Leyton Tops Potter-Dix, 47-32

DALTON--It was a bright and sunny Friday afternoon for the opening of Homecoming Weekend for Leyton, and another homecoming of sorts was on the schedule for the weekend's festivities. It was the return of Potter-Dix Coyotes on the Leyton Football schedule, for the first time since 2015. The rival schools had bright sunshine for the revival of their rivalry, and the heat of the sun Friday afternoon was matched by the intensity on the field.

A 6-Man Football game can have teams coming back from large deficits or scoring on any play, usually dependent upon a standout player with tremendous speed and quickness. The visiting Coyotes have that player in junior Dylan Tabor, who can throw, run, and score on any play. The Coyotes started the game with the ball and crossed mid-field when Leyton was flagged for pass interference on a Tabor pass. Potter-Dix tried to keep the drive alive on a fourth down and long attempt but found out that Leyton also has a player that can turn the game on any play, junior Alec Watchorn. On the fourth down pass, Watchorn trailed the receiver who Tabor slightly overthrew and then jumped and grabbed the pass out of the air, and turned upfield to give the Leyton squad their first possession on the Leyton 33-yard line. Leyton then drove the ball downfield and capped their drive with a two-pitch pass across the field to junior Jeremiah Hajek, who then ran up the left side to score. A bad snap on the extra point kick was recovered and then thrown for a completion into the end zone to give Leyton a 7-to-0 lead.

Potter-Dix started with good field position and Tabor completed his first down pass for 14 yards. On second down, he attempted another pass and was again intercepted by Watchorn. On their second play from scrimmage, Leyton freshman Colt Van Anne cut through the middle of the Coyotes defense and ran for a long touchdown. An unsuccessful kick gave Leyton a 13-to-0 lead. On their next possession, Potter-Dix focused on the left side of the Leyton defense and drove the ball deep into Leyton territory, where Tabor scrambled but threw his pass after he had crossed the line of scrimmage, which brought the Coyotes back a good number of yards. On the next play, it looked like the Coyotes were going to cash in, but at the four-yard line the ball was fumbled and Leyton jumped on the loose ball to secure the turnover.

Leyton took over and gained 14 yards on their first three plays. On fourth and one, Watchorn kept the ball and broke through the Coyote defense running all the way for a touchdown. The extra point kick was blocked, and Leyton had a 19-to-0 lead with 4:54 left in the first quarter. Potter-Dix then started their next drive and had success both running and passing the ball. On a second down attempt, Potter-Dix senior Dawsen Monheiser bulled his way all the way down to the Leyton 10-yard line. The Coyotes finally cashed in on the next play when Tabor ran, then cut back for a 10-yard touchdown. Their extra point attempt was blocked, and the Coyotes narrowed the lead to 19-to-6 with 2:30 left in the first half.

Potter-Dix finally got the Warriors off the field on a turnover on downs, and Potter-Dix was able to drive down the field. But on the Leyton 26, a fourth down attempt ended with a bad snap, and Leyton took over on downs. Alec Watchorn then found sophomore Austin Beutler open, and Beutler made a great juggling catch, secured the ball, and ran it down to the Potter-Dix 4-yard line, where on the next play, Watchorn rushed around the left side for a touchdown, and a failed extra point brought the score to 25-to-6. The Coyotes started with good field position after the Leyton kickoff went out of bounds, but a great run by Monheiser was called back by a holding penalty, and the Coyotes were forced to punt. Leyton started on their own 26-yard line, but quickly Watchorn connected with Beutle again for another touchdown, and with a successful extra point kick, the Warriors were up 33-to-6 with 3:49 left in the half.

Potter-Dix was able to drive down to Leyton's 18-yard line, but a third-down pass from Tabor was dropped. The Coyotes tried a field goal from the 18, but the attempt fell short. Leyton tried to move the ball on their first two downs but were unsuccessful. They then let the clock run out and went into the halftime break up 33-to-6.

The Coyotes have no quit in them and came out for the second half focused and fired-up. The Coyotes outscored the Warriors in each of the second-half quarters, 14-to-6 and 12-to-8, but the big first-half lead built by the Warriors was too much to overcome. The game ended in a 47-to-32 victory for Leyton, who takes the first game in the revived Potter-Dix/Leyton rivalry.

For Potter-Dix, Tabor was the spark of the offense, rushing for 196 yards and scoring all of the Coyotes' five touchdowns. He also threw for 84 yards. Potter-Dix compiled 371 yards of total offense in the loss. For Leyton, Watchorn had five total touchdowns, three passing and two rushing. He also had two interceptions in the win. Hajek finished with three catches for 54 yards and two touchdowns. Beutler had four catches for 105 yards and a touchdown.

The Warriors move to 3-and-1 on the season and will host Creek Valley on Friday. Potter-Dix falls to 2-and-2 on the season and will host the undefeated Garden County Eagles on Friday. Both games have kickoffs scheduled for 7 p.m.