Arnold struggles in jamboree

PANAMA CITY - Arnold football coach James Hale's eyes saw one story. The statistics told another.

The Marlins struggled on offense and defense in the first two halves of the Bay County Jamboree against Rutherford and Mosley on Thursday. Rutherford edged Arnold 21-14, while Mosley controlled its half for a 21-7 triumph at Tommy Oliver Stadium.

Arnold's experienced offensive unit broke off two long plays against Rutherford, but was stagnant on its other drives in both halves until a late score with backups versus Mosley. The Marlin defense, missing two key cogs due to injury, couldn't keep either Rutherford or Mosley off the field long enough to give the offense more plays to work with.

It appeared as if the Marlins were in for a high-scoring night, as Jeremy Hester broke free up the middle on a 79-yard run on the half's second play. Arnold quarterback Johnny Gray added a 60-yard run in the first quarter to give Arnold a 14-7 advantage.

Arnold punted the possession prior to Gray's scamper, which saw the senior make a move at the 25-yard line and stroll into the end zone. The Marlins had two lost fumbles, one on a close call, on their final two possessions against Rutherford.

The Rams tied the half on a 15-yard run by Cordarryl Rogers and took the lead with a 20-yard pass from Rogers to Dieton West following a botched pitch in the second quarter. Rogers finished with 97 yards rushing and was 6 of 8 for 63 yards passing.

Hester had 99 yards and Gray 78 on the ground. Aside from the long gains, Arnold had 70 yards on 23 plays.
The Marlins had 74 total yards against Mosley, with 70 - including 15 on a penalty - coming on the last drive capped on a 30-yard hookup between backup quarterback Ashton Lewis and Coty Sage. Arnold's other three drives ended on a failed fourth-down conversion, a punt and an interception thrown by Gray.

Despite the troubles, Hale said he felt the offense played well.

"We moved the ball pretty good," he said. "The option offense will be like that. You'll have some small plays, then break one."

Defensively, Hale said Arnold couldn't stop the momentum of either the Dolphins or the Rams.

Rutherford had scoring drives of 68 and 74 yards. Mosley had marches of 65 and 75 yards - with scoring plays by Micah Miler and Justin Broxton, who added 75 yards - and Tristen McCathern had 65 of his team-high 126 yards on one carry.

Hale noted that Justin Tate, who he said is one of the team's best athletes, had to slide over to play linebacker rather than cornerback to compensate for the loss of Jared Degler and Chase Bennett.

"We have to get those players back from injury," Hale said.

Arnold has one week to prepare for county rival Bay in the regular-season opener for both teams at Tommy Oliver Stadium.

"We'll get better," Hale said.