Laymarr Marshall cautioned that he needs a detailed film study to determine an accurate grade for his Mount Tabor football team in its season opener.
As for his initial impressions, he feels good about most of what he saw in a 37-26 victory against Southern Durham last night in a battle of the Spartans.
"Tonight, I'd say we were B-minus/C-plus," said Marshall, who made his head-coaching debut. "It's not bad for a first game of the season. I really liked our effort."
Marshall's most satisfying moment might have come at the start of the second half, when his team re-established its dominance after blowing a 21-6 lead in the first half.
Mount Tabor turned to its crunching ground game to set things in order. That opening scoring drive took nearly six minutes off the clock and produced a 31-18 lead that was never challenged. Southern didn't score again until the final seconds, on a short run by Lamont Pettiford and Nick Jones' catch of a conversion pass from backup quarterback A.J. Marshall
With Mount Tabor's front line paving the way for 228 yards rushing, there was little need for a passing game. Sophomore quarterback Bradley Morton did his part, hitting 6 of 8 passes for 40 yards with no interceptions. Instead, running backs Hunter Furr and Denard Jones took control. Furr, who is North Carolina-bound, slashed and bulled his way for 128 yards and four touchdowns on 24 carries. Jones complemented those efforts, finishing with 66 yards and a score on 14 carries.
"That first drive (in the third quarter) was big for us," Marshall said. "I don't think we ever lost control of the game. But it was important that we were able run consistently and get more momentum going."
Southern had turnover problems, losing three fumbles that led to Mount Tabor scores. Khamari Everett and Reese Wiggins fumbled returns in the first half to set up Mount Tabor nicely. Later in the half, they made up for those bobbles by showing electrifying return skills. Everett burned Mount Tabor on a 77-yard return for a touchdown, and Wiggins sliced up the middle on a kick return on a 97-yard sprint to the end zone.
The spark from the special teams carried over to Southern's offense, which suddenly showed some quick-strike capability. With time winding down in the second quarter, Alan Lea hit Jones on a medium-range post route that turned into a 72-yard touchdown and cut Mount Tabor's lead to 24-18 at the half.
"That long scoring drive in the third quarter they put together really hurt us," Coach Adrian Jones of Southern said. "We were confident that we could stop them. But we also hurt ourselves with nine penalties in that first half. That's too many and it's unacceptable for any team. We're usually pretty good on defense, but tonight, we didn't show too well on that side of the ball."
For Southern Durham, Lea was 9 of 11 for 151 yards. He left the game with a shoulder injury after taking a hit on a pass early in the fourth quarter. Mount Tabor held Southern to 1 net yard rushing and squib-kicked on all kickoffs in the second half, effectively nullifying Southern Durham's return specialists.
S. Durham 12 6 0 8 -- 26
Mount Tabor 21 3 13 0 -- 37
MT -- H. Furr 8 run (L. Furr kick)
SD -- Everett 77 kickoff return (kick failed)
MT -- H. Furr 2 run (L. Furr kick)
MT -- H. Furr 5 run (L, Furr kick)
SD -- Wiggins 97 kickoff return (kick failed)
MT -- L. Furr 20 field goal
SD -- Jones 72 pass from Lea (kick failed)
MT -- H. Furr 1 run (L. Furr kick)
MT -- Jones 4 run (kick failed)
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