The lights were on, the chinstraps were buckled, and the excitement was high on Thursday evening for fans who were starved for football. Melbourne and Izard County Consolidated converged for a preseason football scrimmage. Fans for both teams turned out to see their teams, with Melbourne fans overflowing the seating capacity in the visiting bleacher section of Cougar Stadium.
The junior high teams played two 8-minute quarters to start the action. In the junior high scrimmage, Melbourne defeated ICC 24-6. The Bearkatz struck first when Quarterback Abe Cooper rushed to the end zone for the touchdown and 2-point conversion for the early 8-0 score after 3 minutes.
ICC answered back on the next possession with a pass reception by Spray who ran the pigskin into the end zone. However, the Cougars could not tie the game as the Bearkatz busted up the 2-point conversion attempt. Melbourne’s defense forced two more stops and the Cougar’s final drive ended when Mason Wren picked the Cougar pass.
Abe Cooper finished the scrimmage with three rushing touchdowns and a two point rushing conversion, Tucker Hoskinds finished with one two-point conversion reception, and Maddux Lawrence finished with one two point rushing conversion. Melbourne junior Bearkatz defeated the junior Cougars 24-6 in two quarters. Next, it was time for varsity players to step up and give the area a glimpse of the potential for regular-season excellence.
A few nerves were evident in the first plays of the game, with.