By Alaina Denean Deshazo

BNI News Service

Fort Dale went for two and the win Friday night against Morgan Academy and it paid in a big way.

The Eagles (6-1) were successful on the two-point conversion in overtime and stunned the Senators (5-3) 29-28.

“It give us a definite playoff berth at this point. We have two region games in a row left now, but we are in now. Now it just matters where we will end up seeded,” said Fort Dale coach James Sampley.

Fort Dale tied the game at 21 late in the fourth to take the game into overtime against Morgan.

“I’m very proud of them. We worked very hard this year,” Sampley said. “We’re not the most talented team in America, we don’t have a lot of foot speed, but they play their brains out every Friday night and you can’t ask for more.”

Morgan got on the board first with a 4-yard run from Sam Brackin early in the second quarter to make the game 6-0 after a missed point after.

Fort Dale answered shortly after with 1-yard quarterback keeper from Luke Taylor with 6:23 left in the second quarter. A good extra point brought the Eagles up 7-0 for their only lead of the first half.

The Senators wouldn’t stay down long.

Brackin ran the kickoff return 85 yards for a Morgan touchdown. Brayton Brown tacked on a two-point conversion to bring the score to 14-7 with 6:10 left in the second.

Taylor ran a 45-yard quarterback keeper for his second score of the game with 3:34 left in the first half. An extra point tied the game at 14.

Morgan’s Brackin was the first one to score in the second half with a 22-yard run. An extra point with 6:30 left in the third quarter brought the game to 21-14 Senators.

Taylor scored his last touchdown of the game with a 2-yard quarterback keeper into the end zone. After a made extra point, the game was again tied at 21 with 7:00 left in regulation.

With 1:45 left in the game, Morgan fumbled on its own 24-yard line to give the ball to Fort Dale. The Eagles drove the ball inside Morgan’s 20, but missed a field goal with 1.2 second left, sending the game into overtime.

Morgan was the first to score in overtime, when Brackin ran the ball in from 6 yards out. An extra point put the Senators up to 28-21.

Fort Dale’s Andrew Salter scored on a two-yard run to set the Eagles up for their game winning two-point conversion.

The Eagles lined up for an extra point after touchdown, but the Senators jumped offside and the penalty moved the ball to the 1-yard line.

“We actually had a fake on the kick, if he had not jumped off sides, we would have went for two anyway,” Sampley said.

“I just felt like we didn’t need to all put it on the kicker at the end, because I didn’t want him to feel bad about it. We were going to take it and man up and do what we had to do.”

Fort Dale lined up for the two-point and ended the game with a final score of 29-28.

“It’s a shame Morgan lost this football game. Nobody should lose a game like that. It’s hard on them,” Sampley said. “I’m very proud of their kids, they played extremely hard. I thought the coaches did a wonderful job. It was a good, clean football game, no mess, no penalties like it’s supposed to be.”

Taylor led the Eagles on the ground with 25 carries for 184 yards and 3 touchdowns, followed closely by Salter with 113 yards on 26 carries and an overtime touchdown. 

Clay Mansmann led the Eagles’ defense with 14 tackles, followed by Salter’s 8.

The Eagles face Monroe at home Friday.