The Fannin Rebels held their scrimmage game against the Pickens Dragons on Friday night with some disappointing results, as the team would be outscored 63-21 over three periods of varsity action and one period of junior varsity and freshmen play.
Fannin began the contest by winning the coin toss and electing to receive, which was followed by the offense taking the ball on their own thirty-five yard line. Poised to put some points on the board, the Rebels worked to move the ball but were hindered by a false start penalty that would ultimately lead to a three-and-out.

The Dragons quickly tacked on their first points of the game on a sixty-two yard rushing touchdown by Tanner Brumby, leaving the Rebels in an early 7-0 hole. Fortunately, the Fannin offense started clicking on all cylinders on the next series, racking up sixty-five yards on eight plays and tying the game 7-7 on a 30 yard touchdown pass from Trevor Stone to Jordan Gray.

Fannin’s kickoff coverage would cause quite a conundrum on the kickoff following the touchdown, as Pickens returned the kick ninety yards to make it 14-7 with 4:57 left in the first quarter.

The Rebels offense then took the field and worked to tie the game again but were once again plagued by a penalty (this time a delay of game). Unable to gain the necessary yardage to sustain a drive, the team was forced to punt the ball back to the Dragons.

Forced to hit the field again, Fannin’s defense struggled to slow down Pickens on this possession, which saw the Dragons stretch their advantage to 21-7 with less than a minute remaining in the first quarter. The next Rebels’ possession saw the opposing defense squander Trevor Stone’s hopes of passing by sacking the senior quarterback and a dropped pitch lose several yards, effectively ending this drive before it could ever truly get going.

Another Dragons’ touchdown put the Rebels in a difficult 28-7 deficit, meaning that the offense really needed to get going quickly. The offense looked prepared to take this challenge to heart, moving the football thirty-nine yards deep into Dragons’ territory. Despite this offensive output, Fannin came up short on a long fourth down pass, therefore giving the ball back to Pickens on the Dragons’ 13 yard line.

Pickens then put up another seven points on a short rushing touchdown by Shannon Brooks, making it a 35-7 game with 2:30 left in the second quarter. The Rebels then responded with a nice drive that had the potential to provide some points, but a one yard loss on fourth down ended these hopes, serving as the second straight series where Fannin turned the ball over on downs.

Hoping to hold the current twenty-eight deficit going into the half, the Rebels’ defense did its part to slow down the Dragons, but were unable to keep them out of the end zone, as Pickens added another rushing touchdown with a mere 0:01 left to make it 42-7 at halftime.

Pickens would get the ball to start the second half with the same results that the team had in the first half, and with 8:25 left in the third quarter the Rebels found themselves trailing 49-7. Fannin would finally get back on track in the next series, collecting sixty-eight yards on seven plays, highlighted by a thirty-three yard touchdown pass from Stone to Peyton Satterfield to make it 49-14 with 4:47 remaining in the third.

Another Dragons’ touchdown gave the home team a 56-14 lead, and shortly thereafter the third quarter ended, which meant the night was done for both sides’ varsity squads. The final quarter of play saw Fannin’s JV and freshmen players hit the field and play very well, as they started the fourth with an eight-play, fifty-two yard drive that ended on a thirty yard touchdown run by Daniel Lange.

The Rebels had an extremely scary moment in the fourth when ninth grade wide receiver/defensive back Ryan Welch took a hit to the back and immediately fell to the ground, where he remained for several minutes. Eventually, Welch would be carted off the field, leaving all of those in attendance very concerned. Thankfully, FYN has confirmed on Monday morning that Welch is alright and does not appear to have any serious repercussions from the hit.

When the fourth was all said and done, the Rebels and the Dragons would end the one quarter contest tied 7-7.

Trevor Stone led the way for the Rebels in the passing game, completing seven passes for 145 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Peyton Satterfield showed off his skills both carrying the football and making catches, ending the game with 50 total yards and one touchdown.

Jordan Gray made his presence known throughout the game, reeling in three receptions for 51 yards and one touchdown.

Fannin did what they could to rack up as many yards as possible, ending the game with 221 yards (155 from the varsity) with 76 rushing yards and 145 passing yards.

The Rebels will open their season at home on Friday, August 30th, as Highway 515 rival Gilmer will make the trip to Blue Ridge.