Longtime Farmersville coach Johnnie Pryor raises his hand in the air after being honored at halftime of Friday’s football game between Farmersville and Blue Ridge. Photo by Tina Lopez / C&S Media
By David Wolman
With his team facing a 14-point deficit with 9:07 remaining in the fourth quarter of Friday’s season opener, Farmersville head coach Zac Quinlan saw his team’s chances of pulling off a victory start to slip away.
However, Quinlan remained optimistic. He felt confident that all of the conditioning drills and summer workouts that Farmersville did would eventually pay off.
Farmersville’s conditioning showed up at the end. The Fightin’ Farmers wore down the Tigers in the final moments of a thrilling 33-27 overtime triumph at newly christened Johnnie Pryor Field.
“Our kids have worked really, really hard all offseason, done everything that we’ve asked of them to do,” Quinlan said. “They knew at the end that they had worked harder than most people. They stay in the fight because they know that they can overcome anything.”
And the hero was a back-up quarterback.
With Farmersville trying to find a replacement for last season’s top offensive player, Marquis Oshodi, junior Brandt Martinez was one of three players who had been in the mix to earn the starting job at running back.
Martinez got the start Friday, and he came up big when it mattered the most. He ran an outside play to his left for the game-winning 10-yard touchdown in overtime.
A stadium dedication ceremony was held in the school’s cafeteria before the game and Coach Pryor was recognized at halftime.
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