September 2020 - page 3

Class 3A, DII Clifton hits the road to take on third straight opponent from larger classification by traveling to Maypearl Friday night

MAYPEARL — Upon his arrival over six years ago, Clifton football head coach Chuck Caniford has always approached scheduling non-district opponents with a little bit of David vs. Goliath in mind — with his Cubs assuming the role of the young and diminutive Israelite taking on the Philistine giant.

Never has that been more true than this season as Class 3A, Division II Clifton prepares to take on its third straight team from a larger classification as the Cubs visit the Class 3A, DI Maypearl Panthers at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

Despite being in a position to win in the fourth quarter during back-to-back games, the young and inexperienced Cubs (0-2) have fallen victim to turnovers in losses to Class 4A, DII Sanger, 25-14, and Class 3A, DI Little River-Academy, 17-0, to open the 2020 campaign.

This week, Clifton will be taking on the larger Maypearl (2-0), a team the Cubs will be facing for the fifth straight season.

“When you play someone as frequently as we have played Maypearl, there aren’t a lot of secrets,” Caniford said. “We have a pretty good understanding of what each other are going to try to do, and now it comes down to who can execute their game plan most efficiently. 

“Our goal this week is the same as it is every week in non-district; be better than we were last week. That’s all we want to do is continue that progression of improving every week leading up to district play.”

While Clifton’s grinding offensive attack has proven to be it’s own worst enemy with turnovers and untimely penalties, the Cub defense has risen to the occasion. Junior Griffin Phillips leads the team with 18 tackles, followed by junior Jimmie Taylor with 14 takedowns and two sacks, and senior Elias Tebo with 11 tackles.

Despite playing two bigger classification schools in Sanger and Little River-Academy, the Cubs have played well enough to have a chance to win in the fourth quarter for both games. Now at the halfway point of the non-district schedule, Clifton will be looking to take their game to the next level.

“We have put ourselves in a position to have a chance to win the first two games, but have not been able to break through,” Caniford said. “There’s not a magic formula. It’s pretty simple really. We just have to be more consistent to beat teams of the caliber that we have been playing. 

“We’ve played well enough to win at times, but haven’t played consistently enough to close the game out. We will have to do that this week to beat Maypearl.”

With junior quarterback Heath Roesler and junior linebacker Timmy Gracey leading 13 returning starters, Maypearl opened the season with a 20-6 victory over Ferris before defeating Venus, 49-20 on the road last Friday.

“Maypearl is playing with a lot of confidence right now,” Caniford said. “They are clearly comfortable in their system, and we will have to put together four quarters of consistent effort to win on the road.

“To win these kinds of games, we have to win the turnover battle, finish drives on offense and limit big plays on defense. If we can do those things, we will have a chance to be successful on Friday night.”

Photos by DAVID HARDING

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After fast starts, Heart of Texas high school football teams put record on the line under the Friday night lights

Living up to their lofty preseason rankings, a number of Heart of Texas teams trying to remain undefeated in Week 3 to stay among the state’s top 10 in their respective divisions.

In Class 3A, Division I, the defending state champion Grandview Zebras travel to Godley, while the Class 3A, DII preseason state-ranked Clifton Cubs visits Maypearl looking for their first win of the season.

Three-time defending state champion Mart will once again headline the Class 2A, DII slate as the Panthers take on their third straight Class 3A team to open the season when they take on Anahuac at 2 p.m. Saturday in Madisonville. And in Class 1A, DII, the second-ranked Jonesboro Eagles will try to remain undefeated when they visit Joshua Johnson County.

Once again this season, THE SPORTS BUZZ will provide award-winning coverage of the 2020 Texas high school football season, focusing on Class 3A, 2A and 1A schools in the 10-county Heart of Texas region — which includes Bosque, Comanche, Coryell, Erath, Hamilton, Hill, Hood, Johnson, McLennan and Somervell counties.

Be sure to check in with THE SPORTS BUZZ every Thursday to find the complete schedule for teams from the Heart of Texas region. And be sure to tune late Friday for our up-to-the-minute updated scoreboard.

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Taking on another bigger school, Class 3A, DII Clifton meets challenge but falls short on scoreboard in home opener

CLIFTON – During the previous six seasons at the helm, Clifton football head coach Chuck Caniford has never shied away from playing tough non-district schedules in preparation for a run toward the playoffs. And during that stretch, the strategy has led to six consecutive postseason berths.

Using the same approach in 2020, the Class 3A, Division II Cubs hope it produces the same results.

Despite another strong effort from the Clifton defensive unit, Class 3A, DI’s Little River-Academy put together enough points to hold off a late rally and post a hard-fought 17-10 victory in the home opener at Cub Stadium last Friday night.

“For the second week in a row, we’ve faced a quality opponent from a bigger classification,” said Caniford, also referencing the season-opening 25-14 loss to Class 4A, DII Sanger Aug. 28 at Aledo’s Bearcat Stadium. “As much as we don’t like the outcome, we understand that these games are going to help us get better. We can learn a lot from last night’s game.  If you aren’t challenged, you can’t grow.

“We played really well defensively, and at times, we did good things on offense. We just have to continue to improve our execution and work to eliminate turnovers. That has been the difference in the first two games. You can’t have a negative turnover margin and beat quality opponents.”

Clifton (0-2) took the opening kickoff and exploited a soft spot up the middle of the Bumblebee defense to march into the red zone. On the Cubs’ first play from scrimmage, junior quarterback Griffin Phillips broke through for a 56-yard run to the Little River-Academy 14-yard line before Clifton settled for a 28-yard field goal by senior Jose Ramirez with 9:28 left in the first quarter.

But the Cubs were unable to set on the scoreboard again until 2:47 left in the game. In between scores, Clifton turned the ball over three times, two directly leading to Bumblebee points.

“Turnovers have been our Achilles heel,” Caniford said. “We scored on our first possession of the game, and then turned it over on the subsequent two possessions, both times around midfield. We were putting together good drives at that point, but were stalled by turnovers. 

“We didn’t play particularly well in the third quarter. But we came back and put together a nice drive in the fourth to get it to a one-score game.”

After forcing a Little River-Academy (2-0) punt from deep in its own territory, the Cubs marched 51 yards on six plays, all on the ground as Phillips cashed in with a three-yard touchdown run. Sophomore Joe Taylor proved the drive’s big play with a bulldozing 30-yard run up the middle.

Phillips finished as Clifton leading rusher with 89 yards on 12 carries, followed by junior Jimmie Taylor with 46 on 13 attempts and Joe Taylor with 35 on eight, although the Cubs only produced 180 yards of total offense.

In what proved to be a defensive struggle the entire game, the Cubs came up with a big stop in the first half to keep it a one-score game. Then in the second half, the Cubs held the Bees to a field goal early in the fourth quarter to keep Clifton in a two-score game and a possible late rally.

“Again, I was very pleased with how we played defensively against a team that has quite a few dynamic weapons on the offensive side of the ball,” Caniford said. “I was especially proud of the fight our kids showed in the fourth quarter. They could have easily given up, but they kept fighting and gave us a chance late in the game.”

Defensively, Jimmie Taylor led the Cubs with 10 tackles and two sacks, followed by Phillips with seven tackles, freshman Riley Finney with five takedowns, as well as senior Devin Byrd, and sophomores Larrett Thomas and Joe Taylor with four each.

Despite being a young team, the Cubs have played back-to-back opponents from higher classifications, and had a chance to win both games.

“I think we are a lot closer to where we want to be than our kids probably realize,” Caniford said. “There are just some little things that we have to do more consistently to sustain drives and put points on the board.

“Our young guys are learning some quality lessons against some quality opponents, and that is only going to help once we get into district play. They just have to trust the process and understand that gold balls aren’t awarded until district play. And as long as we get better every week, we will have the opportunity to compete for another one.”

Photos by DAVID HARDING

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Meridian runs over Polar Bears, 27-0, to snap 13-game losing streak

MERIDIAN – It’s been said that big things are built one brick at a time. And if you lay one solid brick at a time, soon you will have an impenetrable wall.

On Friday night at Jacket Stadium, the Meridian defense proved to be just that. And by producing a shutout performance, the Yellowjackets declawed the Frost Polar Bears, 27-0, snapping a 13-game losing streak to post their first victory since Oct. 26, 2018.

Running back Anthony Gonzalez ran for 105 yards and two touchdowns while quarterback Dylan Poole and running back Michael Crawford rushed for two more scores as the Jackets (1-1) piled up 255 yards on the ground to control the game.

“We’re proud of our kids,” Meridian football’s second-year head coach Wade Morton said. “They know how to compete, and it wasn’t a matter of if but when we could put it together and bust through. Our coaches and players work so hard, like so many and put in many hours in preparation for 48 minutes of play.”

Not only did the Jackets win the game, the Meridian did so with a dominating performance. After building a 14-0 first half lead behind five-yard touchdown runs by both Poole and Gonzalez, the Jackets swarmed the Frost offensive attack. Then in the second half, Crawford broke off a 30-yard scoring scamper in the third quarter before Gonzalez iced the game with an eight-yard touchdown run early in the fourth.

“We wanted to see our kids be physical and to pound the ball at someone,” Morton said. “But we have several versatile players, and we want to be as multiple as we can on offense. The boys are getting better and better each day.”

In addition to Gonzalez’s game-high 105 yards rushing on 22 carries, Crawford added 65 yards on six attempts while Poole scrambled 17 times for 50 yards and passing for another 79 yards. Brayden Wehmeyer led Meridian with three catches for 22 yards.

“Defense has been lights out the last two weeks,” Morton said. “Our kids are flying to the ball and having fun, and that’s what it’s all about.”

Ironically, Meridian came full circle with the win as the losing streak began with a 28-13 loss at Frost Nov. 2, 2018. By knocking off the Polar Bears Friday night, the Jackets equaled the program’s win total for the last two seasons combined. And it couldn’t have come at a better time as Meridian celebrated Senior Night at Jacket Stadium.

After fielding an extremely young team for his first year as a head coach in 2019, Morton’s program and system has had a chance to start taking root in Meridian, even after navigating the on-again, off-again chaos created by the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic.

“With COVID, we haven’t even been with the kids for a year yet,” Morton said. “With the situation we’re all in, it’s been hard to develop good habits with the kids, and that’s important to a new staff and culture. We’ve made up a lot of ground over the past three months though, and the kids have responded and have met our expectations.”

While returning 10 offensive and 10 defensive starters from the 2019 squad, the Jackets only had one scrimmage to put everything into action on the field before traveling to Kerens for the season opener.

“Unfortunately, we’re all adjusting to only playing one scrimmage,” Morton said. “Like everyone knows, you usually have two scrimmages and can get some good teaching moments from them and make those adjustments before the next one. I was pleased to see our kids compete, especially since there have been so many others things out of their control.”

Despite losing the Bobcats, 19-7, in the opener, Morton saw plenty of positives. After all, Morton inherited a brutal gauntlet of a schedule in 2019, which resulted in the Jackets finishing 0-10 while being outscored, 539-21, and getting shut out seven times. But thanks to the UIL realignment, Morton and his squad were given the opportunity for a fresh start.

“We looked at getting a schedule where we could take a young team and not just play, but compete,” Morton said. “Kids are looking great. The majority of the kids were able to come to strength and conditioning during the summer, and that’s huge for us considering everything that has gone on since last season.

“We have 24 kids playing with 19 of them being returners from last season. And we’re just blessed to get to go compete. Our goal for this season is to be in the playoffs. And not just get in, but compete for a top three spot in district play. Getting the first win is just the beginning.”

Photos by WENDY OROZCO

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Heart of Texas high school football scores

FINAL UPDATE: 9:15 p.m., Saturday, September 5, 2020

Here are all of the Class 3A, 2A and 1A Texas high school football scores for Thursday, Friday and Saturday from around the Heart of Texas region.

On location for three games this weekend, THE SPORTS BUZZ provides award-winning coverage of the 2020 Texas high school football season every week, focusing on Class 3A, 2A and 1A schools in the 10-county Heart of Texas region — which includes Bosque, Comanche, Coryell, Erath, Hamilton, Hill, Hood, Johnson, McLennan and Somervell counties.

Be sure to check in with THE SPORTS BUZZ every Friday night for the complete scoreboard from games across the Heart of Texas region.

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Clifton looking for its first win, hosting Little River-Academy

CLIFTON — After returning to normal from the COVID-19 shutdown simply by playing football last week, the Clifton Cubs want to reinstate another aspect to the game this week they have come to expect over the last six season — winning.

Playing in their first game at home this season, the Cubs will take on yet another opponent not on their original schedule when they host Class 3A, Division I Little River-Academy at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Cub Stadium.

“We were looking for someone who would challenge our team and help us get better as we prepare for the district race,” Clifton football head coach Chuck Caniford said. “Academy has some outstanding skill players and team speed, and those are the type of players that we will see in district and in the playoffs.”

Despite holding a 14-6 lead going into the fourth quarter in the season opener, the Cubs could not hold off the bigger and deeper Class 4A, DII Sanger as the Indians rallied for a 25-14 victory at Aledo’s Bearcat Stadium. With the Cubs sporting the “new look” offensive approach using a grinding ground game, three turnovers proved to be the difference.

“We did a lot of good things on offense last week,” Caniford said. “We just need to do a better job of avoiding drive killers and negative plays. We did a pretty good job run blocking, but we need to improve our pass protection to give our quarterback time to make plays in the passing game and not put us in a position that creates turnovers.”

Like Sanger, Little River-Academy went through a rough season in 2019, but the Bumblebees have nine offensive and six defensive starters back and opened the season with a 20-15 win on the road against Rogers.

“They have a lot of talent at the skill positions and some key returners up front on both sides of the ball,” Caniford said. “They appear to be playing with a lot of confidence in their schemes. 

“We just need to focus on doing our job on every play and not get caught up in the scoreboard.  We were in a good position to win the game last week. But we got caught up looking at the score, focusing on winning instead of just doing the things that put us in that position.” 

Photos by DAVID HARDING

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Thanks to online video streams, some Heart of Texas high schools offer alternative ways to watch Friday night football

Thanks to the University Interscholastic League’s decision to waive the live broadcast blackout of Texas high school football games this season due to attendance restrictions related to the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic, there are multiple ways to watch games this season.

Online video streams of this weekend’s slate of games in the Heart of Texas region include Class 3A, Division I defending state champion and second-ranked Grandview at Salado, Class 3A, DII’s ninth-ranked Cameron Yoe facing Bellville, and Brady at Comanche.

But there are still plenty of marquee games to watch up close live and in person across the Heart of Texas, including Class 3A, DI Whitney playing host to Class 4A, DII Robinson, Class 2A, DII defending state champion and top-ranked Mart traveling to Class 3A, DII McGregor, and Class 4A, DII China Spring visiting Class 3A, DI Lorena.

Once again this season, THE SPORTS BUZZ will provide award-winning coverage of the 2020 Texas high school football season, focusing on Class 3A, 2A and 1A schools in the 10-county Heart of Texas region — which includes Bosque, Comanche, Coryell, Erath, Hamilton, Hill, Hood, Johnson, McLennan and Somervell counties.

Be sure to check in with THE SPORTS BUZZ every Thursday to find the complete schedule for teams from the Heart of Texas region.

©2020 Southern Cross Creative, LLP. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.