Walk-Off Field Goal Stuns the Tigers
With history on the line for both teams, the Vandegrift Vipers (14-1) looking to advance to the first State Championship Game for the first time in their program’s history, and the Katy Tigers (14-1) marching towards their 10th State Title in their own storied history, which one would come out on top and keep the dream alive in the Alamodome on Saturday Afternoon.
In a matchup that resembled a Heavy Weight Title Bout, neither team blinked in a matchup that went back and forth and down to the final play to determine who would move on.
Back and Forth First Half
Katy won the pre-game coin toss and deferred to the 2nd Half, so the Vandegrift Offense took the field to start the game. The Vipers wasted no time warming up their passing game when SR QB Brayden Buchanan found SR WR Miles Coleman downfield on the fourth play of the game where he pulled in the ball, escaped a tackle, and raced 48-yards to the Tigers 17-yard line. Three plays later Vandegrift dug into Offensive Coordinator Blake Mouser’s bag of tricks when Buchanan went under center, threw a lateral to Coleman lined up out wide and he turned and found SR TE Charlie Oliver open in the End Zone for a 14-yard Touchdown pass and an early 7-0 lead with 8:12 left in the 1st Quarter.
The Tigers got a great return from SR Dallas Glass to set themselves up near mid-field at their own 43-yard line. They wasted no time going to their strength, feeding the ball to SR RB Seth Davis on 3 of their first 4 plays to push the ball to the Vipers 30-yard line. SR QB Caleb Koger then went to the air, throwing to the End Zone towards SR WR Adam Jackson, where Viper SR DB Davis Scott tackled him for the 15-yard Pass Interference Penalty that would move the ball to the Vandegrift 15. Davis was stopped for a loss of 1 yard on 1st Down, then on 2nd Down, Koger dropped back to pass, but was flushed for no gain. On 3rd Down Koger threw a pass towards JR FB Chase Johnsey, but pressure from Viper DE SR Oliver Yndo forced Koger to throw off his back foot and the ball sailed wide out of bounds. JR Hunter Ondrush came on to attempt a 33-yard Field Goal but pushed it wide right to leave the score at 7-0.
The Katy Defense didn’t allow Vandegrift to take advantage of the Turnover on Downs, forcing a 3 and out and a punt by SR Hudson Lillie that was taken by SR Micah Koenig at the Tigers 43-yard line. During the return the ball was knocked loose as Koenig was being taken down by multiple Viper cover team members, bouncing sideways into the hands of SR Chisholm Hill to allow the Tigers to maintain possession and takeover at the Vandegrift 38-yard line. Runs by Davis and Johnsey picked up just 5 yards on their first 3 plays. On 4th Down, the Tiger Offense stayed on the field, and Koger found JR TE Luke Carter for a 10-yard gain down to the Vandegrift 23. Three plays later, Johnsey took the wrap around draw handoff from Koger and motored 12-yards into the End Zone to tie the game at 7-7 1:10 into the 2nd Quarter.
Katy Kickoff Specialist, SO Adam Carter, whose kickoffs throughout the game helped to slow down the explosive Vandegrift returners, put the ball in Colemans hands at the Viper 3. Coleman was able to get to the edge and out to the Vipers 28, but a Block in the Back Penalty negated the return and set Vandegrift up at their own 11-yard line. Buchanan and the Offense picked up an initial 1st Down, and then on 2nd and 6 from the 25 Buchanan launched the ball downfield to a streaking Coleman, who pulled in the ball in stride and showed his speed, racing 75-yards to the End Zone to put Vandegrift back on top 14-7 with 7:52 left in the 1st Half.
Viper SR K Hayden Arnold put his kickoff on the Tiger 10, where Glass was able to get to the 27, but a Block in the Back on the Tigers, pushed them back to their 13. Three Davis runs helped move the ball out to the Katy 26, where Koger again went to the air, this time finding Koenig near the Vipers 40 where he fought off Davis Scott for the ball and outran the Viper Defenders into the End Zone to tie the game for a second time at 14 all with 4:52 left on the clock.
Vandegrift, once again pinned deep at their own 15-yard line by the Carter Kickoff and great coverage by the Tigers, was pushed even further back when Buchanan was sacked by SR LB Blake Geiman for a loss of 9 yards back to the Viper 6. On 2nd Down and 19, Buchanan found his other favorite target, SR WR Ray’Jean Middleton at the 15, where he slipped an initial tackle and showed his own speed to take the ball all the way to the Tiger 33 where he was finally tripped up by Hill. With just over 3 minutes left in the Half, the Vipers then slowed their Offense down to avoid giving the Tigers the ball back before Halftime.
A Buchanan to Coleman 19-yard pass on 3rd Down put the ball at the Katy 17 with 1:39 to go. A pair of penalty flags on the Vandegrift Offense pushed them back to the Tiger 27 for a 1st and 20, the second of which was a False Start penalty that came with a 10-second run-off, forcing Vandegrift to take their 2nd timeout to avoid the runoff and leave the clock at 55 seconds. Buchanan again found Coleman for an 11-yard gain, followed by a short run by SR RB Alex Witt that gained just 2 yards and the Vipers took their final Timeout of the half with 24 seconds to go and the ball on the Katy 14.
Coming out of the Timeout, Buchanan went to the air to Coleman in the End Zone on 3rd Down where the ball was knocked away by Katy Defenders JR Jed Olutu-Jud and SR Jonathan Hall to setup 4th Down and a potential 31-yard Field Goal by Arnold. However, a Roughing the Passer Penalty on the Tigers, gave the Vipers 1st and Goal at the Katy 7 and another set of Downs to get into the End Zone with 19 seconds left. Buchanan took the snap and rolled out, where his throw to Middleton in the back corner of the End Zone was bobbled and dropped on 1st Down. On 2nd Down send Middleton in motion from right to left, then on the snap Coleman also went right to left across the front of the End Zone, pulling the Tiger Defense with them allowing Buchanan to throw back to the right and a wide-open JR Jase Skoglund who stepped across the Goal Line for the Touchdown and a 21-14 Vandegrift lead with just 9 seconds left.
On the Arnold squib kickoff, SR Carlos Rosas fielded the ball on the bounce at the 25, broke a tackle at the Tigers 40 and made it all the way to the Viper 13 before being taken down by SR Isaiah Thompson to save the Kickoff Return for a Touchdown.
In what some people thought would be a grind it out Defensive battle, both Offenses combined for scores on 5 of 7 possessions in the 1st Half, with just the missed Ondrush Field Goal and a Viper punt thwarting the other two. Katy put up 162 Total Yards (76 Passing, 86 Rushing) in a well-balanced Offense scoring 1 running and 1 passing Touchdown. Vandegrift ended with 261 Total yards, 240 of which came through the air and a pair of passing Touchdowns.*
Just 24 minutes remained before one team would be headed to the State Finals in Arlington.
Defensive Third Quarter
Koenig pulled in the 2nd Half Arnold Kickoff at the Tigers 4 and made his way to the 22-yard line to set Katy up on their first possession. Davis, who had been kept mostly in check with just 54 yards rushing in the 1st Half, showed why he is now the all-time leading Rusher in Katy Football history not long into the 2nd. After some good gains on three of the Tigers first five plays, he took the handoff from Koger at the Viper 49, bounced outside, and went untouched into the End Zone to tie the game for the third time on the afternoon at 21-21 with 9:11 left in the 3rd Quarter on the run where he would break the record.
The Katy and Vandegrift Defenses decided it was time to flex at this point, with both clamping down on the opposing Offenses to force three consecutive punts and no points on the board for the remainder of the 3rd Quarter.
What had started out as an Offense showcase had morphed into a Defensive stand-off with just 12 minutes to go. Who knew that a barn burner was just around the corner in the fight to the finish.
Explosive 4th Quarter
Just like how most of the 3rd Quarter had gone, Vandegrift forced a second punt of the game by the Tigers Adam Carter two minutes into the 4th that looked to flip the field when Coleman called for the Fair Catch at the Vipers 15. A False Start pushed them back to their own 10, then on 2nd Down Buchanan, unable to find a receiver, was pressured by Geiman and he threw the ball away as he was going down. With the ball getting nowhere near the line of scrimmage and Buchanan still in between the Tackles, a flag was dropped for Intentional Grounding, pinning the Vipers all the way back at their own 3-yard line. Now working out of his own End Zone on 3rd and 22, Buchanan fired a long pass towards Middleton near midfield. Middleton, attempting to come back to the ball, was pushed down by SR DB Micah Sweats as he went for the Interception, drawing a flag for Pass Interference and giving the Vipers a 1st Down at their 18.
Following a Buchanan pass to Coleman that moved the ball out to the Vipers 33, Katy almost had the first Turnover of the game when Sweats stepped in front of a pass from Buchanan to SR WR Grant Lindley, but the ball bounced of his shoulder out of reach out of bounds. On 2nd Down, Vandegrift went back to their bag of tricks when Buchanan lateraled the ball to Witt lined up out wide right with blockers in front of him, instead of Witt heading downfield he threw the ball back towards Buchanan in the center of the field, but the ball sailed just beyond Buchanan’s reach incomplete. A 3rd Down pass to Ormond went off his fingertips, and Vandegrift was forced to punt for the third time of the 2nd Half. Lillie hit his best punt of the game, sending the ball over the head of Katy returner Olutu-Judah, hit at the Tigers 20, and rolled all the way to the 8-yard line for a 59-yard punt to flip the field the other direction with 7:45 remaining and the game still tied at 21.
On 1st Down Koger sent a pass out to the right flat to Koenig, who picked up a great block by Jackson that locked up two Viper Defenders, allowing Koenig to break free along the sideline and show that he also has some speed, weaving his way through multiple Vipers all the way to the End Zone for a 92-yard Touchdown that gave Katy their first lead of the game, 28-21, with 7:30 to go following the Ondrush Extra Point.
Carter put his third Kickoff of the game inside the Vandegrift 6, where Coleman took it in and then slipped down during his return at the Viper 16 for a minimal gain. With the Katy crowd at their most boisterous level of the game, and trailing for the first time all afternoon, Buchanan’s 1st Down pass towards Ormond was tipped by JR Tyler Willis and fell well short of its target. On 2nd Down, Buchanan dropped back, again going to Ormond who pulled in the pass on a drag route at the 25-yard line, bounced off a tackle attempt by SR LB Damian Neveaux and sprinted to the outside along the sideline with JR DB Gavin Johnson in pursuit. With Johnson on top of him at the Katy 14, Ormond put on the brakes and Johnson slid by him out of bounds, then turned back into the field of play and dove to take out Ormond’s legs just as Neveaux, who had been trailing the play, caught up to assist with the tackle as they appeared to cross the goal line and the Field Judge signaling Touchdown. However, Ormond was ruled down by contact at the Katy 1-yard line, leaving the play as an 83-yard completion.
With the ball now placed at the Katy 1-yard line, Buchanan lined up under center, taking the snap behind the Viper Offensive Line as they pushed towards the End Zone, but was called down just inches from the Goal Line. Knowing that just the week before the Vipers had survived against Dripping Springs on an almost identical play where the Tiger fumbled the Center to QB exchange, Buchanan again took the snap under center, and this time was able to hold onto the ball while crossing the Goal Line. Following the Arnold Extra Point, the game was tied, for the fourth time in the game, now at 28 all with 6:28 to play.
Following the Arnold Kickoff, the Tigers would start at their own 26, looking to take the lead once again after trailing or being tied for all but 1:02 of the ballgame. On 1st Down, Koger’s pass in the flat to JR WR Oliver Ginn fell short. On 2nd Down, Koger handed the ball of to Davis, who was taken down for no gain by SR LB Cruz Orta. On 3rd Down, Davis again took the ball, and JR LB Diego De La Vara Vasquez, who had recovered the fumbled snap on the Goal Line stand against Dripping Springs, wrapped up Davis along with Yndo for no gain again to force a 3 and out for the Tigers. Carter once again hit a booming punt all the way to the Vipers 23, where Coleman took it in and got it back just to the Tiger 29 with 4:49 left.
On 1st Down, Vandegrift stayed with their Quick-Strike Offense, where Buchanan pump faked and then launched the ball downfield to Lindley, who had gotten behind the Tigers Secondary on a Stop and Go, where he pulled in the ball in at the Katy 40 and then dove forward during the tackle by the trailing Sweats to get the ball all the way to the Tigers 21. Two short runs by Witt gained just 4 yards to set up 3rd and 6 from the Katy 17 with 3:45 to go. On 3rd Down, Coleman lined up in the backfield beside Buchanan with Witt taking his spot out wide right. On the snap Buchanan threw a backward pass to Coleman, who had gone into motion before the snap, pulling in the pass and then for the second time in the game he launched a pass towards the End Zone where Witt pulled in the ball for the Viper Touchdown. With the Arnold Extra Point, Vandegrift now lead 35-38 with 3:08 to go in the game.
Dallas Glass took in the Arnold Kickoff at the Katy 1-yard line but was only able to make it out to the Tiger 14 before JR LB Blaine Becker pulled him down to start what could be the Tigers final possession of the game, and possibly their season. With everyone inside the stadium’s eyes locked on Davis, he took the ball from Koger, broke initial contact at the line of scrimmage and picked up 16 yards on 1st Down. Davis again carried the ball on 1st Down, picking up 6 yards for a 2nd and 4 at the Tigers 36 with 2:30 showing on the clock. Sticking with their workhorse, Koger again handed the ball off to Davis who slipped two tackles at the line of scrimmage, bounced outside to the sideline, and went untouched all the way to the End Zone for a 64-yard Touchdown run. With the Ondrush Extra Point, the game was tied again, for the fifth time, at 35 all with just 1:59 left.
With both teams absorbing blow after blow from the other side, would the Vipers have one more drive left in the tank, or would we end up in Overtime to decide who would move onto Arlington? During the playoffs the Vandegrift Quick-Strike Offense had scored on 14 drives of 2 minutes or less in the four games leading up to the Semi-Finals, and again once during the 4th Quarter of today’s game. But with History on the line, could they find the right balance of running the remaining time off the clock and still find a way to score before the end of regulation.
Two Minutes to History
The Carter Kickoff for Katy went into the End Zone, setting Vandegrift up at their 25-yard line to start the drive. Two Buchanan 8-yard passes, one to a sliding Ormond (who went out injured afterwards on an Officials Injury Timeout that would save the Vipers 2nd Timeout of the half) and the second to Witt rolling out of the backfield gave the Vipers a 1st Down at their 37 with 58 ticks on the clock.
Buchanan dropped back on 1st Down, rolling out to his left and with the Tigers Secondary not giving him an outlet, threw the ball away for what looked like 2nd Down and 10, but a Katy Defender was called for their second Roughing the Passer penalty of the game that would move the ball out to the Vandegrift 47 with 39 seconds to go.
Buchanan again dropped back on 1st Down, but with nowhere to throw was taken down by SR DE Broderick Johnson for the Tigers 4th Sack of the ballgame, forcing the Vipers to take a Timeout with 31 seconds left. On 2nd and 11, Buchanan looked to be sacked once again, with Willis wrapped around his legs, but he was able to get a throw off to Skoglund all alone near the sideline who was able to move the ball into Tiger territory down to their 35 and step out of bounds with 23 seconds left.
On 1st down, Buchanan found Coleman on a 15-yard comeback to move the Vipers well within Arnold’s Field Goal range at the Katy 20-yard line. Buchanan spiked the ball on 1st Down to stop the clock with 14 seconds to go. On 2nd Down Buchanan kept the ball and even though he gained no yards, he was able to shift the ball off the left hash closer to the center of the field as Coach Sanders called the Vipers final Timeout with 2 seconds showing on the Game Clock to setup a Hayden Arnold 37-yard Field Goal to win the game on the final play.
Following the Timeout, Arnold, who had kicked a 50-yard Field Goal end the 1st Half in the Region IV Final and a 32-yard Field Goal into the wind to provide the final margin of victory over Dripping Springs, would line up for the biggest kick of the season. On the snap, with a Katy Defender diving towards the ball, Lillie took the Blake Frazier snap, placed the ball down and Arnold sent it through the uprights to send the Vipers to the first State Championship Game in their young program’s history.
Behind the Numbers
The 35 points scored by Katy and the 38 points scored by Vandegrift were the most points allowed by either Defense all Season. Vandegrift had a Season high in Passing Yards (487) and a Season low in Rushing Yards (14). The 456 Total Yards of Offense put up by Katy (282 Rushing, 174 Passing) was the most allowed by the Vipers Defense on the Season, surpassing the Dripping Springs Region IV Final where they allowed 387 Total Yards. The 487 Passing Yards from the Vipers, combined by Buchanan and Coleman, was the most that the Katy Defense had allowed on the season, surpassing the combined 477 Yards thrown by C.E. King QB Denim Johnson and Keith Willis in the Region III Final.
State Championship Matchup
The Vandegrift Vipers (14-1) will take on the DeSoto Eagles (13-2) on Saturday, December 17th at 3PM in AT&T Stadium. DeSoto is making its second State Championship Game appearance, winning the 6A D2 38-29 over Cibolo Steele in 2016. Vandegrift is making their first State Championship Game appearance in their short 13-year program history, 7th as a 6A School. DeSoto took down the highly ranked Denton Guyer Wildcats 42-28 in their Semi-Final matchup at The Star in Frisco, TX, also on Saturday afternoon. This will be the 3rd All-Time meeting between the Head Coaches, first with their current schools, with Coach Claude Mathis of DeSoto and Coach Drew Sanders of Vandegrift having met twice before when they coached at Austin LBJ and Austin Travis in 2006 and 2007 (Both games won by Coach Mathis and LBJ).
*Stats are Unofficial, from my own Film Review
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