Carter-Riverside too much for Diamond Hill-Jarvis in the “Battle of the Eagles” rivalry

It really didn’t matter that both teams were coming into Thursday night’s contest 0-5 in District 6-4A Division 1 play. There wasn’t a playoff berth on the line.

But with Fort Worth Carter-Riverside and Fort Worth Diamond Hill-Jarvis separated by a mere four miles, it turns out that their rivalry is not just because of proximity.

It’s a bit contentious.

For the third consecutive season Carter-Riverside can claim bragging rights in the “Battle of the Eagles” after a 56-14 win over Diamond Hill-Jarvis at Historic Farrington Field.

“They’re always talking and in every sport, doesn’t matter,” said C-R linebacker Fotu Murphy, who opened the game with a 10-yard scoop and score off a Diamond Hill fumble on the third play from scrimmage. “You have to start it off good. I just saw the ball there and thought I had to pick it up and score. I had to go get it.”

Carter-Riverside (4-5 overall, 1-5 district) took a chance on its next possession, going for it on fourth down from its own 33, but lost a yard and DH-J took over.

It took eight plays for Diamond Hill-Jarvis (0-9, 0-6) to convert and score its first points of the entire season when Ethan Martinez hit Angel Aldaba with a 13-yard pass to tie the game at 7 at the 1:23 mark of the opening frame.

From there it was all Carter-Riverside, however, which scored on its next three possessions. Quarterback Jayden Thomas scored on a 3-yard run and running back Jameer Muhammad had back-to-back 54-yard scoring runs to give C-R a 28-7 lead with 1:50 left before the intermission.

“We just keep on grinding every day coming in early,” said Muhammad, who led all rushers with 169 yards on 14 carries and added a 19-yard TD run in the second half. “Grinding every day with my teammates. I love my teammates and I’m happy to do this with my team. Fly Eagles fly!”

But Diamond Hill-Jarvis wasn’t done. Despite a pair of 15-yard penalties, DH-J got a first down at the Riverside 49 when Martinez hit Aaron Chavez for 18 yards to the C-R 49. Four plays later Martinez and Aldaba hooked up again from 34 yards out to cut the lead to 28-14 at the half.

Aldaba caught the pass at around the 27 and a penalty flag laying on the field caused both teams to stop play, but once Aldaba figured out that no whistle had blown, he out raced the Diamond Hill defense to the end zone.

Martinez threw for 129 yards completing eight of 14 passes with five going to Aldaba for 92 yards.

The Carter-Riverside defense clamped down after the half allowing 32 total yards of offense. Diamond Hill had 32 rushing yards on 40 carries and 161 total yards.

Thomas only completed two of three passes for 20 yards, but added 115 rushing yards on nine carries. His two third quarter scoring runs of 63, on a perfect zone read, and 8 yards gave Carter-Riverside a 42-14 lead at the 5:01 mark.

“We’ve played some really tough football for the past four or five weeks with Dunbar, Kennedale and Lake Worth, all of those guys in a row,” said Carter-Riverside coach Philip Murray. “Coming out on the other side of that we’re not the same team.

“We didn’t play our cleanest football in the first half, but I think how we finished really speaks to how our kids can refocus and overcome those obstacles that we’re growing to be better.”

Murphy’s younger brother, Jakobi Tucker, had another defensive score for C-R on an 80-yard Pick-6 late in the third quarter.

“It’s a pretty big rivalry,” said Murphy. “Every year since I was in the sixth grade and then getting into high school the trophy has been bouncing back and forth. It feels good getting it back after keeping it these past two years.”

Carter-Riverside last lost to DHJ in 2019 by a score of 23-6.

“These two schools are just a couple of miles apart and it’s been kind of back and forth,” said Murray. “We compete in everything. It’s basketball, it’s football.

“These are the two most similar schools, I think, in the Fort Worth ISD to each other. For us it’s a big deal, for them it’s a big deal and we really enjoy playing against them and they do too.”

This story was originally published October 28, 2022 at 12:06 AM.