BANGS – The Bangs Dragons’ 2021 football campaign got off to a rocky start, but fourth-year head coach Kyle Maxfield’s squad looks to turn the tide as the Florence Buffaloes visit Memorial Stadium at 7:30 p.m. Friday for the home opener.
Bangs (0-1) suffered a 48-12 loss to rival Early in its season opener, while Florence (0-1) dropped its 15th consecutive contest overall, 14-13 to Johnson City, last week.
Regarding the Dragons’ initial performance of the season, Maxfield said, “It was very evident that we’re young. We moved the ball pretty well on offense, but Early definitely played faster than us, more downhill and made big plays. We gave up too many big plays and that put us in a hole. As young as we are, I thought we executed pretty good at times. We have to keep building on those positives and getting more experience with more snaps.”
The Dragons scored twice and finished with 261 yards of total offense – 193 rushing and 68 passing. Guy Powell rushed for 159 yards and a touchdown while Kade Minshew completed 11 of 17 passes with a touchdown to Damien Santillanes, who caught a team-high four balls for 26 yards.
Defensively, Bangs yielded 48 points and 499 yards, including 300 through the air and six scoring tosses. Leading tacklers were Keygan Pitts (6 tackles), Azreal Escobedo (5.5 tackles), Hunter Bernal (5.5 tackles), Ian Cortez (4.5 tackles, 1 for loss), Santillanes (4.5 tackles), Powell (3 tackles), Zack Ferguson (3 tackles), Donovan Ruiz (2.5 tackles), Warren Theriaque (2 tackles, 2 for loss), and Sergio Lopez (2 tackles).
Heading into Friday’s contest, Florence is seeking its first win since Oct. 4, 2019. The Buffaloes’ one-point loss to Johnson City last week was the result of a failed two-point attempt following a touchdown as time expired.
After a scoreless first half, Florence took a 7-6 lead on a 50-yard pass from Victor Bonilla to Zach Webber. Down 14-7, Jared Jimenez’s running ability moved Florence into the red zone in the closing seconds. There, Bonilla scrambled into the end zone from just over 10 yards out. Florence appeared as if it would attempt to kick an extra point, but then opted for a trick play two-point conversion, which failed.
“They’ve got a little bit of everything,” Maxfield said. “They’ve got some size and their quarterback makes their offense go. They have a lot of guys coming back on both sides of the ball. They’ve got some speed in the backfield. They’re definitely improved, this is the second year for their head coach to be there. You can tell they’re more familiar with their system.”
Keys to the game, according to Maxfield, are limiting the big plays for the Florence offense, and the Bangs offense continuing to take care of the ball. The Dragons committed just one turnover in Week 1, but did not force a takeaway.
“We always practice bend but don’t break, so we need to get back to playing defense that way, and create turnovers,” Maxfield said. “We did a good job on offense of taking care of the ball. We have to continue to do that to give ourselves a chance, and hopefully we can create some on defense.”
Bangs is not expected to be at full strength Friday night, though how many players will be missing is uncertain.
“We’re banged up and with COVID issues here and there, we’re going to have to really play through it,” Maxfield said. “We may not have as much depth as we normally would. It changes daily but right now we’re in decent shape. We might have to move up some younger kids.”
As for what it will take for Bangs to land in the win column Friday night, Maxfield said, “It may come down to just us in the fourth quarter finding a way to get it done. Finish plays, finish drives and finish the game.”
According to Harris Ratings Weekly, Bangs is an 11-point favorite.
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Bangs Dragons 2021 Football Stats
Through 1 Game (0-1)
TEAM OFFENSE
12 points per game
261 yards per game
193 rushing yards per game
68 passing yards per game
PASSING
‒ Kade Minshew
11 of 17 for 68 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
RUSHING
‒ Guy Powell
159 yards on 31 carries, 1 TD
‒ Kade Minshew
28 yards on 7 carries
‒ Ian Cortez
7 yards on 2 carries
‒ Damien Santillanes
-1 yard on 2 carries
RECEIVING
‒ Damien Santillanes
4 catches for 26 yards
‒ Braxton Melling
2 catches for 29 yards
‒ Guy Powell
2 catches for 11 yards
‒ Ethan Ethridge
1 catch for 2 yards
‒ Guy Funk
1 catch for 0 yards
‒ Keygan Pitts
1 catch for 0 yards
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TEAM DEFENSE
48 points per game
499 yards per game
199 rushing yards per game
300 passing yards per game
TACKLES
‒ Keygan Pitts
6 tackles
‒ Azreal Escobedo
5.5 tackles
‒ Hunter Bernal
5.5 tackles
‒ Ian Cortez
4.5 tackles, 1 for loss
‒ Damien Santillanes
4.5 tackles
‒ Guy Powell
3 tackles
‒ Zack Ferguson
3 tackles
‒ Donovan Ruiz
2.5 tackles
‒ Warren Theriaque
2 tackles, 2 for loss
‒ Sergio Lopez
2 tackles
‒ Hunter Newton
1.5 tackles
‒ Isaiah Seratto
1.5 tackles
‒ Brody Newton
1 tackle
‒ Guy Funk
0.5 tackle
‒ Ethan Ethridge
0.5 tackle
‒ Caedmon Tidwell
0.5 tackle
‒ David Herrera
0.5 tackle
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TURNOVER MARGIN: (-1)
Bangs 1 — 1 INT
Opponents 0