Two teams were on the hunt for playoff glory, but unfortunately for the Italy Gladiators, they weren't the ones who walked away with it. They had to suffer through a rough 61-28 loss at the hands of the Rattlers. While losing is never fun, Italy can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Texas football rankings (they are ranked 553rd, while Tolar is ranked 172nd).
Several Gladiators players turned in solid performances, despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Dredrick Owens, who picked up 149 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Gared Wood was another key contributor, throwing for 195 yards and three touchdowns on only 18 passes.
Tolar's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Peyton Brown led the charge by rushing for 73 yards and three touchdowns. The team also got some help courtesy of Kelvin Murray, who rushed for 111 yards and two touchdowns on only nine carries.
Italy's defeat dropped their record down to 7-6. As for Tolar, the win was the tenth in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 12-1.
Italy does not have any more games scheduled as of now. Tolar is on the road again on Thursday and play against Marlin at 7:00 p.m. on November 30th. Marlin is also coming in off of a big victory, so somebody is in for a big reversal of fortune.
