MINFORD — Wyatt Swick’s three touchdowns in the second half boosted the Minford Falcons' football program to a 28-13 come-from-behind non-conference win over Chesapeake on Friday at Minford High School, giving head coach Josh Bailey his first career win as a head coach.
Swick, a 6-4 sophomore, put Minford (1-1) ahead 14-13 when he bolted past Chesapeake defenders on a 40-yard touchdown run with 5:47 to go in the third quarter.
“I was just coming back from an injury — I hurt my shoulder earlier in the game,” Swick said. “I just wanted to do something to get my team on top. It wasn’t about me scoring the touchdown, but the team getting the lead.”
After Minford forced a Chesapeake punt, Colt Donahoe’s 24-yard punt return for the Falcons combined a Panther personal foul put the ball on the Chesapeake 12-yard line.
Swick, who finished with 98 yards rushing on 13 carries, took the handoff and galloped in the end zone for the 12-yard TD run. Beau Scarfpin’s extra point kick gave the Falcons a 21-0 at the 4:34 mark in the third quarter. Scarfpin, a sophomore, had four successful extra-point kicks on the night.
“I think I played good tonight,” Swick added. “But I couldn’t do anything without the line blocking for me. We work together and they make it possible.”
The Falcon defense came through again when defensive lineman Tytus Greene blasted through the Panther offensive line and blocked a punt attempt by Chesapeake to give the ball to Minford at the three-yard line.
“I just saw a huge gap in their switch, and I just told myself to shoot the gap — I shot it and dove out for the ball and got it,” Green said. “It felt awesome because last week I missed one.”
On the first play, Swick cruised into the end zone from three yards out with 10:07 to play in the contest to give the Falcons the 28-13 lead.
“That play just changed everything,” Minford head coach Josh Bailey said. “(Greene) just keeps working hard and I’m just so proud of him — that was a big play.”
The Panthers jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead when they took the opening kickoff and went 61 yards in 10 plays, capped off by a two-yard run by quarterback J.T. Mclain.
Mclain, a sophomore, threw for 176 yards and completed 21 of 34 attempts on the night, but was knocked out of the game temporarily late in the first quarter and returned in the second half.
The Falcons tied the game at the 2:45 mark in the first period when Bryson McLaughlin rumbled nine yards for the score.
McLaughlin, a 6-1 senior, had a 13-yard gallop in the seven-play drive that covered 67-yards and finished the game with 109 yards on 15 carries.
“Our goal is ground control,” Bailey said. “We have some very nice and athletic backs, and we want to pound the football because we have a very good line. We have several guys out there who can score from anywhere at any time.”
The Panthers grabbed the 13-7 lead back when Peyton Muncy, who moved to QB when Mclain went out of the game late in the first quarter, found Aden Parrott on a 19-yard touchdown pass with 11:52 to go before the break.
After that, Swick and the Falcons whipped off 21 unanswered points.
“We relied a leaned on our seniors tonight,” Bailey said. “The line dug down and it showed in the second half. They wanted it tonight.”
Minford quarterback Mason Bailey threw for 76 yards and completed four of five passes and ran for 63 yards on the night.
Chesapeake drew 16 flags from the officials for 110 yards while the Falcons were penalized six times for 60 yards.
“We had too many tonight,” Bailey added. “You have to be disciplined, but I was happy overall with the performance. It’s just some little things we need to work on.”
Leave a Comment