The Fulton Falcons started the new season off right when they held off the host Morristown-West Trojans football team by a count of 16-13 on Saturday. With the win, Fulton upgrades its record to 1-0 on the season. The Falcons travel to Powell to encounter the Panthers in a non-league outing on Friday, August 28.
Line Score:
------------Q1Q2Q3Q4---Final
Fulton------0 8 8 0--------16
MoWest----0 7 6 0--------13
Scoring Summary:
2nd Quarter Summary:FUL (6:35) THOMAS 1 RUN (PITCHFORD CATCH FROM WINTERS)
3rd Quarter Summary:MW (7:02) BROOKS 4 RUN (HUNSUCKER KICK) FUL (3:41) THOMAS 26 RUN (WINTERS RUN)
4th Quarter Summary:MW (5:24) BISHOP 1 RUN
(KICK FAIL)
Stat Leaders:
Rushing:
D Thomas 23 for 138 yds, long of 31
Passing:
B Winter 9-12 for 106 yds
Receiving:
X Bridges 3-32 yds, long 0f 20
Tackles:
M Golliday 10 total--2 solo, 8 assists
B Winters 9 total--4 solo, 5 assists
Fulton High School football coach Buck Coatney took a photocopy of a newspaper article from his pocket Saturday, unfolded it, and put it on display.
The headline read, "Fulton playoff streak ends." It put an exclamation point on the end of the 2008 season.
"That (headline) was the last thing we looked at when we came out of the locker room," Coatney said after the Falcons opened the 2009 season with a 16-13 non-region victory over Morristown West at Burke-Toney Stadium.
Junior running back Dametrius Thomas, who rushed for 130 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries, had seen that headline often after the Falcons went 4-6 a year ago.
"Fulton has a long history of going to the playoffs," Thomas said. "That was big motivation for us."
Fulton (1-0) capitalized on the mistake-prone Trojans (0-1), who had four dropped passes - one for a potential touchdown - and lost two fumbles.
Fulton's Marco Golliday recovered Wesley Goins' fumble at the Trojans' 38 early in the second quarter.
On third-and-10 from the 20, Ben Winters threw a 17-yard pass to Javonte Cotner. Thomas scored one play later on a 1-yard run with 6:35 left in the half.
Winters' first pass for the two-point conversion was incomplete, but the Trojans were called for holding. Winters then threw to Micah Pitchford for an 8-0 lead.
After stopping the Trojans on downs, Thomas returned a Curt Duncan punt 32 yards, and a 15-yard penalty gave the Falcons a first down at the Trojans' 47. The drive stalled when Winters' fumble was recovered by Seth Collins.
The Trojans drove to Fulton's 24 on 10 plays, and Duncan's 41-yard field-goal attempt was short late in the half.
"The first half we didn't finish plays," Trojans coach Lamar Brown said. "A couple of times we had receivers open. We've just got to finish plays. Defense, the same thing, we've got to finish plays. We missed tackles. It's nobody's fault but mine."
The Trojans stopped Fulton on downs starting the second half and took over at the Falcons' 40.
Seven plays later, Chad Brooks scored on a 4-yard run. It was 8-7 with 7:02 left in the third.
Fulton answered with two big plays by Thomas.
On first down from his 20, Thomas gained 31 yards. Five plays later, Thomas ran to the left, broke a tackle in the backfield, and ran right for a 26-yard touchdown. Winters' conversion run gave the Falcons a 16-7 lead with 3:41 to play in the third.
The Trojans' Jordan Bishop scored on a 1-yard run with 5:24 left in the game. Hunsucker missed the PAT attempt, and the Trojans trailed 16-13. They never got the ball back.
Fulton faced a third-and-11 from its 19, and Winters threw a 20-yard pass to Xavier Bridges to keep the drive alive. Fulton drove to the Trojans' 11 and time ran out.
The headline read, "Fulton playoff streak ends." It put an exclamation point on the end of the 2008 season.
"That (headline) was the last thing we looked at when we came out of the locker room," Coatney said after the Falcons opened the 2009 season with a 16-13 non-region victory over Morristown West at Burke-Toney Stadium.
Junior running back Dametrius Thomas, who rushed for 130 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries, had seen that headline often after the Falcons went 4-6 a year ago.
"Fulton has a long history of going to the playoffs," Thomas said. "That was big motivation for us."
Fulton (1-0) capitalized on the mistake-prone Trojans (0-1), who had four dropped passes - one for a potential touchdown - and lost two fumbles.
Fulton's Marco Golliday recovered Wesley Goins' fumble at the Trojans' 38 early in the second quarter.
On third-and-10 from the 20, Ben Winters threw a 17-yard pass to Javonte Cotner. Thomas scored one play later on a 1-yard run with 6:35 left in the half.
Winters' first pass for the two-point conversion was incomplete, but the Trojans were called for holding. Winters then threw to Micah Pitchford for an 8-0 lead.
After stopping the Trojans on downs, Thomas returned a Curt Duncan punt 32 yards, and a 15-yard penalty gave the Falcons a first down at the Trojans' 47. The drive stalled when Winters' fumble was recovered by Seth Collins.
The Trojans drove to Fulton's 24 on 10 plays, and Duncan's 41-yard field-goal attempt was short late in the half.
"The first half we didn't finish plays," Trojans coach Lamar Brown said. "A couple of times we had receivers open. We've just got to finish plays. Defense, the same thing, we've got to finish plays. We missed tackles. It's nobody's fault but mine."
The Trojans stopped Fulton on downs starting the second half and took over at the Falcons' 40.
Seven plays later, Chad Brooks scored on a 4-yard run. It was 8-7 with 7:02 left in the third.
Fulton answered with two big plays by Thomas.
On first down from his 20, Thomas gained 31 yards. Five plays later, Thomas ran to the left, broke a tackle in the backfield, and ran right for a 26-yard touchdown. Winters' conversion run gave the Falcons a 16-7 lead with 3:41 to play in the third.
The Trojans' Jordan Bishop scored on a 1-yard run with 5:24 left in the game. Hunsucker missed the PAT attempt, and the Trojans trailed 16-13. They never got the ball back.
Fulton faced a third-and-11 from its 19, and Winters threw a 20-yard pass to Xavier Bridges to keep the drive alive. Fulton drove to the Trojans' 11 and time ran out.
Knox Fulton held off Morristown West, 16-13, in the opener, while Austin-East overcame a standout performance by Tee Howell to beat Morristown East in the second game, 26-21. The doubleheader drew a standing-room-only crowd with the stands full and fans lining the fences surrounding the field.
Both Knox Fulton and Austin-East are from District 3, Class AA, while the Morristown schools are in District 2, AAA this season.
Fulton built a 16-7 lead, then held on as West closed to withing 16-13 on a touchdown run by Jordan Bishop with 5:24 to play. Dametrius Thomas scored both TDs for the Falcons, who convertede two-point conversions after each score. Still, Fulton needed a time-consuming final drive to deny West the ball and preserve the win. Ben Winters connected with Xavier Bridges on third-and-11 to keep the drive alive and deny Morristown West time to get a go-ahead score.
Both Knox Fulton and Austin-East are from District 3, Class AA, while the Morristown schools are in District 2, AAA this season.
Fulton built a 16-7 lead, then held on as West closed to withing 16-13 on a touchdown run by Jordan Bishop with 5:24 to play. Dametrius Thomas scored both TDs for the Falcons, who convertede two-point conversions after each score. Still, Fulton needed a time-consuming final drive to deny West the ball and preserve the win. Ben Winters connected with Xavier Bridges on third-and-11 to keep the drive alive and deny Morristown West time to get a go-ahead score.
Knox Fulton coach Buck Coatney said his team's game with Morristown West was too close for comfort.
"That was a great win for us because they are a great team,'' said Coatney. "They are going to win a lot of games.''
Coatney said he held up a headline in the locker room before the game. It read: "Fulton Sees Playoff Streak End.''
It came from last season when his team finished 4-6 and missed the playoffs for the first time in several years.
"If West makes that field goal, we'd be going into overtime,'' said Coatney.
"That was a great win for us because they are a great team,'' said Coatney. "They are going to win a lot of games.''
Coatney said he held up a headline in the locker room before the game. It read: "Fulton Sees Playoff Streak End.''
It came from last season when his team finished 4-6 and missed the playoffs for the first time in several years.
"If West makes that field goal, we'd be going into overtime,'' said Coatney.
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