It’s impossible to score without the ball, and Fort Hamilton’s football team didn’t have the ball much in the squad’s 40–20 loss to John F. Kennedy on Nov. 12.
The ninth-seeded Tigers notched less than five minutes of possession in the fourth quarter of the Public Schools Athletic League first-round postseason tilt as Kennedy continued to pull away down the stretch.
“The fourth quarter was kind of like we never really got a chance,” Fort Hamilton coach Daniel Perez said. “We never got ourselves back on track, and when we did get the ball back, it ended with an interception. So from there, it was like we never touched the ball again.”
The two teams battled early on, but the Tigers (5–5) held a definite edge in possession and momentum heading into the break, nursing a two-point cushion at halftime. Senior quarterback Seba Nekhet was, once again, an offensive force to be reckoned with — finding the end zone twice in the first half.
Kennedy (7–3) came into the third quarter with a brand-new sense of determination, however, taking its first lead with 4:43 left in the period on a two-yard PJ Franklyn touchdown run.
Nekhet answered on the Tigers’ ensuing drive — taking advantage of a short field after a botched kickoff and pushing his way into the end zone from one yard for his third touchdown of the day. The senior star felt good about his squad’s chances to put more points on the board with a little more than 10 minutes left, certain there was plenty of time on the clock.
“We wanted to play hard today,” Nekhet said of his team. “We had a few slip ups and got off track a little bit. So we really wanted to pick it up at the end.”
Nekhet was confident, but Kennedy was more than ready to respond and Franklyn took over the game in the final minutes of regulation. The senior answered on the Knights’ next play from scrimmage, ripping off a 71-yard touchdown to give his team a lead it wouldn’t again surrender.
“I think they just executed a little better in the second half,” Perez said. “We weren’t as together and doing our jobs defensively in that time. And it hurt us.”
The Tigers had a chance to respond, but Nekhet’s pass deep in Kennedy territory was picked off by Camari Glasgow. The turnover set up a five-minute Kennedy drive, capped off by Franklyn’s five-yard touchdown run.
“The receiver route was obvious because of the way he lined up,” Glasgow said of the pick. “Coach always told me if he lines up far, it’s going to be a slant, and I knew it was. So I had to make a play on the ball.”
It’s been an up-and-down season for the Tigers, and the squad was missing several players in the postseason matchup including injured senior running back Troy Booker, but Fort Hamilton refused to make any excuses. In the end, the team just didn’t give itself enough chances.
“I’m very proud of this senior group,” Perez said. “A lot of them have been with me for four years. They’ve had a great run and a great career at Fort Hamilton. At the end of the day we move forward and we move from there.”
