If any game could paint a picture of what the Durant Cougars are capable of, Friday night’s game against East Bay was it.
It was a tale of two halves, even though Durant (4-0; 1-0 district) never trailed. The first half ended, 16-14, in favor of the Cougars; at the end of the game, the scoreboard read 34-14.
Offensive struggles plagued the Cougars early on, at least after junior running back Jake Harris capped off a swift opening drive with a touchdown. Four minutes later, at the 6:15 mark, East Bay’s (2-2; 0-1 district) KJ Sails tied the game at 7-7. Durant caught a break in the second quarter, as East Bay bobbled a punt snap out of the end zone and, on the ensuing safety punt, defensive back Jaden Garrett ran the ball back to put Durant ahead, 16-7.
Later in the quarter, just when it looked like the defense had East Bay’s number, Indians running back Gaej Walker broke off a 75-yard run to make things interesting. His score got the Indians to within two points of Durant, trailing 16-14.
In the third quarter, Durant’s offense finally woke up and rose to the level of the defense. Sophomore quarterback Carlton Potter led the Cougars downfield with a nice drive, highlighted by a completion to Jalen Forté that went for 48 yards and capped with another touchdown run from Harris. East Bay then blocked the first of two consecutive PAT attempts by Peyton Ledbetter.
Forté got himself a touchdown at 8:24 in the fourth quarter, with a 39-yard run that sucked the life out of the visitors’ stands. At 3:46, running back Cameron Myers came out of nowhere with a 48-yard rushing touchdown of his own, effectively ending the game.
In other area news, Plant City beat Strawberry Crest, 49-6.
