Mesa	7	0	0	0	7
Westview	7	0	0	7	14
September 26, 2008 - 07:00PM - Westview Full box score| More Football

It seemed more like Christmas in Avondale than a hot Friday in the desert. That’s because Mesa was handed so many gifts against Avondale Westview. It just didn’t know how to react.

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In the end, no offense and a plethora of missed chances translated into a 14-7 loss to the Knights.

So ineffective was the offense that the Jackrabbits did not pick up their first, first down until late in the third period.

At that time, Mesa was still very much in a 7-7 game. If not for myriad penalties and nearly an equal number of missed chances from Westview, this would have been over early.

“Our defense played great, but the offense was inept,” Mesa coach Kelley Moore said. “At this point, we’ll evaluate where we are and may make some personnel changes. We didn’t play at all and maybe, Westview was that good.”

With the offense managing a mere 47 yards total offense for the game, Moore will look hard for some changes.

To be fair, the Westview rush was tough. Rabbits quarterback Kyle Fackrell seemed to be running out of the pocket most of the night.

Still, Mesa was in a position to break a 7-7 tie midway through the third period, but that lack of execution was telling.

With the score deadlocked, Fackrell recovered Jordon Champion’s muffed punt return on the Knights’ 15-yard line with six minutes remaining in the period.

A 10-yard holding penalty, a dropped pass from the Rabbits’ Riley Owens, and a Fackrell sack for a 7-yard loss forced a punt from the Westview 35-yard line with 4:58 left in the third.

From that point, Mesa could not mount any sustained offense and suffered its second loss.

“We wanted to test them, but they tested us,” Moore said.

“One bright spot was our defense, and they played very well.”

With the game deadlocked at seven, the Knights mounted the winning drive early in the final period.

Quarterback Jourdon Grandon capped a four-play, 58-yard drive when he hit Eric Ramsey on a slant, right to left, and behind the defense.

That 31-yard scoring play put Westview ahead 14-7 with 8:05 remaining in the game.

Earlier, the Rabbits managed to tie the score when cornerback Jaymen Green scooped up a Grandon fumble and ran 75 yards with 2:21 remaining in the first period.