River Bluff never trailed in Friday night’s home opener against Nation Ford until there were only 43 seconds to play in the contest. 

A touchdown pass from Falcon quarterback Kason Canupp to Asher Beck gave Nation Ford its first lead of the night and ultimately the victory over the Gators 20-17.

The Gators started strong, pleasing the home faithful decked in red, white, and blue to celebrate Military Appreciation night in The Swamp. A five-yard touchdown run by Hayden Myers started the scoring for River Bluff and accounted for the only score in the first quarter. 

After Nation Ford responded with a touchdown of its own midway through the second quarter, Gator quarterback Brayden Moore found Hamp Pitts for an 18-yard touchdown to give River Bluff the lead, 14-7. Then, with 34 seconds left in the period, Liam Flynn kicked a 24-yard field goal, putting the Gators up 17-7 at the half.

River Bluff would never score again, however, and Nation Ford would strike twice, once in the third quarter and then again with less than a minute in regulation. 

The Gators caught a glimmer of hope when the Falcons missed the extra point on their last touchdown, causing the deficit to be three, instead of four points. Now, River Bluff only needed a field goal to tie. 

That hope faded quickly as River Bluff’s offense could not muster a drive to get within field goal range, and time expired.

Even though the Gators ended up losing the game, running back Hayden Myers was a bright spot. The senior rushed for 201 yards and a touchdown. 

Josiah Robinson led the Gator defense with twelve tackles, including two tackles-for-loss, a sack, and two pass breakups.

When asked about their individual performances after the game, Myers and Robinson agreed that it's not about the stats, but about the way you push teammates to be better at practice.

Head Coach Perry Parks also affirmed the importance of preparation during the week. 

“The second half was sloppy, and fixing that in practice starts with me,” he said. 

The Gators will be back at home this Friday against Gilbert in a contest between Lexington One schools.  Kickoff is set for 7:30 pm in The Swamp.