EL PASO- Most coaches will agree that in order to win a football game, a team must value the three sides of the ball to their liking.
That’s exactly what Chapin Huskies head coach Rene Hernadez did on Friday night, as they dominated the Bowie Bears 41-3.
They truly executed on offense, defense and special teams throughout the game, looking sharp from the get-go.
“ I’m pleased that we stepped up,” Hernandez said. “Offensively, defensively, special teams—we’re getting better.”
Starting off, however, Bowie took control of the ball really well, shaving off nearly half of the first quarter on one drive alone. On the Bears’ 16th play of their opening drive, they turned the ball over on downs after moving the ball efficiently.
It took Chapin starting quarterback Anthony Baird 11 plays to march down the field 77 yards to set up a 22-yard passing touchdown to Christian McKeever for their first score of the night.
The Bears responded with yet another lengthy drive that poured over to the second quarter, resulting in a field goal.
Baird made it look easy on the next drive, throwing a 57-yard dart for a touchdown to Kentreyal Carraway, extending their lead to 14-3.
El Paso Chapin head coach Rene Hernandez (File Photo: Tony Venegas/TexasHSFootball.com)
“We knew they (Bowie) were going to have these long drives,” Hernandez said. “It was our job to make the big plays and score when we had the ball.”
And score they did. They scored 21 unanswered points going into the half and even swept up a fumble late in the second quarter, which set up an easy touchdown before the half for Chapin. Baird finished the half with three touchdowns through the air.
Bowie left to the half frustrated and depleted from how they started off.
But the Huskies didn’t let up. They put together a drive capped off by another Baird-McKeever connection for a touchdown, this time from 21 yards out.
In fact, Chapin hadn’t punted the ball in the whole game until the halfway mark into the third quarter when Bowie held them for the first time.
The Huskies kept it on the ground for the majority of the second half and added another touchdown in downtime to solidify their 41-3 win.
“We came into this game saying that we have to stop making dumb mistakes, like penalties,” Hernandez said. “I think we did a good job of that.”
Chapin (5-1, 3-0, 1-5A) finished the game with 388 yards of total offense in a balanced attack, with 226 rushing yards and 162 passing yards. They held Bowie (4-3, 0-3, 1-5A) to just 172 yards of total offense and no touchdowns.
Now, the Bears must regroup after playing three challenging teams in District 1-5A and they are still searching for their first win in district play. They still have a chance at the playoffs, if they are able to get wins over the likes of Austin, El Paso and Jefferson.
The Huskies, on the other hand, hope to improve their game plan and grow from this win.
“We need to get some depth and get more comfortable with these new guys,” Hernandez said.
They are also vying for the top spot in the division, sitting with an unbeaten district record.
“It doesn’t get any easier than this,” Hernandez said, reflecting on playing top 1-5A teams down the stretch like Burges and Andress.
Brought to you by:
