Episode summary
The episode focused on the Florence Falcons' dominant 40-21 victory over Athens, highlighting key performances by players like DeCarson Johnson and Jaden White, while also discussing the team's preparation, leadership, and future challenges. The show included insights from coaches, player highlights, and community events like the Salsa Showdown.
Highlights
- Kevin Johnson and Mike Albertson discuss the Florence Falcons' 5-0 start and their need for physical and mental recovery before the Athens game.
- Coach Kenny Marson emphasizes focusing on one game at a time and using a sports writer's prediction of Athens winning to keep his team humble.
- John McDaniel praises the Florence Falcons' defensive line and linebacker unit, noting Athens' use of trick plays to exploit weaknesses.
- Kenny Morrison explains the team's preparation for the Athens game, including limited practice sessions and focusing on improving areas they lacked.
- DeCarson Johnson scores a 45-yard touchdown run, giving Florence a 7-0 lead, and later rushes for 134 yards on 13 carries in the first half.
- Jaden White makes two key plays for the Falcons' defense, including an interception and a fumble recovery, leading to a turnover at the 40-yard line.
- Florence leads 27-0 at halftime after a successful field goal by Joey Lane, marking her as the first female contestant to score in Brawley Stadium.
- The game ends with a final score of 40-21 in favor of Florence, with notable plays including a touchdown by Johnson and several penalties aiding Athens' scoring drive.
Full show transcript (text version of the audio, for readers who are deaf or hard of hearing)
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[0:00] The following is a special presentation of Sports Radio 93.9 The Score. For over 20 years, your radio home for Florence Falcons football. Florence Falcons football is 60 minutes away. Florence Falcons football on Sports Radio 93.9 The Score is brought to you by Florence Utilities, Florence City School, The Law Firm of Johnson, Peshire, Medley and Birchall. The North Alabama Boney Joint Clinic. TNT Fireworks. Yogurt Mountain. Whataburger. Singing River Dentistry. Village Discount Drugs. Hugo's Mexican Restaurant. Irons Electric. Cypress Creek Indoor Range. Lost Pizza. Henniger Johnson & Layden Insurance. Carbine Construction. First Southern Bank. And Warehouse Tackle. Now let's join the Falcons radio crew live from the stadium for pregame coverage.
Five football games are in the books and for the first time ever, the Florence Falcons have started a season 5-0. Tonight, the Falcons go for win number six, but it won't be easy. They're facing a confident Athens team coming in here. It's time to see if the Falcons team is for real. Who will win the battle of the birds? We're about to find out. Welcome to Florence Falcons football. Hello, everyone. I'm Kevin Johnson, voice of the Florence Falcons. I still believe, and welcome to the TNT Fireworks pregame show here on 93.9 The Score.
And joining me now, my good friend, color analyst, Mike Albertson. M.A., how are you doing, my friend? I'm doing great. How are you on this fine day? I am absolutely buzzing, but it's in my ear. Remember, that's what you said about Jeffrey last time we were on the air, so it's in my ear. How about that? It's going to be a lot of fun tonight. We're excited about it. It's Friday night. Good crowd. Hopefully, we'll pile in. Hopefully, the rain will hold off and we're looking forward to it.
Mike, it's Friday night football, and for the first time ever, we as a broadcast team are sitting with the team at 5-0. That's pretty impressive. It certainly is. The way they started the season was definitely impressive. That first half of the season was pretty well front-loaded as well. That doesn't mean the back half doesn't have its tough matchups, but they took care of business on that first half. They came up a little dinged up. That week off was pretty well timed there. The Falcons, as they go forward in this season, starting off 5-0, can't get much better than that.
You really can't. Now, there's so much we'll have to talk about through this hour-long pregame of the TNT Fireworks pregame show, but one of the things is this Falcon team needed a break physically. They've been physically beat up, but also, I think mentally, too. Wouldn't you think both of those are important? How is it they need both of those, actually? You know, look, football's a grueling sport. I mean, it's a collision contact sport. You're really throwing your bodies against each other, so obviously physically, you know, playing those first five games, getting dinged up, things like that are going to happen, you know, but mentally as well.
I mean, you really think about you beat your cross-down rival that you hadn't beaten in near a decade, which is obviously an emotional high, and then you're going into this Russellville game, which is another big game. You come away, you know, with a victory there. Then you have homecoming, which is all distractions and a week of bad practice, this, that, and the other thing, and it's just like, you know, one thing on top of the other. It's just good to be able to regroup, refocus, and really propel yourself and keep your eye on the prize towards the end of the season.
Florence didn't bring their A game last week. Let's be honest about it. When they played Decatur two weeks ago, actually, they won here at Brawley Stadium, but it was not pretty. It reminded me of the seventh girl I took to the prom. It wasn't pretty, but I took her, right? That's what we always said. Well, maybe they should go the other round. She took me. But if they didn't do that tonight, and they don't play their A game tonight, well, Florence is going to look good again. Athens will come away capable of winning this game.
Oh, absolutely. You know, they're a tough, well-coached team. They've got some tricks up their sleeve. They've got a lot of athletes all over the place. So, you know, being able to keep to your assignments and really keep focused here is going to be important for the Falcons. They've played, you know, up and down to their competition at times, and really great teams don't do that. You know, great teams will just play their best at all times and what have you. So, this week off, being able to regroup and refocus and really get back at the task at hand, you know, really looking forward to seeing how the Falcons do that this week.
Mike, can you still hit a curveball? I think I can. Okay, I'm going to throw you a curveball here. All right. Let's not talk football for a second. Uh-oh. Before I forget, I'm afraid I'll forget in the broadcast tonight, how about our good friend, former Florence Falcon, Grant Taylor, the Chicago White Sox? Pretty impressive that he is not only a part of the Chicago White Sox that got him there to the Divisional Series, but he had a big part of it. He certainly did in that game one.
He pitched two, two and a third innings, struck out five. But, you know, you talk about just that game, but he had an entire season that was awesome. He had 10 saves, a 2-2-5 ERA, which is phenomenal, you know, coming out of relief for a division winner, you know? And so to be able to be in the playoffs now at this point, you know, he's really made a name for himself in that back end of the bullpen. And some folks may not know that, but he is a former Florence Falcon.
[5:17] So if you see Grant Taylor, Chicago White Sox, then you'll know, hey, that's a former Falcon that is doing it well at the Major League place. Coach Kenny Marson of Florence in this game tonight is now showing what coaches sometimes have to be. I think they have to be strategists, maybe even a psychologist. He's got to keep everything sort of mentally sharp. And, Mike, that's really important. What do you see in that from a head coach? You know, your job as a coach is to lead young men, however that looks.
So being able to speak to them in certain moments, being able to have your finger on the pulse of what can move your team towards greatness or towards better and being able to implement those things to, you know, really grow your team to be in the best shape, both mentally and physically as the season goes on, being prepared for situations that may come up and really coach them through. But not only that, but being able to coach them through life, building them into young men that are going to be the future leaders of this community.
Well, last night, right after our broadcast of our Florence Falcon football night this year on Thursday night from Lost Pizza, Coach Kenny Marson and I sat outside the restaurant on a beautiful night and just talked for a few minutes. And here are the thoughts on tonight's game from the head coach of the Florence Falcons, Coach Kenny Marson. Joined now by head coach Kenny Marson, Florence Falcons coach. We're sitting out here on a Thursday night outside Lost Pizza after the radio show we did live tonight. And it seems like your team tonight, they're really focused.
Seems so. They're real loosey-goosey right now. But they do seem locked in, you know, better than earlier in the week. We saw them progress on into today. We thought today's practice was really well morning and afternoon that we did. So, they're pretty locked in this afternoon. DNA of teams is so different for every team you face. This one, you're still learning a little bit, even after five games. They surprise me daily. And, you know, I told somebody this one time, a state championship team that we had in Fayetteville.
We did not have a single practice that entire year that was to the standard of what we would want. But, boy, when the Friday night got there and you flipped that switch, they played. They just didn't like practice. But they really loved the game. So, this bunch has got a little bit of that DNA right there where they're not too fond of practice. And, you know, these days, kids, who's fond of the heat that it is and the hour-longs out there. And I know it's drudgery for them sometimes.
But they fought through it this week, and they're excited. Speaking with Kenny Marson, the head coach of the Florence Falcons. And, Coach, this region continues to be stacked every week. You've got to strap it on and get ready because it's going to be a battle. SEC North. We termed it that years and years ago, and it's living up to its billing. Athens is a good football team coming in here. And very well coached, very sound in what they do, and they play extremely hard. Important to keep an eye on them because I think teams like this sometimes will open up the playbook more than usual.
Do you think that could be possible as well? They absolutely do. Decatur came in and brought something to us that we haven't seen. They had a new quarterback, new running back, two new offensive linemen, and showed us stuff that we've not basically put in a new offense in a week's time, similar to what they had been doing. But they just made some adjustments, and we had to settle in at halftime and get it fixed. But we'll see some wrinkles for sure. This bunch, Silas is a special teams guy and really good at that.
And he's a defense coordinator as well, really solid over on that side of the ball. He was here my first year with us, and he's a very solid coach over there. And he loves some – he'll put pressure on you in the special teams game. They're going to try to block every punt we've got. We've got to be prepared for it. We worked extra hard on that this week. And they onside kick, they sky kick, they try to kick a ball hard right into the front line.
Guys, if they're not paying attention, the ball will bounce off of them. So we've been preparing for everything this week. Trick plays on offense, they've shown a bunch of them this year. So the open week was good. We've been able to work on a lot of things. And you've been able to work on yourself. Has that been important as well? Number one thing was we had to get better ourselves. And, you know, we really – I got on a pretty hard halftime of the Decatur game. We were really playing lethargic.
I really thought we brought our worst game against Decatur. Nothing against Coach Ritter and them. They had a lot to do with that. Their team played really hard. But we didn't play well. I was real disappointed in our guys. But looking back, we've been through a stretch of muscle shows. We've been through a stretch of Russellville and homecoming. What a disastrous week that can be. Added a bonfire to it last minute and a parade on Friday. And we had guys get a hold of too much candy and throwing it up at halftime like I knew they would.
[10:26] I tried to tell them, but kids are hard-headed sometimes. But that stretch was tough for us, and we needed this stretch run to work on us. Well, the second half is here. What do you want to say out of your team going into Athens? Relax. Don't put pressure on yourself that we're 5-0 and we've got to do this and got to do that. Don't look to be 10-0. We can't be 10-0 without being 6-0. And we've got to take it one game at a time, go have fun, turn it loose, and let's start fast.
Let's go get number six. Let's go. Go Falcons. Coach Kenny Marson, the Florence Falcons. This is the TNT Fireworks pregame show. Back in one minute. Florence Utilities offers several ways to view and pay your utility bill. Log into your account to sign up for paperless, auto pay, text pay to make your life easier. When you go green and go paperless, you will no longer have paper bills to fill up your mailbox, and you'll be helping the environment. To continue receiving a paper bill and an electronic bill notification, sign up for text pay.
Add your email address to your account. Easily view and pay your bill by clicking on the link in the text or email notification. Visit FlorenceAL.org and select Utilities to register for an account. Or call 256-760-6512 for more information. Hey, Falcon fans. This is Keith, Cypress Creek Indoor Range. We know great defense starts up front and the Falcons start with Jaden Weyer, defensive tackle. Whether stopping the run or disrupting that quarterback, Jaden has the right tools, puts in the hard work, and has the right training to stop the offensive threat of opposing teams.
Let Cypress Creek Indoor Range provide you with the tools, training, and resources to defend your family. We're the biggest gun store in the souls and the only indoor shooting range and training center to provide everything you need to have the best defense for your family. Cypress Creek Indoor Range is located at 5060 Highway 157 in Underwood Petersville. On the web, CypressCreekRange.com, and on social media. Go Falcons! Welcome back to the TNT Fireworks pregame show. Florence Falcons football here at Brawley Stadium. Charles C. Anderson Senior Field. Kevin Johnson, glad to be with you, along with Mike Albertson tonight.
For this big region game between Florence and Athens. Florence 3-0 in region play. Athens 2-1 in region play. Before last night, there were four teams that were 2-1 in region play. And now there are three at this time. Actually, one's 3-1 as Russell beat Muscle Shoes last night. And Austin also won last night, so they'd be 3-1 as well. We're the only two teams that didn't play on Thursday night. And, Mike, let's talk about this Falcons team. Let's talk about the Goose. I gave him the nickname.
I saw him this week, and I said, hey, number zero, let's talk for a minute. I gave him the nickname. And I told him, I said, DeCarson Johnson, my name is Kevin Johnson, and I broadcast your games on radio. And I said, I'll give you the nickname, The Goose, because you wear a goose egg. He said, I like it. I like it. I said, did you know about it? He said, yeah. I said, my girlfriend and family told me about it. I said, okay. So he's got listeners to listen.
So we're proud of him. DeCarson Johnson, though, has been a key to this team. Really impressive what he's done. Sort of carried the load for the Falcons. He certainly has, you know, they had early on, they had three guys that could really tote the rock quite well. But DeCarson Johnson, as the season's gone on, has really taken the lead role. He's stayed healthy for the most part. But being able to really take care of business for the Falcons, his style of running is quite impressive. His vision, the way he's able to finish runs.
But not only that, you know, just being able to make the cuts. And the game just feels different when he has the ball in his hands. He has that breakaway speed when he gets out there, but he can make guys miss. He just really, really has grown into a more complete back this year. And you could see. Yeah, I think the grown. That's the thing, the maturity. You know, you sometimes, you see the ceiling hit by a kid in the junior year, even sophomore year. He has grown immensely this year and been a key factor in this Falcons 5-0 start.
5-0, speaking of that, Florence has shown that there is still much work to do and, well, much to fix as well. Yeah, absolutely. You know, Coach Morrison talked about it. And we've seen it, you know, through the years as a broadcast crew. The team that you start with is not the team that you end with most of the time. You know, they grow. They wind up switching positions and making adjustments as the season goes on. Guys get dinged up. They get injured. So, you know, there's always that next man up mentality.
But the work is still ahead. You've got, you know, five more games. And, you know, you've got some quality opponents, guys that can trip you up. And if you're going to look to have a good season, congratulations. We're already having a good season. But the reality is this team could be great. But that means that there's a lot to fix and a lot to continue to grow. We want to say thank you to our sponsors and make it possible for us to bring Florence Falcons football to you here on 93.9 The Score, who has done this now for every season since 2004 for Southern Bank, Florence Utilities, Florence City Schools, Johnson, Pasteur, Medley, and Virtual Attorneys, North Alabama Bone and Joint Clinic, T&T Fireworks, Hugo's Restaurant, Hugo's Mexican Restaurant, I should say, Singing River Dentistry, Lost Pizza, Village Discount Drugs, Irons Electric, Cypress Creek Range, Hennigar Johnson & Layton Insurance, Carbine Construction, and Warehouse Tackle.
[15:43] Thank you for being our sponsors. And if you're listening, I hope you will keep some of those names in mind and thank them for being sponsors, allowing us to bring you Florence Falcon football here on 93.9 The Score. We couldn't do it without the sponsors who helped us out each and every week. Let's bring in our third member of the crew, a friend of Roy, a good friend of mine, Jeffrey Jones. JJ, how are you doing tonight? I'm doing great. Beautiful night. How's Roy doing, by the way?
Is he all right? All right. So I'll give a little bit of background on that. Roy is my dad's best friend. Grew up with him, went to school with him in Montgomery, went to work together at Alpha with him for 40 years. And so when we went down to the Opelika game, we got to tour all of Auburn's facilities. And when I tell you we could have gone and put our feet up on Coach Hugh Freeze's desk at the time, we could have done it. Wow. But anyway, yeah, so Roy has become kind of a, we get updates on Roy throughout the season.
I went to the Auburn game last weekend and got to hang out with Roy. Roy asked about the boys, the radio crew, and he said he's still going to Opelika games and when he gets a chance. And, you know, it's funny because he knew I was coming, so he put me on a couple lists to get in. I walked in the Letterman's Lounge at Jordan-Hare Stadium and I said, what about Roy? How's he getting here? They're like, he has the golden ticket. It's like, the golden ticket?
They said, yep. He can go sit in the locker room if he wants to at any point. That's a lot about Roy. We love him a lot. He was special. That was cool. Well, JJ, let's talk about this Florence Falcons team. Speaking of family-like atmospheres, they seem to be really close and have a family-like atmosphere as well. Yeah, it's been a fun season. I mean, there's no doubt about that. And they've gelled together as a team. You know, you've got leaders in the field representing each class.
You know, you've got sophomores out there representing leaders. You've got juniors out there. And then you've got seniors out there. You know, it's kind of, in a way, standing on the sidelines, it's kind of hard to tell who the seniors are and who the – you know, because you've got leadership coming from all directions. You know, you've got sophomores, sophomore running backs that are kind of helping the offensive lineman out with placement and that sort of thing. You've got the offensive lineman that's gelling. You know, they've come along.
I would say as far as coming a long way, that offensive line has come a long way. You know, and I had some worries about our defensive backs in the beginning. But they've gelled and they've come a long way as well. So, you know, as far as weaknesses go, I don't see many. You know, there might be one or two here and there that pop up. But as far as the family-like atmosphere, they are really – they're really getting along. You know, you can tell. And it's been like that throughout summer and into the fall.
And, you know, I've said this before and I'll say it again. The football team sets the tone for the whole way the year goes, the academic year goes. If we have a good, successful football season, everyone's gelling and the crowd shows up and the student section's there and involved, it sets the tone for the whole year. And they have – this team has certainly set the tone for the whole school and they're representing Florence well. Years past, J.J., this Florence team has had to do scoreboard watching.
But not this year right now. Everything's right in front of us. It's in their control. Well, I was actually just talking to some media guys up in the press box a little while ago and they were talking about how there's four spots. And of those four spots, you know, we're not – there's only – there's three teams battling for that fourth spot right now. It is too early to be talking like that because I think that we're too young in the season to be talking like we don't have to watch the scoreboard.
But if we take care of business and do what we're supposed to do, we won't have to watch the scoreboard. And that's just a simple fact, you know. If we trip up along the way, yeah, we're going to have to be – we're going to need some help. But right now, you know, we're in the driver's seat. There's no – you can't deny that. And, you know, I'm sure Mike Albertson is very happy this week that we're ranked. We're ranked. It's very important in the fifth week of the season to be ranked.
You know, guys? You know, Coach Kenny Marson brought that up to me. He said, I don't like the rankings. No. I don't like that. But he did bring up that there was a sports writer that on 93.9 to score even said, hey, I'm picking Athens to win the game. And he has used that this week to save his team. I just want you to know how much respect you really do have. And so he's put that in there. I'm going to go ahead and second that. I'm going to go ahead and pick Athens right now.
If that's going to help us, I'll pick every team we play against to keep us humble. You've been going against me all night already. That's good. So I like that. Teacher appreciation night tonight. Pretty special night. Very important night for our faculty. You know, they get – it's good to see them get the recognition they deserve. And the best part about it is, you know, these kids that's fresh on their mind, you know, they don't look very beyond their front yard. But some of them bring in their elementary teachers.
And so I love seeing these Whedon, Harlan, Hibbert, and Forest Hills elementary teachers represent the whole system. I think it's very important for them to recognize the high school teachers. But seeing these elementary school teachers, you know, that really – if someone, you know, for example, Ms. Julie Greenhall. She's been out there before. That's Parker Greenhall's mom. If they remember her after so many years, she must have made a good impact. You know, that's a very – it's very touching. And I think that the world of our education system, I think that all these teachers deserve the recognition they get tonight.
[20:45] Recognition. We want to give recognition to some guys that do a great job each and every Friday night, including our good friend James Moody, who's in the 93.9 The Score studios. He has updates, countdowns, and everything else. James Moody, it's to you. Take it away. Thank you, Kevin. Yes, we will be keeping track of all the action tonight. Had a lot of action last night due to regular scheduled and rescheduled games. Decatur Heritage beat Shoals Christian 28-7. It was Coleman falling to Jasper 31-6. Madison Academy beat Randolph 31-30.
It was Bridewood Christian over St. John Paul II 56-7. John Carroll Catholic over Westminster Christian 48-0. Brooks beat West Point 47-21. And Russellville beat Muscle Shoals 43-35. Also, Potts Camp defeated Tharptown 60-14. In Tennessee, Summertown defeated Loretto 42-25. Perry County over Wayne County 54-23. And in Mississippi, Ittawamba over Moorville 49-0. We'll be keeping track of all the action tonight, including but not limited to Paul Green and Addison, Phillips and Cherokee, Central Clements, Lexington Colbert County, Wilson Colbert Heights, Hartsell Decatur. We also have Red Bay-Hackleburg, Buckhorn James Clements, Whitesburg Christian Marshill, Rogers West Limestone, Bob Jones and Sparkman.
Just some of the games we'll be keeping track of tonight. Also, the Tennessee scores, the Mississippi score, no baseball tonight, an odd day in the baseball calendar for the playoffs. No baseball tonight, but we'll be keeping track of Pitt and Virginia Tech and Penn State and Northwestern. More of the pregame show right now, guys. Thank you, James Moody, the best in the business there in the 93.9 The Score Studios. And he'll be with you tonight for the HSA School Board Show from 10 to midnight as well. And Mike Albertson, we cut down on penalties.
Talking about we, the Florence Falcons, last game. But turnovers for the first time hit us. Good lesson, though, last week or two weeks ago against Decatur. Yeah, absolutely. Look, you can turn best through failure, and there were a few of them that we put on film last week that we can learn from. You know, things that you were able to get away with maybe at the lower levels in the middle school and such or when you're growing as a young player, you can get away with certain things.
But last week we did some things that are just, you know, antithetical of how we're supposed to play this football game, throwing against the grain and things like that, throwing back behind yourself towards the middle of the field. It's just, you know, it's just a recipe for disaster. And we had a couple of those. But, look, we've got some really good coaches and some smart players that are going to be able to put some things back in the mix and really make those adjustments and improve.
And that's what it's all about is the improvement as the season goes on. That was the right week to have those mistakes. You know, nothing against Decatur, but we were a better football team. We didn't show it at times, and they showed that they were there to play. But when we were able to make those adjustments and make better plays, you know, and just continue to look for those improvements to happen. Let's welcome in our statistician, my good friend, John McDaniel, who we're glad could maneuver his way up here and work his way through the crowd to get here tonight.
John, how are you doing, my friend? I'm doing good, Kevin. I've been called lots of things. J.J. is not one of them. I mean, I didn't make the full slip, but he calls me out on it. I love it, but he's right about that. I was about to go there, but let's talk about it. That's a low blow you start calling people J.J. Well, you've got a point there, I have to admit. Let's talk about you as a college football player. You've been in this situation before, the off week.
How do coaches treat it for teams? You've seen this before. Yeah, I don't think coaches really – no one knows exactly what the best way to handle it is. I think all coaches are trying to grasp what's best for their team. Some like to be physical early in the week. Some like to have sort of maybe a scrimmage-type game setting on maybe a Friday. All of them want to get you some rest as far as it goes, a few days anyway. Some like to maybe take it a lot lighter than others.
But the one thing you want to do is make sure that you guys get a little healthy. For like the Falcons, this is not week five. This is really like week 12 because they've been practicing now in the offseason and in the first five weeks of games. So they've got a lot of wear and tear. So this off week came at a good time. One thing that's good that the Falcons have time to do, you can self-scout. You can see what are we doing well, what are we doing poorly, do we have tendencies that we need to break, et cetera, those types of things.
And I'm sure the coaching staff has been hard at work this week. This may be an off week for the players per se, but it was definitely not an off week for the coaches. They spend a lot of time in film study going over the things I was mentioning and trying to develop plans for them to be successful in games six through ten. We talk about the defensive line being so good for Florence, but this linebacker core has been really good as well. What has impressed you as a former linebacker about this Florence Falcons linebacker unit?
They do a great job playing with their front. Like the best way for a linebacker, you love when your big guys up front keep offensive linemen off of you and you can run and tackle and hit. And our guys have been – we've got a terrific defensive line that sets the stage. And our guys for Jaden Irons, Martinez, Bo Burski, Chase Winkles, some of the backups, they do a great job of being really physical and running sideline to sideline. They are really doing a good job of playing what their responsibilities are.
[26:06] They're not trying to overextend their self, not trying to, as I said, do someone else's job and get out of position. So they do a great job of staying where they're supposed to be. We don't have any five-star players at linebacker, but we've got a lot of guys who are really physical, love to play ball and play with a lot of aggression and effort. And those are the kind of players everybody wants on their team. By the way, just a small note here. Athens is going off the field after warm-ups.
They practice at one end and they go to the opposite end to the scoreboard side to go to the locker room. So to go down their sideline, they shook hands with all their coaches. They go down the sideline. But the three officials, three of the officials run over to the sideline to make sure they don't get in the lane of the Falcons who are warming up as well. That's good officiating. To me, that's understanding that you're just trying to make sure nothing happens. And with these two squads, I wouldn't expect that.
But I just noticed that was something I haven't seen always where they went and made sure that happened. So keeping everything cleaned up even in pregame, I like that from the officiating crew. John McDaniel, one last question I want to ask you. The old trick plays, Athens has used them a few times. Coach Morrison is concerned about that. You know, when you look at that, how do you prepare for a team that throws open the playbook? I'm just going to comment on this real quick. You would expect a Cody Gross team to not engage in extracurriculars, just like a Kenny Morrison team.
I agree. Between those two, there's probably very few people that I respect in coaching more than those guys. To your question, they do a great job talking about, Coach Gross, of when to call those kind of trick plays. They have a great feel for the timing of it. And really what they're trying to do is they're banking on one of your guys getting a little aggressive, getting out of position. Maybe if they throw the sort of a hitch pass, a defensive back is way too aggressive, and they throw it over his head.
So, yeah, there is certainly some opportunity for some trick plays. As I said, they draw them up well, and they scheme. Sometimes they look specific to the team they're playing and picking on a particular defender who they think they've clocked a weakness on. So they do a good job of when to call them, the types of plays. So for the Falcons, just being in your responsibility and not getting overaggressive is how you can defend against it at best. Shout out to our good friends at Lost Pizza Florence listening in tonight.
They take care of our broadcast crew. They'll take care of you. Lost Pizza, satisfied you and your family with great food in historic downtown Florence. Countdown to kickoff continues. We're back after this one-minute timeout. Game day's coming, and your tailgate crew is counting on you. That's why Lost Pizza Company Shoals put together the tailgate playbook specialty pizzas, wing trays, and subplatters, all built to feed a crowd. It's why we're the go-to pizza place in Florence, Alabama, now bringing that same lineup straight to your tailgate. Order for pickup or delivery to U&A tailgate only.
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No representation is made that the quality of legal services to be performed is greater than the quality of legal services performed by other lawyers. Back at Raleigh Stadium, Charles C. Anderson Senior Field, Kevin Johnson, Mike Albertson, Jeffrey Jones, John McDaniel, all with you tonight. The crew's all here. Clouds gathering in a little bit, but let's send it down to Jeffrey Jones, who has the head coach, Kenny Morrison, with him. Coach, looks like the, I don't want to jinx us or anything, but the weather might be pretty decent right now.
I think it is. I think the weather's going to hold off, so if everybody's sitting at home watching it, afraid we're going to get hit, come on. I think we're going to have a nice crowd if we can just get them out here and not worry about the weather. So, much needed week off. What did y'all do during the week? The first week off, we took a few days. We practiced only three during the middle of the week. Gave them time to heal up. We just went an hour and about ten minutes on each day and just worked on us was the biggest thing.
We had to get better at what we were lacking for sure. Thankfully, we're playing a team that is coached by a very well-coached staff. The head coach has some experience in Brawley. He doesn't lose here very much. So, that's a good thought. So, as far as you're focusing on us, we've still got a couple injuries, but we've got some depth. So, I think we could be okay there, right? Next man up mentality, we've had that all year long. We do have one or two that are not going to play, but we feel confident about the ones that are going to be back in there.
[31:08] 90% of our guys are back healthy tonight. We feel full strength almost. We're going to miss a couple, but other than that, we've got everybody healed up. Good luck, coach. Thank you. Thank you. Kenny Morrison, the head coach of the Florence Falcons with Jeffrey Jones, our sideline colleague there. And as they go off in their blue tops, blue helmets, blue jerseys, and white pants, the Falcons getting ready for teacher appreciation out here in a few minutes as well. And Mike Albertson, and one of those guys in that team is special because he's a specialist, and his name is Parker Greenhall.
He's probably been, to me, one of the pleasant surprises. Not that I didn't have confidence in him, but he has really had a great season. Let's talk about this kicker. Right, he's done a really good job coming in, extra points, you know, and field goals. He's really put up points for the Falcons. But, you know, on kickoffs, too, being able to pin them back deep, being able to get a touchback when needed, things like that. I mean, he's just really, really taking a step in. I mean, obviously, we've had guys like Charlie Graves last year, two years ago, Chandler Dixon.
So, that special teams kicker position has been filled by some really great players, and he's really fit the bill as well. John McDaniel, let's talk about both teams, Athens and Florence, both coming off bye weeks. So, even ground on that part, but maybe the team that can get into that rhythm early, is that a big factor? Yeah, I like that both teams are coming off of the bye. That way, there's really no benefit or advantage one way or the other. Certainly, the Falcons were playing pretty well before they took a break.
And if there was ever a time that you didn't want a break, kind of for the Falcons rolling at 5-0, you wanted to maybe keep it going. But to certainly kind of get lathered up and get it maybe in the groove, I would like to see them come out and try to really establish the run as well as they can, because that's been what their forte is this year. But for a team to get into a good rhythm is certainly going to be a benefit, whoever can get there fastest.
Athens, coached by Cody Gross. His resume as a player, as a player, 41-2 when he was at the University of North Alabama as a starting quarterback. Three-time national champion there. One of only two quarterbacks to ever start for three titles in NCAA history. Most of you know all about that. He's a Hall of Famer, and he's in multiple Hall of Fames as that, as a player. As a coach, it is his 11th season at Athens High School, 92-70. Not bad as a career coach. But he is very familiar with this field, but so is Kenny Marson, as we'll talk about in a few minutes.
Kenny Marson in his fifth season at Florence High School, 53-23 in his career. And Kenny Marson won a state championship at Fayetteville High School in Tennessee in 2020, an undefeated season then, when he took the Fayetteville Tigers to that title. So he has a little bit of understanding of undefeated teams. We'll keep an eye on that. Florence-Athens beating for only the fifth time. Florence leads the series 3-1. Athens won the last game in 2017 at Athens on a comeback 28-24 after they trailed by, I think, maybe 10-12 points, and in the last six minutes came back and won the game.
And so they won the last meeting, but Florence leads that series three games to one. So it should be a good one tonight between the Falcons and the Eagles tonight. When we come back, more as we count down to kickoff. You're listening to TNT Fireworks' pregame show back in two minutes. Getting the kids to practice on time. Remembering if it's your day to bring snacks. Making it to the game with a clean jersey. Why are simple things sometimes so complicated? Thankfully, with auto owners, insurance doesn't have to be one of them.
Auto owners works with independent agents who answer when you call. So you can worry about more important things. Like whether your kid is going to run toward first or third base. That's simple human sense. In Florence, call Tyson Johnson, Luke Brown, Kirby Allen, Victoria Devaney, Brant Bishop, or Daniel Box with Hineker Johnson and Layton Insurance Agency. 5256-764-8682. It's football time in Alabama. Our students are learning big American lessons. You can start with your God-given talents. And through practice, hard work, and sacrifice, you have the ability to become champions.
This is Congressman Robert Adderholt. May God bless all of our students representing our high schools during this season. And may God bless the United States of America. I'm Robert Adderholt, and I approve this message. Paid for by Adderholt for Congress. At First Southern Bank, we always cheer for the home team. We are homegrown, with deep roots, and we're invested in this community. With checking and savings accounts, mobile and online banking, and a mortgage department to help you with the home of your dreams, First Southern Bank is your neighborhood bank.
Sometimes a local financial institution with deep roots and a commitment to the community can provide just the banking services you need. We always root for the home team, because we are the home team. First Southern Bank. Equal Housing Lender Member FDIC. Craving authentic Mexican flavor? Dive into delicious at Hugo's Mexican Restaurant, 4160 Florence Boulevard, at the entrance to Kendall Gardens. Start off with fresh tortilla chips and Hugo's famous cheese dip. Then enjoy mouth-watering tacos, enchiladas, and of course, Hugo's famous fajitas and more, all in a vibrant atmosphere.
[36:28] We're open Tuesday through Thursday and Sunday until 9 p.m. and until 9.30 on Friday and Saturday. Hugo's Mexican Restaurant, where every meal is a fiesta. See you soon at 4160 Florence Boulevard, the entrance to Kendall Gardens. There was a buzz in the city of Florence from the years 1993 to 1995. The UNA Lions were on their way to an unprecedented three-peat national championship in Division II football, and their leader, a young boy from Lauderdale County. Cody Gross was an artist as an option quarterback, leading his team all those years at Brawley Stadium.
And as a starter, he had a 41-2 record and only lost once at Brawley as a freshman. His name and the stadium are linked together forever. For many years, the city of Florence cheered on old number 15. The Falcons are as hot as any team in North Alabama through five games, but that is just halfway through the season. Now the Falcons go from being the hunter to being the hunted by teams that are looking to pick them off. The first one with ambitions to pick off the Falcons, the Athens Golden Eagles, and you guessed it, coached by Cody Gross.
If Florence doesn't bring their A game, the Eagles are more than capable of pulling the upset. But for the Florence Falcons, they have an ace in the pocket, too. They are led by a former quarterback at Grace Brawley Stadium as well. The black and gold of coffee was led by number 12, Kenny Marson, in 1985. The tenacity he showed as a yellow jacket? Well, it is carried over to 2026 as the head coach of the Florence Falcons. Coach Marson, I promise you, is as focused today as he was when he wore old number 12 at coffee high.
Two great quarterbacks from years past. Two great leaders on and off the field. Two great head coaches ready to battle on a field they both know oh so well. It is what high school football is supposed to look like. But as for the city of Florence, sorry, number 15. Thanks for the memories, but tonight we bleed Falcon blue. Florence Falcons football, it starts right now. On a cloudy night, Brawley Stadium, Charles C. Anderson Field. Here tonight, going to be a good one between the Falcons and the Golden Eagles in a key matchup.
Kevin Johnson, glad to be with you. Here's the voice of the Florence Falcons. And, Mike, when you look at the next five games, Athens and Austin, they both stand out on the last five. They're the big ones. But tonight is not going to be easy. Matter of fact, I've got the field all week long. This could be the game that Florence really needs to keep their guard up. Oh, absolutely. You know, you're coming off a bye week with a game that you really didn't, the previous game, you really didn't show your best.
So, there is that opportunity for a letdown or just getting stale, you know, not being on the field a little bit. But also, you know, you're facing a good opponent that's well coached. You know, anything can happen when the Friday night lights are on. We know that. But, you know, like as this season goes down the stretch, this is a big one to kick off our second half of the season. And we got, you know, East Limestone, then Athens finish up with Hartzell and then go on to Fort Payne.
And so, we have some games coming up that are really – that could really trip us up. But this Falcon team, if they continue to learn and grow and do what they've done as the season's gone on, they'll be just fine. This Athens offense, John, has been putting up plenty of points. Matter of fact, it's a big test for Florence. They've been averaging, I think, 37 points a game or 36 points a game in the last three games in region play. Well, that's possible, I guess. So, they were averaging on the season right at 32.
They've scored 41, 28, and 39 in the last three weeks, which is a pretty hefty output. They've got their – last week they kind of had a little bit of a letdown. They had a backup quarterback in. And their starter, unknown if he is going to play, probably he was warming up. But he can really sling it. Zayden Holman, I believe is what I have his name as. And he is a – I think he's a lefty and he really puts a lot of stress on the defense. And it's going to be hard for the Falcons without having watched the game, kind of been hobbled the last couple of weeks, not really knowing what's going to – who they're going to have to prepare for.
So, I would imagine it's going to be – take a while for the Falcons to get settled in. Hopefully, Mike said this could be – it's a chance for them to come out kind of slow because of being the week off. And as he said, we kind of struggled through the last game that we played. So, I hope the Falcons are able to come out and step on the gas early. Jeffrey Jones, I believe you're on the sideline or close to it down there. But it's teacher appreciation.
[41:38] It's really neat to see. Yes, it is. Like I said, you know, you've got high school teachers. You've got Harlan Whedon, Forest Deals teachers. You know, I'm a little surprised Parker Greenhall didn't pick his mom. But, you know, I'm sure she is his favorite. But, you know, some great educators down here. You've got some coaches that are great mentors. I wonder sometimes if these seniors fight over who gets, you know – I'm sure. You've got Coach McGuire out here. You've got a couple of – you know, Bradley Elliott.
He's a favorite, fan favorite of all. But, you know, I wonder, like – I guess it's a race to get to them. You know, we've got a lot of seniors and well-represented class right here. These guys have earned it, and they deserve the recognition as long as the teachers too. It's a neat thing. I'm not sure what school ever started it, but whoever did, kudos to them because it's gone to every school just about. And it's really neat. And it is good to just reaffirm to the teachers, these young men who give a lot of the football field really do appreciate each and every teacher as well.
And, you know, guys, let's just sort of talk about this for a minute. By this time of the year, we have known usually who is on the field. But this Falcon talent, we may have several different wide receivers. We may have four different running backs. I mean, it's next man up. It's – Mike, I mean, I'll start with you. Can you remember a time – it's been a while since we've had this much depth and maybe show up and have to show up? Oh, yes. Having depth in all positions is obviously important.
But, you know, I think at one point during the Russellville game, I believe that nine of our guys that were getting in the rotation were from the sophomore class. Yeah. During that game and just that experience as they grow and continue to beef out, they're going to help us out for the next two seasons beyond this. So, you know, we have a stout junior class, our defensive line, hello. You know, and our sophomore quarterback. We've got guys, but we also have a bunch of seniors that are doing a great job as well through our wide receivers and our linebackers and such.
So, like, we have depth at a bunch of positions. And really getting these guys on the field, there's not much – there's not too much of a huge drop-off. So, being able to plug and play these guys and create that depth is huge because football is a brutal sport and you can't play each and every week. And so, when there's that next man up mentality, as Coach talked about, that's really what you build your program around. Let's talk about it. John, you know, last night three games were played and Muscle Shoals gets upset, I think, in some ways by Russellville.
It could have been a pick and by some, but Russellville wins that one. That's a big win. Austin took care of business over East Limestone and Hartsell beats Decatur. This one's sort of being circled here, but if Florence can win this, it really puts them in great shape. It does put them in the driver's seat. As we mentioned earlier, some of the guys that we've done for the last, I don't know, seven or eight years, we've done some scoreboard watching towards the end of the season.
If we were able to win this one and really kind of separate ourselves, we would be able to not only be in the driver's seat, but we would put pressure on everyone else. And we would not – we would simply have to watch what games we're playing and what we score. As Coach likes to say, it's about us. He could make it about us if we keep winning and keep stacking W's. That would put the Falcons in a great position, not only for the region, but leading into the playoffs and who they're going to draw in the next round.
Let's look at this offensive unit for Florence. Starting lineup, Costin Mahan. Quarterback, 6'2", 225, a sophomore will get the start. 36-73 on the season, 368 yards and four touchdowns. His front line has been really good. Raymond Russell, sophomore, left tackle, 6'1", 280, growing up every game a little more. Armani Hernandez, junior, 270, 5'11", guard has really played well. Jacob Parker at center, 5'11", 245. He'll wear number 57. He has done outstanding as well. Dre Moore, 5'10", 255, a senior, wears number 51. He's played well up front. And then also C.J. Bolden, I think, will get the start.
Our Orlando rounds, I'll have to check that. Both of them have been in and out. We'll check which one gets the start tonight. But they've been handling the right tackle position. On the outside, Nelson Elliott, been very steady this year at the playing H, 6'1", 170, a senior. Also, you have in there starting tonight a couple of others, too. You'll have Sullivan Haddock playing 6'3", 170, a senior. He'll get the start tonight. And then Goolsby, that's right, John Carter Goolsby. I couldn't find his name on my list here.
John Carter Goolsby, wears number 14, 5'11", 165. We'll get the start as well. The running back will be DeCarson Johnson. No Kayon Williams tonight, still recovering from a little injury he had. He'll be back maybe in a couple of weeks, we hope. DeCarson Johnson, wears number 0, 5'10", 175, a senior. He's got 682 yards rushing this season, four touchdowns. Last time against Decatur, 14 carries for 129 and a touchdown. Elijah Hines is back in. He played a little bit against Decatur. He'll play more this week as well. And he'll be at the starter, 5'9", 160, a junior as well for the Falcons.
[46:41] The kicker, Parker Greenhall, wears number 81, the senior. 22 of 23 points after touchdowns. The only one he missed was a bad snap, if I'm not mistaken. Four of six on field goals and as long as 42 yards. But 15 touchbacks, Mike. Those touchbacks really are big. They certainly are. You know, being able to diminish somebody else's special teams, their return game. You know, we saw it with Jasper. They have a really special talent back there, and being able to plug them back into the end zone and have no return there was definitely a weapon there for the Falcons.
You know, Mike, this Falcons team, you know, we've talked about a lot of different things, but they just need to take control a little bit of this game. That's what I really want to see them do. I say take control. Just sort of show who they're supposed to be and flex their muscles a little bit. That would be a great sign early on. It certainly would. And, you know, Coach Morrison has definitely preached that over the last couple of weeks of just, you know, we're not playing our best football, and we have more in the tank.
And he knows how special this team can be. So being able to draw that out of them and get them to show it and believe it. You know, he was asking for leaders this week. He was asking the players who's going to step up and be the leader that we need. And that's a rallying call, a rallying cry right there. And you want to talk about when the team takes ownership of what happens on the field, there's no stopping them. Jeffrey Jones on the sideline. One of the things, though, we also need to see is if Florence was to do that, they don't need to take their foot off the gas against this very prolific offense from Athens.
Yeah. All week we've been hearing, you know, people have been, I'm a little worried about this one. You know, we've worried about a couple in the past. You know, I was worried about Russell. Worried about Athens. It's a good thought because we need to be worried about them because they are a good team. They are no joke. You know, they've had one or two slip-ups here and there. But for the most part, they beat some good teams now. They beat some good teams. And right now they're in a different position.
They're fighting for that fourth spot. And if they win out, I'm pretty sure they're going to be in it. You know, they might even be third. But, you know, as far as their team makeup, this is definitely a team we need to be worried about and be focused on. Shout out to our friends at Garner Pierce Auto for our vehicles on away games. They take care of us. They'll take care of you. Garner Pierce Auto in Florence. When we come back, more from the TNT fireworks pregame show here on 93.9 The Score.
We're back in one minute. This is Miranda Haddock with the Florence Education Foundation. We would like to extend an invitation to our ninth annual Salsa Showdown on Saturday, October 3rd from 2 to 5 p.m. at Singing River Brewery. Restaurants and individuals from around the show will compete to see who has the best salsa and queso. Enjoy live music and a fun-filled day. For tickets and more information, visit our website at FlorenceEducationFoundation.org. I would like to thank our Silver and Gold sponsors, Forsyth and Long, Bank Independent, Chick-fil-A, Cutter Construction, Essity, E.S. Robbins, First Southern Bank, Grigsby Properties, Johnson & Mayhand Dental, Long Lewis, Florence, River Bank & Trust, and United Community Bank.
And a special thank you to our title sponsor this year, TNT Fireworks. At North Alabama Bone & Joint Clinic, our shoals roots run deep. We provide quick access and familiar friendly faces so you never have to feel just like a number. From sports medicine to joint replacement, expert care happens right here at home. As UNA Athletics' choice for orthopedics and the trusted orthopedic team of the show families for over 30 years, North Alabama Bone & Joint Clinic is here for you. Learn more at nabjc.com. We are back here at Brawley Stadium, Charles C. Anderson Senior Field.
And at this time, we're going to let you listen in to the Big Blue Band tonight. They're on the field. And we don't always highlight them, but tonight we're going to highlight them a little bit as they perform our national anthem. So let's listen in to the Big Blue Band as they perform this national anthem tonight at Brawley Stadium. And we'll let you listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band.
Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band.
Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band.
[51:45] Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band.
Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. Let's listen in to the Big Blue Band. The Big Blue Band here performing the national anthem for a nice crowd here at Brawley Stadium. Kevin Johnson, Mike Albertson, Jeffrey Jones, John McDaniel here with you on the call. Let's look at this Falcons defense tonight. Potential starting lineup. Jaden White will be the nose guard, 6'3", 275, a junior, 17 tackles, one pass breakup, four tackles for loss. He has offers now from four SEC schools, including Ole Miss, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Missouri.
I have to think of the fourth one there, and several ACC schools and others as well. Nate Pride will be wearing number 98. He's a junior, 6'2", 60. He is more important than we realize because he compliments White so much up front, Mike. He certainly does. You know, his ability not only to pass rush, you know, but to fill gaps. But even in that pass game, as that pass is being released, being able to throw his hands up, disrupt a lot of those passes and bat those down, he's really shown some athleticism out of that position.
A.J. Dixon wears number 99. The junior is 5'9", 240. He'll be on the other end. Middle linebacker tonight, Jaden Irons wears number 23, 6'2", 215. He has been outstanding. Leaves the Falcons in tackles with 41 on the season. He'll be joined in the middle tonight by Bo Burski, who will move to the middle side tonight and play some. Chase Winkle's out tonight. So, Bo Burski, wearing number 26, will move to the middle, 6'1", 205-pound senior. Has 19 tackles on the year as well. On the outside, Jaden Martinez, 5'10", 170, a junior. He'll be wearing number 32.
He'll be joined on the other side by Austin Klotzbach getting his first start of the year, 6'2", 205 senior. Klotzbach is a good athlete. It's early for him to get out there as a starter, but I think he's ready for it. You know, and the coaches are the best ones to make that decision. You know, they see him every day in practice, and they know what his abilities are and what he's capable of. So, if he does what the coaches think that he's going to do, he's going to be a wonderful addition.
Landon Rayner will be the safety, 6'1", 165, a senior. Wears number 15. Joined by Otis Sistrunk, Jr., 6'1", 210, a senior. Wears number six. The cornerback will be Des Brown, who's had an outstanding season, wears number two, 5'10", 175, a senior. And London Petty Poole, who wears number 12, and he will be the starter on the other side. The captains for tonight's game, we'll catch those if we can. I know that John Carter Goolsby is out there. He'll be one of the captains, along with Austin Klotzbach as well. So, we're glad to have the captains for this one tonight and being with us.
And a couple of other captains. I don't have my list in as well, but it'll be good. William Porsche. Yep, William Porsche. Also, you've got Zane Holiday. Zane Holiday will be the other. So, had a lot of things thrown at us here, a couple of things. But appreciate that along the way, Athens will have their captains. They're wearing the white uniforms, gold pants they'll have out there as a captain. Brady Johnston will be one of their captains, along with Caden Bledsoe. And Bledsoe is a tremendous running back.
He has scored a lot of touchdowns. It's a big team, Athens has. They have some big linemen, well-coached. And the captains meeting now at midfield here at the Falcon Emblem on Charles C. Anderson Sr. Field. And the lights go out and the spotlight comes on. That's one of the things I do like of that. It's pretty cool. You like the lights, Kevin? I like the lights on this where the spotlight comes on that. I don't like it when I'm walking up and down steps and the lights go out.
But that's just me. So a little tough on that. Captains meet, shake hands. Let's send it down to Jeffrey Jones who will have the white hat referee as they're meeting everybody. And they're still congregating there before the referee has it. And it looks like we've got about eight or nine media down there. Here we go. All right, Athens, the division, who's going to call the coin toss? Tails. Tails. What are you going to call? Tails. He's calling Tails. He's going to call the coin toss. Defer.
Athens won the toss. Tossed by Senator Nelson. And they're going to defer to the second half. Florence and Athens from Brawley Stadium. Get ready. It's going to be a good one. This is Falcon Football. We're back in 30. When you're in the mood for a sweet treat just the way you like it, Yogurt Mountain on Cox Creek Parkway has you covered. With 16 rotating flavors, 40 toppings, and a dozen sauces, the combinations are endless. So whether you want a simple treat or a decked-out dessert, just grab a cup and create your ultimate frozen yogurt concoction.
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[57:47] Now let's go to the press box for tonight's game. Here's the voice of the Florence Falcons, Kevin Johnson. As the Florence Falcons fly out onto the field with the big blue band playing the fight song. It's time for a huge region game. Big one tonight. Bo Berski kneeling down at the 50-yard line to have a prayer before the game. Falcons will get the return team out to start the game as Athens won the toss. And let's go to you, Mike Albertson, your key for the Florence Falcons tonight.
I think this game is going to be one in the trenches here. Whoever controls that line of scrimmage is going to win this game. So I think that the O-line and the D-line, if they're able to do their job, that's their key. John McDaniel, something we need to keep an eye on tonight. Yeah, you kind of hit on it a little just a minute ago, that Caden Bledsoe is a really terrific running back. Being able to bottle him up, we've had a little trouble letting a few running backs kind of get loose a little bit.
He's going to give us some trouble, certainly, if number 14 is their quarterback. Let's see how the Falcons come out. They're going to come out on offense, hopefully fly. Morris and Gouldsby deep for Florence. Florence is very aware that Athens has done onside kicks. They've done quick kicks. They've done everything. You have to be alert to everything. So everybody's bunched up at the 50-yard line. Five Falcons and three others pretty close. Kevin, they've done this fake kickoff, but they've also gotten an offside zone at about 75% of the time.
Because they get people to jump across the 50-yard line. No, on them. Okay. All right. Well, it's good. We'll see what happens. Big one tonight. The blue helmets are up on the sideline. Can the Falcons fly to win number six? We're about to find out. They set back in a regular formation to kick off. And we are underway. High short kick. Going to be taken by the Falcons at the 25 to the 30. Looking for a little running room. Nowhere to go. Going to be brought down to the 27 is Elliott.
So Elliott will have it there for the Falcons. We'll be about 75 yards away. You're listening to Florence Falcon football. Let's pause for the station identification. The voice of the Florence High School Falcons. W-Y-T-K-F-M. Rogersville. Athens. Decatur. The Shoals. 93-9. The score. Two backs in the backfield for the shotgun quarterback, Mayhand. We'll have Johnson and Hines with three wide receivers against a three-man front. Now showing a four-man front are the Golden Eagles. Florence checks back to the sideline. Too many horns blowing over here for somewhere. I don't know which sideline it is.
He's got a lot of noise going. Going to leave it off the left side. Looking as Johnson calls the 30 to the 35. Stays on his feet to the 40. Breaks a tackle after the 43. If he had got another block, he'd have been gone. That was a beautiful job out there by the Falcons right away. You know, just being able to establish the run. Something that they struggled to do in the first half last game. Getting right off the bat with Goose. Goose gets it to the 44. That's a big first down to start off.
What you want to see off that big offensive line for Florence. First and 10 at the 44. Going right to left towards the scoreboard end zone as the students play the horns. They're making a lot of noise down there. Goolsby and Elliott wide right. Kirkman down to the bottom to the short side on the left. This time going to leave it with Johnson again. Counter back the other way. 45, 50. Got another first down across the 45. Give him another 11 yards on the carry. And early on doing exactly what Florence has done all year.
You know, those bullies up front being able to open the holes for DeCarson Johnson. Him just, you know, making some guys miss and carrying some guys across that yard marker for another first down. That's just a beautiful job. Florence quickly to the line of scrimmage. At the 45. They're really making, spreading Athens out and making them declare early. Kind of getting a tip on what they're planning. And that is a key right there. Quick snap. Going to leave it again. Same play. Counter up the middle this time.
Only a yard or two this time though for the Falcons. It's Johnson to sit down. Brought down after a gain of two. So they'll bring up second down and eight. The tackle made in there by Schuyler Sammons and others. Just underway. No score with 10.36 to go here in the first quarter. One back to the left now with an extra tight end in. The three wide receivers set on the second out and eight play. Athens showing blitz. Going to leave with Hines off the right side. Helmet comes off.
But Hines gets maybe two. Athens nose guard Braylon Young will have to check out after his helmet comes off. But it brings up third and we'll call it five to go for the Falcons at the 40. Well, maybe six. Now they move it back to the 41-yard line. Florence will check in a couple other guys including coming in Mitch Boyd. And they'll also bring in the other tight end Kirkland Blank. Goolsby will go left along with Kevante Green in the game now. One back in the backfield.
[1:03:02] On the third and sixth play. Mahan, the quarterback. Going to play action. Roll to his left. Has time. Now he's in trouble. Now he's going down. Gets sacked in the backfield. And he's brought down. And that's a big play right there by Luke McGuire. He brings him down. And a loss of about four. And Florence will have to punt it away. Yeah, it was the wrong play basically or the right play depending on who we call. Athens called a nice play there that really counteracted that bootleg.
Costa Mahan just kind of rolled right into the teeth of the defense there and just held on to the ball. Athens has got ten on the line of scrimmage. They will come after Greenhall. High snap. He has to get rid of it. And it does. Good job by Greenhall. He got hit too. And there's the flag. The ball will roll all the way inside the ten, inside the five, and down to the three. Give Parker Greenhall a lot of credit. But let's see if it's a five or a 15 because he ran over Greenhall waiting on what the official says.
That will be the most physical five-yard flag if that's what they call Kevin. He absolutely knocked out our kicker. Yeah, he was pummeled there. That would be surprising if they – It's going to be a first down. Personal foul roughing the kicker. Greenhall's leg was up, and they got him. And I'm telling you, Jeffrey Jones on the sideline, he did an excellent job of getting rid of the football. So far, that's the play of the game right there. It was a terrible snap. He jumped up. I didn't know he had that much in him, but got it off.
And then I hate to waste such a great punt. That punt was a fantastic punt down inside the five. I hope he can do that one again if we need to punt again. But we'll take the first down any day on that. That's big. Lawrence gets it back after the – roughing the punter 15 yards to the 31-yard line. Pistol formation for Mahan. Going to run it off the left side with his tailback, and that's Johnson. He's hit at the line of scrimmage and taken down at the 29, only a gain of two.
And right now, this Athens team starting to come in a little bit. James Newby on the tackle, 6'4", 235. They are selling out to the run. And rightly so. You know, they're going to take away what's working, and they're going to force us to do something different. So, you know, early on we're establishing the run, but we're going to have to hit a few passes to open this up. Second down and eight at the 29. No score, 837 and counting in the first quarter. Hope you're enjoying this one on 93-9, the score.
One back to the right in the shotgun formation. Blank goes in motion, comes back to the other side. Play action, throwing the fade down the left sideline, going one-on-one out there, and he overthrew his intended receiver. It's been a tough play right there for Kevante Green to get. Pretty good coverage out there by Athens, who was right there with you on the one-on-one, was Dre Doss. Yeah, there was a blitz coming around from the edge, and Kosta just lofted it up there. A little bit too strong, ball floated out of bounds.
Kevante couldn't really make a play on that. Mike, you make a great point there. Athens has blitzed a lot. They have brought the house from different things. They're showing a lot of different looks as Falcon offense. Third and eight at the 29. Three in the bunch set tight to the right. One back in the backfield. Now that bunch set will come over to this side, with Kirkman and Mays as well in Goolsby. Looks to pass, wanting to throw. He's in trouble. Now he's going to be hit from behind and sacked.
He waited too long to get rid of it to Mahan, and once again he goes down, and once again it's taken down by Newby. James Newby has big plays already in two sacks, and Florence now with fourth and 16 at the 37. Out of field goal range. Well, I have to punt it away. Unfortunately, Kevin, I don't know what his reads were there. I think he was looking wide to Jackson Mays, who was covered, but he had an inside running down the seam who wasn't covered, and if he could have wheeled back quick enough, he could have made it for a first down.
Just a tough play for Costa. Adam Lovell stands on the 10-yard line. Lavelle will get ready to return this one. He's a big kid back there, by the way. They went after it last time. They got 10 on the line of scrimmage again. Good snap this time, but before the snap, the whistle blows, and I'm not sure if it was delay of game, but I think it is. So delay of game with 7.35 to go, and that Falcons will have to take a five-yard penalty, which is not bad.
But I'll tell you one thing, the shield is going to have to do a better job up front. They let some guys through right there. Yes, well, I mean, once that ball is snapped, you've got to slow some guys down. If they're getting full momentum towards your kicker, you've missed the point, you know, completely. Just being able to slow those guys down and give your kicker an opportunity to get rid of the ball is important. It's formation. High snap again, two come after them. He gets rid of it, though, and a pretty good kick, but they're going to have a fair catch taken at the 12.
And so Vathans will finally have it at the 13-yard line, first and 10. Their first possession, scoreless here with 7.24 to go, and the Golden Eagles are here to play. You can sort of see that already, Mike. Yeah, you could tell, you know, early on, you know, the first two runs, we were able to get 12 and 10 yards, respectively, and then they've shut down our run, and our pass game has not gotten going. So we've now given them another possession here. The quarterback, it could be one or three, but I believe it's going to be number two.
[1:08:07] That will be Jackson Moore. Moore will skip the start. He's a pretty good athlete. He'll have one back in the backfield with him. That's Bledsoe, three wide receivers. Going to leave it with Bledsoe, going to throw, wants to throw, rolling left, quick to the outside, and nearly intercepted. Knocked down, great play there by Petty Poole. He almost got a pick, but he does a great job of breaking on the ball. When the wide receiver came out on his break, he cut along with him and really cut off that route.
Being able to make a play on that ball, that was just a beautiful play by the defensive back. That's as good as you can do it, Mike. Cam Carden was one of the wide receivers. That was Mike covered out wide. Then they also have out Aiden Lovell, who was 6'2", 205. He's in the slot. So they got four wide outs, three to the right, one to the left. On his second down 10 play, Bledsoe's the back, goes in motion. Looks to throw, throws across the middle, and it's complete, and he dropped it.
Had him open, but the intended receiver couldn't bring it down, and that was Peoples that brings up third down and 10. But already, you see, this Athens team's going to throw the book open. Oh, yeah, and they're going to attack us through the air, it looks like. Early on, that looks like the book. There haven't been too many teams that have been able to run the ball quite well on us, and they sling it quite well, so being able to use their strengths against one of our things that might be a weakness.
Four wide for the quarterback, Jackson Moore of Athens from Zone 12. Black to pass again, looking. Pressure come across the middle, throws a shallow route. Lovell's there, Lovell's hit, Lovell goes down. That's all Florence right there. Middle linebacker tonight, Bo Burski and friends cleaned it up, and it'll be a three and out for the Florence defense. That was a good job by Athens to get that ball in the wide receiver's hands, and Burski closed them down beautifully, and the Falcon defense cleaned that up. That was a great job all around.
Falcon's defense kind of worked a vice on that, Kevin. They had one coming in the middle and two coming on the sides and just completely engulfed him. Lovell will punt it away. Goolsby stands at his 46. Now they shift. They do a lot of different things on special teams. Always have to be alert here. From their own 13, Lovell stands in the end zone. Good snap, has it, and he gets rid of it. High-hanging short kick. Goolsby's going to take it and fair catch it at the 45. And Jeffrey Jones, that's a smart play by the senior to catch that one there and a good job of the defense.
Yeah, very good job. You know, John Carter's been pretty dependable back there on catching these punts, and it makes you nervous. You never know how the ball's going to come out, but he made a good play right there. It's going to be a first down on their side. Nelson Elliott will go wide right with Goolsby in the slot. Bottom left will be Tripp Morris on this first down play with two backs in the backfield for the shotgun quarterback, Mahan, at the 45-yard line of the Golden Eagles.
Hines will be to the left, Johnson to the right against a four-man front, a 4-2 look, but they'll bring in a guy off the outside. They like to blitz off the outside, and one's creeping in from the wide side now. Going to leave it, Johnson on the left side, tries to bounce it and does down the side line. He's got run rim, 40, 35, 30. The goose is loose to the 20, to the 10, to the 5. He will score. Touchdown, Florence. De Carson Johnson finds the edge, and then he finds the end zone.
That was a beautiful job there by the Falcons, you know, blocking up front first off, and then coming around the edge, De Carson Johnson beat everybody to the edge, tighter up the sideline for quite a bit. And then there was the final guy that was coming in, the safety. He just – he did a quick little move to the right to just make him miss completely. That was just a beautiful run in the open space. A little ole at the five-yard line. He let the bull run by.
Greenhall to attempt the PAT. Good snap, good hold, kick. Why not? It's good as well. Florence leads it 7-0. 6-13 to go in the first. This is Falcon Football. Come back in season 30. Hello, this is Kevin Arnold with Village Discount Drugs. We've been in the shoals since 1979. We live here. We go to school here. Do you want to do business with someone local or a company from Rhode Island, Illinois, or Arkansas? The large chains just don't reinvest in our community. The large chains don't sponsor little league teams, and they certainly don't sponsor Falcon Football.
And don't just buy from Village Drugs, but support all our local businesses. Let these local businesses give you the service you deserve while keeping your local economy strong. So make the switch to Village Drugs, a local pharmacy, where we are the shoals' problem solvers and people pleasers. Back here at Brawley Stadium, Kevin Johnson with you in the crew. DeCarson Johnson, 45-yard run down the left side line, gives the Falcons a 7-0 lead. Let's go to our statistician, John McDaniel. He saw something on that play. Yeah, you mentioned that they had outside linebacker blitz, and Carson Mahan, as he was giving the ball, gave just a subtle fake and kind of a little bit of a shoulder to slow him up, and the defender could not run him down from the back side because Carson made just a subtle move, great move by a ball player, just knowing what was going on.
Cardin back deep along with Bledsoe as Greenhoff kicks it away. Long kick, going to drive Cardin back to the goal line, but he catches there, and he's got a chance to return it at the 15 to the 20 and hit at the 20-yard line and brought down there. So it'll be first and 10 for the Golden Eagles around the 20-yard line. And Jeffrey Jones, right now, you needed that start. You finally got it, and that was a big, big play. Yeah, I had a little bit of a slow start, but, you know, that play was very similar to the one against Decatur where he came on the run and right in.
[1:13:27] He just shoelaced the sidelines and made an excellent move on about the five. The safety had the angle on him, and he just cut right back in and walked in for the touchdown. Hey, DeCarson Johnson, man, he is absolutely impressive. First and 10 at the 23. The quarterback, Jackson Moore, with Bledsoe to his right. This time going to let Bledsoe have it off the left side, trying to stretch it out. He's got run room to the 25, to the 30. He's got enough for the first down, and he shows his speed right there as he got outside that Falcon defense containment, let him go.
That was a great job by Athens to establish that edge there. Number one came across the side and really sealed that off so the running back could get to the outside. Really, really gave him some green space there for a first down. People's wide left to the right is Hubbard. Went in the slot as well. Pistol formation on the first down play for Athens. Now he moves his back to the right. Lawrence throws four or five up front. They're going to give it again up the middle to Bledsoe, and he runs down to the 40-yard line and finally brought down around the 41.
He gets about six, but he had five yards before anybody touched him. And that's a big offensive line. Jeffrey Jones here on the sideline. There's some big guys on those tackles who even clued in one at about 6'7". Yeah, the 6'7 really stands out. He's a big old guy. They've got number 62 and 54 that aren't too shabby themselves. So, you know, they've got the height of a 5'8". Come back to me in a little while, and I'll tell you about these horns down here. I may not.
Second down and two. Could be a shot play here for Athens. Second and two. Moore going to leave inside with Bledsoe again and gets the first down and still cross the 50-yard line to the 49. And right now they have found something up the middle, Athens. And let's go back down to Jeffrey Jones. What about those horns from the students? So, it took us a while. I think we've learned now that the horns need to come out on defense. I don't know what promotion is going on tonight, but there's definitely giving out free horns to the students.
I guess it's our version of a cowbell. But there are no rules against – Well, there are, but they don't get called. First and 10 for the Golden Eagles at the 50-yard line. High snap. Looks to throw across the middle, and it's just out of the hands of the intended receiver who had a step there. And that was Peoples on the slant. And right now you see what Athens is doing, Mike. They're hitting the middle, and then they're trying to get the one-on-ones when they can for the shot play.
Absolutely. You know, them being able to establish the run makes that pass game even more dangerous. So, being able to run the ball up the middle there into the teeth of our defense and then hit some receivers, it looks like they're game playing. Second down, 10. At the midfield stripe, Lawrence leads at 7-0. They try to get the Falcons to jump camp with 437 to go in the first. Moore, the quarterback. Where's number two? Gets the snap. Wants to pass across the right, left side, and it's knocked away.
Right at the line of scrimmage. I'll give you one idea. Was that Dixon? That Dixon got his hand up that time. I thought it was Nate Pryde, but A.J. Dixon got the ball up. A.J. Dixon did a great job there. You know, he got off his blocker, and once he saw the guy rear back, he threw up his hands, being able to knock that ball down. Once you're able to throw your hands up in that passing lane, you know, you've got a good opportunity not only to distract the quarterback, but you get hitting that big ball there.
That ball isn't going where it's supposed to go. Third and 10 at midfield for the Golden Eagles. So, I have three wide outs, and they have an H back. Got to keep an eye on him. Going to run out to the left. Going to run the smoke draw back to Bledsoe the other way. He's got running room in the first down to the 40 to the 35 and stays on his feet and breaks a tackle. He may go to the 20, to the 15, and finally brought down by Petty Poole, who comes over and brings him down.
Or he kept running. He broke tackle after tackle. And I'll tell you what, it makes me have PTSD. I hate to say it that way, but did we not get absolutely in 2017 hit by that same play a lot, the smoke draw by Athens? The smoke draw. I blocked that out, Kevin. I don't remember that. Wow. And we saw it the rest of the year, too. Multiple teams. I do remember that. Multiple teams. Oh, my goodness. Replayed that. That play hit us so much at Athens that night, and I thought, I hope I never see it again.
And the first time we play them again, 10 years later, they run it again. They took advantage of our aggressiveness. We were really hustling upfield from the D line, and they ran right by us. First and 10 at the 15. This time, high snap. Going to leave it with Bledsoe. He got by one. He got far to the 10, to the 9. Falcons had a guy right there in the backfield. To get him, and he's got a little giddy-up about him and got away. We had one of our linebackers shot the gap, and he shot the gap hard, and the running back made a little step to the right, just made him miss completely, and took him to the turf, and then being able to then pick up some yards.
Probably looked like about six yards on that run. It was a beautiful run. Second down and four at the 9 for the Golden Eagles. Florence is at 7-0, but Athens knocking on the door. This time going to leave it with Bledsoe. Tries to get away and will not. He'll lose yardage back at the 14. That time, it was Klotzbach who came up, I believe. Check that. No Martinez, where it's 32, came up and made the play on the side. That's a big play right there. That was a huge play, being able to lose some yardage there on second down, being back towards the line of scrimmage.
[1:18:45] It looks like there's still about eight yards to go, but that was a big play there by the defense, making this a third and long. Florence leads it 7-0 with 3-0 to go. You can't see the scoreboard there, we can. Third and eighth. Don't want to leave it with this running back. Going to try to run reverse. He fumbles it. Ball's on the ground. The Falcons may have it back at the 20-yard line. And I think they do. The Falcons break up what would have been a reverse, and Florence comes up with a football.
And again, Martinez, who comes up with the fumble recovery, I believe. Jaden White shot right up the middle as the ball carrier was going to flip it to the wide receiver that was coming around on the sweep there. He took him down from behind. The ball hit the turf. Martinez jumped on it along with a bunch of other Falcons. But that was huge there, to have the ball inside the red zone and the defense gets a turnover there. Huge stop and could be a big swing of momentum for this game.
Kevin, that was one of your trick plays we talked about in the pregame that they came up with. And fortunately, our guys just made the play. One back in the backfield for Costa Mahan. Florence leads it 7-0, 2.47 to go here in the first. Leads it with his back up the middle. And that's Johnson who gets about four, five, six, seven yards. Check that that was Hines. You're going to see Hines with a good run right there. He started wiggling up there and giving him about six.
Jeffrey Jones, it's good to have number three back in the game. Yes, it is. You know, it just gives Carson a little bit of a break for a minute. But, you know, it's a one-two punch that I haven't seen very often out of the Falcons, like this depth of running back. Second down, we'll call it four to go from the 27. Falcons have to get to the 31. It's the line of the game. Hines again going to get up the middle. Got run room with a good block across the 30 to the 35.
It'll be enough to move the chains. He was led up there by Mr. Martinez and friends. Check that. Led up there by Mr. Malone and friends on that one to get him, I believe. We'll check that again. Hernandez, I'll get it finally right. I looked in the wrong line. One of them guys. Yeah, one of those guys. What a great atmosphere tonight. You hear the bands. The bands are real loud tonight, playing back and forth. It's a great atmosphere here in Brawley. And it's good for you to be listening on 93.9 to score.
You're home for Florence Falcons football. First and 10, up the middle again. Hines this time hit from behind, but he scoops forward for two. Lost the ball as he was going down. I think it's a fumble. And it's recovered by Athens. They say, did he come down? They're still talking. Athens is running off the field. Two officials are talking. Florence is trying to argue it's theirs, but I think we're going to lose this argument. I think that ball is out. Kenny Marson's arguing for it. They're not sure.
They're marking the 38, and it's going to say it's Athens ball. What did you see, JJ? Jeffrey Jones, we'll go to you down there. What did you see on that? That's a tough one. I do think they got the right call. You know, it was very close, and it came out at the very end. You know, it could have been called either way, but, I mean, Athens just ran off the field like they had it. I think they sold it better than anything. Schuyler Salmon's on recovery, so Falcons give it right back at the 38-yard line, leading at 7-0 with 147 to go in the first.
Two to the left, one to the right, and the tight end is Lavelle. You've got to keep an eye on him to the right. The quarterback still is Jackson Moore, the sophomore. Bledsoe, the tailback, the senior, going to play action, look to throw. Trouble now. Moore's rolling for his life. Throws to the sideline, and he's got Lavelle, and he's got it down around the 29-yard line and gained him about seven. Maybe even eight. That was a nice athletic play there by the quarterback as he was getting rushed out of bounds.
He was able to throw it along the sideline to find his guy who also made a nice catch, and his ability to keep his feet in there to get nine yards on that play. That was a nice first down there for Athens. Second down and one. Florence had pressure on Moore. I thought he was going to throw it away, but Lavelle made the run and got to the sideline. Second down and one play. Minute 39 to go here in the first. High snap, but Bledsoe, before the snap, there was a whistle, and I believe somebody might have moved for Athens early.
The umpire throws the flag, and that's a big five-yard penalty. This Athens offense is very diverse. They average 34 points a game in region play, 30 points basically in something like that in regular season. So, they put up points, and you see why. They have a lot of weapons, Mike. They certainly do, and, you know, you can see that they have some nice athletes, some nice size. They're a very well-balanced team, it looks like. Fuqua checks out of the game for the Athens-Crewland Eagles. They'll have four wideouts.
Bledsoe's still the quarterback. Three-man front for Florence. Now, Bledsoe will go to the left of the quarterback more. High snap, more, more, and keep on the quarterback. Draw. He's going nowhere, and he gets hit immediately and goes down. He met with Jaden White, and Jaden White hit two, and two about lost the ball. He hit him pretty hard. He almost did lose the ball. It was jarred just a little bit. You could see he double-clutched it as he was going down, but Jaden White came right through up the middle and does what he does.
[1:23:46] He just met the quarterback. Third and nine at the 38. 107 to go here in the first quarter. Two wideouts left to the wide side, one to the right, and the Falcon crowd coming to their feet. Bledsoe, excuse me, more, wants to roll to the left. Looked to throw squares up. Throws incomplete. Got it right at the sticks, at the 25. It'll be enough to move the chains. Turned his shoulders there, found his man, and Peoples brings it in between two Falcons. That's just a beautiful play there by Athens.
You know, hats off to him, being able to roll out like that on the run to deliver a perfect ball in the teeth of that defense. There were four Falcons around that ball, but to put it right on the money for his guy and get that first down was big. First and 10 for the Golden Eagles at the 25. Florence leaves it 7-0. Going to leave it with Bledsoe, who tries to bounce it. He's trying to get outside. He's going nowhere, and he's going backwards because he ran into Bo Burski.
Bo Burski gets him. They're going to give him his forward progress up to the 25, so they'll say no gain. And quite frankly, he picked the wrong hole. He had an opportunity to cut the ball upfield and go into the teeth of the defense. Probably would only gain two yards. Tried to kick it outside, but really met with Bo Burski, and he was stopped right away. One quarter in the books. Florence leaves it 7-0. This is Falcon Football. We're back in one minute. Irons Electric has been family-owned and operated for over 65 years.
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Hamilton leading Priceville, 7-0. Addison leads Bill Green, 13-0. Ardmore leading Lawrence County, 6-0. Hackelberg leads Red Bay, 7-0. And Lauderdale County is leading Elkmont, 13-0. Here at Brawley Stadium, Florence leads Athens 7-0. Here in the first quarter, they're having the Kickin' for Chicken, Chick-fil-A sponsor. Joey Lane will attempt the kick, and it is good. And our first winner here at home, Joey Lane. It is. And first female contestant. Go figure. The boys can't make it happen, but Joey Lane, great job. Is that like the same payout as the kick on Saturdays?
We don't have that budget. Parker Green, watch out. Joey Lane gets the big kick there. Congratulations to her. Florence leads it 7-0, but Athens now going towards the scoreboard. Joey, you're one for one on field goal kicks in Brawley Stadium. How does that feel? Feels great. I'm really excited about it. Congratulations on the free chicken. And the cow comes off. And Jeffrey Jones, thanks for the interruption. We got you down here. Told you I was doing it. Yep. You didn't hold back. It has been my night.
There's no doubt about it. Second down and 10 for the Golden Eagles at the 25. They have knocked on the door once, and Falcons turned them away with a fumble. Moore will put one to the right and three to the left. And I don't know if the Falcons have enough men out here to get ready. Back to pass, going to throw the swing, and Falcons trying to get out to catch Bledsoe, and they do, right at the line of scrimmage, but he pushes forward for about three or four yards.
Had him right at the line of scrimmage, but he gets knocked out about the 21. And they'll bring up third and six. Kevin, I've got him listed at about 150 pounds maybe, and that is a lot of power. He pushed three Falcons for another, what, three yards? He did. He showed some strength there, had the momentum going. So it's third and six now from the 21. Watch out. Don't jump off sides here. Wide of the left will be K.J. Harris. To the right, I believe that's Hubbard. Bledsoe will get the ball coming up the middle, trying to skip, looking, trying to get away.
He's going nowhere. He's going down. He will lose yardage on that one. And again, the nose guard, Jaden White, with his third tackle of the day. Impressive there by 95. That was a great job there by the Falcons and huge on that third down play. This being four-down territory, Athens stays right out there. It's going to be an interesting play here. They will go wide receivers. They'll bring to the left, Peoples. They'll go to the right, Harris. Now, they've hit some big plays, and their quarterback, Jackson Moore, has had the hot hand as a sophomore.
He'll have in the slot, Cam Carden as well. I think you've got to get some pressure on this quarterback here. Fourth and six, and here comes the noise from the Falcon crowd. Everybody in motion. Back to pass. Here comes the pressure. Throws the inside screen. Knocked away and intercepted by Jaden White. The nose guard picks it off and runs it back to the 40-yard line. Have yourself a game, number 95. You know, Jaden White probably runs as much after the play as he does during the play.
[1:29:04] He just ran another 60 yards after that play was over. And so, you know, he's definitely getting his steps in. But the big fella made a nice play up the middle. They were trying to – they saw the blitz coming. They were trying to run a screen, and Jaden just stepped in there in that passing lane. And just – I mean, he just swallowed that ball and ran it down the field a little bit. Huge stops by the Falcon defense. Both times Jaden White. Balls to the fumble and intercepting the pass.
Florence will have it at the 40-yard line. Leading at 7-0 with 10-27 to go in the half. One wide out left will be Kirkman. Two to the right for Florence, including Drew Hill. Going to lead with his back up the middle. And that is Johnson. He's hit right at the line of scrimmage, and he'll go down. Couldn't find any running room there. Tried to cut it inside, but that was Austin Campbell, 5'10", 180-pound senior, to knock him down for the Golden Eagles. Florence in the blue helmets, blue jerseys, white pants.
The Golden Eagles in those gold helmets, gold pants, white jerseys. Jeffrey Jones, does that have a coffee look to you a little bit? Yeah, I was complaining about their yellow. It's just more of a dull yellow than coffee look, but it is pretty close. Watch for Kirkman here on the second down nine play. Man, play action. Looks to the other side. Watch out, and he throws a pick right into the hands of a Golden Eagle, and he intercepts it, and that was Brady Johnson who read the eyes and the play the whole way and picked it off and fell down at the 42.
So back-to-back turnovers, one for the Falcons, one for the Golden Eagles, and now the Golden Eagles get it back again. Yeah, it was a tough play by the Falcons. It looked like the linebacker knew exactly where that ball was going before it was even snapped. He was already running into place, and there was no course correction. I mean, that decision was made on snap that that ball was going to be released, and he jumped the route right away. It was a beautiful play there by Athens.
I would say Athens may go for a home run shot here in the next two plays. Moore, the quarterback. Has two wide to right, one to the left. Now he has a new running back in there as well. That's Jalen Johnson back to pass, going, looking, nowhere to go. Now he has time down the middle. The field overthrows his intended receiver. And a one-handed interception taken by Florence, and that was unbelievable by Sistrunk, the catch of the year. That was phenomenal there by Otis Sistrunk. He was able to jump the route, and really, as he was diving to the ground, he just stuck out his one ball in there.
That was about as athletic as a play as you'll see from any defensive back here. Jeffrey Jones, get ready. That one's going to be on all the TV shows as they have it tonight. Unbelievable catch. Right in front of me, too. I got to see it firsthand. That was amazing. I cannot believe he came down with that ball, but it was a one-handed. I can compare it to Odell Beckham in the end zone with that one. Well, he's diving sideways almost, but pulled it down. First and 10 at the 20 for the Falcons after the interception.
So both teams giving the ball back and forth. Let's see if the Falcons can put it in the end zone now. Johnson off the left side. Found a little gap, but not much running room. He's only getting a yard or two. He's knocked down. Flag on the play across the way. And now it looks like it could be maybe in a place where Florence had a legal shift or maybe lined up off sides a little bit. The side judge. No, he's calling Holden. Yeah. I'm going to call Holden across the way.
So that's a bad penalty there. When you're at the 20, you go back to the 10 now after the penalty. So first down in 20 is the Golden Eagles will march the Falcons back. Florence leads at 7-0 on a 45-yard touchdown run by DeCarson Johnson in the first quarter. But both teams have turned it over twice, I believe, each. Here in the first, well, we call it about 15 minutes of the game. So which team can take care of the football? Both teams had an off week last week and can almost tell it a little bit.
Two wideouts right, one to the left. Costin Mahan wants to pass. Looking for the play. Flagged, Florence moved early. And you're seeing it. For the first time this year, Costin Mahan's getting a little frustrated. He was very frustrated with whatever was going on there. And, you know, you don't see that kind of emotion out of him. So just being able to watch as this, you know, both teams are going back and forth and there is frustrating plays. But being able to keep your composure when things aren't going well is going to be important here.
You're right, Mike. I think he saw a look that he really wanted to try to exploit on that play. And I think that's where his frustration was from. From the five, first and 25, Golden Eagles creeping up. By the way, Ezra Bird in there, guard for the Falcons on this possession too. One back in the backfield for Mahan. Going to lead with his back up the middle and he's caught from behind and knocked down for a game about three or four. Bring up second down and we'll call it about 16 or 18 to go.
Actually about 20 to go. That's right because of the five-yard penalty after the 10-yard penalty. So penalties to push Florence back 15 yards and they'll have second down and 20. It was very awkward at the end of that play. It looked like the safety came in with the crown of his helmet and, you know, led with the crown of his helmet there. And that could have been flagged for sure. Carson Johnson will move to the right as we'll blank in a timeout taken by Kenny Morrison. 8.34 to go. Everybody going to regroup here?
[1:34:19] Florence will as well. Florence leaves at 7-0. We're back in 30. Carbine Construction is honored to be a part of building projects with the Florence City School System. We're also glad to cheer on the Falcons as they celebrate milestone achievements as well. Good luck to head coach Kenny Morrison and the Florence Falcons football team on building a special season to remember as Carbine Construction wishes you the very best this season. Remember, at Carbine Construction, we build trust, we build relationships, and like the Florence Falcons football team, at Carbine Construction, we continue to build.
8.34 to go in the first half. Florence up 7-0 over Athens in a game filled with turnovers and really good defense against two good offenses. Florence has second down and, unfortunately, most of Royal Avenue to go. They're 20 yards away after back-to-back penalties, and Costa Mahan's going empty set. We haven't seen this this year from Florence. Empty set. No backs in the backfield right now. Mahan looking against a five-man front. He was trying to bring pressure. Quick throw, get it out here, got it to Green down the sideline, 20- to 22-yard line and knocked out of bounds.
He gets about 10 on that, brings up a manageable third and 10, but that wasn't a bad play there. No, that was a great opportunity there, and hit Green right in the numbers, let him do the rest. He picked up 10 there. We had a lead blocker along the way, and it certainly did the job. That was a nice play. Mays and Green will stay wide left along with Haddock, Goolsby, and Tripp Morris in the slot now, and they'll go five wide again on this third and 10 play with Mahan looking over a three-man front.
Blitz coming. Back to pass, good protection. Throws across the middle, and great throw and catch. That's going to be enough for a first down. He put it right between the one and four of Goolsby. That was a great job by Goolsby to find the sticks and sit right in the soft spot of the zone. Costa Mahan delivered a beautiful ball right into his chest there. Being able to secure that catch as two Golden Eagles came in and hit him. Circle that play, Jeffrey Jones. If Florence can take this down and score, that was huge after first and 25 to come back and get a first down.
Excellent job. Two backs in the backfield for Mahan. Mahan looks back to the sideline, has two backs, as I said, Johnson and Hines back there with him as we approach the eight-minute mark of the second quarter. Four-man front. Going to lead with Hines up the middle. Got a little running room across the 35 to the 37. Hit hard there. Brought down at a game of about five. You talked about Athens using the crown on the helmet. That's two or three times. They come down, they really lower the head down on you.
Right. And, you know, that's a dangerous play, not only for, you know, for the Falcons, but for the player themselves. You know, those neck injuries and back injuries are not – they're not really recoverable. They really are not. Second down, we'll call it five to go from the 37. Play clock at 15. Two tight ends, Tejada and Blank will come back to the right. Going to leave it with Johnson off the right side, and he runs over a guy and gets to the 39, almost to the 40, but he's not quite got the first down.
And let's check on a Florence Falcon getting up a little slow right there. I believe got a little kick in the lane with Kirkland Blank. He'll have to check out if that lay got kicked a little bit. He and Tejada will come out. And on third and three, Florence will send Morris in along with Mays and Green, so they'll go four wide outs. Johnson will check out. They're going to go five wide. Kevin, I'd like to see Kevontae Green get a few more targets. He's got about a 70-pound weight differential between the cornerback.
Man, protection, throws across the middle, complete, got the first down. Nice throw and catch right there. Morris sits in the lane, pulls it in between the one and five. First down, Florence. That play was open on that third down previous as well, and so that looks like a nice little route that Morris is able to run, and Mayhem caught him beautifully. Florence will stay with a five-wide set. It's giving Athens a little surprise, I think. They'll send Green, Mays, and Morris out wide left, two to the right for Mayhem.
You know, you could run a quarterback draw here in a second, too. Mayhem, straight drop, looks, throws the quick out, complete, got it there to Haddock. Haddock breaks a tackle, gets across the 45, down to the 43. That's enough to move the chains, and Sullivan had it getting into the game. Jeffrey Jones right now, the wide receiver, starting to make plays. Yeah, they're just seeing the ball in, and they're finding some holes. That was a great job by Sullivan, turning up field real quick. You know, he's a big old boy.
He can break some tackles if you get him in the open field. 6-3, 180. He is a big kid. Again, empty set for the Falcons, and they almost got the Golden Eagles to jump. Couldn't on this first down play. 7-0 lead for Florence at the six-minute mark. Mayhem with a blitz coming. Straight drop. Throws again, complete, got it to Morris, and gets away from one, but couldn't get away from the second one. Gained of about four at the 38-yard line. The throws right now, though, I will say for Mahan, are safe throws, and that's the big thing.
[1:39:21] They're riding them right where they need to, Mike. Absolutely. Give your quarterback an opportunity to get in a rhythm there, you know, and give or take what the defense is giving you. And so far, Mayhem's just hitting his guys in the numbers, and they're doing the rest. They're getting one or two yards and living to play another down. Second down six. Hines will check into the game for Florence with 5.25 to go in the half. Florence leading at 7-0. Hines off the right side, trying to stay in, pushes his head forward.
Got to about the 35. He'll be about three yards short of the first down, but gets what he can. And he'll have another running back joining up, it'll be DeCarson Johnson on his third and three play, and he'll come out. So third and three at the 35. You'd think, Mike, four-down territory if you had to. Oh, absolutely. You're not really gaining much by a punt here. So being able to, you know, get a yard or two gives you an opportunity for a fourth and one. You know, you take that 100% of the time.
I set right now for Florence. Going heavy a little bit. Under center is Mahan. 12 on the play clock. And now they get ready and going to leave it right up the middle. And Johnson got loose to the 30, to the 25, to the 20. And finally he tripped up at the 18 or he'd still be going to the end zone. Ty Davidson makes the tackle, which was a touchdown-saving tackle. But Tejada up front at fullback blew out his guy. It was a wide-open look. That was a wide-open look, great block along the way.
But you're seeing the Falcons do some unconventional things that they haven't shown on filming. You can tell how well-coached Athens is because they're not prepared for this and they're struggling. Johnson up the middle again. Breaks a tackle across the 15, down to the 12, down to the 11. And again in that eye set, they go fast there to the Falcons do with 415. And got the Golden Eagles on their heels a little bit. There's not a whole lot of coaching points on when you run in an eye formation, though.
This is a little bit of a kind of bloody in your nose, mano-a-mano type thing. Again, Falcons under the center, eye set. Johnson off the right side again. Got a great block to the 10, to the 5, down to the 3. That'll move the chains again. First and goal for the Falcons. And Jeffrey Jones on the sideline. The boys up front are doing their job. Yeah, great job by the pulling guards for Florence. And they just opened up that big hole. And I really honestly think, I think me and you could run through that hole at one point.
Ezra Bird leading and coming on that pull. His first and goal at the 3. Once again, off the right side, Johnson with a block. And he's into the end zone, touchdown. Running behind Ezra Bird again. And there's Johnson to the end zone. And Florence extends the lead to 13-0. That was a great job by the Falcons. You know, that third and, or really second and 25, that they were able to chip away and be able to get it, you know, get that first down to keep the drive alive.
And then finding that I formation, being able to just run the ball right down their throat into the end zone. The Falcons found some rhythm there. Extra point coming. Greenhawks kick on the way. Greenhawks kick is up and good. New score, Florence 14, Athens 0, 345 to go in the half. Don't go away. This is Falcon football. Hey, guys. This is Mark down at Warehouse Tackle. So we offer the best fishing tackle and outdoor supplies in the Shoals area. We're located on 417 East College Street. Our phone number is 256-980-0951.
And you can find us on the web at www.warehousetackle.com. Come and see us. We're proud to be a sponsor of Florence Falcons football. And we wish Coach Morrison and the team good luck to you in your season. What a drive by the Florence Falcons to extend the lead to 14-0 here at Brawley Stadium. Kevin Johnson, let's go to John McDaniel, our statistician. Kevin, that was a five-minute and 52-second drive. It was 13 plays, covered 80 yards. And as you said, it was capped off with that short touchdown, three-yard touchdown run by DeCarson Johnson.
A terrific job by the Falcons. We'll come to that drive again after the kick. Let's see if Greenhawk can put this one about three yards deep in the end zone. That would be nice. Three back for Athens. Kick is high. We're going to hang in there. And LaBelle is going to have it at the two. Brings it up to the 10. Goes back to the right sideline to the 15, 20, 25, and now knocked down. And with a flag on the play around the 27-yard line. So Athens may have to be pushed back another 10 yards because they look lucky about being in the form of Holden right there.
So we'll wait and see the penalty. But Mike Albertson, the last drive for Florence. First and 25. What a job by the Falcons. That was a great job by the Falcons being able to come up with that first down and continue that play. They found some things through the air. And then later on switched to the I formation and really just ran it down Athens' throat at that point. You know, just being able to have that drive right there, it's got to be a confidence builder for the Falcons.
It is holding against Athens. It will kick them back all the way inside the 15 down around the 13-yard line to start the drive. Don't forget, at the half, Jeffrey Jones will be interviewing Miranda Haddock for our halftime guest. Looking forward to that. At the 13, we'll be talking about the Soul Salsa Showdown. Jeffrey's favorite part of the year. JJ? I'm here. It is a good – It's an incredible fundraiser, by the way. It's a great fundraiser. I never knew how many different kinds of salsa there were. Athens will put three wide outs here.
[1:44:45] Down 14-0. They may open it up with more of the quarterback. More going to leave it. Nope, they moved beforehand another five yards. Mike, I wonder if maybe this Jaden White guy that's playing nose guard might be affecting a little bit of that offensive line and the interior moving a little bit early. You know, when you have a very large fellow sitting three inches away from the ball speaking into your face the entire game, it's going to be – he's going to get your attention, you know, and so you've got to be quick on the snap and being able to get right up in his face because he'll eat you alive.
This may be his best game so far. He's really showing tonight why he is being considered by many SEC teams. I agree with that. Two wide left, one wide right, first and 15 for Moore, the quarterback of Athens. Moore wants to – nope, going to leave it with Bledsoe off the right side, trying to find a little run room. Cuts back to the 15. Moore running into the 20s. He wiggles his way out and got about 12 yards. That's great running right there by number three. But he got up – it's his trunk on the tackle, but he gets up a little gimpy there.
He's going to come out of the game. Johnson will replace him. But, boy, I tell you what, number three's got a little wiggle about him, doesn't he, Mike? Yeah, it was a nice little play. He was able to get upfield and make a nice gain there about like 12 yards and just being able to get this second down manageable. Second down and two, Jalen Johnson, the tailback, right at the middle. He hit it, the line of scrimmage, and he goes down, he's going to lose yardage. That time, Dixon came in and was there, the first to make the contact.
And right now, the guys up front are winning more battles for Florence than losing, and that's a big part of this game. That's a big part of this defense. You know, this Falcon defense up front, you know, when they're able to really disrupt what the offense is doing right from the snap, it's huge. Third down and four to go at the 21-yard line. The Golden Eagles have to hit the 25 for the first down. Three wide outs. Johnson still the tailback. Moore the quarterback. Moore going to roll right inside and going to run the shuffle pass, but they moved again early.
They were going to run the shuffle pass with the tight end. Nice-looking play, but it's a penalty against the Golden Eagles. And that five-yarder will be big because Lovell might have had a chance to get the first down on that play. Right, and being able to get the guards to pull around and everything, they kind of got a little antsy and got a little trigger happy. Jumped out a little quick on that, but that play did look like it was there. You're correct. Maury Smith will check in for Dixon on this third and nine play with 2.12 to go, 2.10 to go.
Florence has used one timeout. I don't think Athens has used any yet. Florence leads it 14-0, and Athens has third and 10 from their own 16. One back in the backfield, four wide outs for the quarterback, sophomore quarterback, Moore. Back to pass looking. Now he's in trouble. Now he's going to have to throw it away. He had Klotzbach coming, and Klotzbach was coming with all the intentions of getting a sack in the end zone, and Austin Klotzbach made him throw it away. That was really a good job of just getting the ball out and avoiding an even further loss of yardage.
So Klotzbach has been playing a great job for his first game. He's really been popping on. Boy, Athens gets their special teams out there as fast as possible, trying to catch the Falcons off guard. And there's a flag on the play, and it caught Athens off guard. They moved too soon. That'll move it back five more yards. They have a good athlete back there, the tighty in Lavelle, who's their punter as well. But this gives Falcons great field position possibly after the great defensive stand if they can take care of things here.
He'll be punting from his end zone now. I wouldn't go after the block, Mike. Would you go after him? I'd play field position here. We already have good field position. We don't need to give them the ball back. Let's take this ball on our edge and be able to really force the issue and possibly score before this half. Athens will shift out, too, to the right. Snout back. And it is blocked. Oh, he got rid of it. How did he get rid of it? It's short, though, and it goes out of bounds.
I'll tell you what, that one I thought was blocked for sure by, was that Des Brown? How he got, it must have gone right through the wickets. Des Brown was right on his foot, and he got rid of it. How he didn't get it, I don't know. But the punt was only, he may have gotten a part of it, because the punt was only about 10 yards. Yeah, there wasn't much to gain on that. It went out of bounds pretty well right away, almost where the line of scrimmage was, really.
So, Florence will have the football at the 19. With 1.42 to go and a chance to maybe put more points up, leading 14-0, Hines and Johnson are the tailbacks for the shotgun quarterback, Mahan. Three wideouts, two to the left, one to the right, but I think it's going to be a dose of running backs here. Check back to the sideline with 15 on the clock. See if McGuire will check the play, and he says run it. Four-man front for Athens. Going to leave it with Johnson off the left side.
[1:49:47] Got a good hole to the 15, but finally it closed up. Spins far down to the 13. Oh, I thought he was going to go on that one. Johnson cut it up to the left, right into the teeth of the defense. He had an opportunity to go right. You know, the linebacker kind of sold out on that one edge and was able to take him down there. Not many get him sent one-on-one in the open field. That was a good tackle by the Athens defender. Ezra Bird had to come out of the game.
Florence sends another lineman in on the second-down play, this time coming to the right side. Looking, juking, trying to get free. Got across the 10. May have enough to the first down, depending on the mark. And waiting on that timeout taken by Kenny Marson. Let's wait and see. Mike, it's going to be one yard short. It's going to be just a yard short. Timeout taken by Kenny Marson with 1.06 to go in the first half. Florence up 14-0. We're back in 30. Florence Utilities now offers new bill pay options.
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Falcons have it third down and one at the 10. Checking a couple of Falcons coming in right now, playing. William Porsche will come in at guard on the left side after Ezra Bird had to check out. Cody Gross has the officials over there. He's not happy about something on this third and one play. He's still with a white hat. Not sure what he's upset about. But third and one at the 10, and Coach Gross is still holding court right now with the officials. And the white hat says, okay, I've heard you about to go play.
Coach Gross stays right out there getting the last few words in. Here we go. Third and one. I said under center is Mahan. Mahan going to leave it with his back, following, trying to push forward as Johnson. Got the first down and more to the five, to the three, to the one. Stretches out. Give him six. Touchdown for the Goose. And Florence extends the lead to 10 to zero. What a run. You know, he was hit probably about the seven-yard line. Spun off that. Carried two guys.
And really reached into the end zone through there. Just an overall effort there by the Carson Johnson. Great play. Huge score for Florence late in the first half to extend the lead to 20 to zero. Greenhall to attempt the PAT of the Carson Johnson with his third touchdown of the first half. Good snap. Good hold. Pressure coming. It's blocked. That pressure came right up the middle. And the extra point is blocked. So, the score will remain 20 to zero with 58 seconds to go in the half. This is Falcon Football.
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Kevin Johnson, the crew with us. Let's get our statistician, John McDaniel. Kevin, quick drive, 43 seconds. It was three plays, covered 18 yards thanks to the bad punt. DeCarson Johnson capped it off with a nine-yard touchdown run. So, the Falcons have come out and started to take control here in the second quarter. Now, special teams are still special. You've got to take care of here and make plays and keep everything in front of you. Greenhall's done a good job this year. That one is a good kick. Deep all the way back to the goal line and in the end zone.
They should blow it dead, but they don't. They give it back to LaVale to the 20, to the 23, and to the 24-yard line. He caught that at a yard deep, I thought, in the end zone. Yeah, they missed that one. And they didn't give the touch back, but it will still be at the 24-yard line with 51 seconds to go. There were two officials standing right next to the guy, so I don't know. That's a good point, Mike. I have no idea how they missed that, but they did.
Don't forget, tomorrow, Alabama Crimson Tide football starting 9 a.m. pregame, 11 a.m. kickoff in soggy Starkville, Mississippi against the Bulldogs tomorrow. It should be a good matchup between the Crimson Tide and the Bulldogs, and you'll hear it right here on 93-9, the score. Mike, if you're Athens, do you take a risk here, or do you go to the house right now? And a new quarterback game, too, by the way, in Zayden Holman. Back to pass. Throwing the screen to the other side. Complete at the 25 and knocked out of bounds around the 30.
[1:55:05] Gain of about four. Pretty good job of Petty Poole across the way to knock him out of bounds. Yeah, it was a good job of staying home, being able to get the guy and really close him down to get him out of bounds. I want to go to John. John, you saw this quarterback, Zayden Holman. He can sling it. Yeah, he's got a live arm, very live arm. A little surprised he didn't start with him actually being able to play. I just assumed he was completely down.
Second down, and we'll call it six to go at the 29. Looked up past the sideline this time and missed it and intercepted it. It's going to be gone all the way. Dez Brown for the touchdown, Florence. Great play by Dez Brown. Pick six for Florence. That was a beautiful play there. Right off the receiver's hand, he took it right out of the receiver's hands and into the end zone as he was jumping that route. It was a great job by the Falcons to score right before the half.
Kevin, what we've been talking about, we were just talking about his live arm. He actually had too much mustard for his receiver who went right through his hands, really. Really did. Green Hall will attempt the PAT, but that could be a dagger right there with Dez Brown with the pick six. The deflection went right into the hands of number two. Green Hall to attempt the PAT, and there was motion before the kick, and that'll be five yards against Florence. Looked like Athens might have moved first, but Florence moved too.
I think it'll go against the Falcons. Kenny Morrison not chasing the points here. No, at this rate, just keep putting ones up on the board the rest of the game. 26-0 with 39.3 on the clock in the first half, and this Falcon team, I tell you what, I'm going to have to tip the hat. I didn't know what this game would be like. They've come out in the second quarter and put up, hopefully, 20 points after this extra point. It'll be a 25-yard PAT attempt. Good snap that time.
Good protection, the kick on the way, and he's got that good. Green Hall gets it just inside the left. Up right, Florence leads it now, 27-0. This is Falcon football. We're back in 30. Hey, Falcon fans. This is Keith, Cypress Creek Indoor Range. We know great defense starts up front, and the Falcons start with Jaden Wyatt, your defensive tackle. Whether stopping the run or disrupting that quarterback, Jaden has the right tools, puts in the hard work, and has the right training to stop the offensive threat of opposing teams.
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Wow. Greenhall to boot it away. Drives back to Lavelle right at the goal line. He catches it on the goal line that time, they will blow it, as he was about a yard in front. And so, we understand there, that one could have been a return, but instead, and it's funny, even though… We're going to have to coach up some of our booth mates up here. I tell you, I'm so proud of him, though. I'm really, that made, he knows football. That's great, because there's been many times that we look around, and not everybody knows football.
That's Caden Sledge. He is a falcon through and through right over there. Well, he's a coach's son, so that's pretty good right there. Oh, you've got to laugh about it. I'm just glad that I've never done that to their booth before, okay? That's what I'm thinking. So, that's good. Florence defense will come out trying to hold the Athens Golden Eagles. I've got a feeling the Golden Eagles now, after the interception, may take this one to the locker room. They've got number 14 in. But I think you'll get a dose of blood.
I think I would do the same thing you're thinking of. And Kenny Morrison going to call timeout. He didn't like the defensive switches right here. He calls timeout, and he's going to take a timeout. We'll do the same. Kenny Morrison, like me, not having the best of days, but he's leading at 27-0. 39 ticks on the clock. We're back in 30. Hello, my name is Keith Medley, and I'm an attorney with the law firm of Johnson, Passeur, Medley, and Burchill. Why call an out-of-town lawyer when you can call our law firm, which has over 100 years of combined experience in all areas of the law.
If you have a legal matter, please call me or Leslie Johnson, Debra Bell Passeur, Adam Burchill at 256-766-3131. We're proud to be a sponsor of Florence High School Athletics. No representation is made that the quality of legal services to be performed is greater than the quality of legal services performed by other lawyers. Back at Raleigh Stadium, Florence leads at 27-0. The Golden Eagles have it at their own 20-yard line. They're on the pass. Back to pass looking. Pressure coming up the middle. He's going to be hit.
[2:00:07] He's going to be brought out of it. Gets out of it. Looking to throw. Throws it down the sideline and throws it away. The Falcons were all over him back there, including Nick Robinson, who just checked in the game. But he couldn't bring down Holman, but Holman will throw it away with 30 seconds to go. And right now, it's pin your ears back time for Florence, Mike. Absolutely. You're rotating some guys in that haven't gotten in before. They're really amped up, really ready to play, and really getting after it when it comes to trying to get to the quarterback as this half is really going to end.
I'm going to make a prediction here. I'm going to predict smoke draw coming up this play. It's time for it. They ran it against us earlier. They're going to run it and just take it to the locker room here, I think. Johnson is the tailback. They're just going to give it right to him up the middle, and Johnson's hit. Spins far to about the 25 and brought down by Jaden Irons and a host of Falcons at the 24-yard line. I think Coach Cody Gross is going to take his eagles and lick their wounds in the locker room, and Coach Kenny Morrison is going to take his Falcons to the locker room and say, all right, boys, let's see.
I don't know. They're going to try to get one more playoff with 10 seconds? I don't think so. I think it's going to do it. Coach Gross is headed to the locker room. Four seconds, three, two, one, and that's going to do it. And the boys in blue have had a really good first half, and the crowd from Florence loving it here tonight with a big applause there as well. As the crowd loves it, Florence leads it 27-0 over Athens. This is Falcon football. We're back after this three-minute timeout.
Getting the kids to practice on time. Remembering if it's your day to bring snacks. Making it to the game with a clean jersey. Why are simple things sometimes so complicated? Thankfully, with auto owners, insurance doesn't have to be one of them. Auto owners works with independent agents who answer when you call, so you can worry about more important things, like whether your kid is going to run toward first or third base. That's simple human sense. In Florence, call Tyson Johnson, Luke Brown, Kirby Allen, Victoria Devaney, Brant Bishop, or Daniel Box with Hineker Johnson and Layton Insurance Agency.
It's football time in Alabama. Our students are learning big American lessons. You can start with your God-given talents, and through practice, hard work, and sacrifice, you have the ability to become champions. This is Congressman Robert Adderholt. May God bless all of our students representing our high schools during this season, and may God bless the United States of America. I'm Robert Adderholt, and I approve this message. Paid for by Adderholt for Congress. At First Southern Bank, we always cheer for the home team. We are homegrown with deep roots, and we're invested in this community.
With checking and savings accounts, mobile and online banking, and a mortgage department to help you with the home of your dreams, First Southern Bank is your neighborhood bank. Sometimes a local financial institution with deep roots and a commitment to the community can provide just the banking services you need. We always root for the home team, because we are the home team. First Southern Bank, Equal Housing Lender, member FDIC. Craving authentic Mexican flavor? Dive into delicious at Hugo's Mexican Restaurant, 4160 Florence Boulevard, at the entrance to Kendall Garden.
Start off with fresh tortilla chips and Hugo's famous cheese dip. Then enjoy mouth-watering tacos, enchiladas, and of course, Hugo's famous fajitas and more, all in a vibrant atmosphere. We're open Tuesday through Thursday and Sunday until 9 p.m. and until 9.30 on Friday and Saturday. Hugo's Mexican Restaurant, where every meal is a fiesta. See you soon at 4160 Florence Boulevard at the entrance to Kendall Gardens. This is Miranda Haddock with the Florence Education Foundation. We would like to extend an invitation to our ninth annual Salsa Showdown on Saturday, October 3rd, from 2 to 5 p.m. at Singing River Brewery.
Restaurants and individuals from around the show will compete to see who has the best salsa and queso. Enjoy live music and a fun-filled day. For tickets and more information, visit our website at FlorenceEducationFoundation.org. I would like to thank our Silver and Gold sponsors, Forsyth & Long, Bank Independent, Chick-fil-A, Cutter Construction, Essity, E.S. Robbins, First Southern Bank, Grigsby Properties, Johnson & May Hand Vental, Long Lewis Florence, River Bank & Trust, and United Community Bank. And a special thank you to our title sponsor this year, TNT Fireworks. At North Alabama Bone & Joint Clinic, our show's roots run deep.
We provide quick access and familiar, friendly faces so you never have to feel just like a number. From sports medicine to joint replacement, expert care happens right here at home. As UNA Athletics' choice for orthopedics and the trusted orthopedic team of the show's families for over 30 years, North Alabama Bone & Joint Clinic is here for you. Learn more at nabjc.com. James Moody and the 93.9 The Score Studios with a score update. Deshler leading West Morgan 21-14, Ardmore leading Lawrence County 20-6, Hamilton leads Priceville 14-0, Atten leading East Lawrence 14-7, Wilson leads Calvert Heights 21-6, Addison leading Belgrin 45-0, Fayette County leading Haleyville 14-0, Central leads Clements 42-0, Rogers leading West Limestone 12-10, Lexington leading Carvert County 7-6, Mars Hill leading Whitesburg Christian 7-3, Westminster Christian leads Lindsay Lane 42-0, Hackelberg leading Red Bay 21-6, Meek leads Waterloo 46-0, Phil Campbell is leading Winston County 15-8.
[2:05:38] Now back to the stadium for the halftime show. Thank you. Welcome back to Brawley Stadium as your Falcons lead 27-0 over the Athens Golden Eagles. I'm joined now by Ms. Miranda Haddock, the Executive Director of the Florence Education Foundation. How are you doing tonight, Miranda? Good. How are you? I'm wonderful. It's a beautiful night for football so far, right? It is. It's always good. Rain held off. We're great. It sure did. I brought all the rain gear and it's sitting behind us with no one to wear it.
So here to talk about the Education Foundation and some of the priorities they have and some of the events that they have. It sounds like a big weekend this weekend, doesn't it? Just a little bit. So what we got going on tomorrow? So tomorrow's our big salsa showdown. Okay. It's the ninth year. Ninth annual. Nine years of the salsa showdown. Wow. That's a lot of salsa that's been eaten over the years. It gets better every year, I think. So tell us a little bit about how it goes and who's participating this year.
So ticket holders get to buy tickets, sample all the salsa and queso they want, and then they go vote for their favorite. And we have trophies out for certain categories. And all the proceeds go back to Florence City School classrooms. So you can show up at the door with credit card or cash. Yes, cash card. You can buy online ahead of time if you want to skip the line at our website at FlorenceEducationFoundation.org. Good. Good. So you show up, you buy a ticket, you buy your ticket to get in, and with that comes little coupons, right?
Or is that what y'all call them? You get an armband. An armband, okay. And that shows that you get the sample. Okay. And then how do you vote? So you'll get different color tickets, and each color represents the categories. Okay. And then each restaurant or individual will have a jar with their logo on their table, and you put your ticket in their jar. And then we count them all at the end and see who wins, each category. This year, is there any sideshows going on, any like pepper-eating contests or anything like that?
No, but we do have, you know, we have raffle baskets. But this year, we have a new game called Unclaimed Baggage. I saw something about that on social media. It's like a suitcase surprise raffle. Okay. So you buy a ticket, pick your suitcase, open it up, and you get what's inside? Yes. And prizes range from $50 to $200. Well, my last trip I took with Caroline, her suitcase fell apart. Do we get to keep the suitcase by chance? It just depends which suitcase you pick. All right. Well, that sounds good.
So as far as participants, tell us about who's going to be cooking the sauce tomorrow. Right here, we've got 12 participants. We've got Taco Mama, the Taco Spot, Cafe 222, the Shoal Shack, Los Trajos, El Palito Loco, Hugo's, Rosie's Cantina, Professor Flambe, Royally Spicy, Rivertown Coffee, and Florence Exchange Club. I'll tell you what, the Exchange Club is my favorite every year. No, they win a few years. They do win. They have won. It's always good to see the prizes, too. You know, you go into these restaurants, and you see them sitting on the mantel.
They're proud of them every year. You know, Hugo's got plenty of hardware. So let's talk about the Education Foundation a little bit. So, you know, you've got a group of board members, and y'all do these fundraisers. What happens with the money for the fundraisers? So we fill teacher grants. Okay. So in November, well, right now we're getting grants. Teachers fill out application, apply for a grant. We have a grant committing within the Education Foundation board made up of five to seven members. And decide who gets what amount of money.
Okay. So when do y'all do the grants, the presentation to the teachers? Typically before Christmas break. Okay. So it's going to be sometime in December. The last week? Yes. Okay. That sounds good. You know, I've been on the, I used to be on the Education Foundation, and that was one of the most rewarding days I can remember, is when you go and show up at a teacher's door and give them the grant that they, you know, lots of tears. Oh, yes. Lots of, uh… And they're surprised.
Yes. They don't know we're coming until we get there. Yeah. And you'd be surprised at how many people really get very emotional about these grants. Yeah. So as far as, give me an example of one or two things that y'all have funded in the last year. So last year, one of the grants we did was extra guitars for Mr. Powell's class at the middle school. And, you know, I've always heard that everyone that takes that class just loves that guitar class and learns so much. So we filled some guitars for him.
We got alphabet arcs for some of the elementary classes. Okay. Um, for reading. I will say this. I know you went to Wilson and I went to coffee. We didn't have guitars at coffee. You didn't have all the extra. Some of these things that these kids get opportunities to learn and do is just amazing. Well, Ms. Atwood always gets to go in for agri-science. Okay. She'll get, she done a pen making, like making these wooden pens one year. Um, and then, um, we got her a greenhouse one year.
Wow. And they grow their own vegetables and teach the kids how to do all that. So as far as the board makeup, you've got parents and community members that give their all. You know, as far as being a board member, I know in the future you're going to need to replace some of the board members rolling off. So what does it take to be a board member on the Florence Education Foundation? Usually someone on the board starts nominating people that they think is a good fit.
[2:10:39] Okay. And then we all just vote about, vote to see who we think would be great and contact them to see if they're interested. Yeah. Over the years, you know, you see the same, a lot of these families that have been participants in the Education Foundation, they go on to, there's, there's current faculty that used to be on the Education Foundation. There's, there's, community, community as a whole is just, it's a very good board you have. How many members are on your board right now? 21. No, 20, 21 counting me, but 20 members.
20 is the most we can get. Well, so, uh, going forward, you know, you've got this fundraiser tomorrow. Of course, the Saucer Showdown tomorrow from 2 to 5 at the, at Singing River Brewery. This, in the spring, what are you going to do this, this spring? So we're doing the Lucky Duck Dive again. We're doing that again? Yes, it's, it's just growing every year and we're adding more prizes this year. I'll tell you what was, on the last Lucky Duck Dive was so funny. I think it was Hopkins, Mr. Hopkins, like, first or second week on the job.
And for the Education Foundation to say, hey, by the way, we need you to, uh, to step up and, and host this thing. He just took it and ran. I mean, he did an excellent job and that was, uh. Didn't need any coaching, anything. He was made, he was made for it. He's uncoachable. That's, that's easy to say right there. That's a good, that's a good way to put it. Well, so you got the Lucky Duck Dive. Anything else of work there on here? We always have Friends of Foundation campaign.
If you want to give, you can give to that. And there's different levels and things you get for the getting. Well, that's, that's excellent. So what else, what else is there, you know, plug-wise with the, uh, Education Fund? Do you got some sponsors you want to thank or anything? Yes, I'd like to do a shout out to Singing River Brewing Company. They are our event sponsor this year. Good. And we have had this event there for nine straight years. Yes. So that says a lot about Singing River Brewing Company, how easy they are to work with.
Yeah. And what a great space it is to rent. So it's a great space. Rob and Michelle Jones, who own the Singing River, they do an excellent job. And they, they have really put two steps forward with UNA and Florence. And I'm very proud to have them as a, as a, as a, as a Falcon family. Uh, so as far as, uh, you know, what the future looks like for the Education Foundation, where do you see yourself? Where do you see it going? You know, with, with new, new opportunities and things like that?
Well, we have a few things, a few ideas that we want to see happen. We want Duck Dive to grow even bigger. I think it can be huge. Yeah. It's already, I mean, it tripled in size this year. Okay. So I think it could go really big. And there's a few little things that we've thought about that we would like to do. Yeah. Just on the table that, that hadn't come to fruition yet. All right. So what, go ahead. No, I'm good. One last time, uh, tomorrow, Soul Salsa, Soul Salsa Showdown, two to five, Singing River Brewery, show up with a card or cash, be ready to, to have a great time.
And, uh, I mean, it's usually packed out. It is. And rain or shine, we can still do it because inside, all the, all the participants are inside. You don't have to worry about weather. We have the street blocked off with a huge tent. Well, thank you. We have live music and everything. Yes. Thank you very much, Miranda. Thank you. Education Foundation. We look forward to seeing you tomorrow at, uh, at Singing River Brewery. Thank you. Thanks for choosing Whataburger. What can I get started for you?
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[2:15:59] Back here at Brawley Stadium. TNT Fireworks Halftime Show, where Florence leads it 27-0 over the Athens Golden Eagles. As they lead it right now, 27-0 over the Athens Golden Eagles. And really impressive what Florence has done early on. First quarter, they led it 7-0 on a DeCarson Johnson 45-yard run. Then after that, it's going to be a three-yard run for DeCarson Johnson, 14-0 on a 13-play 80-yard drive. After that, another nine-yard run. Guess who? DeCarson Johnson, 20-0. And it looked like Athens might take it to the house, or not to the house, but take it to the locker room.
Down 20-0. Excited to throw a pass, and Dez Brown catches deflection and runs it in from about 25 yards out. And it got everybody excited after that one, and it made it 27-0 after Greenhalgh's kick, and that's where we are at the half. Let's go to our statistician. Our stats brought to us by Chick-fil-A, who had a nice big cow kick tonight that went well. And congratulations to, oh, is it Joey that made that? Was that who made that? Yeah. Joey Lane made that kick, so congratulations to her.
One of our launch students at Cypress Creek Indoor Range, who is a sponsor of ours, by the way. That's good. I think she's a pretty good soccer player, too. Yeah, she is an excellent soccer player. Nobody knew that when she kicked that, but she's a pretty good soccer player, and she drilled it. That was her first win this year, wasn't it? Yeah, it is. First win, so congratulations to her. Kicking for chicken. I love it. Kicking for chicken to work. Thank you, Chick-fil-A, for that. All right, now let's get to John McDaniel with our first-half stats.
I was enjoying the dialogue. I mean, Kevin, but we'll just go with the stats for the first half. Athens tonight, so far in the game, 99 yards of offense. They have 13 rushes for 69 yards. They have 30 yards passing, five completions on 14 attempts. Four first downs in the half, two for six on third-down conversions, and O for one on fourth-down conversions. Six penalties in the half for 45 yards. Four turnovers. Four turnovers, no PATs as of yet, and their time of possession was 10 minutes, three seconds. Falcons, first half, 197 yards of offense.
We had 23 rushes for 151 yards. 46 passing, five completions on seven attempts. Ten first downs in the half. Ten first downs in the half. We were four for six. Third down conversions. And no fourth-down attempts so far. Four penalties for 25 yards. We had two turnovers in the half. Three for four on our PATs. And our time of possession was 13 minutes and 28 seconds. Already tonight, DeCarson Johnson, 13 carries, 134 yards, and three touches. You know, all these stats, probably one of the most impressive things, Mike Calbertson, to me, is Florence after last week against, or two weeks ago against Decatur, going 0 for 9.
They're four of six in the first half on third downs, including the biggest baby of the drive is converting. You know, first down at 25 after back-to-back penalties and get the first down. And you've got to tip your hat a little bit to Costin Mahan there to hit some passes after you threw an interception there. So that's pretty impressive. It absolutely is. You know, look, we talked about, you know, Costin being one of those players that, you know, you have high expectations of him because you know who he is as a kid.
And he was able to regroup after, you know, a miscue. And that's just who he is. He has that next play mentality. Very, very rarely gets flustered and things like that. So his experience, you know, both on and off the field really had helped him in that first half. You know, I'm sure Athens and Cody Gross, the head coach there, are in the locker room trying to circle things up as the light rain starts to fall a little bit here at Brawley Stadium. But it's one of those things where trying to regroup a little bit.
It seemed like I didn't have my A game on the first half. What I was doing, the PA announced that I didn't have my – we were out here in the hallway. Everybody said, I didn't film my game on. So, but I'll tell you what, 95, Jaden White, he had his A game on in the first half, Mike. Hey, he certainly did. You know, I'm glad somebody brought something to the table today. Yes. You know, really and truly, he really took over in that second quarter, especially, you know, on that screen pass.
He stepped in the way, took that interception. He's just been a disruption all day, you know, a third and fourth down, you know, to tackle and play there. I mean, just been all over the field to really disrupt this offense. And you're starting to see, you know, play after play, the kind of impact that he can make. And he's only a junior. That's the scary part. That's the good part. That's not the scary part. That's the good part for Florida's Falcon fans. And X marks the spot up there for the Florida's Falcons.
Let's talk about a little bit of the games coming up in the SEC. You know, guys, I'll go Auburn, Tennessee, at Tennessee. I know I'm an Auburn fan, but, man, it's not been pretty for the Tigers. Can Auburn get up there and maybe pull upset? What do you think, J.J.? I saw it firsthand last week. We are not there. It's just, I mean, you know, we've got some key elements, but we are not there. I'm going to take Tennessee only because it's at home for them.
[2:21:16] Yeah, okay. What about it, John? What time does that kick? 2.30. 2.30, yeah. I'm going with Tennessee also. I think it's what J.J. said. I don't think they're quite there. Maybe they're going in the right direction. But the way Tennessee looked last week against Texas, that's a good Texas team. Tennessee played all they wanted. Well, Mike, this game is probably going to be a little bit closer than people think. Oh, it really is. It's weird. But I do think Tennessee pulls it out, but probably a little bit closer than one would feel comfortable if you're a Tennessee fan.
You know, if I wasn't an Auburn fan, which I've been most all of my life, but if I went to Auburn fan, I think right here, I'd say this is a real upset alert. I think looking at the SEC games, I don't think there's any other team that might pull the upset tomorrow as much. This is one I think could happen, so keep an eye on it. I'll take the Tigers to upset Tennessee. That'll be my pick. Alabama early at Mississippi State. Can that make a difference?
I'll go with Mike on that. I don't know. I've really, I mean, Mississippi State really hasn't impressed me that much this year, and Alabama the last couple of weeks have shown some flashes of possibly having something going on their offensive side. So, I mean, I think the tide going to Starkville probably, again, will be one of those games that's probably ugly and a little bit closer than people think, but Alabama will. Does somebody somewhere say it's about a five-point game? Yeah. Just hypothetically. So, it's supposed to be close.
Alabama practices in the morning. They are an early morning practice team. Normally, an 11 o'clock start would be something you would say, but I'm going to say because they do that, they're in the, that's kind of late for them, technically, that they'll be able to get that win despite the cowbells. JJ? Interesting thing I saw today. They're going to drive in the morning the 85 miles from Tuscaloosa to Starkville. I don't like that. I don't like that either. I mean, you've got the money. Go over there tonight.
Go stay in Columbus. Go get a good night's sleep. I mean, I know you're sleeping in your own bed. You sleep better. But, an 85-mile bus ride, I don't care how fast you're going, how many state troopers you have taking you, I think that's going to affect you. I think one of the worst things that UNA has ever done is travel to South Carolina the day of a game. I think it was North Carolina, by the way, but we don't go there. It was pretty up there.
Well, Kamario Miller, the quarterback from Mississippi State. We did that one time when I was in college. And that's what I wanted to talk about. And that was a bus ride, and it was, we were way better, and we almost lost. But now that was a little over a two-hour ride, more close to three. And those buses, those anchor buses they got, they're going to go about 90 miles an hour from Tuscaloosa to start with. But my point is, after 85, they've never done that before. Well, they have in the past, but it's just not something they're used to.
So, I like the quarterback for Mississippi State. I think it's going to be a good game. I think that Alabama is going to come out on top. But I like where Mississippi State's headed. And Jeff Libby, he was one of my finalists for the Auburn job. And I'm not saying they made a mistake, but he would have been a good hire. I think Alabama wins it, too. I think it's close in the first half, but Alabama takes control of the second half and continues to win.
Well, that's our pick sure to go wrong. But right now, the one that's picked right is Florence Falcons, 27, Athens 0 at the half. The TNT Fireworks Halftime Show comes so close when we come back, third quarter action. This is Falcon Football. We're back in one minute. Carbine Construction is honored to be a part of building projects with the Florence City School System. We're also glad to cheer on the Falcons as they celebrate milestone achievements as well. Good luck to head coach Kenny Morrison and the Florence Falcons football team on building a special season to remember as Carbine Construction wishes you the very best this season.
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In the first half, the Falcons were the ultimate warrior. They come out and put it on the Athens Golden Eagles 27-0, and it has been a wild night in our booth. Jeffrey Jones has kept us on our feet, and I love him to death, and I'm glad he probably can't hear me right now, but he has been a lot of fun, but I appreciate him interviewing Miranda Haddock at the half. Florence got the ball to start the first half. They'll kick it off to start the second half.
[2:26:29] DeCarson Johnson with an amazing first half, along with Jaden White, who has a fumble recovery, or a forced fumble, excuse me, and also an interception as a nose guard. Yes, I think his film work is going to get even a little more extensive with people. Three back deep, and a flag on the play is Florence, delay of game. I'm not sure why the official threw the flag here. Florence has called for delay of game. Because of the penalty at the half, we might have extended the half there with the bands and that type of thing, and had some special things going on, so a five-yard penalty.
But Cody Gross, class is going to be… Coaches usually do that. Coach Cody Gross realized what happened. He said, no, I declined that. But, again, that shows the class of Cody Gross and the Athens Golden Eagles. They are top-notch. Really like those guys. Obviously, we know him for many years, and he's a competitor. He's going to do everything he can to win the game, but he's going to do it the right way. Green Hall to kick it off. Deep, all the way into the end zone, three yards deep, and that'll be a touchback.
And that'll be first and ten for the Golden Eagles at the 20-yard line. Mike Galbertson, here's what we talked about in the first half and pregame even. Don't let your foot off the gas. No, don't let your foot off the gas at all. We saw, you know, as the half was ending, we had some guys rotating in on defense, but it looks like the starting defense is headed on out there to really start this half. And that's really what you want. You want to be able to get your guys, you know, some more reps, more opportunities there, and really take this game in hand.
Go ahead, John. I'm sorry. I'm really surprised they're not bringing out their starting quarterback. They haven't had a ton of success on the ground, and I thought they might go through the air, and we'd see number 14 back at quarterback. But it looks like they're bringing in number, is that two? Yeah, Jackson Moore will stay at quarterback. After Zayden Holman came in in the last two minutes, tried to use his arm, and he threw a pick six. It really wasn't his fault. He went off the receiver right in the hands of Des Brown.
First and ten. Going to leave it inside with Bledsoe, and he gets across the 23 to the 24, and he's brought down by Nate Pryde and friends who bring him down, bring up second down and four. I'll give him five yards, actually, on the carry. Again, Florence playing without Chase Winkles tonight, a linebacker out of the game, but Bo Berski's done a pretty good job sliding into the middle there, Mike, and so has Austin Klotzbach done a pretty good job on the outside. Absolutely. You know, look, the front seven of Florence is really pretty deep, and they're able to rotate some guys.
So while we miss Chase, there are some other guys getting opportunities, and they're doing a fine job. Second down and five. Again, going to leave it with a running back. He's got nowhere to go, and he's going down. And again, it's Nate Pryde who brings him down. The ball came out, scrambled for it. There's not a beanbag. So I think Florence is saying it's their ball, but the officials, I believe, are going to mark him down at the 23. Florence came up with the ball. No officials are coming over to help out.
And it's Bo Berski comes out there with the ball, but the officials are marking him down and saying it's going to be Athens ball already. How did they move the ball up so far? He was hit behind the line of scrimmage. He lost two. He loses two yards from the 25 to the 23. Yeah, that was a two-yard loss on that carry. It could have been much more. Right. That's what I'm saying. But it brings up third down and seven. And into the game now is Jalen Johnson.
Jalen Johnson will be at tailback. We're at number 27. Play clock at 15. Florence up 27-0 after leading 7-0 after the first quarter. Florence went on a 20-0 run in the second quarter to show their dominance in the second quarter. Third and eight. Falcons have three-man front. Shift to the left. Rolling to the right is Moore. Wanting to throw. Sets his feet and throws him through it in the dirt. Had a man out there, possibly close to the sticks. His intended receiver, Hubbard, was open. But Moore, in his dreams, thought 95 was coming.
And I think he said, I'll get rid of it. It might have even been tipped. It was tipped. As he was rolling out, the hands went up and tipped the ball. It wound up way short right at the receiver's feet. And Harold Wisdom on the sideline, the defensive coordinator, working with Klotzbach in his first start. Saying, I see this. He's teaching him right now. Right as he comes off the field. I love that from the defensive coordinator. Falcons show eight up to maybe go after the punt.
They had a close one the other day. They're going to do the rugby punt. And he gets rid of it just in time. Goldsby says, let go of it there. And it goes out around the 35-40. Gets an Athens roll all the way across the 50-yard line. That ball may roll forever. It goes down to the 44. That ball rolled 25 yards after the punt it looked like. And that looked like a wedge shot. It had a lot of backspin. But once it hit, it had that forward momentum.
It carried another 25 yards. That looked like it was going to be about a 15-yard punt. And then it rolled. Jeffrey Jones, I don't mean to interrupt your conversation with all the great people down there. But I wanted to ask you a question if I can. Yeah. That is this. The thing is, is Florence has shown that they can block some punts. They get in there. They get their hands on it. They've been pretty close a couple of times. If I've seen a team that we can do it against, the snaps are a little slow.
[2:31:48] And the punter, he's struggling a little bit tonight. I think if we went after one, I don't think we will 27-0 in the third quarter. But if we needed to, I think if we put a blitz on, we'd get it. Hines the tailback with Mayan the quarterback on the first down play from the 44. Mayan going to leave with Hines off the left, trying to come back in the middle. Nowhere to go. He gets nothing. He'll lose the yard. That Golden Eagle defense had enough of that counterplay, or not counter, but the sweep left.
And so it brings up second down, and we'll call it 11 after a loss of one. And again, pretty good defense there from the Golden Eagles. Give them credit. They have fought hard. McGuire in on the play. Luke McGuire. No relation to Cade McGuire. I asked him earlier this week. I said, Coach, do you have any kinfolks playing for Athens? He said, no, no, no. I don't think so. But just another McGuire on the other team. Second down and 11. Three wide outs for Mayan. Blitz coming. Wants to pass.
Looks left. May go down the sideline. Does. One-on-one. Has a man. Can he get to it? Cannot. Kirkman had a step, but he overthrew him about three yards. Going to be a hole. Flag on the play. And it may go against the Golden Eagles. Across the way, Kirkman might have had that if he hadn't been pulled on the jersey a little bit. Yeah, once he had his man beat, you could tell the hand reached out and held him real quick. Kirkman still broke away. Almost made a play on it, but he was just a step too short.
As Kirkman comes off the field, he gets a pat on the back from Parker Driggers, who is his wide receiver coach, because he had him. He'll bring up a rare first down. It should be a second down and one. No, second down and one after the five-yard penalty at the Golden Eagles 47. Pistol formation. One back behind the quarterback, Mayan, is Hines, who's good to see him back after being out for a couple of games. Battled through a nagging injury after basically week two, and it's good to see number three back and out on the field.
Play clock down to 22. Going to leave it. No, we'll throw the quick screen out to Gules. We got a block, a beautiful block out there by Mays, and then Gules comes down the right sideline and is brought down around the 35-yard line. Let's check if there's flags on the play, and there is around the 31-yard line. I don't… John, you saw it. John, you saw it. Did you see what happened? I saw what happened. I'm not sure what he's going to call, but it… I disagree with the call, but the back judge threw his flag 30 yards for the penalty, so he had a better look.
27-0. Florence leads it. Florence gets a holding call on the play, and Kenny Morrison is still livid with the back judge. He is not happy about that with his seven-man crew. I heard him give a sermon to this team Tuesday, because he wasn't happy with practice, and I think he's giving the same sermon, and now he's giving it to the official closest to him. He said, hey, when you see him next time, tell him this. Second out of 11 for Florence. This time, he's going to roll to the right, looking to throw Mahan to the sideline.
He's got it complete. Mays catches it. Great job with the feet, and that's going to be enough for a first down. Yeah, that was a great job. That was a great job by Mays to find the sideline. He kept his feet there. Mahan came across, rolled out, on the move, put the ball on the money to up that sideline. Great job all around. Great throw by Mahan, as you said, and a great job by Mays, who realized where he was right in front of the Florence bench, and Mays had a touchdown against Decatur.
He's starting to gain some confidence. He certainly is. It's a great job. First and 10 at the 43, four-man front for Athens, and a flag before, and I think Florence moved that time on the left side, early movement. That's one thing that Kenny Morrison and his staff will have to clean up a little bit going forward. It's something that we've had in the past years, Kevin. We've had trouble with the late defensive line stem or movement, and we've done a pretty good job this year, but tonight we're not doing a good job against it.
They're stemming just at the last second, and our guys are getting a little antsy. Five-yard penalty. We'll push it back to the 48, 9-0-2 to go here in the third quarter. Florence up 27-0 over Athens, trying to go 6-0 on the season for the first time in school history. One back in the backfield. It might be Johnson checked, and I checked it. I can't see. Mahan. Nope. Again, it was Hines. And again, another penalty. And right now, they're going the wrong way. The linebackers showed blitz last second, and it made our guys freak out, and they moved quickly before that snap.
And that's great coaching by Athens. It's a movement late. You can have things like happen. And, you know, I've said it multiple times already. You could tell how well coached this team is by some of the things that they're doing and when they're doing them. You could tell that that's not by accident. That's a planned situation, and Athens has done a really good job tonight. Florence has not had a clean game. Two turnovers in the game already, several penalties, but they hold on to a 27-0 lead, and they face first and 20 now.
[2:36:57] Mahan wants to throw, looks right, has a chance to go back to the sideline, and Kavante Green catches it right at the 39. That was a hitch and go and a hitch. He could have stayed on his feet. He might have gone for a while. Yeah, I'm not sure why he went to the ground there. If he kept his feet, he had definitely had an opportunity because the corner wound up slipping a little bit. So he had space. He just went to the turf. A little bit of a low throw for him, but you're right.
He could have, if he was able to catch that and keep his feet, he had a lot of room. Second down at the 39. Three wide receivers, including Morris, who's just checking the game on the right. Watch Morris right here. Against the four-man front. Going to leave inside with Hines, trying to cut back outside. Not much running room, and he's gobbled up there by Young and McGuire again. And third down and seven. I will say this about Athens. They've given up some big plays to Johnson, but they have started to figure out this Falcon running game, but maybe a little too late.
Right. You know, early on, early on, we did some things, and they were stuffing us pretty well. We made some adjustments, and you know, this is just a chess match at this point. They're making adjustments and counter-adjustments and really playing off each other. And, you know, this Falcon offense has a third and sixth now. Five wide outs. Fun football. Florence showing something different. Up 27-0. Man, straight drop. Looks left, looks left. Steps up in the pocket. Now he died in the middle of the field going for Morris, and he couldn't quite get to it.
Sort of turned to look. Couldn't find it, and he overthrew him. When Morris turned to look, he kind of stopped a little bit, and if he had kept going or drifting towards the end zone, you know, that ball was delivered. That was just one of those mistiming situations where Mahan released it, and then Morris looked back, and by that point, there was no adjusting to get back to that ball. So, Florence at the 39-yard line will punt it away. You know, went back deep. We haven't shown the fake punt this year.
You wouldn't think of 27-0, but the way they come after the punt, you could. And they do. Here's the fake, and it's wide open, and there goes Irons to the 30, to the 25. Jaden Irons to the 20. Jaden Irons will score. Touchdown on the fake punt. What a play by Jaden Irons. It was wide open, and he knew they were coming for the block, and instead he put six on the board. Kevin, you're quite – you have a crystal ball because you do that quite often. When you have called it, you've seen it before, you know how aggressive Athens has been.
And special teams, too. You see that, and maybe it was more about trying to get the first down and not get a punt block more than trying to score right there. But the right side was wide open, and it was. And once he had the ball, it was over. Like, you could tell almost right away, you just had to make one block, and you were good. And he had a convoy ahead of him. It looks like unsportsmanlike, a little bit too much celebrating on that play.
The Falcons will be penalized on the kick. So, the extra point coming, leading at 33-0 with 7.22 to go. Again, I don't think that was any way in my mind other than just trying to keep from getting a punt blocked and letting that thing go the other way because they were good at it. That's the Golden Eagles. The PAT is up. The PAT is good. New score, Florence leads at 34-0. 7.22 to go in the third. Falcon football returns in 30. Florence Utilities offers several ways to view and pay your utility bill.
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Or call 256-760-6512 for more information. Back at Brawley Stadium, Florence leads at 34-0 after the fake punt gives Jaden Hirons a 39-yard touchdown. That is his fourth touchdown, I think, of the year. Third or fourth. Yeah, fourth touchdown. He's had two fumble recoveries for a touchdown. He caught a pass in the first game, and he's now just faked a punt and run it in. Jaden Hirons is not even an offensive player, and he has four touchdowns on the season. That's pretty impressive, Mike. It certainly is.
You know, I would like to be that type of defender. Having those opportunities to get in the end zone is rare enough, but to be a defender and doing it, that's special. What a kick by Greenhall. He drives him back to the 15. Love will try to come up. That's the card, actually, and he's going to bring it back to the 39. But after the 15-yard penalty, for him to kick it all the way to the 15, that was an impressive kick by Parker Greenhall there. It does give Athens better field position at the 39-yard line.
[2:42:00] Don't forget, tomorrow, Crimson Tide Football here on 93.9 The Score. From 9 to 11, pregame, 11 o'clock kickoff of Alabama and Mississippi State. Before that, from 8 to 9, the coaches' breakfast here on 93.9 The Score. From the North Alabama Bona Joint Clinic, as I'll be interviewing coaches from around the area about Friday nights and Thursday nights games on Saturday morning. Here, 8 to 9 on 93.9 The Score on Saturday morning. Johnson's the tailback with Moore the quarterback. Moore wants to throw. Down the middle of the field. One-on-one has this man out there. Hubbard goes up and catches it.
Spins away, and he will score. Got away from the Falcons and goes all the way. And he might have almost got away with it, but he does. Touchdown. Des Brown tried to chase him down, but it's going to be a touchdown 60-yarder. And that's a big throw there from Moore to Hubbard. And the Athens Golden Eagles get on the scoreboard. Yeah, that was a – the wide receiver had beat our defender. And then our defender, when they came through after the catch, they – I guess they just had trouble wrapping them up, just kind of whiffed on that one.
And, you know, Athens took it to the house. Hats off to them. Extra point coming from the Golden Eagles. The kick is on the way. And the kick is – they're not sure. They haven't signaled yet. They haven't told yet. They're still talking about it. I haven't seen a call. They're going to say it's good. 34-7 with 7-2-2 to go. Falcon football returns in 30. With locations in Tuscumbia, Florence, Muscle Shoals, Russell, Killen, Madison, and Athens, Singing River Dentistry provides the most advanced dental care, including same-day crowns and implants, in a compassionate and friendly atmosphere.
They excel in educating their patients and themselves about the benefits of keeping a healthy smile for a lifetime. The care of their patients is the center of their practice. They value their patients' time, trust, and total health. For more information about their practice or to request an appointment, go to SingingRiverDentistry.com. 702 to go in the third. Athens gets on the board to cut it to 34-7 after the 60-yard touchdown from Moore to Hubbard. Swift the extra point, which finally was agreed to be good. As the referee says, I'll call it good.
I don't think anybody else knew. But it's 34-7. And now the Falcons know this Golden Eagle team. You know, Mike, somebody may say, why did you do what you do with different things? Well, when you see an Athens team go 60 yards in one play, that's why you've got to keep your foot on the gas. Oh, absolutely. You know, that's one of those. We're still – we're not even halfway through the third quarter. So, like, you know, you're still playing football at this point. They're going to go for the onside here.
Nope. Sky kick it to the sideline. Need a fair catch. But Stable catch it at the 33. Nice job right there. I believe that was Haddock, who wisely put the hand up quickly and brings it in. And, J.J., that's the smart, smart play there by Sullivan Haddock. Yeah. And good thing we got some smart guys on the back, on the line back there. You just got to take it and just lay on it right there. Got good field position. Need offense to move down the field right here.
Use some clock. 34-7. Well, the D.J. has arrived. Third quarter, 34-7. He is here. He's a little late to the game, but he's here now. From the 34-yard line, one back to the right of the quarterback, Mahan, who will shift Tejada to the right and Kirk Blank to the right. Gives it up the middle, and there's Hines. Spins away from one, gets to the 40, stays on his feet down to the 42. Good hard run by Hines. I will say this about Athens. They will hit you.
They are a physical team. They certainly are. They're flying around all over the field. Their defense has done a good job thus far of really attacking this Falcon offense, especially on the run. Second down and four from the 41. By the way, not too bad a crowd from the Golden Eagles across the way either. And their band came. Cheerleaders. Hucks good over there. Second down and four play. Mahan runs the clock down, gives it to Hines. No, throws it across the middle, and it's incomplete. He's going for a heel, but couldn't get it to him.
It brings up third down and four. Would have really loved to have seen him bring that in. That was a beautiful ball there by Mahan to really put it on his hands. And, you know, he dropped it in a little bit of traffic. Maybe got a little nervous going over the middle. But that was a beautiful ball there by Mahan. Third and four. Goolsby out wide right. Kirkman out wide left. And your tailback still is number three, Hines, I believe, on the third and three play.
Hines off the right side. Stutters and gets back to the middle. But he's going to be short, I think, about a half yard at the 43-yard line. They'll bring up fourth and about a half yard to go. Kenny Morrison on this side is looking to see what it is. Cody Gross across the way looking to see what it is. But it's going to be fourth and one. And the Falcons will have to punt it away with six minutes to go. Leading it, though, 34-7. Now, you gave up a long touchdown.
[2:47:16] And the Golden Eagles, they have pinned their ears back trying to get blocked punts. Falcons faked the last one. But this time, Jaden Irons is not in the game. So, that gives me an indication right there that he's not going to be in this time. So, we're going to have Burski in. In the shield with three guys up front. Ten on the line of scrimmage for Athens. Good snap. Good job of protecting and a nice punt there. Fair catch called for by Lovell and taken at the 28-yard line.
And Falcons did what they're supposed to do as far as special teams there. Jeffrey Jones, I know we don't want to give injury updates. And I don't think there's anything wrong with DeCarson Johnson. He had a great first half, but I haven't seen him here in the third quarter. You know, I think the rotation is with Hines right now. So, he's fine. You know, we do have Austin Klotschbach. He had a little bit of a stinger, but he's got his pads back on. He's going back in the game.
He's the only injury we have right now. So, nothing serious. Everything's good. First and ten at the 28 for the Golden Eagles. Going to leave it inside and hit right at the line of scrimmage and push down. Good job there. That's all coming into the game for Florence. Making the tackle right there is Hayden Lotz at linebacker. Lotz brings him down after a one-yard gain. Hayden Lotz is getting more and more playing time at the linebacker position. He gives some depth there, too. Yeah, it's been nice to see, you know, especially in these games where you have a little bit of a lead, being able to get these guys more reps.
They're really showing some things on film, and you're seeing it week in and week out, just them getting better as they come in. More of the quarterback wants to run the smoke draw back this way, and that time the Falcons were there, and they stopped the smoke draw for the first time in six years, and I'm really excited about it. And maybe a flag on a play, we'll check. No, Jaden White was the one that came up and disrupted that right away, slowed it down at least, and then, you know, the Falcons recovered, and they were able to swallow that up.
That was beautiful. When we talk smoke draw, everything rolls to the right or the left, but the back stays where he is, and then the quarterback hands it off to the back going opposite. It's almost like a naked reverse. Wraps it around almost, doesn't he? Yeah, wraps it around. Yeah, and I tell you, it's tough to stop, especially when you've got momentum. Has been for the Falcons. Third and eight. Falcons show blitz. Step out of it. More back to pass. Here comes the pressure up the middle.
Holden should be called, but no flag. He'll throw it to the sideline. He nearly got it to Cody Gross, but he threw it well over his head. He threw it over the cheerleader's head, and I don't blame him. Five minutes later, the flag came in. Nate Pride was accosted, and then the kid rode him like a backpack, and it was quite wild. You know, finally after, and Nate Pride had his hands in the air, just going, hey, everybody look at me, and still no flag. And then, after all that, there was a flag.
So, you know, but the Falcons wound up. If we can just, if we can just say, that might be the greatest compliment of Mike Albertson. We have laughed. He rode him like a backpack, and finally, after constantly doing all that, they threw a flag. Mike Albertson with the call of the night. I'll give it to him. Fourth and nine. They're going to fake a punt. It's wide open. Here comes the Golden Eagles. They give it right back to Florence, and they'll have a first down to midfield.
Well, what you can do on one side, the Golden Eagles do on the other. And Cody Gross said, we're not quitting on the other side down 34-7. They find the fake punt as well. Well, you knew it was coming, you know, and that's a little bit of a pride thing. In the situation that it was, it could feel a little dirty. You know, you're up 27 points at that point, and, you know, you run that fake. It could be a little hurt feelings there on that one.
But they ran the play. They ran it beautifully. First down for the Golden Eagles. I call it respect to a team that's been scoring 34, 41, and 48 points a game. That, to me, is what I think he said. Man, this offense is – they could get hot and then watch out. Moore wants to pass. Looks left. Play action. Going down the sideline one-on-one. Trying to get it to Hubbard. He caught it. He's going to score. He goes up at the 15, and that's why you do what you do. And, well, don't go away.
Here come the Golden Eagles, 34-13 with 3.36 to go. Like I said, you don't want them to get hot. And Moore went on the – sort of did the dip with the shoulder as a quarterback. Had one-on-one. He lobbed it up there, and Hubbard went up and got it. And it's only a 20-point game after this extra point probably with 15 minutes to go in the game. Not over yet. Swift to attempt the PAT. Good snap, good hold. The kick is on the way, and the kick is good.
Golden Eagles, trim it to 20, 34-14. Don't go away. This is Falcon football. We're back in 30. Game day's coming, and your tailgate crew is counting on you. That's why Lost Pizza Company Shoals put together the tailgate playbook, specialty pizzas, wing trays, and subplatters, all built to feed a crowd. It's why we're the go-to pizza place in Florence, Alabama, now bringing that same lineup straight to your tailgate. Order for pickup or delivery to U&A tailgate only. Call 256-415-8693 or order online at lostpizza.com front slash shoals.
[2:52:23] From our playbook to your plate. New score, Florence leads Athens 34-14. After going up 34-0, the Golden Eagles with back-to-back touchdown passes from Moore to Hubbard, that one 47 yards. Two long passes, so we see this Athens offense, which has put up a lot of points, Jeffrey Jones on the sideline. They can score quickly. Yeah, sorry I had that mic problems. Yeah, they can absolutely score quickly. They just proved it. You know, we had two missteps in the defensive backs. You know, he had him by a step, and, you know, our DBs are going to tighten up.
We really don't need to lay on the ball right here. We need to get down there and score. They're about to outside kick it. Yep. They're going to do something. Or fake it, yeah. Yep. They're looking at it. It still might. That's right. It still might. Got to come up a little bit to the far right side. That's where the hole is. And that's where they kick it over there, but it's going to be taken there by Sullivan Haddock at the 25, and he just goes down the sideline 30, 35, and stung out of bounds around the 37-yard line.
Good, safe play right there. Nice sportsmanship there by Martinez for Florence, who got a pretty good block, put him on his backside, but went and helped him up. I like that. Sometimes that just shows class right there. Yeah, you know, you really see it on occasion a few times a game and everything where you just – the mutual respect that these players have for each other at times that they're able to show is nice. That happened a lot with me in high school. I'd get knocked on my rear end, and they'd help me up a lot.
I would really do appreciate it when they do that. JJ, that's one of the best right there. First and 10 at the 41 for Florence, who needs to run some clock and needs to get some first downs and make sure they take care of the ball here. Inside give to Johnson, who skips far to the 45 and hit down at the 47. Gain of about eight. So give him our seven. We'll give him seven yards on that. So you maybe wanted to rest to Carson Johnson a little bit and back-to-back touchdowns, and you have to bring the goose back in.
Right. And, you know, I said it when we were off air, like if we don't start getting something going, this could be a very interesting fourth quarter. Deja vu all over. Right. It's only 20. And it's a good offense and a team that won't quit, because you know their head coach, he doesn't quit. Second down and three. I said, going to leave it with Johnson, trying to skip, spins away, got cords to the first down and slings far to the 46-yard line. Boy, did Carson Johnson did that on the last five yards on his own?
He certainly did. You know, he's a real special runner. Once he gets downhill, he keeps going in that direction. He'll spin off guys. He just keeps leaning forward and turning those legs. And just being able to gain those extra yards are so huge for the Falcons. Run the clock down here as much as you can. Costa Mahan learning that, too, with 220 and counting. The play clock at 15 before he even gets everybody set. Mahan looks over the defense on first and 10 play. Gets the snap. Going to lead with Johnson off the right.
Got a hole to the 40, to the 35. Splits the defense to the 25. He may be gone. The Goose is loose again. The Goose with his fourth touchdown of the night. The Carson Johnson. Have a night, young man. What a beautiful run there. It looked like he was going to get caught. He made a guy miss. Then he split the two defenders. The guy had a hand on him. He broke that off. Found his way to the pylon in for his fourth touchdown of the evening. What a game.
What a night for the youngster wearing zero. The Goose egg on his number. But he's got four in his back pocket. Four touchdowns, that is, as a running back. Greenhall to attempt the PAT. Checking to make sure everybody's ready. Good snap. And again, the kick is up. And the kick is no good. That one blocked again, I think. Until they came in. Didn't have the pressure. Kenny Marson checking on that. But Florence leads it 40 to 14. This is Falcon football. We're back in 30. Hey, Falcon fans. This is Keith at Cypress Creek Indoor Range.
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Cypress Creek Indoor Range is located at 5060, Highway 157, and Underwood, Petersville. On the web, cypresscreekrange.com, and on social media. Go Falcons! The voice of the Florence High School Falcons, WYTK-FM, Rogersville, Athens, Decatur, the Shoals, 93-9, the score. Back at Brawley Stadium, Florence leaves it 40-14. The kick coming from Greenhall. Drives it high and deep, but going to be returnable for the Golden Eagles at the five. Lovell has a little lane to the right side and come down the sideline and will be pushed out of bounds around the 35-yard line.
[2:57:37] And a flight flag over there. They said it might have been late on that, so they'll get 15 more and have it around midfield. That was a poor job there by the Falcons to pull up. He was way out of bounds, and then he got that extra hit out on that sideline. That's going to be added 15 onto there, just giving this team momentum. No arguing that one. Last drive for the Falcons on that touchdown, John McDaniel. Kevin, the drive was three plays. It was 59 yards, and it was capped with a 46-yard touchdown by DeCarson.
Who has? I think you said how many yards is that rushing now? Well, he's got, I've got him officially at 16 carries and 193 yards. And in his four touchdown runs, he's got, he's at 105 yards and four carries for his touchdowns. So the personal foul will give the Golden Eagles great field position. All the way into Falcon territory at the 44-yard line. So the big return by Lovell and then that. 2-11 to go and both teams trading touchdowns. This Falcon defense has got to show some pride right here.
And I would think that Mr. Moore is looking to open it up once again. Haven't seen Bledsoe in the backfield for a while. I think he might have got shaken up a little bit, and they've gone with Johnson the whole time. Johnson to the left of Moore, the quarterback who has three wide outs. John, no play action. Wants to pass. Has time. Looking. Now he runs up the middle and got running around 45-40, 35-30, 25-20. Breaks the tackle 15 and down the 14-yard line. A big run right there.
Let's check if there's a flag back here. That one may come back. There is. It's on the 45. And another. And a late flag somewhere called too. That's going to be after the play. After the play. Not sure what that late flag was for. Got coaches all over the field right now. In the interior line, when something happens and you get hit, and something happens, and sometimes you don't see that, but it can get chippy. It looks like one of our defensive linemen wound up running his mouth maybe after that play.
Caught a flag that coach pulled him off the field to let him know about. Holding against Athens will be 15 one way, but then it's going to be an unsportsmanlike for the first time against Florence. And Kenny Morrison, just not happy with his team right there on the unsportsmanlike conduct. He is hot with his team about that. And I'll tell you why. He has talked about this team has changed the culture. In two years, they haven't had an unsportsmanlike conduct until just then. So I know his heart is, that's something he's really wanting to change.
And he's showing it right there. That matters to him. And it matters to the team. So it'll be first and sixth after everything shakes out at the 39-yard line. With two minutes to go in the third, Florence up 40-14, but the Golden Eagles trying to knock on the door. It's not over with yet. And timeout taken by Florence. Kenny Morrison wants his team together. He's going to have a sermon with his whole team. This is Falcon football. We're back in 30. We're back in 30. We're back in 30.
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Well, we're at the two-minute warning of the third quarter. Florence leads at 40-14. Kenny Morrison, a veteran coach, Mike, he doesn't put up with a lot of stuff, and he has finally got his fingerprint on this team, and when he saw something he didn't like in this team, he let them know it. Absolutely, and there's no fault in that at all. That's, you know, the unsportsmanlike penalty there, that's a selfish penalty, and we can't have that. This is a team sport, and you let your team down there.
First and five at the 39 for Athens. By the way, I would have given Kenny Morrison a standing ovation on that. That's what you need in coach right there. One back in the backfield is Johnson for the quarterback, Moore for the Golden Eagles. Play action. Has time. Looks to throw down the middle of the field. Has hovered out there again. He catches it again. Down to the five-yard line. Florence has trouble keeping up with number six, and right now, that has been three long passes, and the Golden Eagles are knocking on the door, and don't go away.
This team that can score like everything has found their rhythm. Yeah, I mean, we knew this team could throw it a little bit, and they showed some flashes early on, and the Falcon defense kind of got away, was able to stop them quite well for a little while there, but they're getting exposed right now. Johnson on the inside give, has it to the two, down to the two-yard line, and hit hard there, and knocked down by Sistron. So, he's just short of the goal line. Oh, come on.
[3:02:55] And that's Flagg cleaning things up there, and was that for us? I'm not sure what that was for. Well, really late. The, after the tackle, there might have been some, there might have been some jawing going on there, and if that's the case, then yes, he's coming off the field now. They just had that conversation, too. And officials sometimes want to clean things up, too. But that's against the Golden Eagles. We were wrong. Something happened. Jeffrey Jones, you might have seen it there. It was 74 for Athens.
He, he got a little mouthy, and I'm not going to say he threw a punch, but he, he definitely pushed a guy pretty hard. And when you're six foot seven, you're six seven, 280, you can't get away with that. You can't hide it. Hey, Otis Sistron came up, and that, he was, that guy thought he was about to score, and Otis Sistron came up and hit him hard, and, you know, he's had a, he's had a pretty good game, too, with that interception they hit right there.
The big blue band doing their best to distract. Second down and goal at the 18. Make it to 17. One back in the backfield, three wide outs. Play action. Wants to pass. Pressure coming this time. Morris hit in the backfield. He's going to go down. A sack of Falcons on the sack for the quarterback. Give it to 96, 99, 32. Hike, hike. All of them got in there on that one. Man. Maurice Smith there on the sack. And also, Jaden White in on it. I mean, it was just everybody. It was a jailbreak almost right there.
All the way back to the 30-yard line. They're going to mark him at the 28th. So, it brings up third and goal at the 28th. And Maurice Smith in for the Falcon. That wound up getting the penalty, so he's making the most of his opportunity there. I'm a little surprised that six not in the game. Hovered right now. Four wide outs for Athens. Moore back to pass. Blitz coming. Has a step up in the pocket. Trying to run out of it. Trying to get away. And does to the 25, to the 20, to the 15, to the 10, to the 5.
And he dies with the end zone. Did he get in? They're going to say he stepped out at the four. He gets about 22 there on the scramble. You see the danger of that quarterback Moore right there. Yes. There was an absolute, there was a hold on the left side of the offensive line there. It was really affected the play. Completely missed there, but Athens did a good job of getting to that left side and getting out at the four-yard line. Nice run there by the quarterback.
Fourth and goal at the four. The Golden Eagles trying to make this a game that they can score here. They're still in it with 23 seconds to go in the third. Moore, the quarterback. The Falcon band and fans trying to distract. Two to the right, two to the left. Motion to the right. Going to look rolling right. Pressure coming. Has time. Throws to the middle of the field. Got a man out there and he missed him. Overthrew his open receiver in the back of the end zone and Florence defense will hold.
Huge hold right there for Florence. That was a good job by the Falcon defense to really string that out. Make it a tougher pass than it could have been. Probably should have made that play, but the Falcon pressure might have caused that miscue. Mike, you said earlier this season when you make a quarterback in high school move his feet, the percentages of completing the pass drops immensely. It certainly does. These guys, when you're able to sit there and just use your mechanics properly, these kids are still learning their bodies for crying out loud.
And so being able to run and throw a ball is pretty hard to put it on the nose there. So when they keep their feet, that's fine. But when they get them rolled out, they get them running full speed, being able to throw that ball is pretty hard. From your own four, even a shot of your goal line is the Falcons. Now they've got to get a couple of first downs if they can and take care of the ball. Give it with Hines off the left.
Got a little hole up the middle to the five, down to the 10 and pushed forward to around the 11-yard line. That's seven yards right there. And Jeffrey Jones, Hines hit that hole quick. He did hit it quick. And it's just great to have a 1A and 1B running back situation right now. And I trust both of them. They've done great. Three quarters in the books. Florence leads Athens 40-14. We're back after this one-minute timeout. Getting the kids to practice on time. Remembering if it's your day to bring snacks.
Making it to the game with a clean jersey. Why are simple things sometimes so complicated? Thankfully, with auto owners, insurance doesn't have to be one of them. Auto owners works with independent agents who answer when you call. So you can worry about more important things. Like whether your kid is going to run toward first or third base. That's simple human sense. In Florence, call Tyson Johnson, Luke Brown, Kirby Allen, Victoria Devaney, Brant Bishop, or Daniel Box with Hineker Johnson and Layton Insurance Agency. 256-764-8682. Hamilton leading Priceville 31-0.
Calvert County leads Lexington 26-14. Ardmore and Lawrence County tied at 26. Hatton leading East Lawrence 14-7. Whitesburg Christian Mars Hill tied at 14. Addison leads Bill Green 59-0. Bill Campbell leading Winston County 36-8. Desher leads West Morgan 28-14. Rogers leads West Limestone 20-17. Fayette County leading Haleyville 34-0. Central leads Clements 49-15. Cherokee leads Phillips 36-8. Wilson leading Calvert Heights 35-6. Hackelberg leading Red Bay 31-22. Westbrook Christian leading Lindsey Lane 55-0. And Tanner and Sheffield tied at 13. Here at Brawley Stadium three quarters in the books and Florence leads at 40-14 over Athens.
[3:08:35] A really good Athens Golden Eagles team who is three and one in region play coming into this one. But Florence has flexed their muscles some in this one. On offense, on defense, and in special teams. They will face a second down and four at the 11-yard line. They're 89 yards away. So Florence after the defensive stop, go line, stand. We'll try to push out a first down and run some clock here to put this one away. And they go under center, eye set. Tejada is your fullback.
This time, left side, got a break and got the first down across the 15. Good block again by that left side of the offensive line. And Hines gets the first down. And John McDaniel, I want to come to you, our statistician. You understand running backs. Elijah Hines has impressed you so far. He has really done, he has looked so much fresher, but more specifically quick tonight. He's been a very powerful runner for us in the last two or three games, but he has a quick burst tonight that he hasn't had since maybe game one or two.
Let the clock run. This is where Mike is an offensive coordinator and coach if you've got to sort of milk that clock with your sophomore quarterback some. We'll get to play and talk about that. Looks to throw the quick pitch. Got it outside and that's to Kirkman. he gets about three yards trying to get away but he'll gain three. Yes, that's one of those situations where you're going to need an opportunity to control the clock, to run the clock down later in games and things like that, a little closer games.
That's an opportunity for you to coach up your quarterback and let him know, hey, you snapped the ball with three seconds left, with two seconds left. Get it down there inside that seven-second mark, but he's really been snapping it at about the 12-15 second. Right now it's at 12 and he's getting everybody in motion. Second down is seven. Gives it off of Heinz to the left, cuts it out, trying to get away from one defender and cannot. That's Newby who just picks him up and carries him back.
But give Newby credit. He could have thrown Heinz down, he could have somersaulted him or anything else. He held him up and just held on to him. That's a class play by the big man. You know, anytime you have a guy off his feet, that's a vulnerable position. So if you slam him to the turf after that, that's a 15-yard penalty there. So it was a smart play by him to just pick him up, run him, forward progress was ended, whistles blown, and then just put him gently back to his feet.
Falcons go five wide on the third and seven play. Mahan with four man front, looks to the left, looks to the right, now he scrambles out, he's being chased, he gets away, he's got enough room and he can get the first down to the 25 to the 30 and he'll step out of bounds after the 32. Now we see Mahan running the ball away and that's good right there. Smart play. That was a very smart play there by Mahan. He was able to break it out. It was a good job by the Falcons not to hold there.
They had an opportunity to, it was a holding situation. The guy let him go and Costin rolled out, saw the green grass in front of him, but also made the smart play of just taking it out of bounds, not taking the extra yards and getting a hit, just get out of bounds and live to play another down. The only thing I would have said to me is I would have slid down before he went out of bounds that was just me. I'll take the first down.
Third, first and ten. Left side again, trying to run off the left side of Heinz. He's hit and hammered by two golden eagles. The Falcons have really just basically Jeffrey Jones, I'm going to go to you on the sideline. The Falcons have really run the same type running plays. It's been pull and powered left. It's been the eye set, power left, but it's been really here we come. Stop us if you can. Nothing too spectacular as far as we lined up and ran it right at them.
I like some of the plays where we're pulling the guards, running behind those guards. They're going to get at least three or four yards every time on that. Second down, ten, five-man front now with seven up in the box. Play action, looks to the throat, wide open down the middle of the field. Can he get it out there to him? Just over through the hands of his intended receiver, Butler, who had just checked in the game, and he was right down the middle and it was wide open.
That was one of those situations where right off his hand, you could tell Mayhem was so excited. Off his hand, that ball jumped, and he really overthrew it, and he knew it right away. He was pretty upset, but Butler made a great play to try and make an attempt. You could hear the crowd. As soon as he came off, he's like, oh, there he is, he's wide open, but that brought the ball and carry it into that zone. And the Falcons may have to call a timeout.
They will. We'll take one as well. 9-29 to go in the game. Florence leads at 40-14. This is Falcon football. We're back in 30. It's football time in Alabama. Our students are learning big American lessons. You can start with your God given talents and through practice hard work and sacrifice you have the ability to become champions. This is Congressman Robert Adderholt. May God bless all of our students representing our high schools during this season and may God bless the United States of America. I'm Robert Adderholt and I approve this message paid for by Adderholt for Congress.
[3:13:54] 9.29 to go in the game at Raleigh Stadium. Florence 40, Athens 14. Kevin Johnson and the crew with us. Let's go down to J.J. He's got the long sleeves on. We've avoided the rain a little bit tonight. That's been nice. Well, I believe, I don't know, I must be living right because I came up during the halftime show and it was raining. I looked and it was. I promise you it was raining. I know you don't ever believe me when I tell you it's raining but it was raining at halftime and now it's stopped.
Did you bring your rain gear for this game? Oh man, I got my umbrella hat and the car. I'm ready. Trust me, I'm ready. Five wide for the Falcons on this third and 10 play at their own 32. They lead at 40 to 14. You say why five wide? Well, you've been running the same play. You might want to show a little bit. Blitz coming. Got to get rid of it quick. Down the middle again. This time to Mays but Mays couldn't see it. That time it went to the left side and the Falcons had to punt it away with 925 one zigged and the other zagged and they were just off there.
One thing about it though doing this shows a lot on film. It makes teams in the future have to work for a lot and also teaches Lawrence hey here's some things we could do even better. Nine on the line of scrimmage for Athens they come after it again Greenhall gets rid of it just kicks it kick taken by Lovell at the 40 yard line fair catch great job there by Parker Greenhall who realizes what's going on an injured Athens Golden Eagle McGuire slow to get up and who helped him up Jaden Irons again I like seeing that of these seniors from Florence 920 to go don't forget the AHSAA scoreboard show 10 to midnight tonight here on 93 9 the score had a lot of games played last night about 68 games played last night but about another 150 tonight being played in the state of Alabama we're going to give you all the rundown on everything including in the shows area with our 93 9 the score studio host James Moody that's the AHSAA scoreboard show after our broadcast from 10 to midnight at the 40 yard line first and 10 for the Golden Eagles they look to pass pressure coming Moore steps up now he's going to run rolling out to the right being pushed out of bounds around the 45 yard line but he gets all the way up to the 50 I there because it was Caden Ward came up and said I could hit him but I'm going to let him go to the sideline and he got five more you don't have to throw your pads into them but you could shove them out of bounds four wide outs straight drop wants to pass again three man front across the middle complete at the 40 got the first down to 39 Hubbard again his favorite receiver who may be having a career night with the clock stop at 904 to go Florence leaves at 40 to 14 if you're Florence right here you just want to keep it in front of you but you don't want to make it too easy Athens want to go quickly looks to the left throws the quick out and complete gain of about five but a good tackle in front of you you know we saw that in years past where we would get beat deep get beat deep and it's like nope just keep it in front of you even if they catch it still a lower percentage play you know but just keep it in front so that they don't get 80 yards instead of just five rolling right wants to throw pressure coming gets rid of it quickly to the sideline and can't catch it is Hubbard he was guarded there by petty pull this is a little bit like we had in the fourth quarter of the Russell game we'll trade some time for points we've got quite a cushion one thing they don't have much of is the time but the way they don't run the ball like Russell they pass it so it makes a little bit slower that's why Mike was talking about keeping it in front of them and making them snap it again on those pass plays third and three I would think a run play here slow to get out but it does look like it can be fourth and one Jaden White is going to come back in the game on this fourth and one so the offensive line for Athens looks over and sees 95 come in and they go oh goodness he's back with 7.50 to go 14 that's in the game now for Athens too by the way at Zaden Holman playing quarterback on this play so I think the quarterback got shook up a little bit on that play a minute ago Jackson Morris a home in the game fourth and one going to leave it with his back up the middle and Johnson got the first down to the 25 and stays on his feet and finally knocked down around the 24 I think Jayden White went for the ball there he wanted to take it from him after it was already first down Jayden White when he hit him he was grabbing at the ball and he actually looked like he picked up the guy and took the ball with him and that's White checking a little bit saying hey I need to just get checked here good job though Kevin that's what we were asking for if you're hurt don't put your team in disadvantage he's up under zone power walking off now so that's good because it stops the clock but it allows you to substitute in and get everybody out there but to John's point that's such a smart play yeah like okay I'm not I'm not good and instead of forcing me to sprint off the field let me just get off gingerly and get the sub in and we're good to go 725 to go in home in the quarterback wants to throw the left hander looks to the middle of the field throws it out there for Lavelle it's incomplete overthrew him there brings up second down coverage wasn't bad there actually that was a penalty that should have been a penalty he was draped all over the kid they didn't throw the flag I wouldn't have argued had he thrown that flag but I'm glad he didn't well of course I'm glad he didn't but that was a foul second I'm sorry I don't know what these Falcon radio crews talking about that was a great play by the Falcon defender there the truth is the truth whether I like it or not second down at the 24 713 to go in the game Florence leads it by the score of 40 to 14 but Athens trying to get back another touchdown if they can Johnson will go to the right of the quarterback home and back to pass blitz coming gets rid of it quickly down the left sideline has the man out there is tipped away that's great coverage there by Dez Brown Dez Brown did a good job of putting his body right next to the receiver there put himself in between the ball and the receiver and then just get up there and make a play on the ball and he did a great job there putting his pad on pads and knocking that one away down this Golden Eagles team still has maybe the toughest part of their schedule ahead of them I think Muscle shows and Russell still on their schedule and timeout being taken by the Golden Eagles it'll be timeout on the field we've got a flag also Kevin so not sure what that flag is for sideline warning so it wasn't a timeout Florence needs to get back on the field they thought it was a timeout but it was a sideline warning so everybody looked confused but it'll be third down and 10 for the Golden Eagles at the 24 Caden Ward checking in at safety along with Rainer Pitty pulls one cornerback Des Brown the other cornerback Florence needs to get back guy a guy that just roams the sidelines to tell everyone to get back all day I think it's Kenny Morrison back to pass home and looking hit sacked he gets away but can't get away this time Burski coming in and gets the sack brings him down Bo Burski with another sack and it brings up fourth down and 12 we have to get back guys one coach sledge he's the starter and then coach Morrison has been the backup today might need to pull third straight yeah Mike fourth and 12 home in the quarterback Florence showing bliss they're coming after looking to get rid of it throws it down the left side line two Falcons are out there and they almost intercepted but knock it away incomplete no flags on the play and the Falcon defense holds it was a little friendly fire there we have one guy making a play on the ball and the other guy clipped them as they were doing it ball hit the turf but the Falcons get to take over with 630 to go and honestly Jeffrey Jones what a smart play really maybe by Florence not to intercept that pass right there well yes it was however I think they were trying to intercept it on the goal line batting it down is the call there in my opinion but you know we live to fight another day 40 to 14 Florence with the lead Hines will come in for one more possession I pulled at that point and right on cue number 42 Jekyll and Williams will come into the game Hines will come out he's done his job tonight as has to Carson Johnson 40 to 14 with 628 to go by the way it feels really nice up here I don't know how it is too humid down there but it starting to feel like a little more like football weather and that's good Williams off there by the Eagles yeah they were in the back field right away and there really was nowhere for Jekyll and to go he had to run directly into a defender at that point that play blew up instantly Mitch Boyd will check out of the game into the game for Florence for the first time is Ellis Southward Southward is a great athlete by the way they're really high on Southward in his future second down 15 Mahan looks to give it off again to Williams off the right side and he'll get maybe a yard or two and they'll bring up third down and about 14 or 15 to go Falcons get some more guys in Zane Hanby will come in wide receiver this is where again if you're offensive coordinator hold the call don't call it in right quick hold it for a few minutes let that clock run let that clock help him out a six minutes to go in five minutes to go in the game leading at 40 to 14 Greenhall has done really good tonight and credit him if I jinx him it's on me my fault Parker but he's done a good job understanding the situation back here he comes it's Jayden White who's being injured but he said I'm good plenty of time and you actually could use the time out if you want to if you're Kenny Marson down to four down to three got the snap back just in time and he gets the punt away low line drive going to bounce level is going to get it try to run with it he got one two he's got a wall now watch out level going all the way out to the other side he may take it all the way back and he will can Green Haw get him he returns the punt 60 yards to our touchdown you have a flag on the play Jaden Jaden Irons was held on the outside there and that was right around the area 35 yard line so that will come back with about 415 to go that would be a break for the Falcons looks like he does not quit he competes that's why I like him as head coach too two great head coaches going at him tonight we have been the beneficiary of a couple penalties tonight and that's on Athens that's their fault for making mistakes against a good team like us but we have been the beneficiary of numerous Athens penalties it was on their sideline and so you would sometimes you get the call but it was pretty obvious it must have been it was I saw him as he was coming down the line Jaden Irons kind of got twisted around a little bit and it was the correct call I just wasn't expecting it one thing though I saw on that punt team that I would be teaching and Lawrence is going to call a time out we just got another flag sideline warning sideline warning hey get back well that's a little bit being I'm not really looking forward to this post game interview you know I know we're up 40 to 14 but they're this is like a saving interview right here they're they're playing like they're down down three on that punt team there were two guys that they started running off the field they just assumed he wasn't running it back and he ran it back and they weren't anywhere to help cover you always cover you don't assume that the play was a fair catch first 10 at the 44 throws the quick pitch out here complete at the 40 yard line and pretty good open field tackle right there makes a play at the 40 we've got a late hit rough in the quarterback Jermonte McVeigh on the tackle I don't agree with that I saw that I saw the hit unless there was a secondary hit afterwards I think that might have been from a little bit of the maybe going high it might have been from the verbiage over the sideline about that holding call on the penalty there you know sometimes that plays a factor too legal hands to the face so that was a high hit to the quarterback face that's against Florence so to be first down and move the ball down to the 30 yard line with 403 to go in the game Florence leading at 40-14 but just sloppy here in the late fourth quarter it has been an ugly quarter I appreciate it JJ you'll still get the check in the mail don't worry 355 and counting two wide outs three wide outs now back to pass this more he's back in the game he'll throw it down the middle of the field and Florence going to get a penalty again for holding as the wide receiver for Athens was trying to go down the field KJ Harris he got grabbed that's going to be an easy call two flags were thrown and I would have probably thrown one too he's throwing his hands in the air like he can't believe that anyone would call that it was quite obvious I thought they actually got caught tangled at first when their feet that's what I thought and I saw him grab jersey so I'm going to say I saw hands in jersey and that's what the ref saw and sometimes you don't see the feet tangled maybe that's what happened but he saw the hands grab the jersey and he got caught by hand in the cookie jar so Athens will move it down to the 20 with 3.43 to go three wide receivers again for the quarterback a new quarterback in the game now that is Briggs Whiteside I know who that kid is he's got good parents penalty before the play movement there by the Golden Eagles Briggs Whiteside is a freshman but I was pretty much sure that his dad's a coach over there I'll have to double check that but pretty good folks I'll double check that I'll make sure before I say that again Whiteside though will come in as a freshman and get some playing time first and 15 at the 25 don't forget TNT Fireworks post game show don't forget the Salsa Showdown this weekend I know that Jeffrey wanted me to get that in one more time picking on me I love it first and 15 going to leave with the tailback cuts back nowhere to go and that's a good job by Pettway making the tackle Pettway brings down the running back Henson second down and 15 Johnson will check back in the game who's played a lot of running back we know we haven't seen Bledsoe who may have got injured there in the first or second third quarter and haven't seen it the rest of the game I hope the young man's okay because he's a fine young running back for Athens second down 15 give it inside to Johnson he pushes forward stays on his feet Bart's got to tackle him nobody picks him up he's down inside the 10 down to the 5 no one saw him they just assumed again I think that he just kept hiding behind people and got all the way down to the 4 yard line yeah that wasn't the best showing there by the defense it kind of looked like half the crew thought the play was over and they kind of gave up on the play and you know Athens just kept running it down the field by the way the quarterback the quarterback Whiteside his dad is the offensive coordinator Ethan Whiteside for Athens under 3 minutes to go Golden Eagle trying to stick one in here leave it with Johnson he's hit at the line of scrimmage he'll lose a yard or two right at the 5 yard line a little bit of pride on this Falcon defense coming up and making the play again Petway Rowlett coming off the field and Martinez will have to check in for him because really didn't know who was in there to get in line back and Martinez said I got it don't worry so 2-15 and counting by the way next Thursday night Thursday night game here this week coming up against East Limestone will be here at Brawley Stadium so mark your calendars for a Thursday night special inside to Johnson hit hard by Lotz he only gets a yard and Lotz once again brings him down Hayden Lotz Jeffrey Jones he's going to be okay right now he's starting to learn that game and he does a lot on special teams too I would say other than that Sistrunk hit on about the 3 down the other side of the field that was probably one of the hardest hits of the game so far that was a great job of Hayden Lotz coming up and sticking him right there so to bring third down and goal at the 5 we're under a minute and a half to go can the Falcon defense keep him out of the end zone is the question Whiteside will bring his team to the line of scrimmage puts his back to the left of him looks to pass wants to throw the slant and it's incomplete the flags come again and the Falcon fans didn't like that one and I wouldn't agree with the Falcon fans on that one that's a situation where feet got tangled absolutely 100% that was not a penalty but it will give Athens more time to play football and the Falcon player down we'll have to check on him so time out on the field we'll do the same Florence leaves at 40-14 we're back in 30 at First Southern Bank we always cheer for the home team we are homegrown with deep roots and we're invested in this community with checking and savings accounts mobile and online banking and a mortgage department to help you with the home of your dreams First Southern Bank is your neighborhood bank sometimes a local financial institution with deep roots and a commitment to the community can provide just the banking services you need we always root for the home team because we are the home team First Southern Bank equal housing lender member FDIC Johnson off the left side will get right off the left edge and go into the end zone so Athens for the aid of a couple of penalties maybe four or five get in the end zone with 110 to go and trim the lead to 40 to 20 pending the extra point the Golden Eagles will be back home next Friday night taking on the Russell Golden Tigers so there will be a lot of black and gold in that game Florence for the first time ever Thursday night play a team they've never played before the Indians of East Limestone looking forward to that one extra point attempt up by Swift and it is true new score 40 to 21 Athens Trails Florence this is Falcon Football we're back in 30 craving authentic Mexican flavor dive into delicious at Hugo's Mexican Restaurant 4160 Florence Boulevard at the entrance to Kendall Garden start off with fresh tortilla chips and Hugo's famous cheese dip then enjoy mouthwatering tacos enchiladas and of course Hugo's famous fajitas and more all in a vibrant atmosphere we're open Tuesday through Thursday and Sunday until 9pm and until 930 on Friday and Saturday Hugo's Mexican Restaurant where every meal is a fiesta see you soon at 4164th Boulevard at the entrance to Kendall Garden 1-10 to go in the game and Athens gets a score to trim it to 40-21 aided by a lot of penalties but John McDaniel you know it's good to get a lot of guys in the game and give a chance to experience a little bit of what's going on right?
[3:36:18] Yeah well first off that was a six play 44 yard drive two minutes 53 seconds came off the clock but I like being able to get the young guys into the game so the Golden Eagles line up to kick it Florence has their hands team out just in case with 1-10 to go Swift will Scott it'll bounce got to get on it and finally will pick it up following at the 30 yard line is southward you know just a small thing on special teams you've got to teach players there's a difference in a punt and a kick on the punch you can let it hit and roll dead but on the kickoff it's a live ball and nice play by southward jumping on it there Jeffrey Jones not the prettiest maybe ending but impressive that Florence hooked up to the scoreboard and winning 40 to 21 I mean I'd say it's the ugliest 19 point win we've had in a while but at the end of the day 19 point win sounds good any day of the week we had an ugly 18 point win last time so we'll keep taking those and John mentioned something during the break I'm going to steal his thunder for a second we're going to have to put together four quarters of pretty flawless football here late in the season we hadn't done it yet and we're going to need to this was all John talking but that was my thoughts as well Florence will take a knee Mahan will just take the knee he can do it one more time if he's wise and lets the clock run down to about 30 seconds Kevin you like the shotgun five yard loss for a for a kneel down no but that but you've shot are we just old school or is that just not a good play I think I think maybe if you have a fumble back there it's easier for you to have somebody else recover other than the other team that's what the talk is takes another knee and that will do it nice job by the Falcons there saying calm down and something one of the kids yeah Athens crashed in on that yeah it just absolutely blew a kid up and it was it was unnecessary you see in the NFL and the college ranks as well it wasn't like the kid the kid was just playing football it was just a little bit too aggressive I guess and Cody Gross and Kenny Morrison will meet at midfield both teams will start to shake hands Florence will go to 6-0 of the year with a home victory over Athens and look to go 7-0 next Thursday night against East Limestone this is Falcon football we're back in one minute this is Miranda Haddock with the Florence Education Foundation we would like to extend an invitation to our 9th annual Salsa Showdown on Saturday October 3rd from 2-5pm at Singing River Brewery restaurants and individuals from around the shows will compete to see who has the best salsa and queso enjoy live music and a fun filled day for tickets and more information visit our website at FlorenceEducationFoundation.org I would like to thank our Silver and Gold sponsors Forsyth and Long Bank Independent Chick-fil-A Cutter Construction Essity E.S. Robbins First Southern Bank Grigsby Properties Johnson and Mayhand Vental Long Lewis Florence River Bank and Trust and United Community Bank and a special thank you to our title sponsor this year TNT Fireworks At North Alabama Bone and Joint Clinic our Shoals roots run deep We provide quick access and familiar friendly faces so you never have to feel just like a number From sports medicine to joint replacement expert care happens right here at home As UNA Athletics choice for orthopedics and the trusted orthopedic team of the Shoals families for over 30 years North Alabama Bone and Joint Clinic is here for you learn more at nabjc.com Good news Falcon fans at Brawley Stadium on a Friday night Florence wins it by a score of 40-21 let's send it down to Jeffrey Jones who has the head coach Kenny Morrison with you 40-21 win it was a win it wasn't the least stressful game you've ever had tell us about it I'm just disappointed in our actions out there tonight I can tell everybody on the radio that's not our expectations and our standard here at Florence football we haven't had an unsportsmanlike penalty in two and a half years I'm so disappointed and disgusted with the c*** we did in the second half we got to learn how to win and 34 to nothing at the half we had the thing in hand we told the guys go out and play like it's 0-0 we didn't do anything we're supposed to do right in the second half really disappointed in the second half for sure there was some positive spots you know you had some good running back play and all that you know I'm just going to cut to the chase we got 24 hours to visit this one got a Thursday game Thursday night game coming up against East Lime so we got to be prepared we got to get prepared Sunday will be a day of fixing these mistakes that we made just again not happy where we are supposed to be 6-0 and enjoying a win we'll try to muster up something to be excited about but that second half was not it thanks coach have a good night well done by Jeffrey Jones who understands the coach well I knew that was going to be a tough interview just because of the reactions during the game but he gave me the best he could he did and you know what I love what he said Mike Albertson probably the line of the night we need to learn how to win look I said it I said it in the pregame of the very first game there is expectations on this team and we need to learn how to be winners and that's a thing like you know when you're the perennial 500 program and Florence has been you know some years a little bit more some years a little bit less but mostly around the 500 mark you haven't won so to have expectation for these kids to understand what that is is one thing but the second part is teaching them the right way to do things and Kenny Coach Morrison has been doing that and for them to you know but they still have free will they're still going to be 16-17 year old kids and they're still going to make mistakes so just being able to coach them through that but to create a winning culture and to have that expectation of class of respect and all that other stuff as you go forward maybe that's old school maybe that's not fun maybe whatever who cares that's what we need here you know and to build that that's what coach wants and let's continue that path I want to say thank you to our sponsors tonight as we're in the TNT Fireworks post game show where Florence wins it 40-21 big thank you to First Southern Bank Florence Utilities Florence City Schools Johnson Pasteur Medley and Virtual Attorneys North Alabama Bone and Joint Clinic TNT Fireworks Yogurt Mountain and Whataburger Hugo's Mexican Restaurant Singing River Dentistry Lost Pizza Village Discount Drugs Iron's Electric Cypress Creek Range Hinegar Johnson and Layton Insurance Carbine Construction and Warehouse Tackle thank you to our sponsors to making Florence Falcons football possible each and every Friday night and Thursday nights when we have those as well thank you to Garner Pierce Otto for taking care of us with vehicles throughout the season and a big thank you to Lost Pizza as well as Florence here tonight wins it 40-21 more from the TNT Fireworks post game show coming after this one minute time out when you're in the mood for a sweet treat just the way you like it Yogurt Mountain on Cox Creek Parkway has you covered with 16 rotating flavors 40 toppings and a dozen sauces the combinations are endless so whether you want a simple treat or a decked out dessert just grab a cup and create your ultimate frozen yogurt concoction at Yogurt Mountain all of the flavors are kosher most are gluten free and there are always non-dairy and non-sugar added options visit today and discover your new favorite frozen yogurt destination 240 Cox Creek Parkway in Florence and 3312 Woodward Avenue in Muscle Shoals Hi I'm Dr. Brady Citizen with Treehouse Children's Dentistry our teens in Tuscumbia Killen and Madison are so excited to welcome you and your family to our treehouse we know that choosing a dental home can be a stressful experience that's why at Treehouse Children's Dentistry we've created an environment that kids and parents love our team is experienced in caring for every child from infants to teenagers to children with special needs call one of our three locations today or visit our website at treehousedentist.com we're so excited to see you soon at Treehouse Children's Dentistry a branch of Singing River Dentistry back at Brawley Stadium happy group of Falcons and fans as the boys in blue go to 6-0 on the season with a 40-21 victory over the Athens Golden Eagles and a big win for Florence here at home tonight final stats I believe are ready brought to us by our good friends at Chick-fil-A go by and see them at the end of the morning I tried the waffle and chicken biscuit type thing that's pretty good you'll like it I promise you tell them KJ sent you that way let's go to John McDaniel our status edition thank you Kevin just trying to put a bow on some of these things here alright tonight the Golden Eagles for the game 352 yards of offense they had 30 rushes for 160 yards 11 completions on 26 attempts for 192 yards passing 17 first downs on the night 3 for 10 on 3rd down conversions and 1 for 3 on 4th down attempts 12 penalties for 105 yards in the game 4 turnovers all in the first half 3 for 3 on their PAT attempts time of possession was 22 minutes and 5 seconds the Falcons 371 yards of offense we had 40 rushes for 279 yards 9 completions on 15 attempts for 92 yards through the air we also had we also had 17 first downs 5 for 11 on 3rd down conversions and 1 for 1 on 4th down attempts tonight big thing coach talk about 14 penalties and 127 yards worth tonight big change for the Falcons 2 turnovers 4 for 6 on our PATs and the time of possession I'm going to have to punt on because our program didn't do well for us tonight that's alright because the final score is the main score and Florence wins it 40 to 21 and thank you John McDaniel our statistician Florence got it started early in the first quarter 613 to go to Carson Johnson a 45 yard run as he got to the outside and outraced everyone and sidestepped the last would-be tackler at the 5 yard line to make it 7-0 after Greenhal's extra point in the second quarter Johnson took over again once with a 3 yard run after a 13 play 80 yard drive probably the drive of the night for the Florence Falcons who had been pushed back by penalties 15 yards and got the first and 25 and converted it on 3rd down and that changed everything and Johnson finished the drive with 345 to go in the second quarter to make it 14-0 so really late in the first half it's a 14-0 game but then Florence forced and maybe even tipped a punt that was attempted by Athens which went pretty short Johnson again would finish up with a 9 yard touchdown run 20-0 and then Athens decided to go for it and when they decided to go for it they threw a pass with about 23 seconds left or 39 seconds left and they throw it to the left and it went off the hands of the intended receiver and it went to Brown and Des Brown was catching it and going 25 yards for a touchdown Florence led it 27-0 at the end of the first half in the 3rd quarter Florence gets on the score again midway 3rd quarter when Jaden Irons took a fake punt and went around right in untouched 39 yards to make it 34-0 Athens though answered back with back to back scores from Moore to Hubbard one time for about 60 yards the other time for 47 and the PATs were good it was 34-14 so Florence had to answer back and they did with DeCarson Johnson going 46 yards on a touchdown with 216 to go to make it 40-14 Athens would get one more score late in the game a token touchdown and that's where the final score is 40-21 so the Falcons as I said let it big 27-0 at the half and coast to a 40-21 game but let's get our final thoughts on tonight's game and guys first of all not the prettiest thing not the prettiest broadcast for me or anybody else it's hard it was choppy all around but when you look at it Jeffrey Jones the Falcons ended up doing what they had to do I mean we're looking here we're sort of down and out they win the game and we're 6-0 life is good yeah life is good you know we're yeah we it was ugly yeah we had some mix-ups but let's be honest if we kept our stars in there the whole time you know nothing against the second string third string guys but you know we pulled some guys a little early tonight but at the end of the day 19 point win against a quality team like Athens I'm telling you you know and for us to play like that now we're going to have to clean up a lot of stuff I get it and the unsportsmanlike conduct we're not used to seeing those as of late we've seen them in the past but we haven't seen them as of late so you know I'm pretty proud to be 6-0 to be honest with you I'm pretty happy with it I think it was a good night I think that we've got a lot to learn but we'll be fine we'll be fine we've got a good good clean up game next week to where you know if we come show up do what we're supposed to do we'll come out 7-0 we've just got to focus this short week of practice and we'll be good John McDaniel your final thoughts on tonight's win I'd like to see it play a lot more discipline of course certainly this was an abnormal game with 14 penalties last few weeks we've had two and four something like that I mean very few so a little bit of anomaly maybe it was an off week that we just weren't in sync but you know all in all 6-0 is a place we have never been as a school and you know I'm looking forward to seeing you know the guys get ready for a short week as you said it's a team we've never played so we don't know what to expect and it's a little bit of an unknown and these guys can I mean they're on the doorstep of 7-0 certainly again every week is a record because they've never done this before and continuing to make this a special season for all members of the team Mike Albertson yeah I think I mean I'm going to echo basically what I said last game is yes we won the game that's wonderful but this is a good team and they're not showing me that they can be a great team that you you've got to clean up the errors you've got to clean up the issues the teams in the playoffs that you're going to be facing aren't going to be making those mistakes they aren't going to be throwing the ball away they aren't going to be fumbling like like the teams that we're playing right now right and the lack of execution that we've had will come back to bite us if we don't we need to put it together four quarters four complete quarters and that's that plain and simple we are a really good team we can be great but they have work to do will a bunch of kids that are 15 16 17 18 years old are they able to understand what they need to do or is that winning stopping them from becoming who they can be that question needs to be asked over the next couple weeks we next week should be a game we should handle then we go play a familiar foe in Austin and they they're no cupcake they're no pushover and they have beaten us many times in the past we will see who we are on that week and it would not surprise me if we continue to play this way that that game traps us yeah I mean I agree with all of what you guys are saying I'm thrilled that we're 6-0 I've never been 6-0 and you haven't either it's exciting it's great at the same time oh we left a lot out there tonight there was a lot of points we left out there a lot of opportunities I will say this Jaden White played his best game maybe of his career tonight and it was just unbelievable he had an interception caused a fumble he was all over the field he is really special and only going to get better a couple of pass breakups he was really special tonight and this Falcons team I think you know you heard the head coach when he says we've got to learn how to win you've got to learn how to put games away put teams away and you're playing not just against the opponent you're playing to say I want to get better every week and right now I'm not sure we've gotten better the last two games we've won we've succeeded but maybe there's a lot more to the left to be desired again now you coming down the stretch you've got a chance to heal up a little bit Thursday night game coming up a big one after that too but you've got to take care of business first Thursday night let's see how the Falcons play the next two games and is this team really going to be a contender because I've seen a lot 10-0 teams over the years that were not contenders when they got to postseason let's see if this Falcon team can be a team that can win each week and then possibly can they be a contender that's going to be the question the potential is there the opportunities will they take advantage of it I know one thing the head coach he's going to do everything he can to get that team mind body everything right to prepare for that he knows what he's got and we've got the right head coach in a situation like that head spin in this situation he'll do his job now with the kids and the players and team respond that will be the next thing good news for Falcon fans it's home game again Thursday night here at Braley Stadium as we take on the Indians of East Limestone that's going to do it for us tonight the AHSA scoreboard show to follow from 10 to midnight and 93 now the scores James Moody and Blair Krieger will give you updates throughout the night as well for our station manager Greg Thornton for my good friends Jeffrey Jones John McDaniel and Mike Alberson who have absolutely endured me tonight and taken care of me tonight they have no idea how much I appreciate them they are the best of the best and I think they're the best radio crew in the state of Alabama I'm Kevin Johnson saying have a great night enjoy the night of high school sports and we'll see you in church on Sunday good night everyone you've been listening to Florence Falcons football on sports radio 93.9 the score Florence Falcons football on sports radio 93.9 the score has been brought to you by Florence Utilities Florence City School the law firm of Johnson Pesher Medley and Virtual the North Alabama Boney Joint Clinic TNT Fireworks Yogurt Mountain Whataburger Singing River Dentistry Village Discount Drugs Hugo's Mexican Restaurant Irons Electric Cypress Creek Indoor Range Lost Pizza Hedeker Johnson and Layton Insurance Carbine Construction First Southern Bank and Warehouse Tackle Thanks for listening and go Falcons