ACUFF – Momentum abandoned Roosevelt on Friday, but only for a moment. The Eagles rediscovered their stride and their purpose in a mere two plays.

Having given away most of a 19-0 lead, Roosevelt began the second half with authority, capitalizing on Floydada’s mistake and using its big-play offense to roll to a 38-12 triumph in a season opener at Eagle Field.

“We have a lot of young players. The majority of them have not been in a game,” Roosevelt coach Greg Poynor said. “We jumped on them and then sort of lost our intensity. We stressed a sense of urgency at halftime.”

The stressing worked as the Eagles clicked off 19 unanswered points. On the second play after intermission, Roosevelt quarterback Caden Whitley found Ryan Davis for a 61-yard touchdown pass just 49 seconds into the third quarter.

“That first drive was critical,” Poynor said. “They had all the momentum going into halftime. I’m very proud of how we responded.”

The touchdown extended Roosevelt’s lead to 25-12, and the Eagles made it 32-12 on their next possession when Whitley and Davis hooked up on a 14-yard pass.

Roosevelt’s defense took advantage of six Floydada turnovers (two interceptions, four fumbles) and scored a final TD with 7:55 left in the game on a 36-yard run by Whitley.

The Eagles took an early 6-0 lead when defensive lineman Nelson Pearson intercepted a Floydada pass at the Whirlwind 2 and scored. Whitley threw a 58-yard TD pass and scored on a 1-yard run to stake the Eagles to the 19-0 advantage with 11:27 left before intermission.

Floydada charged back. Fred Williams had a 3-yard scoring run with 6:19 left in the second quarter, and Whirlwind quarterback Jordan Cornelius had a 1-yard run as time expired in the half, cutting the gap to 19-12.

-Doug Hensley

ROOSEVELT 38, FLOYDADA 12

Floydada 6 6 0 0 – 12

Roosevelt 12 7 13 6 – 38

Scoring Summary

First Quarter

ROO-Pearson 3 interception return (kick failed), 3:37

ROO-Childress 58 pass from Whitley (run failed), 1:54

Second Quarter

ROO-Whitley 1 run (Davis kick), 11:27

FLOY-Williams 3 run (kick failed), 6:19

FLOY-Cornelius 1 run (kick failed), :00

Third Quarter

ROO-Davis 61 pass from Whitley (run failed), 11:11

ROO-Davis 14 pass from Whitley (Davis kick), 2:58

Fourth Quarter

ROO-Whitley 36 run (kick failed), 7:55

TEAM STATISTICS

FLO ROO

First downs 19 9

Rushes-yards 46-241 20-149

Passing yards 21 215

Comp.-Att.-Int. 2-11-2 8-17-1

Punts-avg. 2-32.5 2-37.0

Fumbles-lost 6-5 0-0

Penalties-yards 4-20 7-73

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING; Visitor, Floydada, Williams 23-119, Cornelius 15-90, Sessions 7-30, Pleasant 1-2; Roosevelt, Whitley 11-81, Narvais 5-52, Stout 4-16.

PASSING: Floydada, Cornelius 2-11-2-21; Roosevelt, Whitley 8-17-1-215.

RECEIVING: Floydada, Sessions 2-21; Roosevelt, Davis 4-71, Garcia 2-49, Childress 2-75.

Roosevelt

Floydada