CRUCIAL CLINCHING CLASH

Coming off crushing loss to 17th-ranked Tolar, Clifton Cubs aim to clinch third straight playoff berth against Dublin in District 5-3A, DII showdown on Senior Night

After getting off to their best start in district since 2018 with back-to-back, come-from-behind, one-point victories, the Clifton Cubs were not able to come up with any last-minute heroics last Friday. The 17th-ranked Tolar Rattlers made sure of that with an overwhelming first half on their way to an impressive 41-0 victory at Cub Stadium.

But now, it’s time for the Cubs to put that game behind them and focus on clinching a third straight trip to the playoffs in the final two weeks of the 2024 Texas high school football season.

“We knew that Tolar was a good team, and that we would have to play well to beat them,” Clifton football head coach Brent Finney said. “The bottom line is that they were better than us Friday night. We have to move on and turn the page.”

In a crucial District 5-3A, DII matchup with postseason implications, the Cubs (2-1 in district, 5-3 overall) will play their second straight home game hosting the Dublin Lions (1-2, 1-7) at 7 p.m. Friday on Senior Night at Cub Stadium. The Lions will be coming off their first win of the season, knocking off Eastland, 35-28, last Friday night.

“All of our focus has to go to Dublin. That has been our approach all year. Day by day, just attack each day and get better. Focus one week at a time, one game at a time. And that is exactly what we will do.”

Leading the way for Dublin, senior quarterback Kaden Gaiten has thrown 22 touchdown passes while completing 128 of 248 passes for 1,920 yards and only eight interceptions, spreading the ball around to four primary receivers.

Senior DJ Ferguson leads the receiving corps with 32 catches for 504 yards and eight scoring strikes, followed by senior Francisco Garcia with 32 receptions for 443 yards and six touchdowns. As a dual threat, Gaiten also leads the Lions in rushing with 318 yards and four scores.

“Dublin will have some momentum and come in here knowing they need to beat us to stay in the district race,” Finney said. “They have some good size up front, and their quarterback is a dynamic dual threat athlete. We will have to contain him. And we will have to do a better job of sustaining drives and controlling the line of scrimmage.”

Playing with their backs against the wall the entire game against district-leading Tolar (3-0, 7-1), the Cub offense could never put anything together against a Rattler defense that has surrendered only 9.9 points per game. After Tolar built a 41-0 lead by halftime, Clifton found some success moving the ball on the ground with senior Landon Knox leading the way with 59 yards on nine carries.

In the meantime, the Cub defense did a good job of slowing down the Tolar running game early, but the Rattlers struck with big plays through the air to bury the Cubs quickly. Sophomore quarterback Briton Rice completed nine of 11 passes for 162 yards, striking on three play of 30 yards or more, including 35-yard touchdown pass to senior Brylen Feist.

Balancing the run with the pass, senior Peyton Brown powered his way to a game-high 112 yards rushing on 13 carries, scoring three times as the Rattlers amassed 343 yards of total offense. Sophomore Kelvin Murray also broke loose for a 36-yard touchdown run.

Defensively, junior Gavin Tattershall led the Cubs with eight tackles and a sack, followed by junior Judd New with seven and junior Jared Ramirez with five.

“We made some plays offensively and defensively,” Finney said. “But we never had enough consistency on either side of the ball. We couldn’t sustain a drive or stop them in the first half. We missed a couple opportunities and could never get any momentum back.”