HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL: Trojans rout Foard, go to 2-0 under new head coach

Bandys averaging more than 45 points per game under Eanes

HobbsDailyReport.com

BET YA DIDN’T KNOW…
Bandys has won five straight games, dating back to last season, and scored at least 35 points in all of those games and 42 or more in four of them… Ethan Howard has rushed for at least 114 yards in five of the Trojans’ last six games, the exception being a night of 14 yards on 11 carries at Hibriten when Bandys fell 56-7 in the first round of the state playoffs … The Tigers are 4-3 in their last seven games – wins over Draughn, East Burke, West Iredell and Maiden and losses to Mount Pleasant, Maiden and Bandys…Friday’s 35-point margin was the largest in a win over Foard since 54-0 victory at Bandys in 2004.

NEWTON – The formula Tom Eanes brought to Bandys High – play tough defense and run the ball hard—is working well.

A week after rushing for more than 400 yards to win Eanes’ first game as the Trojans’ head coach, the Trojans collected another one on Friday night, winning 49-14 at Fred T. Foard to go to 2-0.

BANDYS 49
FRED T. FOARD 14

Eanes won nine games a year ago at Patton before coming to Bandys as head coach when Trent Lowman left to become the next head coach at East Surry.

Bandys forced six fumbles at Foard — recovering four — and again spread its running game around to snap a three-game losing streak to the Tigers (0-2).

The Trojans have won 15 of their last 17 games at Foard as they moved Eanes within a win of 150 for his career; he goes for that one on Sept. 7 in a non-league game at Bunker Hill.

Foard opened a lead in the first 15 seconds of Friday’s game when Jack Colosimo returned a kickoff 88 yards for a TD. He also ran a kickoff back for a TD on opening night in a 21-6 loss at Maiden.

But Bandys responded by scoring the next 42 points, that started by a 25-yard TD throw from quarterback Lake Hojnacki to Isaiah Talbert.

About four minutes later, the Trojans got the lead for good when Ethan Howard pounced on a loose ball in the Tigers’ end zone after Foard quarterback Eli Carr was hit and fumbled.

EANES

Bandys led 21-7 at the half when Hojnacki ran for a TD.

The Trojans’ first score of the second half came after they drove to the Foard 2 and Elijah Clarke fumbled. The ball got into the end zone and lineman Anthony Bisulac fell on it for a TD.

Howard later scored on a run, helping him gain 133 yards and pass 2,500 rushing yards for his career. Unofficially, he now has 2,529 yards and 14 games of 100 yards or more that includes eight games a year ago (21-107 against Foard) and a career-high 205 yards against North Lincoln.

Hunter Jones added two fourth-quarter TD runs for Bandys.

Foard’s first offensive score of the year came on a 14-yard TD run by Colosimo.

While Bandys has two weeks to prepare for Bunker Hill — which it has beaten three times in the last four battles – Foard will try to avoid an 0-3 start on Friday night, facing North Lincoln at Foard.

Notes

Bandys leads its all-time series with Foard 40-16-1 … Eanes is 149-187-1 in a career that includes being head coach at nine other schools, including East Lincoln … Foard had won four straight games at home … Tigers head coach Derrick Minor is 12-14 at Foard … Foard’s offense has one TD in two games to start the season after having five in the first two games of last season… Colosimo has two kick return TDs, a year after Foard did not have any kicking game scores in a nine-win season … Foard did return two blocked punts for TDs in 2017, both by Andrew Bishop (34 yards against West Lincoln and 4 yards against St. Stephens).

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