Farragut and Oak Ridge, an annual rivalry for over 20 years, met at Blankenship field on Friday night.

Farragut, last year’s region champion, scored 16 unanswered points in the second quarter to take a 16-10 lead to the half.

But Oak Ridge scored the first 17 points of the second half, with Jordan Graham’s 79-yard touchdown run with 9:20 to play proving to be the clincher.

Farragut’s defense smothered the Oak Ridge sophomore for most of  the game, but Graham (12 carries, 132 yards) ran for 120 yards in the final quarter.

“He (Graham) hurt us with the long run,” said Farragut coach Eddie Courtney.

“But I commend our kids. They had a chance at the end. They just ran out of time.”

Oak Ridge quarterback Johnny Stewart (12 of 21, 205 yards) sparked the Wildcats.

Stewart hit Clemson commitment Tee Higgins with a 17-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter and hooked up with Caleb Martin on a 14-yard scoring toss in the third quarter.

Higgins had six grabs for 97 yards for balanced Oak Ridge, which totaled 418 yards (213 rushing, 205 passing).

Kicker Carson McGhee booted field goals of 32, 37 and 22 yards for the Wildcats.

Farragut quarterback Adam Fulton connected on 17 of 27 passes for 161 yards and ran for another 67 yards on 14 attempts.
Fulton hooked up with Davis Simmons and Jacob Warren on

touchdown passes of 16 and 6 yards, respectively.

Farragut kicker Joe Doyle, who was selected this week to play in the Under Armour All-America Game on Jan. 1, 2017, made field goals from 33 and 22 yards.

Admirals running back Amon Johnson (16 carries, 120 yards) added a 5-yard touchdown run with 45.6 seconds to play, but Kyndall Clark recovered the ensuing onside kick to seal the victory for Oak Ridge.

 

Mike Blackbery is a contributor for the Knoxville News Sentinel. Read his work at PrepXtra.com.

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.

OFFICIAL GAME STATS 

**Click to Enlarge**

By Chris Thomas of the Knoxville News Sentinel

Forgive Farragut High School’s football team for looking ahead.

The Admirals, who open Region 3-5A play against region favorite Oak Ridge next week, played lethargically from the outset on Friday. Dropped passes prevented the Admirals from becoming proficient on offense.

Early penalties — and an inspired Gibbs team that was far more physical —also plagued their progress.

But the Admirals finished with a flurry.

Farragut scored the game’s final 24 points to rally past host Gibbs 31-21 in a non-region game. Senior quarterback Adam Fulton

completed just 9-of-22 passes for 160 yards, but his two touchdowns in the third quarter — including a 56-yarder to Braden Collins (101 yards) — helped the Admirals erase a 21-7 deficit in the second half.

“We weren’t focused in this game, I knew it in the pregame we were too relaxed,” said Farragut coach Eddie Courtney. “I knew it in pregame. That’s a good football team. They run the football; they’re physical.”

Farragut (2-0) romped then-No. 1 Oak Ridge 31-14 in their Region 3-5A opener last season, a statement win in its run to the region title. The winner of that game has produced the region champion the past two seasons.

A repeat is the goal, and Courtney hopes Friday’s nail-biter serves as a wake-up call. The Admirals trailed 14-7 at halftime and 21-7 after Demarcus Hight’s 6-yard touchdown run with 7 minutes, 29 seconds remaining in the third quarter.

Fulton threw touchdown passes to Davis Simmons (3 yards) and

Collins (56 yards) to tie the game by the end of the third. Joe Doyle’s 34-yard field goal gave Farragut, penalized 12 times for 90 yards, its first lead with 3:47 left in the fourth.

Amon Johnson and Cooper Hardin had 3-

yard TD runs for the Admirals, which gained momentum when Hardin returned a Hight fumble 37 yards to set up Doyle’s go-ahead kick. It was Gibbs’ only turnover of the game.

“I have to commend (our guys): they came back and made it happen in the fourth quarter,” Courtney said. Gibbs (0-2), which rushed for 317 yards, outgained Farragut 144-127 in the first half, gashing the Admirals’ defense with long runs on both of its scoring drives. Dalton Rodgers (91 yards) scored two touchdowns, and backup quarterback Kolby

Mundt (72 yards) provided a spark in place of starter H.T. Fortner (high-ankle sprain). Hight finished with 99 yards rushing.

 

 

The Eagles committed eight turnovers in Week 1.

“I don’t know what it is about our kids,” Gibbs coach Brad Conley said, “but the kids in this program didn’t give up. We’re not into moral victories. Those kids believed they were going to win this game.”

Chris Thomas is the high school sports editor for the Knoxville News Sentinel. Read his work at PrepXtra.com.

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.

OFFICIAL GAME STATS 

**Click to Enlarge**

Tweet

Farragut High School entered the 2016 season with a familiar foe on its schedule.

Powell is the only team the Admirals play this year that appeared on Farragut’s first season schedule back in 1948. The Admirals went on to win that game 24-2.

After routing Powell last season, it was much of the same Friday night as the Admirals dominated the Panthers 55-6 in the opening game of the season.

Admirals coach Eddie Courtney said after the game he was pleased with the Admirals’ effort.

“I challenged (the team) all week that we had to come out and be explosive, and we did that,” Courtney said. “I was proud of the way we did. We got a punt return, got a couple of interceptions, got a great long pass completion … We just jumped on them early and our kids just took advantage of it.”

It was Farragut running back Amon Johnson that helped the Admirals pull away from the Panthers early. Johnson scored the first touchdown of the season, and first on the new field turf at Bill Clabo Stadium, for the Admirals in the first quarter on a 9-yard cutback run to the right. A 1-yard run and a 13-yard gash capped off Johnson’s performance.

Running back/linebacker Cooper Hardin, who went down with a knee injury in the first half, said that he looks to Johnson to take some of the offensive load off of him when he comes out of the game.

“It’s great because now I can go focus on defense and whenever he’s gassed, I can go give him a couple of plays,” Hardin said. “It’s a lot of load off me and off the coaches knowing he’s in there and he can make the plays.”

Hardin also said after the game that his “knees buckled” and the injury wasn’t serious.

Johnson’s other two first quarter touchdown runs and a pick-six
from Drew Butler gave the Admirals a 28-0 lead after one quarter, and Farragut didn’t look back from there.

The Admirals will take on Gibbs next week at Gibbs High School. It’s the first time since the 1970s that Farragut has visited the Eagles.

Trenton Duffer  is a freelance contributor for the Knoxville New 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.

OFFICIAL GAME STATS 

The 2016 Admirals start the season this Friday night, August 19th, at Bill Clabo Field with the Powell Panthers in the home opener.  Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 pm.  The Admirals concluded fall camp with three scrimmages against some of the best competition in the area.  Ooltewah (5A, Quarterfinals), Cookeville (6A, Second Round), and Bradley Central (6A, First Round) all qualified for the playoffs in 2015 and look to be contenders again within their respective regions.  The Admirals look to defend their own Region 3-5A Championship from 2015 starting this Friday night.  The Admirals open with back-to-back non-region games with Powell (19th) and Gibbs (Aug 26th) before traveling to Oak Ridge on September 2nd in a pivotal region game. Also be sure to check out the Next Game link weekly on the top of the sidebar to preview the next Admiral opponent, this offers an inside preview of this year’s matchup as well as historical facts about  the matchup.

 

Be sure to download the computer and cellphone wallpaper below to keep track of the 2016 Admirals and never miss a game.

2016 Farragut Football Computer Wallpaper

2016 Farragut Football Cellphone Wallpaper