After facing a very tough first half of the season schedule against several teams who were physically bigger and more experienced than the young Paris Eagles, the Jessieville Lions visited Eagles Stadium in a 3A-4 conference game. The Lions were more comparable to the Eagles in both size and experience. Both teams have also struggled this year, and both communities have battled through their own tragedies.
But the game also reflected the frustration of both teams having had limited success so far in the 2022 season. And when the night was over, Paris had two players ejected from the game along with an injury to one of their quarterbacks.
In the second half, starting quarterback Maddox Watts became the second Eagle to be ejected for each player having incurred two personal fouls during the game. When Watts left the game, the Eagles did not have a quarterback left on the game roster. Senior Mason Bradley who plays running back on offense was forced into the emergency quarterback role to finish much of the second half.
Bradley was forced to carry the football on many of the downs he played as quarterback, adding to the difficulty of playing the position when everyone knew he was probably going to run the football. But Bradley had a great deal of success, and his gritty and tough running ignited Paris. The Eagles scored twice in the second half.
Now, it will remain to be seen how Paris will recover from both their injuries and player ejections next week when they host Two Rivers for homecoming.
A couple of things of note for Paris fans…first, there was a good home crowd to support the Eagles on Friday night. The Paris community can be very proud of how the Eagles’ fans showed up in big numbers to support their team who has been struggling all season. Secondly, the team continues to play hard and, once again, never gave up in the football game. And finally, the young players on the roster continue to improve. There are glaring problems on the offensive line, and defensively, the Eagles have trouble stopping opposing offenses. But as I have talked about virtually all season, it just boils down to a rebuilding year for Paris, and the team has to continue to work hard and know that better times will eventually come to the players, coaches, and the fan base.
Paris has another opportunity to compete next week on homecoming night. The Eagles will have to get well and get ready to once again give it their all.
Photos from tonight’s game will be available on Facebook next week at Paris Eagles Sports. Look for a special homecoming preview of next week’s game, along with a feature on the 2022 Paris homecoming court in next week’s Logan County weekly newspaper. If you have not already subscribed, you can get your copy by going to the RNN website at residentnewsnetwork.com and clicking on the subscription link.
