Nolensville Steals Away Victory From Rockvale

<!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Friday night football kicked off with a bang Friday evening as the home Knights played from behind all night until late in the 3rd quarter when they snatched away the lead and held on for their first win of the 2023 season. </h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The best way to start a high school football season has to be a down to the wire, come from behind victory right?? Well that's exactly what happened in Williamson County on Friday night where the home Nolensville Knights came back to defeat Rockvale, 21-20 in what was an outstanding contest to kick-off the 2023 football season.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If you were paying attention early in this game, you would have thought Rockvale was headed towards an easy victory. The Rockets went up 14-0 early in the 1st quarter and had the Knights grasping at straws but the home team gathered themselves to jump back into the mix.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Led by senior quarterback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='288620' first='Ty' last='Collins'] </strong>and trailing by fourteen, the Knights slowly moved their way down field to the Rockets red zone where Collins eventually ran the ball in from the 2 yard line to get Nolensville on the board.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Knights would tie the game at 14-14 in the 2nd quarter but as soon as Nolensville jumped back even, the Rockets immediately answered with a <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='540000' first='Brennan' last='Mayhew'] </strong>to <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='309135' first='Jaylan' last='Morgan'] </strong>quick hitting pass that Morgan took all the way to the house. The extra point however would be no good and that proved to be a major difference maker in the outcome of this game.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rockvale took a 20-14 lead into the locker room at halftime and many in attendance felt the offensive firepower would continue but little did everybody know the offense in the 2nd half would be missing in action. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":956556,"width":569,"height":320,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/08/20230818_193607.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-956556" style="width:569px;height:320px" width="569" height="320" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Back and forth punts to one another happened for the majority of the third quarter until late when Nolensville running back <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='220386' first='Zion' last='Tamaska'] </strong>darted up the middle untouched to find the end zone for the second time of the night, putting the Knights ahead, 21-20. That would go on to be the final score but the drama continued until the final minutes.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Both the Nolensville and the Rockvale offense would move the ball pretty well but both teams would have something happen, whether it be an interception by the Rockets or penalties and mistakes by the home team, it would stall or end drives after showing good starts.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The road Rockets had one last chance with a little less than two minutes remaining and inside the Knights 30 yard line to win the game but penalties and then a missed field goal sealed the deal for the Nolensville victory.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It was a tough loss for Rockvale, who came in as a favorite by some and had momentum throughout most of the game but squandered it away in the 2nd half. It should be a good learning moment for the Rockets but only if they embrace their faults and move on.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Nolensville however learned more about themselves Friday evening. They still have a long way to go and a lot developing to do but this was a gritty, come from behind win that should build a stronger bond with the 2023 Knights and help them grow stronger throughout the season.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Knights hit the road next week at Antioch while Rockvale remains away from home as they stay in their county but travel North to compete against Smyrna.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Player of the Game</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["491443"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"u003cspan style=u0022font-weight: 400u0022u003eThis guy was a major force on Friday night for his Nolensville defense as Bandy played with an outstanding motor that the Rockets O-line had a hard time dealing with as well as several key stops at key parts of the game. I don't have his official stats but Bandy produced at least three tackles for loss and one sack on the night along with several tackles. The Knights senior edge linebacker was a one man wrecking crew against the Rockets that took his stock to another in my eyes as someone to pay attention to the remainder of the Fall football season.u003c/spanu003e","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-64e0ee15c8c10"} /--> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/CSmithScout/status/1692703364469948697?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/CSmithScout/status/1692703364469948697?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Other Top Performers …..</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>(QB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='540000' first='Brennan' last='Mayhew'] </strong>- Rockvale: If it wasn't for the loss itself and a 4th quarter INT, Mayhew could of been our POTG as this 6'2 passer had a stellar night, making the right decisions, playing clean football and putting the ball on target for his receivers to make plays.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>(QB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='288620' first='Ty' last='Collins'] </strong>- Nolensville: If you talk to Collins himself, he will tell you it wasn't his best performance but he makes this list because he remained poised throughout the contest then led his team back to victory. It was a gutty performance from Collins and his team.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>(RB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='220386' first='Zion' last='Tamaska'] </strong>- Nolensville: Producing two rushing TD's on the night, Tamaska had a nice seasonal debut for the Knights and was a key force towards winning this contest over Rockvale.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>(S/WR) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='309135' first='Jaylan' last='Morgan'] </strong>- Rockvale: Morgan was not only the top prospect on the field Friday night but he played like it too. The 6'0 junior handled multiple roles from catching passes and scoring on offense to locking down receivers on defense at cornerback.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>(LB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='362089' first='Timi' last='Williams'] </strong>- Rockvale: A major disruptor in the Nolensville backfield Friday evening, Williams had an excellent game, showing off burst and power on the edge while also being able to drop into space and cover the pass. This is a talent that has to be looked into much further!&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>(WR/S) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='301389' first='Jackson' last='Rigdon'] </strong>- Nolensville: Even though this 6'2 athlete didn't catch too many passes on offense, Rigdon made up for it on defense as he was everywhere on that side of the ball, deflecting or tipping away several passes while basically locking down his side of the field.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":956561,"width":681,"height":383,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/08/20230818_212426.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-956561" style="width:681px;height:383px" width="681" height="383" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image -->