Photo by Andre Odums/ossports
Jersey Village – Cypress Springs quarterback Sebastian Rodriguez’s final pass sailed through the back of the end zone as the clock expired. The seesaw affair had no other way to end.
Jersey Village fans held its breath with two seconds remaining as Cy-Springs searched for a last-second play that never surfaced, sending the Falcons to a thrilling finish, 31-23, on Thursday night at Ken Pridgeon Stadium.
Tran completed 6-of-13 passes for 209 yards and two interceptions. Quinci Jones caught five balls for 84 yards. Estes rushed 20 times for 158 yards and two touchdowns, and Jones finished with 92 yards on nine carries and two scores.
Jersey Village defense held when it needed it most. With seconds ticking away, Falcon fans suffered the wait. Still, it paid off when Panthers quarterback Sebastian Rodriguez released an off-target pass quicker than needed after sensing the presents of the bliss.
“Our defense played hard all the time, but we gave up some big plays, but they found a way; they put pressure on them,” Falcons coach David Snokhous explained.
Right before the pressure mounted, Jersey Village fans watched Cy-Springs extended its drive to the 12-yard line after Falcon’s defensive back Chris Noble interfered with a receiver in the end zone, which gave the Panthers a first down with two seconds left.
“We were able to make it a game, but unfortunately, we didn’t get enough points on the board,” Cy-Springs coach Oji Fagan said. “In the second half as a program, we have to learn how to win the game.”
On its final drive in its territory, the Panthers moved the ball without much trouble. Rodriguez hooked up with senior receiver TJ Curtis, who weaved his way in and out of traffic to the Jersey Village 24 yard line with 19 seconds left. However, Rodriguez suffered an intentional grounding infraction, causing a ten-second roll-off by rule when such a penalty occurs. That watched the clock go from 19 to nine seconds.
Rodriguez concluded his evening, 12-of-32 for 257 yards and three scores. Curtis had nine receptions for 181 yards and a touchdown.
“You can’t beat a team like this, making the mistakes we made tonight,” Coach Fagan says. “Our specials were not there tonight. That came back to bite us in the butt. But, I’m so proud of how our kids competed, and we had a shot at the end of the game.”
The Falcons led, 28-23 before junior kicker Antonio Blanco nailed a 25-yard field goal to increase the lead, 31-23 with 58 seconds left.
“These kids over here don’t quit,” says Snokhous. “They understood but not taking away from Cypress Springs, but we did not play well in the first half. You have to give them credit over there at Cypress Springs. They had a lot to do with it. We just found a way to win. Our kids believe in what they’re doing. You got to have a break, and we got one.”
Except for Rodriguez’s 55-yard scoring pass to Curtis, dropped passes, and the lack of execution hindered its efforts at crunch time. Matters only mounted when Cypress Springs safety Isaiah Keller, Jr. recovered a fumble, but the offense sputtered as time slipped away.
Taking note of the opening quarter, one might not have expected a late offensive spurt.
Defense controlled the first five series of the game until a change of quarterbacks. For the Falcons, Adam Tran answered the call by directed a 67 yard, seven-play drive. Receiver Quinci Jones was on the receiving end of Trans 52 yard strike, which gave Jersey Village a first down at the 15. But eventually, it faced fourth and two. That’s when running back Rashon Estes answered the call, finding running room to the two-yard line to give the offense a first down. Estes capped the drive with a two-yard touchdown run, and the Falcons led 7-0 after Blanco’s kick.
Cy-Springs pieced together a constructive possession that penetrated the 42-yard line of the Falcons before linebacker Gavin Wuthrich sacked Rodriguez, who was not expected to play due to an injured leg. Still, the Panthers saw its opportunity after the punt pinned the Jersey Village at its one.
The defense held, forcing the Falcons to punt from deep in its end zone as Cypress Springs linebacker Jamari Seals broke the interior and blocked the punt, causing the ball to roll through the back of the inside prompting a safety. Trailing, 7-2, sparked Cypress Springs’ next possession.
A shanked punt gave Jersey Village great field position at the 40-yard line. Tran then threw to Curtis, who turned a quick reception into huge yardage at the four-yard line. Still, nothing good would happen before frustration set in, including a holding penalty and Jersey Village’s outside linebacker Freddie Hudson dropped running back Marc Bailey for a loss of five at the 19. But Rodgriguez burned the Falcons defense after hooking up with sophomore quarterback/receiver Harrison Mass who ran by a defender into the end zone, giving Cypress Springs the lead, 9-7 following Christian Arevalo’s extra point kick.
The contest took on a Jekyll and Hyde outlook throughout. Both defenses had big moments as well as the offenses. But, neither team had total control of the game until the final buzzer sounded.
Both teams also served as its worst enemy, piling up penalty yards. Panthers had 12 flags for 95 yards, and Jersey Village totaled 16 for 136 yards.
Defense and mental mistakes halted the next three possessions. But the Panthers executed an 84-yard drive sparked by two big plays. Facing second and three, Rodriquez threw a rope to Curtis at the 45, and sophomore receiver Ashton Blake out-dueled defensive back Isaiah Skinner for the ball, breaking free and sprinting to the end zone with no time left in the second quarter. Arevalo’s kick made the score, 16-7.
“Our number one quarterback (Rodriguez) going into the game was hurt,” Coach Fagan explained. “He had not practiced all week. We did not know if we would get anything out of him. He played injured, but he played his butt off tonight with one leg.”
Though committing five third-quarter turnovers between both teams, the Falcons scored two touchdowns to regain the lead, 21-16. Estes took the handoff, bounced to the outside, and raced 91 yards while sophomore running back Quinton Jones found an open lane down the right sideline and sprinted 49 yards.
“We calmed down, came together as a team, and figured out what we had to do.” Falcons quarterback Tran spoke. “Those big plays turned around the game. When we messed on offense, the defense did something well. When the defense messed up, the offense did something well. We turned it around and kept the momentum on our side.”
The progression of the fourth quarter would lead up to the electric finish.
Jersey Village compiled 404 yards compared to the Panthers 380 in total offense and led 23-21 in first downs.
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