No, we aren’t talking basketball. (Well, that isn’t too far around the corner now, is it?) For now, we are still talking Forney Jackrabbit Football. After watching an undefeated season go by the way side, many folks were wondering how the boys would respond against a West Mesquite team on an 4 game win streak. It seems the Rabbits said, “Just fine, thank you very much!”, after a 28-20 win that really didn’t seem quite that close all night long.

For the first time all year, the passing game lead the way with more yards than the running game. Blake Branton was 8 of 16 for 206 yards with one interception. That is almost 26 yards per completion! By all accounts, that ain’t too shabby of a performance at ANY level. Branton complemented his throwing by running in two short touchdowns and 84 yards on 19 rushes. Peter Smith, in addition to his 21 carries for 77 yards (1 yd TD run), got in on the passing game with 2 catches for 34 yards. This game was the break out game for WR Kezie Camp I have been waiting on all year. Camp had 4 catches for 111 yards, easily his strongest game of the year. Camp’s development is huge at this point of the season for the Jackrabbits. Being able to throw the ball consistently and for significant yards may be exactly what Forney needs to keep people from ganging up on Smith the way they have the past 2 weeks.

The Forney Special Teams had a significant contribution as well, as Trevin Marcus excited the visitor side of the stadium with a 90 yard kickoff return for TD after the Wranglers had tied up the game at 7 in the first quarter on a 33 yard pass from Trevone Boykin to his leading receiver Cornell Ridge (8 catches for 165 yards).

The Forney Defense lived dangerously, but made several huge plays on the night. Bo Gipson lead the way with 2 interceptions on the night, the last one to seal the win with about a minute to go and West Mesquite threatening to tie the game. Gipson had gotten beat deep and short several times on the night, but showed great resilience and fortitude by staying focused and making the two big interceptions.

The entire team hurt itself by committing 11 penalties for 72 yards. Combined with a fumble inside their own 10 yard line that was returned for a TD by the Wranglers, the Jackrabbits allowed West Mesquite to stay close enough to make it interesting in the end. Overcoming the mistakes is the hallmark of a good team and Forney showed it wasn’t going to fold after the first setback of the year. Things are still very much on track for the Jackrabbits to make their first 4A football playoff appearance.

Gispon and his defensive teammates will need everything they can muster this week as the high-powered Mabank offense visits City Bank Stadium for Homecoming. Mabank is one of the most productive 4a offenses in the region, managing 430 yards per game, good enough for 6th place on the stat board. WR Brandon Rasco is 4th in receiving 38 catches for 690 yards, while being accompanied by Jake Birch, #15 in the area, who has 30 catches for 548 yards. The trigger man for the Panther offense is Kolton Browning who has thrown for over 2,000 yards and 23 touchdowns. The Forney defensive front will have to put pressure on Browning and help out the secondary who will be outmatched in terms of speed and size.

Homecoming is expected to be the largest ever crowd at CityBank Stadium on Friday. Don’t forget your portable radio to listen to the game on 92.9 FM while enjoying Homecoming in person. Buy your tickets early at the High School Athletic Complex and come support the boys in Black and Gold as they face a very good team from Mabank.

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