EPIC OPENING ACT

In defensive struggle to open District 5-3A, DII competition, Clifton Cubs rally late in the fourth quarter to edge Eastland Mavericks; travel to face Early Longhorns Friday

To win their first district opener since 2020, it took a come-from-behind clutch performance from the Clifton Cubs last Friday night. Rallying late in the fourth quarter, the Cubs survived an epic defensive struggle to edge the Eastland Mavericks for a dramatic 14-13 victory to open District 5-3A, Division II competition before an enthusiastic and packed crowd at Cub Stadium.

“Winning that first district game is huge,” Clifton head coach Brent Finney said. “It is never a deal breaker, but it is certainly good to control your own destiny. Like we keep telling our kids, one game at a time. That is all we need to do, just focus on getting better each week. We will enjoy the win this weekend, but it will be back to work on Monday focusing on the next game.”

Facing a two-hour road trip heading west, the Cubs (1-0 in district, 4-2 overall) will travel to take on the Early Longhorns (0-1, 1-5) at 7 p.m. Friday. The Longhorns will be coming off an overwhelming 56-0 district opening loss on the road to the preseason favorite Tolar Rattlers (1-0, 5-1) Friday.

“Early will be hungry for a district win playing at home,” Finney said. “We will have to stay focused and manage the long road trip and continue to get better every day.”

Senior quarterback Joaquin De la Hoya found the angle to the flag from one-yard out for the touchdown as the Cubs grabbed an early 7-0 lead with 7:01 left in the second quarter. But the Mavericks took advantage of some big plays to score 13 unanswered points.

Even though Eastland (0-1, 3-3) took a 13-7 lead with 11:49 on the clock early in the fourth quarter, Clifton senior Landon Knox penetrated the line scrimmage straight up the middle for the extra point block as senior Tristan Hammond pressured the Maverick placekicker racing in from the right side ultimately proved to be the difference in the game.

“We made special teams a major focus this year from day one,” Finney said. “We spend a lot of time each week on the kicking game, and it showed up big in this game.”

With their back against the wall, the Cubs responded with an 11-play, 59-yard drive to regain the lead as sophomore running back Jackson Ritz crashed into the endzone from three yards out to tie the score. Then, Cub senior placekicker Kanin Bearden came up clutch by nailing the game-winning PAT with 3:50 left in the game.

“In close games, so many times the outcome is determined by special teams and penalties,” Finney said. “We were able to get them to jump in some key situations, and our kicking and punting really came up clutch.”

In a defensive struggle, yards proved to be hard to come by for both teams. Against Eastland, the Cubs finished with 199 yards of total offense, moved the ball efficiently, did a good job of maintaining control of the ball, did not commit turnovers and limited penalties.

And of course, the Cubs came up with the game-winning scoring drive late. De la Hoya led Clifton with 97 yards rushing on 22 scrambles while completing an efficient four of six passes for 26 yards. Senior fullback James Liardon powered his way to 39 yards on the ground in eight carries, while Ritz finished as Clifton’s leading receiver with three catches for 18 yards along with 20 tough yards rushing.

“Offensively, our challenge to the kids was to control the line of scrimmage,” Finney said. “We did a good job of that in the game. We knew they were going to be sending people from everywhere, so being able to put together some long drives was huge.”

Although the Cub defense gave up a few big plays through the air, the defense showed discipline against Eastland’s elusive Wing-T running game and kept the Mavericks under wraps most of the game, surrendering only 220 total yards.

Sophomore Rowdy Bishop led the Cubs with eight punishing tackles, followed by Knox and Ritz with seven each, as well as Liardon with six, senior Brody Baggett and junior Judd New with five apiece, while junior Luis Galindo collected a sack.

“Defensively, we knew the misdirection would be a challenge,” Finney said. “But they did a good job of being disciplined, and it was a great team effort.”