Another week of Texas high school football is in the books. Week three produced more incredible performances, thrilling matchups, and a couple of incredible comebacks.
Here are the top ten moments from this past weekend from across the state of Texas.
T-10. Robert Briggs returns two kickoffs for touchdown in one quarter as Bellville beats Stafford
A week after Richard Reese exploded for 345 rushing yards and seven total touchdowns, his teammate Robert Briggs had a pretty big night himself. Briggs remarkably returned two kickoffs for touchdown in the third quarter, one from 86 yards and the other from 80 yards. He also had a big impact offensively, rushing for 97 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries. These four touchdowns, coupled with Richard Reese’s 164 yards and two touchdowns on the night, propelled Bellville to a 50-29 victory over Stafford. With nights like these, Reese and Briggs are certainly going to be a talented tandem to watch as Bellville looks to keep the momentum going from its 3-0 start.
Briggs’ two kickoff return TDs: (Courtesy of Inside Houston High School Sports):
https://twitter.com/ihss_houston/status/1304964221906620417
T-10 Ricardo Serrano’s big night takes Pecos past Kermit
After a season opening loss to Lake View, Pecos was locked in a tight game against Kermit at halftime on Friday night up 19-12. Cue Ricardo Serrano. Serrano rushed for all five of his touchdowns on the night in the second half, finishing the contest with 290 rushing yards on 25 carries. Senior Abel Velasquez, 180 rushing yards and a touchdown, junior Ezekiel Saldana, 95 rushing yards and a touchdown, and junior Armando Ortega, 63 rushing yards and three touchdowns, all found success on the ground as well as Pecos pulled away for a 64-30 victory. If they can keep producing performances like these, Serrano and his backfield counterparts will certainly be a group to watch moving forward.
- Shallowater outlasts Levelland in OT thriller
It was a battle of contrasting styles on Friday night in Shallowater. Shallowater jumped out to a 38-14 lead, but Levelland came roaring back. Quarterback Bryant White threw for four touchdowns in the second half for Levelland, including a seven-yard touchdown pass to running back Isaiah Salazar with just 21 seconds left to cut Shallowater’s lead to 46-44. Then on the two point conversion play, White scrambled right and found his receiver Joel Pena to knot the game at 46 and send it to overtime. However, White’s 308 passing yards on the night couldn’t outlast Shallowater’s ground game. Shallowater rushed for 472 yards on the night, while only completing one pass for 24 yards. After its defense stopped Levelland on 4th and 20 in overtime, Shallowater relied on its ground game yet again as Bax Townsend found the end zone on a quarterback keeper from nine yards out to secure a 52-46 victory. Townsend rushed for 180 yards on the night, while Kaleb Cox and Raleigh Pinkerton added 173 yards and 119 yards on the ground respectively. It was that trio whose performances proved key as Shallowater’s run game prevailed over Levelland’s air attack in this wild encounter.
Townsend’s winning touchdown run (Courtesy of South Plains Sports Channel/Shallowater Athletics) https://twitter.com/ShallyFootball/status/1304611627602501632”
- Lampasas scores wild two-point conversion, takes down #4 Wimberley
Ace Whitehead and Lampasas continue to prove week after week that they are the real deal. Whitehead threw for 135 yards on the night and added 218 yards on the ground as Lampasas secured an impressive 57-28 victory over last year’s Conference 4A Division II state runners-up Wimberley. Whitehead also came up with the play of the night. After a botched snap on an extra point, Whitehead was pitched the ball by his holder. He scrambled backwards and away from an onslaught of Wimberley defenders that were closing in on him. Whitehead never lost his cool. He scanned the field and lofted a perfect pass to Lane Haviland across the field in the end zone for a successful two-point conversion. A great play on a great night for Whitehead and the Badgers.
Whitehead’s two point conversion pass (Courtesy of CBS Sports Austin):
https://twitter.com/ATXANT10/status/1304613195030638592
- #6 Borden County knocks off #1 Rankin in six-man showdown
The six-man season has already produced a number of upsets and #6 Borden County came up with another one on Friday night. However, it didn’t come easy. Rankin jumped out to a 20-8 lead, but Borden County’s Mason Cole got the Coyotes back in it with a 79-yard touchdown run to cut the deficit to 20-16. Then to start the second half, Borden County made the gutsy call to go for an onside kick. Luckily for them, Austin Buchanan recovered it then went on to score on a touchdown pass from Kylan Edwards from nine yards out to put the Coyotes up 24-20 for their first lead of the night. They never looked back from there. When Rankin threatened to make it a game late on with Borden County clinging to a 40-34 lead, the Coyotes came up with a forced fumble to ice the game with just seconds to go. With this win, the Coyotes avenged their regional final loss to Rankin a year ago. Borden County will hope this big win bodes well moving forward as it aims to make a deep playoff run again this year and reach the heights it did when it won back-to-back state titles in 2016 and 2017.
- Salado runs to victory over Stephenville behind Noah Mescher’s big night
Salado looked to be at risk of heading towards its second straight defeat as it trailed Stephenville 31-19 at halftime on Friday night. However, the second half was an entirely different story as the Salado offense took over powered by its slot-T ground game. Noah Mescher rushed for 365 yards and five touchdowns, while Reid Vincent added 152 yards on the ground as Salado rushed for 622 yards in total en route to a 61-45 victory. After a performance like this from Mescher and his backfield counterparts, Salado will look to keep its ground game churning when it faces Mexia this upcoming Friday night.
- #7 Lexington beats #6 Rockdale by inches in 3A top 10 showdown
Jarred Kerr had himself a night for Lexington, making plays on both sides of the ball. Kerr rushed for 222 yards and three touchdowns on 25 carries and had his Lexington side up 35-21 heading into the fourth quarter. However, Rockdale wasn’t done yet. Quarterback Kobe Mitchell rushed for a touchdown to make it 35-28 before running back Cam’ron Valdez punched in from a few yards out to presumably tie the game at 35 with just 47 seconds to go. However, Rockdale wasn’t having it. The Tigers looked to go for the win with a two-point conversion, but it was Jared Kerr yet again who rose to the occasion. Rolling to his right, Mitchell looked to scramble for the corner of the end zone, but he never got there. Kerr stopped him just inches short of the goal line, putting an exclamation mark on his great night and sealing a big win for Lexington in a matchup between two highly touted teams.
Lexington’s two-point conversion stop (Courtesy of Mike Lucas)
https://twitter.com/KAGS_Lucas/status/1304620588028301313
- Ingleside takes down Aransas Pass on two-point conversion in Battle of the Bay
The annual Battle of the Bay was a thriller on Friday night. Ingleside was looking to avenge a 21-6 loss from 2019 and jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter. However, Aransas Pass responded. Donaven Smith caught a 34-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter before a kick return for touchdown by the Panthers to open the third quarter knotted the score at 14. The score would stay the same until overtime. After George Acosta found the end zone from six yards out to put Aransas Pass up 21-14, Jorden Randall scored from three yards out for Ingleside to cut the deficit to one. Ingleside had no interest in double overtime. On its two point conversion attempt, Bobby Gonzales took a pitch and outraced the Aransas Pass defense to the corner of the end zone to secure the 22-21 victory. It was certainly a moment to remember and another exciting chapter that can be added to this rivalry’s history.
Bobby Gonzales’ two-point conversion run (Courtesy of twentytwophotography):
https://twitter.com/22photodesigns/status/1304626630036459520
- Huge 4th Quarter sees La Grange knock off La Vernia
Heading into the fourth quarter, La Grange looked like it was about to fall to a frustrating 0-3 on the season down 28-10 to La Vernia. La Grange quarterback Caden Cooper was not about to let that happen. Cooper first broke free on a quarterback keeper up the middle for a 14-yard score to cut the deficit to 28-17 with just over nine minutes to go. Cooper then found a wide-open Ryder Imhoff, who made a nice one-handed catch, on his way to a 54-yard score. A successful two-point conversion cut the lead to 28-25 and suddenly it was game on again. And yet again, Cooper rose to the occasion. Dodging a La Vernia blitz, he scampered up the middle for a 16-yard score to give La Grange the lead for good, 32-28, with just 39 seconds remaining. Cooper threw for 318 yards on the night and added 80 yards on the ground. His playmaking ability in the fourth was the impetus for this thrilling comeback as La Grange showed why to never give up until the final whistle.
- KeAmodre Horace leads the way as Center edges #7 Gladewater
Center has already lost one shootout this year when they fell 63-62 to Tatum to open the season. Running back KeAmodre Horace was not about to let that happen again. Horace scored two touchdowns in the final six and a half minutes to propel Center past Gladewater in a 41-40 thriller. Horace finished with a remarkable 383 yards and five touchdowns on 24 carries. “He had a great night,” Center head coach Scott Ponder said. “He was instrumental in our victory.” Horace is already on the radar of college teams with five Division I offers, and he certainly caught the eye of the Texas high school football world with his performance on Friday night. With an offense averaging 50.3 points per game and Horace leading the backfield, this Center side is certainly going to be a tough proposition for defensive coordinators to solve this season.
- La Vega prevails over another top ten opponent
La Vega just keeps on rolling. On Friday night, the Pirates knocked off #7 Corpus Christi Calallen, making it three top ten teams defeated in just three weeks. This time special teams had a big impact. After Calallen quarterback Terik Hickmon found the end zone on a quarterback sneak to cut the lead to 14-13, La Vega promptly came up with a huge blocked extra point. Then after a Calallen field goal attempt came up short in the fourth quarter, La Vega running back Jar’Que Walton broke off a 71-yard touchdown run to put the game away with four and a half minutes to go. And if you thought La Vega was done with its top ten matchups, you would be mistaken as #1 Argyle is waiting in the wings next week for the Pirates. And with the way those two teams have opened their seasons with marquee victories, the winner of that contest will likely stand atop 4A Division I as the early season state title favorites.
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View the top moments of week 2: click here
