GARLAND – Trailing by 11 at the half, Rowlett put the ball in the hands of running back Dexter Imade and his legs did the rest.
Imade rushed for 205 yards and two touchdowns to lead Rowlett to a 28-14 upset of Garland Naaman Forest, ranked No. 4 in the area 5A poll.
Imade touched the ball 22 times in the second half for a combined 165 yards and two scores. In the final two quarters, he carried 20 times for 124 yards and caught two screen passes for 41 yards.
Naaman Forest (5-2, 2-1 in District 10-5A) suffered its first on-field loss of the season. It forfeited one win because of an ineligible player.
Naaman Forest fumbled six times, losing three of them, to aid Rowlett's comeback.
Rowlett's Jordan Milton returned a fumbled kickoff five yards for a touchdown and a 21-14 lead with 7:36 left in the game.
Naaman Forest then drove to the Rowlett 5 but fumbled again with three minutes left. Rowlett (4-2, 2-0) sealed the win with a 95-yard drive. Imade capped it off with a 25-yard burst for the final score.
Quarterback Derrick Osborn rushed for 127 yards to lead Naaman Forest, which also got 112 yards from Jonathon Miller. However, Naaman Forest's offense did not score again after taking a 14-3 lead with 36 seconds left in the first quarter.
After spotting Rowlett a 3-0 lead, Naaman Forest scored on its next two possessions.
Miller's second carry of the game went for 70 yards for a one-play scoring drive.
After a Rowlett punt, Osborn carried four times for 52 yards to set up a second touchdown. On third and goal, Miller took the handoff, then gave the ball to Stephen Eggins on a reverse for a 3-yard score.
Naaman Forest didn't cross midfield the rest of the half.