Tyner rallies, Ram past Brainerd in final minutes

Tyner rallies, Ram past Brainerd in final minutes

 

BY JEFF CATE (TEAM FYN SPORTS CONTRIBUTOR) – A rainy Saturday matinee was on tap when the Tyner Rams and the Brainerd Panthers met up at Eddie Lambert Field at Brainerd High School. Plenty of defense, big plays on offense, and a wild final 5 minutes made this region showdown one of the better games of the weekend as Tyner left with a 14-12 come from behind victory over Brainerd.

Both defenses set the tone in the first quarter as neither team made a dent in the scoreboard and both teams went into the second quarter with 0-0 showing on the scoreboard. Tyner senior quarterback Jamarie Ballard got the scoring going on a quarterback keeper and the Rams had a 6-0 lead with 7:27 left until halftime (the 2-point conversion was no good). Brainerd answered on the next possession when Jayun Smith got behind the Rams’ secondary and Anthony Byrd found him on a 60-yard touchdown pass. The Panthers went for 2 but failed to convert so the score was knotted up at 6-6 with 4:44 left in the second quarter, which would be the halftime score.

 

Terrance Lee intercepted a Tyner pass near midfield to give the Panthers great field position and they would take advantage of it as Lee slipped behind the Rams’ defensive backfield for a 51-yard score and a 12-6 lead with 4:11 left in the third quarter (2-point conversion was no good). Lee would get his second interception of the quarter on Tyner’s next offensive possession and setting up the Panthers’ offense at their 40-yard line heading into the final 12 minutes.

 

Not much happened in the first half of the fourth quarter, but that quickly changed when Martez Mitchell had a huge interception for the Rams that he returned inside Brainerd territory with just under 6 minutes left to go in the game. Tyner faced a 4th and 5 from just outside the Panthers’ 20-yard line but Ballard was stopped just short of the first down and an opportunity to drive down the field and take home the win. The Ram Train from Tyner had other plans. Rams senior Sharkem Wells forced a Brainerd fumble that was recovered at the Panthers’ 20-yard line by Jaeden Isbell and for the second time in consecutive weeks, Tyner had a chance to grab a victory late in the game. Ballard scored on a 14-yard run with 1:43 left and his 2-point conversion gave the Rams a 14-12 lead.

 

 

Tyner head coach Christian Mainor said, “it just speaks to the resiliency of our guys” when talking about the turnover on downs, the fumble recovery, and the go-ahead score.

 

Brainerd still had life and was on the move in the final minute as they were inside Tyner territory. But the Rams’ defense intercepted a Panthers’ pass inside the red zone with 21 seconds and the celebration for the maroon and gold clad visitor’s stands was on!

 

 

 

Tyner (2-3) has won 2 straight games, both in region, and hosts Sweetwater at Finley Stadium next Friday. Brainerd (1-3) has lost the last 2 games by a total of 3 points and will host Marion County next week.

 

Follow Jeff on “X” at @TheJeffCate.