Missed opportunities early came back to haunt the Vardaman Rams as Ray Brooks found its groove late and pulled away for a 32-13 win in the Class 1A playoffs in Benoit Friday night.
Vardaman drove inside the Ray Brooks' red zone on its first two possessions, but only came away with a 20 yard FG by Trae Owen for a 3-0 advantage.
The home Tigers struggled with the Ram defense early, but broke through midway through the second quarter after a Ram fumble. The Tigers hit a 37-yard touchdown pass on the very next play to take a 6-3 lead after a failed 2-point try.
The Tigers next possession covered a lot of ground in little time with a 69 yard scoring run by Jonathan Haynes. The 2-point conversion put them up 14-3.
The Rams answered with another drive inside the red zone, but against settled for an Owen field goal to pull within 14-6 with less than a minute to play. Vardaman got the ball back at midfield and set up for a Hail Mary on the final play of the half when Owen was hit as he was releasing the ball, popping the ball up the in the air, where it was snagged by a Ray Brooks linebacker and returned 55 yards for a touchdown as time expired. The 2-point try failed fora 20-6 halftime score.
Vardaman got back in the game when Kody Townsend intercepted a Ray Brooks' pass on the opening possession of the third quarter to stop a deep Tiger drive. Owen then led a 75 yard touchdown march. He scored the TD on a 4-yard run and kicked the extra point for a 20-13 score.
The Ram momentum didn't last long as Ray Brooks quickly answered with a 50 yard touchdown run to extend the lead to 26-13.
The Ram offense struggled from there, even after a Tanner Havens' interception gave them good field position. Ray Brooks would return a punt 50-yards with three minutes to play to increase its advantage to 32-13.