The Cooldown: Week 12
It is officially Gold Ball SZN in Texas. The bi-district round featured more than a few unlikely upsets, though the state championship favorites are still in-tact. Let’s recap some of the best games from the bi-district round and preview some of the best games coming up in the area round.
Bridgeland survives an upset bid from Klein Oak
In the midst of a weekend rife with upsets, Bridgeland was able to avoid one against a talented Klein Oak squad.
The Bears continued to employ their two quarterback system, but the run game was the biggest help to solidifying a 24-17 win, with three rushers at or over 80 yards for the night. Alex Spence Myers churned out 80 yards with his six carries, while quarterback Jett Lewis ran seven times for 97 yards. Lead back Kash Schwab, just a sophomore, ran 14 times for 105 yards and a touchdown.
Lewis accounted for the other two touchdowns through the air. He finished 8-of-14 for 83 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Tyler Begeal was 6-of-7 for 23 yards for his half of the two-QB system. Caden Hinze led the receivers with eight catches for 83 yards and two scores.
Klein Oak is losing some talent heading into next season – including star cornerback and wildcat quarterback Courtland Guillory – but it also returns plenty of talent. The Panthers still get three more years of phenom running back Micah Rhodes. Despite the first round exit, it was a successful season for Klein Oak.
Meanwhile, Bridgeland advances to face Conroe in the area round – a game I’ll be at and a game I’m looking forward to. Conroe won its first playoff game since 1999 and owns a record of 9-2. The two losses came against two state ranked teams, No. 14 Willis and No. 15 The Woodlands. However, Bridgeland ended the regular season ranked No. 17 in the state. Conroe is going to have to play better against Bridgeland than it did against Willis and The Woodlands to get a win. For Bridgeland, this game will be a good test. It’s the kind of game that, should the Bears win, will have them feeling confident heading into a showdown with the winner of North Forney and Waxahachie.
Atascocita takes down Dickinson in a shootout
The general consensus is it’s Atascocita, North Shore and then everyone else in 6A-I Region III. That’s the way it has been for the past few years. It’s rare to see a team with state championship aspirations play such a close game in round one, but Dickinson isn’t every regular round one opponent.
Atascocita maintained a mostly comfortable lead for the duration of this game, but still won just 50-45. Of course, Dickinson is no slouch – the Gators are typically among the best teams in the area. Because Atascocita is the two seed from 23-6A, Dickinson was actually the higher-seeded team in this game. It’s a cold world when the reward for being the higher-seeded team is a first round date with Atascocita.
Before we get to the stats, I want to mention I don’t like picking a player to win player-of-the-week twice in a season. There’s just too many good players in this area to double up on someone. Unfortunately that rules out Cardae Mack, my POTW back in week two. His numbers against Dickinson, in a playoff game, no less, topped the numbers he put up against Katy in week two.
Mack finished 5-of-9 passing for 113 yards and an interception. Not too shabby for a guy who is a running back. But the whopper stat here is Mack ran 25 times for 334 yards four touchdowns. That is insane for anyone, especially for a guy playing on a team with so much talent.
Speaking of which, star running back Tory Blaylock finished with 14 carries for 116 yards and two touchdowns, while Isaiah Rasheed took his three carries for 47 yards and a touchdown. Kyran Pate was the leading receiver with three catches for 65 yards,
Though Mack couldn’t be outdone, Dickinson quarterback Josh Arthur tried his best. He finished 19-of-33 passing for 363 yards and a touchdown, with 25 yards and another score on the ground. Malachi Gamble added 122 yards and four touchdowns on 25 carries. Mason Peterson and Jeremiah Scoby each went over 100 yards receiving – 172 and a touchdown for Peterson, and 118 yards on six catches for Scoby.
The bad news for Dickinson is Arthur, Peterson and Scoby are graduating seniors who went out with a bang in their last game. The good news is backup quarterback Lorenzo Aguirre (70 yards passing in this game) is just a sophomore, and Gamble will be back next year as well.
For Atascocita, Dickinson might be as big of a first round test as a state title contending team could find. That should serve the Eagles well moving forward. Atascocita was largely in control of this game until Dickinson made it close in the fourth quarter, so this is a good reminder not to look forward. That’s what the rest of us will be doing, however, as the Atascocita-North Shore collision course is still on for the regional finals.
Angleton sneaks past Pflugerville Weiss
Angleton is another team with state championship aspirations that found itself in a rock fight in round one. The Wildcats beat Pflugerville Weiss 35-28 and are now 10-1 with a close loss to a really good La Porte squad.
Bryce Duron didn’t attempt many passes, but he was efficient with what he got. He finished 7-of-11 for 123 yards and two touchdowns, and he added 33 yards and two more scores on the ground. JaMarcus Shockley accounted for the other touchdown as part of his 23-carry, 87-yard effort. No receiver caught more than two passes; Shockley and Wyatt Neyland caught the touchdown passes. Neyland’s 41-yard touchdown catch was his only reception and it made him Angleton’s leading receiver in terms of yardage.
The hard part for Angleton is the road through Region III is brutal. Next up is a game against a highly talented Port Arthur Memorial squad, which is a winnable game. However, the winner of No. 5 College Station and No. 7 Lufkin would await Angleton in round three. The one thing Angleton has in common with those state-ranked squads is identical 10-1 records. It won’t be easy, but there is a path to the regional finals for Angleton.
Player of the Week
I mentioned there were plenty of upsets in round one, and my player-of-the-week was a heavy contributor to one of those upsets.
Klein Cain was a big favorite against Cy Ranch. The Mustangs’ final two games of the regular season were a blowout loss to Bridgeland and a three-point win against a Langham creek team that won just one district game. Klein Cain entered with a record of 9-1, the lone loss coming by one point in mid-September.
None of that mattered to Peyton Thomas and Cy Ranch, who came out on top, 27-17. Thomas turned in a workhorse performance with 31 carries for 137 yards and a touchdown on the ground. He added one catch for 32 yards and another touchdown, which was quarterback Owen Cossette’s only touchdown pass of the night.
Now, Cy Ranch will move on to face The Woodlands, looking for another upset. Thanks to his big time performance, Peyton Thomas is my player-of-the-week!
What to Watch for
Just as a quick hitter, I’ll be attending Bridgeland vs. Conroe on Friday night at Tomball ISD Stadium, and Heights vs. Strake Jesuit at Delmar Stadium on Saturday. Because I hit extensively on Bridgeland-Conroe above, that won’t be included in this preview although it is one of the best area round games.
Kingwood (7-4) vs. Fort Bend Elkins (7-4) – Friday
This game is as “look at us… who would’ve thought?” as it gets. Elkins upset a 9-1 Shadow Creek team to get here. Kingwood went through the regular season wringer against the toughest district in the state, secured the last playoff spot and then won an overtime thriller – in which a the Mustangs converted a do-or-die two-point conversion to win – in round one. Against all odds, one of these teams will be playing in round three. That’s pretty remarkable considering the path each has taken to get here. I’m really excited to see the result of this one.
Tomball (10-1) vs. Willis (11-0) – Friday
This is one of the best games in the entire state this weekend. Willis obliterated most of its opponents en route to an 11-0 record. Tomball is 10-1 with a loss to Klein Cain, who entered the playoffs ranked No. 25 in the state. In fact, Shadow Creek, Hightower and Klein Cain all lost in round one – those teams entered last week ranked Nos. 22, 24 and 25 in the state. Tomball probably deserved one of those spots as one of the most consistent programs in the area. This is a state ranked matchup for all I’m concerned. It should be a heavyweight fight.
Klein Collins (6-5) vs. College Park (7-4) – Friday
If Kingwood-Elkins is the most “who would’ve thought!” game in the area this weekend, this game is definitely second-most. Klein Collins has been great for a while now, routinely winning its district. But, results-wise, this is the worst team Collins has had in at least a decade. The Wildcats needed an upset win from Klein in the regular season finale just to make the playoffs. So, naturally, Collins knocked off a Cy Woods team in the midst of its best season in school history. College Park has a similar story. The Cavs finished fourth in their district, and still managed to knock off a Spring Westfield team that hadn’t lost in the first round in more than a decade. One of these teams is going to advance to the third round – that’s pretty cool. Here’s to the underdog.
Houston Heights (8-3) vs. Strake Jesuit (8-3) – Saturday
Let’s wrap this up with a game I’ll get to see in person. Strake Jesuit played in one close game this year, a 28-26 win over Alief Elsik. Every other game was a blowout win or loss. Two of those losses came to state ranked teams, including a 49-28 loss to Euless Trinity on opening night. That score looks worse than it was. I covered that game; Strake Jesuit hung with an explosive Trinity team for three quarters and some change. Heights is seasoned as well. The Bulldogs dropped close games to Elkins and Clear Springs to start the season and lost by two scores to a pretty good Lamar squad. This team is good and they’re tested. I think this is one of the more evenly matched games in round two. I’m excited to capture some good highlights and pictures, I know these teams will put on a show.