SIMPSONVILLE – The Nation Ford Falcons started strong, but bad luck hit them hard again as they fell in the opening round of the playoffs to the Hillcrest Rams.
Hillcrest won 48-23 over Nation Ford ending the Falcons season at 2-9 overall as the two teams opened the 5A Division II playoffs.
Nation Ford starting quarterback Carson Sanford started strong, but went out of the game midway through the first quarter after taking a hit out of bounds and didn’t returned.
“It is just bad luck,” said Nation Ford interim head coach Jason McManus. “We were in control early. We just have to find a way to stop people. They did a good job stopping the run. I’m proud of the players and how they fought.”
The Falcons took the opening kick and made the most of their first possession. Nation Ford had two big gains from Jayden Scott and then Sanford hit Ameo for a 28-yard touchdown pass just six plays into the game.
The two teams traded punts and Sanford was knocked out of the game with about 5:39 left in the first quarter. Sanford was 3-of-4 for 58 yards and a touchdown when he went out of the game.
Hillcrest took advantage of their next drive scoring on the first play with a 67-yard run.
Nation Ford was able to put together a decent drive after the Sanford injury with Emmanuel Young in at quarterback as they were able to get a 30-yard field goal from Austin Sarvis with 3:35 left in the opening quarter.
However, the Nation Ford offense struggled to move the ball in the second quarter. The Falcons running game wasn’t able to get going as the Rams put a lot of pressure on Young either flushing him out of the pocket or constantly blitzing him.
On the other side of things, Hillcrest improved as the game wore on and went up 20-9 with 4:42 left in the second quarter with a 43-yard touchdown.
After another Falcons punt, Hillcrest put together a four-play drive resulting in a 50-yard touchdown pass with 1:20 left in the half.
Nation Ford found some life with less than a minute left in the first half as Young connected with Ameo for a 41-yard gain. Three plays later the two connected again with a 19-yard touchdown pass. Scott then caught a 2-point conversion to make it 27-17 with seven seconds left in the half.
Hillcrest got the ball to open the second half and took advantage of their possession scoring in seven plays on a 43-yard pass.
Young was picked off about midfield on Nation Ford’s first possession of the second half. Young play well going 11-for-19 for 185 yards and two touchdowns. He also had two interceptions.
The Rams made the most of their second interception of Nation Ford. Hillcrest put together a seven-play drive and scored on a small 4-yard run to make it 42-17.
Nation Ford turned the ball over on a fumble deep in Rams territory as they were able to return the ball to the Falcons 30. Nation Ford had three turnovers in the game.
The ensuing Rams drive transitioned the game to the fourth quarter. Nation Ford stopped a fake field goal and took the ball over deep in their own territory.
The Falcons did have a bright spot in the fourth as Ameo scored on a 65-yard shovel pass to cut into the Rams lead with 5:23 left in the game. Ameo caught all three touchdowns for the Falcons and caught seven passes for 170 yards in the game.
Hillcrest put an exclamation point on the game with a touchdown with less than two minutes to go.
Mac Banks: mac@fortmillprepsports.com, @fortprep
