The road just got a lot bumpier for Sabercat football, after they lost to the Fairview Knights 42-26 this past Friday night.

The Sabercats started off trailing, after the Knights marched down the field on their first possession and quickly scored a touchdown to take a 7-0 lead. 

Fossil responded with a field goal, closing the gap to four. The offenses continued to roll, as each team put another touchdown on the board. After a missed two point conversion, the Sabercats were behind 14-9. Fairview’s offense was on fire all night, scoring a third touchdown before half with less than a minute left in the first half. 

Fossil put together a quick drive and moved the ball downfield, and ended the half with a 52 yard field goal from kicker Bryce Olson. Olson has had a spectacular kicking year for the Sabercats, making six of his seven field goal attempts, three of those coming from over 40 yards. This massive kick cut the lead for the Knights down to 21-12.

Unfortunately Fossil couldn’t build on this momentum in the second half, as Fairview scored two straight touchdowns to jump out to a three score lead in the fourth quarter. With the game out of hand, the Sabercats were able to put up another two touchdowns while only allowing one, losing the game by 16 points. 

A bright spot came from the return of senior receiver Mac Busteed. Busteed put up six receptions for 56 yards along with two touchdowns during his first game since week one. 

With this loss Fossil has been eliminated from Front Range League Contention, as Fairview clinched the title with that victory.

But that doesn’t make next week’s matchup any less important, as the 7-2 Sabercats will fight for playoff positioning and the city title against the equally 7-2 Poudre Impalas Friday night at 7 p.m. at French Field.