LUBBOCK, Texas- It was a chilly Friday night in the South Plains but at Lowrey Field, it was the quarterbacks who were bringing the heat. Graham quarterback Tucker Horn outdueled Bushland quarterback Colton Moore as the Steers took down the Bushland Falcons 69-42 to win Region I in Class 4A Division II.
“The offense played great but it was the offensive line that stood out to me,” said Graham head coach Ken Davidson, “Bushland was bringing a lot of different looks and for us to protect Tucker like that and hit the open receivers was a good recipe for success for us.”
Graham quarterback Tucker Horn (7) finished with 590 yards passing and seven touchdowns in the win over Bushland on Friday night. (Jay Crain/TexasHSFootball)
As they had done all season, the Graham offense was rolling early. After spotting an opening drive touchdown for Bushland, Tucker Horn pushed the Steers ahead with big passing plays of 51 and 53 yards to Caden Mills and Adam Groves respectively to make it 14-7.
In a game that turned into a shootout, sometimes that one big defensive play is all you need to turn the game back in your favor and that’s what the Steers got early in the second quarter. After Colton Moore fumbled the ball in the end zone as he was going to score, running back Caden Mills took the ensuing play 80 yards down the field for another touchdown to make it 21-7.
Bushland quarterback Colton Moore accounted 524 total yards and six touchdowns for the Falcons on Friday night. (Jay Crain/TexasHSFootball)
“When you get this far in the playoffs, the offenses are rolling,” Davidson said of the game, “We knew that Bushland was dangerous with their speed and their tremendous quarterback. We were just glad to get the stops that we did and that’s what you need this time of year.”
The remainder of the first turned into a true quarterback duel. Horn threw two more touchdown passes of 91 and 65 yards to Groves and Ben Taylor respectively while Moore added a 41-yard touchdown pass to Gage Climer and a two yard touchdown run to make it 35-21 Graham at the break.
“Tucker’s such a smart quarterback,” Davidson said, “He’s been great at making split-second decisions all year but to have that combined with the offensive line play was big.”
Bushland would still try to hang around in the second half as Moore converted a short field into another touchdown pass to Ryan Oldfield to bring the Falcons back within a score. After a Chase Gilmore rushing touchdown for Graham, the Falcons were down two scores at 42-27 but very much in the game.
The Graham Steers celebrate their win over the Bushland Falcons in the Class 4A Division II Region I Finals. (Jay Crain/TexasHSFootball)
However, The Steers would turn on the afterburners in the fourth quarter, putting up 27 points in the final frame to put the Falcons away. Horn would throw two more touchdown passes to Adam Groves (240 yards receiving, 4 TD) and another to Jake Lanham while Daniel Gilbertson a late touchdown run to cap off the night.
The Steers finished with a staggering 797 yards of offense on the night with Tucker Horn accounting for 594 of them. Moore fought to the end for Bushland, adding another touchdown pass and run in the fourth quarter. In the final game of his high school career, Moore finished with 524 total yards and six total touchdowns.
With the win, Graham (14-0) moves on to face Texarkana Pleasant Grove (14-0) next Thursday night at The Star in Frisco. Bushland ends their season at 11-3.
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