie Courtney.

“They’ve worked hard, they’re very unselfish and they play as a team.”

Senior running back Tanner Thomas ran for 187 yards on 25 carries to spark the Admirals (3-0, 1-0 Region 3-5A) on offense.

“With Tanner, it’s all about getting yards after contact,” said Courtney.

Cole & Cooper Tackle OR — Cole Strange makes a big tackle against Oak Ridge. PHOTO CREDIT: Carlos Reveiz, CRFOTO.com

Defensively, 6-foot-5, 252-pound end Cole Strange proved unblockable for Farragut, which has won eight of its last 10 games with Oak Ridge.

Junior wide receiver Tee Higgins got the Wildcats (2-1, 1-1) off to a fast start. Higgins hauled in touchdown passes of 37 and 15 yards from quarterback Jordan Dunbar as Oak Ridge led 14-3 with 8:16 to play in the first half.

Farragut struck back with a pair of devastating TDs in the final 2:53 as quarterback Jacob Naumoff found his groove.

Alex Tindal catches a TD pass just before halftime against Oak Ridge. PHOTO CREDIT: Carlos Reveiz, CRFOTO.com

Naumoff hit Cole Morgan and Alex Tindal on 4-yard touchdown tosses down the stretch.

Tindal’s grab came with 15.7 seconds to play in the first half, and gave Farragut a 17-14 edge — and the momentum.

“We had things rolling pretty well, but we just missed some opportunities to go up even further,” said Oak Ridge coach Joe Gaddis.

“They started having success on both sides of the ball, and things like this can happen.

The loss overshadowed another outstanding performance by Higgins, who committed to Tennessee last week.

The 6-foot-4 junior caught nine passes for 193 yards and had a 49-yard touchdown reception wiped off by a penalty.

Coach after OR game, Crowd — Coach Courtney address the team after a big win against Oak Ridge.

Courtney said his team must build on the big victory over the Wildcats.
“The implication is it’s in our hands, but we’ve got to take care of it,” said Courtney.

Students, Fans, and Families surround the Admirals after a huge win against Oak Ridge. — Students, Fans, and Families surround the Admirals to hear Coach Courtney’s message after a huge win against Oak Ridge.

Mike Blackerby is a freelance contributor for the Knoxville News Sentinel.

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.