The Pickens Dragons showed no mercy against the Fannin Rebels on Friday night, as the team hung up a total of 508 yards in what may very well be a precursor to the season opener against Sonoraville on August 30th.The Dragons got going very early on in the game, forcing Fannin into a three and out and scoring on the first offensive play on an impressive 62 yard run by Tanner Brumby with 9:50 left in the first quarter.

Fannin was then able to respond with a eight play, 65 yard drive that seemed to show the spectators that a highly contested game was at hand, but things quickly changed on the kickoff following the score, as Shannon Brooks evaded the Rebels’ defenders and gave Pickens a 14-7 advantage on a 90 yard touchdown return.

Still in a critical point in the game, the Dragons’ defense stood tall on Fannin’s next series, forcing a quick three and out to give the offense possession on their own 27. Pickens responded with a ten play drive that ended when Brumby connected with Jake Dean for an eight yard touchdown, stretching the Dragons’ lead to 21-7 with 1:05 left in the first quarter.

Another quick three and out by Fannin that was highlighted by a sack via Dragons’ defender Silas Lott gave Tanner Brumby and Company the ball back on the Fannin 44 yard line. With another chance to tack onto their lead, Pickens did not disappoint, adding seven more points on a 13 yard touchdown pass from Brumby to Marcus Byrd to make it 28-7 with 9:21 remaining in the second quarter.

Fannin threatened to score on the Dragons in the next series, but the defense eventually ended any hope of the Rebels scoring while their backs were up against the wall, stopping the Rebels short of the first down marker on the Dragons’ 13 yard line. Given 87 yards of green to try and collect, the Dragons’ offense pieced together another impressive drive, collecting these yards on eleven plays, which was capped off with a three yard rushing touchdown by Brooks to make it 35-7 with 2:30 left in the first half.

Unrelenting in finding the end zone as much as possible, another failed fourth down conversion attempt by the Rebels gave the Dragons’ possession on the Fannin 41 yard line with less than a minute to go. Fortunately, Pickens had all the time they needed, scoring with one second left in the half on a three yard run by Jake Coleman.

Now up 42-7 on the Rebels, the Dragons received the opening kickoff of the second half and once again drove down the field, gaining sixty-nine yards on ten plays and making the game 49-7 on another big play by Coleman, this one coming on an 18 yard rushing touchdown by Coleman.

Fannin finally pounced on the Pickens defense with a 33 yard touchdown reception by Peyton Satterfield, but the Dragons did not let this score slow their offense down, as the Dragons would then make it a 56-14 contest on a four yard touchdown run by Clay Lawson.

The end of the third quarter marked the end of the “scrimmage” between the Dragons’ and Rebels’ varsity squads; next up was a quarter of play featuring the schools’ junior varsity and freshmen players.

The Rebels would strike first in the fourth quarter, piecing together a nine play, 52 yard drive that ended on a 30 yard touchdown run by Daniel Lange. Unfortunately, the Dragons were not able to immediately respond with a score of their own, and after three quick plays the team was forced to punt back to Fannin.

Pickens’ defense played well on the Rebels next series, stopping Fannin on fourth down to take over possession on their own 36 with 3:18 left in the game. The resulting series of plays would prove to be the JV’s best on the night, as the offense moved down the field in an efficient manner and tied the game on a 3 yard run by Jerry Nelson with 1:27 left in the fourth quarter.

The scoring on the night would end on Nelson’s touchdown, as the remaining minute and change of play concerned running out the clock and tending to a Rebels’ player who would leave the field on a stretcher.

In total, the Dragons outscored the Rebels 63-21 with fifty-six of those points coming from the varsities’ matchup. The team ended the night with 508 total yards (444 for the varsity), with 81 coming via the passing game and 427 coming due to the rushing attack.

Tanner Brumby showed his experience in what will soon be his senior season as the Dragons’ quarterback, completing five passes for 62 yards and two touchdowns and taking seven rushes for 122 yards and 1 touchdown.

Shannon Brooks did his part to bring Dragons Stadium to its feet again and again, ending the game with seven rushes for 74 yards and one touchdown and 180 total yards thanks to his first quarter kickoff return.

Jake Coleman gave the Rebels’ reason to worry throughout the contest, tallying up 70 yards on nine carries and finding the end zone twice in the game.

Dragons head coach Chris Parker seemed content with the Dragons’ performance, saying

“It was great to win. Our guys needed to win a game like that, but we didn’t play very well in all three phases. Both teams were pretty sloppy, but we found a way to win, so ultimately it’s a great win. Now we’ve got to go back and do a lot more work. We’ve got to do better than that if we want to keep winning.”

The Dragons will be back in action on Friday, August 30th, as the team will open the season with a home game against the Sonoraville Phoenix.