3A Team of the Week: Cleveland Tarkington Longhorns
Tarkington had no shortage of drama in its district opener against Hardin last Friday.
With 20 seconds left, the Longhorns had the ball at their own 32-yard line trailing 26-21.
Quarterback Tanner Johnson quickly moved them down the field completing a 36-yard pass down the seam to Dalton Bottos before scrambling for a 22-yard gain down to the Hardin 10 yard line. That set up a do-or-die play with just two seconds left.
Johnson bought some time before lobbing it up into the end zone where Bottos tangled with a couple Hardin defenders for the ball. In the end, the referees ruled that Bottos had caught the ball, sealing a memorable 27-26 victory from Tarkington. (See all three plays in the video below).
Before that score, Tarkington had relied on its rushing attack as running backs Michael Galvan, Nathan Wells, and Karson Jones all found paydirt for the Longhorns.
With the win, the Longhorns are now 4-1 on the season, matching their win total from a year ago. With another win, the Longhorns will have the most wins in a single season for their program dating back to 2014.
They’ll have their first chance to get that fifth win this Friday at home against Orangefield.
Previous 3A Teams of the Week
Week One: Blanco
Week Two: Malakoff
Week Three: McGregor
Week Four: Gunter
Week Five: Eastland
