Fayetteville-Texas High Light Up Harmon Stadium

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Fayetteville- </strong>The Fayetteville vs Texas High matchup has been circled on the calendar by both programs for weeks leading up to game night. Each team has talented future college athletes on their roster. For both: the Purple Dogs and the Tigers, the matchup on this warm September Friday is a measuring stick game. Both programs entered the contest with undefeated records on the season. However, that would soon change, with one team absorbing a tough defeat.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Leading up to this matchup, the Fayetteville Bulldogs have earned two hard-fought victories over Cabot and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. The Fayetteville rushing attack has taken center stage. Over the past two games, running back [player_tooltip player_id='392413' first='Christian' last='Battles'] is averaging 124 yards per game. He excels at breaking tackles, requiring multiple defenders to swarm to bring him down. Battles forces opposing defenses to crowd the box. Meanwhile, Fayetteville's offense has the aerial firepower to stretch the field with the deep ball.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>However, the Texas Tigers are not without plenty of firepower of their own on the offensive side of the ball. Junior wide receiver Shavante Montgomery has the speed to cause problems for opposing defensive secondaries. Montgomery is averaging over 100 receiving yards per contest. He has found the end zone four times this season. Montgomery gives the Tigers plenty of threat through the air.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Tigers' rushing attack has a variety of options that can carve up an opposing defense. Senior running back [player_tooltip player_id='1421018' first='Javari' last='Johnson'] only gets stronger as the game progresses. Meanwhile, future Oregon Duck [player_tooltip player_id='974380' first='Tradarian' last='Ball'] is a nightmare to bring down in the open field. Ball makes opposing defenders miss with ease. The Texas High offensive attack is impressive and came to Fayetteville ready to put on a show.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Fayetteville and the Texas High Tigers did not disappoint tonight. Each team has offensive firepower that lit up the Harmon Field scoreboard time after time. The first quarter belonged to the Bulldogs. The Fayetteville offense did an excellent job of mixing the run with the pass on the initial drive of the ball game. This led to Fayetteville signal caller [player_tooltip player_id='207208' first='Garyt' last='Odom'] finding Jaison Delamar for a 24-yard touchdown pass.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Not to be outdone, the Tigers would quickly answer the Fayetteville touchdown. Tigers quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1318858' first='David' last='Potter'] did a good job of working the slant routes to pick apart the Fayetteville secondary. Potter can move around both in and out of the pocket. He did a great job of keeping his eyes downfield. On the first drive for the Tigers, Potter connected with Kameron Wrightner from 40-yards out on a slant route for a touchdown to tie the game at 7.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On Fayetteville's next three drives, the Purple Dogs would have no trouble finding the end zone. The Tigers' defense had a difficult time containing Fayetteville quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='207208' first='Garyt' last='Odom']. Odom extended drives with his legs as well as his throwing arm. Odom connected twice with [player_tooltip player_id='401183' first='Catavion' last='Taylor'] for touchdown receptions and once to Ty Mattingly. Fayetteville would jump out to a 28-7 lead before Texas High started to reel the Bulldogs back in.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The rest of the game would see the lead change hands multiple times. On a hot night in Northwest Arkansas, both offenses did a fantastic job of matching each other point for point. The Purple Dogs would extend a one-point lead to seven late in the game. With two minutes remaining in the game, Fayetteville held the lead 54-47. However, that was more than enough time for the high-octane Tigers to strike back on a two-play drive to tie the game. Potter would find Kameron Wrightner on a 38-yard touchdown reception. The Tigers would convert the two-point conversion to grab the lead 55-54. Fayetteville would suffer a turnover late, when [player_tooltip player_id='207208' first='Garyt' last='Odom'] tried to stretch the field with a deep shot.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The takeaway from this instant classic is the fact that both programs look to have plenty of talent to make playoff runs. Fayetteville will look to regroup when conference play starts next week against Bentonville West. Meanwhile, the Tigers continue to deliver impressive victories. Both programs have numerous players that will be playing on Saturdays in the future. Next year's rematch between Texas High and Fayetteville is a game to circle on the calendar right now.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->