Why Reynolds football’s offense failed to launch in season-opening loss to West Forsyth

ASHEVILLE — After going 9-4 and reaching the third round of the NCHSAA playoffs last season, Reynolds football retooled its offense.

The Rockets added IMG Academy junior transfer quarterback Ely Hamrick, while senior running back Max Guest was slated to return from a right foot injury to add to last season’s breakout stars like juniors Tyvon Patterson and Jayden Smith.

But in what was expected to be the debut of Reynolds’ new high powered offense Friday, it floundered, failing to score a touchdown in a 19-13 loss to West Forsyth at R.L. Dalton Stadium.

“We had a lot of chances to take the lead and win the ballgame and we just didn’t,” Reynolds coach Shane Laws said. “We’ve got a lot of really good players on the offensive side of the ball, and we’ve got to play better.”

Both Guest and Hamrick showed frustration in the offense’s performance, specifically themselves. Reynolds gained 176 yards and settled for two field goals offensively. The lone touchdown came on a blocked punt by Lincoln Rogers to cap off the game’s first drive.

“We should be scoring 30 points a game with the people we have,” Guest said. “Not even just me. … It’s not acceptable.”

Reynolds had a chance to score to open the third quarter on a drive that marched 66 yards downfield before stalling out. After Guest was stuffed inside the 10-yard line, the Rockets settled for a field goal to trail by three points rather than taking the lead.

Trailing by six points near the end of the game, the Rockets had a chance at a two-minute drill. After Hamrick picked up a first down on a 25-yard scramble to cross midfield, the offense couldn’t gather itself when trying to spike the ball. Reynolds was flagged multiple times for false starts and ended the game attempting to convert a fourth-and-48.

“We didn’t execute offensively,”…


Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/why-reynolds-footballs-offense-failed-033503230.html

Author : Asheville Citizen-Times

Publish date : 2024-08-24 03:35:03

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