The Groesbeck Goats held the Fairfield Eagles to 53 yards in the second half and broke open the game and won 50-22 at Groesbeck Stadium Friday night. The win keeps the Goats unbeaten in district play.
The Eagles kept the game close throughout the first half, but the Goats took advantage of two costly turnovers and turned them into points.
The Goats took the first possession and scored in four plays. A snap sailed over Goat quarterback Trent Platt’s head for a loss of 20 yards but on the next play Cox hit Adryen Ramirez across the middle and he raced the rest of the way to score the games’ first points on the 73-yard pass and run. Alan Jimenez added the point after for the early 7-0 lead.
Fairfield matched that score on their first possession on a six-yard drive that covered 62 yards. Eagle quarterback Cameron Cockerell ran up the middle for 17 yards and a first down and passed to tight end Dylon McGowan for a 12-yard gain inside the Groesbeck 25. Junior running back Jaylon Shed ran for a 24-yard gain to the one-yard line and finished the drive with a one-yard touchdown run. Eli Castillo added the extra point for the 7-7 tie midway through the first quarter.
The Eagles forced a three and out on the next Groesbeck possession and the Eagles put together another impressive drive. The Eagle offense went 67 yards in nine plays, one key play from Cockerell to Dioncio Azuara for an 11-yard first down. Cockerell kept the ball on a 15-yard run inside the five and Shed completed the scoring drive with a four-yard run and the Eagles took their only lead of the game. Castillo lifted the score to 14-7 on the point after.
Groesbeck evened the score to begin the second quarter on a long 85-yard drive. A penalty on the kickoff return pushed the Goats back in their territory and their offense resorted to the big play for the second time in the contest. On first down from midfield, Platt and Ramirez connected for the touchdown pass and evened the score at 14-14.
The Goat defense stopped the Eagles at the four-yard line after a third long drive in the first half. Fairfield used eleven plays to move into scoring position but Shed was stopped short on fourth down.
The Groesbeck offense turned that turnover into an eleven-play drive themselves and covered the 96 yards. Platt completed a pass to Chris Cox for 37 yards into the Eagle end of the field and Platt finished the drive with an 18-yard scamper for the go-ahead touchdown. A penalty on the Eagles on the conversion moved the ball to the one-yard line, so the Goats put their offense back on the field and Platt ran in the conversion and the Goat lead increased to 22-14.
Fairfield tried to match before the half and reached midfield. After converting on a third down run, Cockerell dropped to pass and his short pass was picked off by Kenny Bennett and he ran untouched for the 54-yard interception return touchdown and the 29-14 halftime lead.
Groesbeck scored on their first possession of the second half when sophomore running back Marquis Gibson scored on an 18 run. Platt added a two-yard run later in the third quarter to build a 43-14 lead at the end of the third quarter.
The Eagles fumbled in the fourth quarter and Platt threw his third touchdown pass of the game, this on a five-yard score to Matthew Valentine and the 50-14 lead.
Fairfield added the final score of the game and again on a solid nine play drive that moved the offense down the field. Evan Chavers scored on a 17-yard touchdown run to set the final score at 50-22.
The Fairfield Eagles are in good position for a playoff spot with a 2-2 district record. Malakoff and Groesbeck remain unbeaten in the district season and will meet on October 27. The Eagles are in third place in front of Teague and Mexia. The Eagles will host the Kemp Yellowjackets for Senior Night on Friday night.
