Will Host Mexia Blackcats on Friday at Eagle Field
The Fairfield Eagles battled back from two touchdowns back and sent the game to overtime but came up short in an instant thriller on opening night. The Maypearl Panthers edged the Eagles 42-34 in double overtime.
Junior quarterback Kohl Collins completed 19 of 31 passes for 216 yards and three touchdowns and was intercepted one time in his first start of the season.
The Panthers took the first possession and wasted little time putting points on the board. Sophomore quarterback Collins Brooks dropped to pass and found Billy Teague for a 69-yard touchdown and the point after made the score 7-0 with less than two minutes gone in the game.
Fairfield took their first offensive possession and reached midfield before stalling out and having to punt. The Eagle special teams downed the punt at the Maypearl five-yard line and would soon take advantage of the field position. Tate Lewis and Darion Weatherall combined for a tackle for loss and forcing a Panther punt. The punt went straight up for a negative nine yards and was picked up by Jason Brackens and he raced the final ten yards for the touchdown. The extra point was blocked, and the Panthers still led 7-6 midway through the quarter.
Fairfield took their first lead at the end of the first quarter when Weatherall finished off an Eagle drive with a 13-yard touchdown run. Maypearl matched the score with an eight-yard touchdown pass with four minutes remaining in the first half to tie the score.
A quick Eagle turnover put the Panther offense on the field, and they scored on the fourth play on a 41-yard touchdown pass with two minutes remaining and Maypearl led 21-14. The Eagles ran twelve plays and reached the Maypearl five-yard line when time expired for the half.
The Panthers forced an Eagle punt and took over for their first possession and used over six minutes and needed ten plays. The 90-yard drive ended with a four-yard touchdown by Texas Wyant and that would extend the Panther lead to 28-14.
Fairfield would again answer to draw to within a score on a touchdown pass to Finn Smith. The 16-yard score was preceded by a 21-yard catch to set up the touchdown. Collins completed all four passes on the drive and the Eagles cut the lead to 28-20 on the missed conversion.
The final quarter was a wild 12 minutes. Collins tossed a perfect pass to Cal Wilson for a 46-yard score and Collins ran in the conversion to tie the score at 28-28 with over eleven minutes to go in regulation. Maypearl ripped off a 15-play drive that stalled inside the Eagle 15-yard line and the Panthers settled for a 30-yard field goal to lead 31-28.
The Eagles took their second lead late on a one-yard touchdown pass from Collins to Jaylon Shed. The missed conversion held the lead 34-31 with 26 seconds remaining. Maypearl hit a 34-yard field goal at the buzzer to tie the score and send the game to overtime.
The teams exchanged turnovers in the first overtime and Maypearl led off the second overtime with a six-yard touchdown run by JT Washington. The conversion run was good, and the Panthers took a 42-34 lead, forcing the Eagles to match with a touchdown and two-point conversion to send the game into a third overtime.
Collins was sacked twice in a scrambling situation and tossed an incompletion to set up a fourth and long. Collins was stopped for a short gain and the Panther defense preserved a 42-34 win over the Eagles.
Fairfield will return home on Friday to take on neighbor county and former district mate Mexia. The Blackcats and Eagles are scheduled for a 7:30pm kickoff Friday at Eagle Field.
(Pep rally photos by Natalia V. Marsters)
