LINCOLN COUNTY — Football is a game of timing.
You play four quarters of 12 minutes each. Offenses get 40 seconds to run a play or face a delay of game penalty. There’s snap cadence. Running backs and receivers run precisely timed routes while the quarterback attempts to evade the defense and hit his target.
It’s a game of inches and seconds. One that’s difficult to play (and watch) when the referee crew interrupts play nearly 20 times in just the first half. That’s a stat from the Moore County Raiders Friday night loss to the Fayetteville City Tigers in Lincoln County on Friday by a final score of 28-22.
After a disjointed and uncharacteristically mistake-riddled first half, the Raiders tied the game with a clutch 92 yard drive capped off with a Kyler Parker to Dylan Scruggs 55 yard pass late in the fourth quarter.
Sputtering, flag heavy first half
The first half felt like a slow, sputtering, out of sync affair thanks in part to nearly 20 flags thrown by officials over the course of the first 24 minutes.
Moore County failed to score in the first stanza. The Tigers scored first on a hand off to KJ Jackson on a first and ten at the 38 yard line. They made the two point conversion and led Moore County 8-0 as time expired in the first quarter.
The second quarter ended much like the first with the Tigers scoring as time expired. At the end of the first half, Fayetteville City led the Raiders 16-0.
Half time adjustments
As the winds whipped and the temperature dropped after halftime, Moore County showed signs of life when senior running back Tyler Smith spotted a hole in the Tiger defensive line and muscled his way into the end zone. Parker then connected with Dawson White for the two point conversion to get the Raiders within eight. With 10 minutes to play in the third quarter, Moore County trailed the Tigers 16-8.
Following the Raider score, the Tigers answered with a quick five play series that resulted in six more Fayetteville City points. This time the Raider defensive line held and the two point conversion failed. With a little over six minutes remaining in the third, the Raiders continued to trail Fayetteville City 22-8.
On the next Raider series and behind a offensive line that gave him plenty of time to make plays, Parker spread the ball around with positive plays to Joshua Parks, Kaden White, Tyler Smith, and Dylan Scruggs to get he Raiders to first and goal as time expired in the third. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Parker tucked the ball and ran in for a Moore County touchdown with 11:57 to play. Chase Bradford’s PAT was good to make it 22-14.
After the Raiders tied the score, the Tigers needed a fake punt on fourth and six with 50 seconds remaining to keep their go-ahead drive alive. Fayetteville City then completed a pass to the one yard line to give them first and goal with 19 seconds left on the clock. They scored on the next play, but the two point conversion failed. With 17 second left, the Raiders took over on the 34 yard line. Parker ran for two yards then completed a toss to Joshua Parks for a first down but time expired.
With its first loss under first year head coach Kris White, the Raiders fall to 4-1 overall and 1-1 in Region 5A. Moore County now ranks third in the region behind Richland (2-1, 1-0) and Fayetteville City (4-1, 3-0). The Raiders will travel for the fourth straight week next Friday night to take on non-conference Eagleville (2-3, 1-1).
The game will kick off in Eagleville at 7 p.m. For those who plan to travel, the GPS address is 500 Highway 99, Eagleville, TN 37060. If you can’t travel to the game, it will be broadcast live on Raider Country 105.1 and 95.5 FM, on the NFHS Network, or The Lynchburg Times will post live score updates on our Facebook page. •
The Lynchburg Times is an independently owned and operated newspaper that publishes new stories every morning. Covering Metro Moore County government, Jack Daniel’s Distillery, Nearest Green Distillery, Tims Ford State Park, Motlow State Community College, Moore County High School, Moore County Middle School, Lynchburg Elementary, Raider Sports, plus regional and state news.}