It has long been said that all good things must come to an end. That turned out to be the case for the Fort Campbell Falcons Friday night. The Fort Knox Eagles scored with just over a minute to go, and then returned a blocked field goal with nine seconds left to pick up their first win in the annual Army Bowl game 19-10 at Fryar Stadium.
The story of the opening half was big plays for the Falcons and missed opportunities for the Eagles. Three times in the opening 24 minutes, Fort Knox moved deep into Falcon territory, only to have the Falcon defense come up with big plays and close the door.
On the other side, the Falcons used a pair of big plays to get on the scoreboard. The Falcons broke the ice when Matt Middleton dumped a pass off to Ethan Tomerlin in the center of the field. Tomerlin took the pass 57-yard to the end zone to put the Falcons up 7-0 with 5:15 to go in the opening quarter.
After a couple of their missed opportunities, the Eagles finally struck paydirt when Chase Bellamy recovered a ball that Xzavian Salter-Zanders fumbled into the end zone with 6:39 to go in the second quarter. The extra point tied the contest at 7-7.
On their next possession, the Falcons used a big play, not to score this time, but to set up the score. Middleton on third and long connected with Greysen Meyer for a 65 yard again, and, after Fort Knox declined a holding penalty, Jhony Paniagua hit a 35-yard field goal with 2:05 left in the half to send the Falcons to the break with a 10-7 lead.
The two teams came out of the halftime break and the same first half patterns continued. The Falcons were penalty hindered, especially as it came to holding calls during big gains. The Eagles had another drive deep into Falcon territory, only to come up empty again. The quarter ended with the score still at 10-7.
The 4th quarter began with Fort Knox driving, however the Falcon defense one more time came up with a big stop on 4th down at their own 20 to shut the door again. The Falcons two plays later fumbled the ball away, with Fort Knox recovering at the Falcon 25 yard line. But, the Eagles again could not find the end zone as Jordan Edwards came up with an interception. Edwards took the pick 82 yards to the end zone, but a holding call brought the ball back to the Falcon 32 yard line.
In the final three minutes the Eagles made one final drive into Falcon territory. Most of the damage done on a pass from James Rowsey to Kyle Wiesman, followed by a penalty on the Falcon bench for arguing that a flag should have been thrown on the play. The Eagles would finally break through with a five yard run from Chase Bellamy to take the lead 13-10 with 1:02 to go. However, a bad snap on the extra point kept the Eagles from extending the lead.
The Falcons suffered a tough loss on the drive, as Jordan Edwards was injured and transported from the field by ambulance.
The Falcons had one last chance to tie the game and send it to overtime. Jhony Panigua’s 41-yard field goal attempt with nine seconds to go was blocked by Julian Slocum. The Eagles returned the block all the way for a touchdown to set the final score.
Penalties were killers for Fort Campbell, stifling drives, and costing the Falcons a touchdown that would have likely sealed a win early in the 4th quarter. For the Eagles it was a case of pounding on the door, pounding on the door, until they broke it down.
The win in the series is the first for Fort Knox since 2002.
With the loss the Falcons fall to 0-5. Fort Knox improves to 1-3 on the season.