Pictured is Quarterback Jeremy Strozier
The Mansfield Jr Tigers have been blessed so far by having a pretty full roster. The Tigers faced three straight 4A opponents and held their own decently with a win over Waldron and losses to Mena and Elkins. Even in the losses though, they showed poise. When Hackett came knocking, Mansfield felt confident in their abilities. Unfortunately, the Tigers were humbled by mental mistakes that gave the Hornets a dominant 22-6 victory over Mansfield.
The Tigers did what they have done since the season started by leaning on solid defense to build up momentum. Tackles by Jeremy Strozier, Boston Elmore, and Zander Walters scrambled the Hornet’s offensive plans early. Mansfield’s offense made themselves know and pounded the ball downfield inside the 15-yard line. The Tigers then faced a foe they have faced every game thus far. The red zone blues. Mansfield was unable to punch the ball in for a score and turned the ball over to Hackett. The teams went back and forth blow for blow until the Hornets capitalized on a Mansfield miscue and put the first points of the game on the board. Hackett was unsuccessful with their two-point conversion but took a 6-0 lead with 5:49 left in the first quarter. Mansfield’s offensive struggles continued but the defense picked up the slack with Dakota Deer and Ethan Martin swarming the Hornets making tackles seem easy and closing the 1st quarter on a positive note.
Hackett started off the 2nd quarter strong, but the Tigers defense wouldn’t budge. The Hornets flung a rocketing pass into the end zone only to have the ball caught by Mansfield’s Trey Powell at the two-yard line. Dawson Robinson, Walters, and Strozier kept the Tiger’s offense chugging along but were still unable to light up the scoreboard as the defense again stepped back on the field. Alex Hecox, Toby Towe, and Cooper Edwards made big-time stops against the Hackett offense. But just as the Hornets seemed stuffed, a chink in the Tiger’s defensive armor was jabbed and the Hornets scored a touchdown. With the two-point conversion good, the Hornets went into the half with a 14-0 lead.
The third quarter was a stalemate for both teams as neither could build up offensive momentum against each other’s defenses. Passes were covered, runs were stuffed, and bodies hit the ground often and hard as the 3rd quarter ended with the same 14-0 Hackett lead that it started with. Hackett would again score on Mansfield in the closing minute of the 4th quarter with just 0:39 left in the game. The added two-point conversion left the Tigers staring at a 22-0 goose egg on the scoreboard. The Tigers were down and some teams would have walked off the field. But Mansfield still had time on the clock and determination in their tank. A big run by Ethan Martin set up Zander Walters for a rush in the other direction. Walters took the rock 44 yards to the house and a Mansfield touchdown with just 0:12 seconds left on the clock. Unable to push their way in for the two-point conversion, the Tigers were at the mercy of the clock. A Tigers onside kick was the only hope to close the gap, but Hackett recovered the ball and ended the game with a 22-6 final score over the Tigers.
Mansfield’s passing game was hit hard by dropped balls as they only completed two of ten passes for 21 yards and an interception. Although the passing game was down and Hackett keyed on the run game, the Tigers were still able to prove their rushing attack is bar to none. Jeremy Strozier rushed 9 times for 45 yards and Zander Walters had 8 carries for 94 yards and the Tiger’s sole touchdown of the night. Mansfield now sits at a 1-3 overall record and 0-1 conference record. The Tigers may have a slow start to the season, but there are a lot of games ahead of them. “We had too many penalties, too many mistakes, too many dropped passes, which all added up to too much frustration. We have just a few 9th graders on the team so we are relying very heavily on 8th graders to help carry us. There are some rough edges to smooth off still with this young team”. explained Coach Tim Cothran. Next up will be the West Fork Tigers on Thursday, September 23rd. Mansfield will leave The Red Jungle and travel north to the Gold Jungle in hopes of proving that they are the only Tigers on the block.
