BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Mandarin lost the turnover battle and had 95 more yards in penalties, but the host Mustangs had Brysen Wright — the top recruit in Rivals’ Class of 2028 rankings — who scored twice on plays of 80-plus yards as the host Mustangs defeated the Bradford High School football team 14-7 on Sept. 12.
The Class 2A Tornadoes (3-1), who host Eastside on Friday, Sept. 19, at 7:30 p.m., defeated Class 6A Mandarin (4-0) last season in Starke, but this year’s meeting saw the Bradford offense struggle for most of the first half and come away empty on two of three red-zone possessions in the second half.
“They’re like us,” Bradford Head Coach Jamie Rodgers said. “They’re a really good defense.”
Still, it was an admirable performance against a larger school that was scoring an average of 46 points per game. Plus, it was the only loss in a string of three straight road games against good teams — all in larger classifications.
“These have been tough football games,” Rodgers said, adding, “I’m super proud of the guys. They played so hard.”
Mandarin’s Wright, who plays receiver and defensive back, put the first score on the board when he fielded a punt at his own 15, eluded at least five tackle attempts as he made his way down the Bradford sideline, somehow staying in bounds
and then reversing field before crossing the goal line with 2:04 remaining in the first quarter. The Mustangs were successful on the extra-point kick to go up 7-0.
The Tornadoes got the chance to start an offensive series past midfield in the second quarter, when a personal-foul penalty on a punt return resulted in a first down at the Mandarin 46-yard line. Runs by Jarell Harris and quarterback Cy Cubbedge set up third-and-3, but the Tornadoes turned the ball over when Mustangs corner Brody Jennings intercepted a pass.
Mandarin attempted to put itself in position to score more points before halftime on a drive that began at its own 27 with 35 seconds on the clock. Knox Annis completed passes of 13, 6 and 10 yards as the Mustangs moved to the Bradford 44. The Tornadoes’ Peyton Jones put a stop to the drive by intercepting a pass inside the 30-yard line.
The Mustangs’ defense came up with a big play at the start of the second half when linebacker Keisean Douglas intercepted a pass, giving Mandarin the ball at the Bradford 43.
Wright caught passes of 22 and 7 yards to help the Mustangs drive to the 11-yard line. The Tornadoes then came away with their own turnover as Jy’Quez Cason recovered a fumble at the 8-yard line.
Despite being backed up deep in their own territory, the Tornadoes put together their best drive up to that point. Cubbedge completed passes of 17 and 9 yards to Chase Phillips to pick up first downs, while a pass interference penalty resulted in a first down at the Mandarin 43. Kamontae Nixon later had a 26-yard reception for a first down at the 16-yard line.
The promising drive then imploded. After running back Keshawn Kennedy was dropped for a 2-yard loss, Cubbedge was sacked for a 14-yard loss. A fumble on third down resulted in a 9-yard loss, forcing Bradford to punt on fourth-and-35.
Cubbedge’s punt pinned the Mustangs at their 10-yard line. After a 3-yard run on first down, Annis hit a wide-open Wright in stride along the home team’s sideline for an 87-yard touchdown. With the successful PAT, Mandarin led 14-0 with
3:54 to play in the third quarter.
“A punt return for a touchdown and a busted coverage,” Rodgers said. “That’s 14 points. That’s usually how teams beat us. We don’t give up many drives.”
Wright finished the night with 134 yards on five receptions.
Bradford, beginning the ensuing series at its own 25, picked up a first down on a personal-foul penalty, while a 9-yard reception by Phillips and a 4-yard run by Kennedy helped the Tornadoes gain another first down at the Mandarin 32. A pass-interference penalty later moved Bradford to the 17-yard line. Two incompletions and a 5-yard reception by Jordan Cason set up fourth-and-5. The Tornadoes went for it, with another incompletion ending the drive.
The Tornadoes got the ball back seven plays later when Cohen Cioffi recovered a fumble. An unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty on the Mustangs after the play gave Bradford a first down at the Mandarin 19-yard line. One play was all the Tornadoes needed to finally get on the board as Nixon caught a pass from Cubbedge for a touchdown with 5:55 remaining in the game. Tyler Sapp kicked the extra point to make the score 14-7.
Bradford needed a stop on defense and almost got it when Parviele Lee sacked Annis and caused a fumble. The Mandarin quarterback, though, fell on the loose ball.
On the next play after the fumble, Annis completed a 15-yard pass for a first down at their own 47. Foster then had three straight carries for almost 10 yards, setting up a fourth-and-inches play from the Bradford 43. The Mustangs went for it and turned to Foster again. He fumbled the ball, but recovered it past the line to gain, giving Mandarin the first down and the chance to take three straight kneel downs to end the game.
The Tornadoes, who were without injured running back Iyen Addison, struggled to get a rushing attack going, gaining just 50 yards on 27 carries.
Cubbedge had 115 yards passing, but completed only 10 of 27 attempts.
Nixon finished with three receptions for 56 yards, while Phillips had 43 yards on four catches.
Bradford finally gets to play at home again when it faces the Class 3A Eastside Rams, who are 3-1 after a 33-17 win over Trinity Catholic. Eastside’s only loss was 29-19 against Class 6A Buchholz.
“It’ll be exciting to be back at home,” Rodgers said. “That’ll give us a little juice, but we’re beaten and bruised. We’ve got to get back healthy.”
