Blowing in the Wind, Part 2...

So, the first game of the day was Abilene High was playing Mansfield High in a rematch of an upset from 2008 when AHS lost in the first round of the playoffs. This time Mansfield was coming to Abilene for the doubleheader. The day was cold and the wind was howling through the stadium, with winds in the 25-30mph range and steady.

Abilene High took a quick lead going up 17-0, and ended up scoring another TD, but because of the stupidest rule ever made, allowing an official to take a touchdown away from a player because an excessive celebration allows them way too much opportunity to affect the outcome of a game instead of the players. Ok, off my soapbox... The game got a lot more interesting in the second half when Mansfield started pounding the ball up the middle. And ended up taking the lead 22-17 after a blocked kick and AHS knocking it out the end zone for a safety.

Then on the free kick following, the Eagles recovered a squib kicked that was bobbled by a Mansfield player. After that AHS drove the ball down the field mostly passing the ball into the strong wind for the go-ahead touchdown. After that, Mansfield started to march the ball down the field on the final drive, with mostly running the ball on fullback dives. Then, with first and goal at the three yard line, the AHS defense stiffened up along with Mansfield making a really odd call on fourth down rolling out for a pass with a quarterback who was not a really great thrower, an incomplete pass and game over. A game that started out looking like it could be a blowout ended in a great 25-22 game in the worst of possible weather conditions. These games are always nothing but fun to shoot.