Football is back, as the Isabella Mustangs defeated the Billingsley Bears 35-14 on the road during a jamboree contest on Thursday.

“We’ve still got some things that we need to work on, but it felt good to get out there,” said Isabella senior Hunter Langston. “We’ve been waiting on this day.”

The Mustangs battled through early adversity following a pair of first quarter drives that were halted by fumbles recovered by the Billingsley defense.

However, the game remained scoreless after one quarter of play and Isabella’s Austin Brasher broke the goal line on a 7-yard touchdown run for the game’s first points.

“We had some chances early and were not able to take advantage of the turnovers,” said Billingsley head coach Tyson McLean. “We let them hang in there and grab the momentum.”

Midway through the second quarter the Mustangs struck once again, this time through the air on a 40-yard pass play from Jaqarise Stacy to Cornelius Stacy.

“We just stayed together and remained positive,” Langston said.

An exclamation point was put on the first half, as Michael Mathis returned an interception 75 yards for another score as time expired.

As a result, Isabella led 28-7 and carried a host of momentum into the locker room at halftime.

“Our big thing is that we want to play with mental and physical toughness, and I think we were able to show that here tonight,” said Isabella head coach Tate Leonard.

Billingsley drove down the field to open the second half and finished it off with a touchdown scamper from quarterback James Woods.

Both teams agreed before hand to play three quarters, with the reserves playing the majority of the final period.

“We showed some inexperience in places, but I wasn’t displeased with the effort that they gave,” McLean said. “We’re building depth and hoping that it pays off down the road.”

Isabella gained 203 rushing yards and 122 passing yards from Stacy. Woods accounted for 82 total yards, 50 of those came from two connections through the air with Carlton McCary.

Isabella kicks off the regular season by hosting Verbena on Aug. 26, while Billingsley has a week off before opening the season on the road against Jemison on Sept. 2.