Springfield Steals Away Road Victory (Game Recap/Top Performers)

<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The Yellow Jackets had to persevere till the final seconds to pull it off but they ripped victory away from East Nashville in their one point, last second road win over the Eagles. </h2>     It took until the final seconds of the game but Springfield moved to 5-0 on the season after a come from behind victory over East Nashville, 29-28. Freshman kicker Jovanni Colmanares joined the Springfield football team just two weeks ago but he appeared unphased by the moment as he stepped onto the field with 9 seconds to go and nailed a short yard field goal to seal the win.    This contest might have been one of the better games in the state Friday evening as both teams threw body blows throughout the evening until the very end where the Yellow Jackets made one extra play to put themselves on top for good. Springfield needed every second of the game to get the job done though as East Nashville gave them everything they wanted and then some!    The Yellow Jackets struck first in the 1st quarter on their second drive of the game when [player_tooltip player_id='1588080' first='Kason' last='Woodson'] found tight end Bryce Baldwin wide open down the middle of the field to get on the board. They would extend that lead early in the 2nd quarter with [player_tooltip player_id='1134310' first='Jaidon' last='Hurst'] producing his first rushing touchdown of the night.    Everything looked like it was going into the favor of the road team but East Nashville would wake up and begin to take control. After trailing 12-0, the Eagles started to emphasize the skills and talent of [player_tooltip player_id='1668630' first='Dallas' last='Covington'] and he delivered.    <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/07/dcovington2.jpeg?w=683" alt="" class="wp-image-1703944" style="width:211px;height:auto" /></figure>   The Eagles sophomore quarterback maneuvered his team down field, using both his arm and his legs to get them into scoring position where he made an outstanding pass to the corner of the end zone where [player_tooltip player_id='1898590' first='Cortez' last='Murphy'] hauled in the pass. It was a beautiful pass and catch from Covington to Murphy that you see on the collegiate gridiron.    Out of all the prospects on the field Friday evening, I was most impressed with Covington as he showed excellent arm talent and potential that could excel on the college level. His calmness and poise in the pocket stood out a ton, showing me Covington may have the mental makeup to contend on the college stage.    Almost immediately after scoring, the Eagles answered again after a kickoff return fumble from [player_tooltip player_id='1193376' first='Jermaine' last='Cobbins']. The first play of the series saw Covington display his arm talent again as he found Kevontae Pitts wide open in the end zone to put the Eagles ahead, 14-12. All of sudden, the home was on top headed into halftime and looking like the better team.    The Eagles would continue to surge in the 3rd quarter and push themselves toward a possible big win. On their first offensive series of the 2nd half, East Nashville extended their lead after a short yard run from Malachi Harris to make it 21-12 in favor of the home team.    After the Eagles extended their lead, things went quiet for a while until late in the 3rd quarter where Springfield began to wake up and make things interesting. The Yellow Jackets leaned on their run game to get back in the contest with Hurst being the main piece. This senior ball carrier found a crease in the East Nashville defense then bursted into the end zone to bring the game back to within one score at 21-19. It was his second rushing score of the night but it would be the last time we heard from Hurst.    <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/09/dbedwell.jpg?w=400" alt="" class="wp-image-1898637" style="width:245px;height:auto" /></figure>   We had a tight ball game going into the 4th quarter with the outcome still up in the air. This was already a good game but it got even better on the back end. Possibly the biggest moment of the game came early in the 4th where East Nashville had the ball in the red zone, looking to score but was stuffed on 4th down by the Yellow Jackets defense. If the Eagles had scored on this possession, the outcome might have been very different.    The Eagles got another opportunity to put the game away as Jamahad Dixon picked off Woodson on the Yellow Jackets ensuing drive to take over on downs and put their offense in prime scoring position. East Nashville would capitalize as Covington added his third passing touchdown of the night as he threw a dart into the back of the end zone where he found an open Jachaun Taylor to push the Eagles lead out to 28-19.    Springfield and their coaching staff didn't panic down nine as they went back to their run game and got themselves back in the mix. Their senior star and player of this game, Hurst found paydirt yet again to put the Yellow Jackets down 28-26 with less than five minutes to go. All they needed was a defensive stop and one offensive possession to win this game and they got it.    The Yellow Jackets slowly but steadily worked their way down into Eagles territory where they lined up for a short yard field goal that Colmanares nailed. East Nashville was given one last play but Covington's pass fell short and the road team would win and sneak out of Music City with the one point victory.    Both teams played exceptionally hard and gave everything they had but in the end, the winning culture right now at Springfield won out. This was yet another tough, hard fought close loss for the Eagles but I still think they will be fine, especially when it comes to competing in the 2A ranks and chasing after their region title.   - - - - -   Player of the Game    Early on it looked like the other team would land our player of the game but Hurst broke through in the 2nd quarter and never looked back as he became the key piece behind the Yellow Jackets road win over East Nashville. This senior running back generated over 100 yards rushing on the night along with three scores and all three were very important. Hurst is a well balanced runner that used his power and speed to work through the East Nashville defense while showing a gritty, tough mentality that helped his team towards victory.    - - - - - - - -   Three Stars …….    If the Eagles would have won this game, Covington would have been the “MVP” but unfortunately his team lost. Regardless of the outcome, this junior quarterback impressed me the most out of all the players on the field and showed me definite upside for the next level. Covington is a strong armed passer that brings clean mechanics to the game as well as zip, which he displayed several times throughout this game. He is a good athlete too that can run it when needed. The Eagles signal caller does need to add more size and weight but the passing tools are certainly in place to play on the college stage.    - - -    Murphy turned out to be the most dynamic performer on the field Friday night where he finished the game with over 100 yards receiving and one touchdown on the night. This senior wideout proved to be the safety blanket, the go-to guy for Covington and someone he and the coaches could depend on to make plays after the catch. The Yellow Jackets defense had a hard time keeping up with Murphy. His athleticism and speed proved to be difference makers in this close matchup.    - - -    The Eagles had a hard time running the ball against the Springfield defensive front seven and Wilson was a big reason why they couldn't. On several occasions, this junior linebacker made big hits against the run and multiple stops behind the line of scrimmage. His work darting off the edge and into the Eagles backfield played a big role in stopping their run. Wilson is a bit undersized in height but he makes up for it with physicality and good play recognition and if he didn't perform well on this night, the Yellow Jackets might have lost.    - - - - -   Other Top Performers   (Ath) [player_tooltip player_id='1597876' first='Kinnie' last='Fuller, Jr'] - East Nashville: This uncommitted senior put his athletic abilities and speed on display several times throughout the game where the Yellow Jackets defense had a hard time keeping him in-check. Fuller, Jr didn't score on the night but his playmaking skills helped set up multiple touchdowns.    (OL) [player_tooltip player_id='1598546' first='Dakota' last='Bedwell'] - Springfield: Hurst and the Yellow Jackets run game looked good Friday night with Bedwell leading the way up front. The Springfield O-line as a whole did good work but I thought Bedwell performed at a high level. He consistently got off the ball well then drove his man to the second level. Bedwell is undersized but gritty, smart and tough.    (DT) Naeshawn Thompson - Springfield: Thompson played a big role in helping stuff the Eagles run on Friday evening. He didn't make a ton of tackles but when he did, Thompson made them count. His biggest role came in plugging up gaps and taking on double teams. His activity and size in the middle allowed others to make the tackles and put a plug on the Eagles rushing attack.    (DB) [player_tooltip player_id='1194077' first='Demontez' last='Anderson'] - East Nashville: Handling corner duties for his defense, Anderson stood out to me with his physical game play along with his length that disrupted several passes. The Eagles senior is a tall, long and athletic defender that showed the ability to cover down field but also work close to the line, stopping the run.    ‘27 (QB) [player_tooltip player_id='1588080' first='Kason' last='Woodson'] - Springfield: I thought Woodson had an up and down game but overall still performed well enough to help his team win. He made several good throws on the night along with some bad ones but I thought his ability to run kept several drives going. His tough, physical running was impressive but his will to win was something that stood out to me the most.    <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/09/danderson-crop-1366x897-1758356179.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-1898643" style="width:330px;height:auto" /></figure>