SERVING UP MIXED RESULTS

CLASS 1A SIX-MAN ROUNDUP: State-ranked Iredell posts impressive win over Covington, Walnut Springs wins again for 2-0 start, Kopperl stumbles against Mount Calm, Cranfills Gap & Morgan suffer shutouts

With Class 1A, Division II’s sixth-ranked Iredell Dragons shaking off their season opening loss to Class 1A, DI’s ninth-ranked Newcastle with a dominating victory over Covington last week, area six-man football fans will be treated to possibly the best Bosque County matchup of the season when the Dragons host the surprisingly undefeated Walnut Springs Hornets at 7 p.m. Thursday.

But other Bosque County six-man squads did not fare as well last week as the Kopperl Eagles fell to Mount Calm, 58-44, while the Cranfills Gap Lions were blanked by Blanket, 60-0, and the Morgan Eagles were blown away by the Waco Texas Wind, 53-0.

IREDELL 54, COVINGTON 8

Juniors Jordan Gutierrez and Cole Heutzenroder rushed for three touchdowns apiece as the Class 1A, DII’s sixth-ranked Iredell Dragons ran all over the Class 1A, DI Covington Owls, 54-8, last Friday night at Dragon Field.

After falling behind 8-0 early, the Dragons fought through a defensive struggle in the first half before breaking the game open in the third quarter and closing the game out with 7:49 left in the fourth quarter by virtue of the 45-point mercy rule.

“Well, we did not get off to a solid start this go around,” Iredell head coach Luis Guereca said. “Covington came up with a quick score, and then we went turnover, punt, punt. Eventually, we settled down, and we were able to get things moving a lot better.”

After dropping the season opener to Class 1A, DI’s ninth-ranked Newcastle Bobcats, Iredell (1-1) worked to establish the basic, sticking mostly to the ground game as Gutierrez finished with 110 yards on 13 carries, followed by Heutzenroder with 85 yards on eight attempts and junior Caleb Garland with 48 yards on two totes with a touchdown. Through the air, junior Caden Sweat caught two passes for 65 yards with a scoring strike.

Defensively, the Dragons were led by Garland, Heutzenroder and Gutierrez with nine tackles each, followed by Sweat with six takedowns and Garland with an interception.

This week, Iredell will host arguably the best Bosque County six-man showdown of the season as the Dragons take on the surprising undefeated Walnut Springs Hornets (2-0) led by new head coach Richard Dye at 7 p.m. Thursday.

“It’s a long-time rivalry, and it’s a game we always put on the schedule,” Guereca said. “We’re looking forward to it.”

WALNUT SPRINGS 69, PRIDDY 22

Getting off to a surprising 2-0 start, Walnut Springs senior Jesse Lamb scored nine touchdowns in almost every way imaginable as the Hornets stung the Priddy Pirates, 69-22, at home last Friday night.

“It was like the whole town was here,” Walnut Springs first-year head coach Richard Dye said. “The whole Hornet family is excited about our fast start. I thought we played pretty well most of the night—big offensive spurts at the beginning of the game and at the end. Special teams did very well, too, as did the defense for the big part of the night.”

Leading the way for the Hornets (2-0), Lamb ran for four touchdowns while rushing for a game-high 275 yards. But that’s not all. Lamb also caught two scoring strikes covering 45 yards, returned a punt 40 yards for a touchdown, broke loose for a 65-yard kickoff return for another score and returned an interception for a pick-six.

As complementary pieces, senior Josue Ontiveros completed three of seven passes for 55 yards and two touchdowns, while senior Angel Muniz added 56 yards rushing and a touchdown.

“With Cameron Mitchell out, Lamb carried the load Friday night,” Dye said. “Muniz was also a big factor, as was our offensive line—Deegan Murrah, Dawson Gomez, Ashton Shuemake and Landon Chambers. And of course, Ontiveros gave his usual great leadership.”

Defensively, Lamb led the Hornets with 14 tackles, followed by Ontiveros and Gomez with eight each, and Chambers with six takedowns as well as JD Campos with a fumble recovery.

“The defense did a great job,” Dye said. “They held Priddy to only a few first downs. Special teams played great, too.”

Coming off back-to-back impressive wins to open the season, the Hornets will face an longtime Bosque County rival when they travel to Iredell to take on the state-ranked Dragons at 7 p.m. Thursday.

“Like any other game, we’ll have to play as well as we can,” Dye said. “But I’m hopeful that we can play with them, and give them a good game.”

MOUNT CALM 58, KOPPERL 44

Hoping to post back-to-back home victories to open the season, the Kopperl Eagles fell short as the Mount Calm Bobcats clawed their way to a hard-fought 58-44 win last Friday night.

“It was a tough loss at home,” Kopperl head coach Ken Davis said. “Mount Calm came to play and gave us all we could handle, plus a little more. We learned that we have a couple of weaknesses to address in order to have the kind of season I think we are capable of.”

The Eagles wasted an impressive effort from senior Christian Falk, who accumulated 455 yards of total offense completing 13 of 30 passes for 309 yards and five scoring strikes while rushing for another 146 yards. Falk connected with senior Kevin Eilers six times for 166 yards and three touchdowns, as well as sophomore Kaden Watts for two catches covering 66 yards and two scores, while senior Anthony Johnson added a rushing touchdown.

“Our offense continues to be a strength,” Davis said. ” Kevin Eilers and Kaden Watts had big days receiving, and Christian Falk led the way. But we sputtered in the third quarter and dug ourselves a hole we couldn’t climb out of. “

Defensively, junior Bearon Brinkley led Kopperl with 15 tackles and an interception, followed by Falk with 10 tackles, Anthony Johnson with nine, sophomore Dalton Tidwell with seven and senior Isaac Payen with six takedowns.

“Our defense gave up too many big plays, which put the pressure on the offense to have to score on every drive,” Davis said. “However, it gives us an opportunity to fix things going forward. We can be better. But all in all, I think the guys gave it everything they had.

Looking to bounce back with a schedule change that give Kopperl its third straight home game, the Eagles will host the Class 1A, DI Lingleville Cardinals at 7:30 p.m. Friday. The Cardinals (0-1) lost their season opener to Rising Star, 20-0, on the road last Friday.

“We are looking forward to playing Lingleville since they beat us on a last-minute drive a year ago,” Davis said. “The game is here at Kopperl and will be our homecoming because of last minute scheduling issues. We will see how the team bounces back from a tough loss as I believe it will set the tone for the rest of the season.”

TEXAS WIND 52, MORGAN 0

Despite soaring to a surprising season-opening victory under new head coach Alan Berrio, the Morgan Eagles were cut down by the Waco Texas Wind, 53-0, on the road last Friday night.

“We faced a tough opponent in Texas Wind,” Berrio said. “And unfortunately, we didn’t bring our best game. The difference in the game was our lack of execution on both sides of the ball. Texas Wind capitalized on our mistakes, and we struggled to find any rhythm, especially on offense. They were well-prepared, and we didn’t match their intensity.”

With the Eagle offense unable to take off against the Wind (2-0), the Morgan defense constantly found themselves with its backs against the wall playing on a short field.

“Our offensive performance was far from what we expected,” Berrio said. “We couldn’t get much going, and it showed on the scoreboard. We struggled to move the ball consistently, and that put our defense in tough situations. It’s something we need to address immediately, as we can’t expect to win games without generating offense.

Defensively, junior Adrian Alonzo led the Eagles (1-1) with five tackles and a quarterback sack. But the Wind scored 44 first quarter points before putting the game away at halftime by virtue of the 45-point mercy rule.

“We had moments where we held our ground defensively,” Berrio said. “But overall, we weren’t consistent enough. While we made some key stops, we gave up too many big plays that turned the game in Texas Wind’s favor. We need to tighten up our coverage and improve our tackling if we want to compete at a higher level.”

Looking to get back on the winning track, Morgan will take on the TAIAO Division 3 Hill County Wolves on the road in Hillsboro at 7:30 p.m. Friday. The Wolves (0-2) lost their season opener in Kopperl, 51-6, before falling to Jubilee Lake View University Prep, 53-31, last week.

“We know that playing after a tough loss like this is hard,” Berrio said. “Facing Hill County this week will be another challenge, and we need to bounce back quickly. Our focus will be on correcting our mistakes, particularly on offense, and coming out with more energy and execution. This week is about showing resilience and making the necessary adjustments to get back on track.”

BLANKET 60, CRANFILLS GAP 0

After losing two key players to injuries in the season opener at Morgan, the Cranfills Gap Lions came home shorthanded and proved no match for Blanket as the Tigers rolled to an overwhelming 60-0 victory last Friday night.

“Blanket is a solid team, and we are not at their level at the moment,” Cranfills Gap head coach Josh Raulston said. We are going through a rough patch where we must continue to stay positive and build toughness. As a young a group, this is a huge learning year where we must learn to deal with adversity.”

With injuries mounting, Cranfills Gap will take this week off to regroup as the Lions (0-2) canceled their trip to Mount Calm to take on the Panthers Friday. Mount Calm (1-1) gets an unexpected off week riding a high coming off an impressive 55-44 road win over Kopperl last Friday night after the Panthers lost their season opener 37-21 to Valor Preparatory Academy.

“Hopefully, we can start getting some guys healthy,” Raulston said. “We just have too many injuries, and we didn’t have enough to field a team. We really need a week to refocus and allow these young guys to get more comfortable before competing at a varsity level. This will give some of our guys time replenish and maybe have some injured players return to us.

“But for now, some guys who haven’t seen the field a lot must continue to grow their game and get better. It’s tough, and the character of each athlete will begin to show throughout the season.”

Photos by SIMONE WICHERS-VOSS