EARLY – Coming off their first postseason victory since 2007, the Early Longhorns look to hit double figures in the win column and advance to the third round of the playoffs as they tangle with the District 1 champion Shallowater Mustangs in Class 3A Division I Region I area round action.

Kickoff between the Longhorns (9-2) and Mustangs (9-2) is slated for 7 p.m. Friday in Clyde.

Regarding the first postseason victory for Early in well over a decade, second-year head coach Daniel Price said, “I couldn’t be prouder of a group of kids and coaches than I was Friday night. They bought into the mentality against Brock last year at Tarleton. We talked about getting back to this point and wanting to win. That was the goal and we reminded them daily through the spring and in the weight room. Then you go out there and see the goal accomplished and it was something special for all of us.”

District 3 third seed Early reached the second round via a 43-21 bi-district triumph over Pilot Point, a game in which the Longhorns raced out to a 29-0 lead in the first quarter.

“It was an unbelievable start, we couldn’t have scripted it any better,” Price said. “That’s the fastest start I’ve seen a team have since I’ve been coaching in 16 years. Everything fell into place. We had a touchdown on a turnover, then they fumbled the ball into the end zone for the safety, then we score again and then we get another fumble recovery for a touchdown, so it lined up perfectly.

“It got a little scary though because I looked up at the clock and there was still four minutes left in the first quarter and you look over at the other sideline and they still have guys that are really explosive, so we were worried a little bit that there was still too much time.”

Shallowater, meanwhile, rolled past Dalhart for a 56-18 bi-district victory, the seventh straight win for the Mustangs’ whose two losses came to Abernathy (28-16) in the season opener and Childress (30-28).

Against Dalhart, the Mustangs generated 385 yards of total offense – 263 rushing and 122 passing – and scored on kick returns of 84 yards by Trevor Winn and 70 yards by Keegan Campbell.

Quarterback Garret Foerster rushed for 95 yards on just four carries, Kaleb Cox added 72 yards and three touchdowns on five rushes, and Campbell toted the ball five times for 57 yards and reached the end zone twice.

Foerster connected on 5 of 8 passes for 122 yards and a touchdown to Major McCully, who grabbed two receptions for 60 yards. Chris Salazar also pulled down a 27-yard reception.

Defensively, the Mustangs gave up 474 yards – 362 passing and 112 rushing – and forced a turnover.

Leading tacklers included Raston Copeland (9 tackles, 1 for loss), Braxton Barrett (8 tackles), Chase Blackburn (7 tackles), McCully (6 tackles), Ross Crabtree (5 tackles), and Brett Hall (4 tackles).

“They have some big guys up front, that’s one of the things we noticed immediately,” Price said. “They do throw the ball around a little bit, but it’s all set up by the play action so everything is set up around the run game. If there’s someone I had to compare them to I’d say they’re similar to Wall or Breckenridge of our district. They’re physical and they come down hill at you, it’s not the same offense, but they’ll still hit you in the mouth. I can’t say enough about their guys up front. They’re a big, physical, typical Shallowater football team. I’ve never had a chance to play them, it will be a first for me, but all the things you hear about Shallowater being physical, coming off the ball and going down hill all show up on film. It’s going to be a good match up for us.”

Early enters the showdown averaging 40 points and 384 yards – 207 passing and 177 rushing – per game with eight turnovers.

Quarterback Jaxyn Price has completed 126 of 216 passes for 1,916 yards with 28 touchdowns and only four interceptions, while leading receivers include Jeremy Brown (48-657, 5 TDs), John-Stewart Gordon (36-551, 8 TDs), Tre Beam (22-339, 4 TDs), and Ki Houston (14-270, 4 TDs).

Beam anchors the ground game with 1,366 yards and 14 touchdowns on 191 carries.

Defensively, the Longhorns are yielding 17 points and 244 yards – 125 passing and 119 rushing – per outing, while creating 27 turnovers on the season, including three last week.

Standouts include Caleb McCullough (94 tackles, 16 for loss, 5 sacks), Kaleb Ozuna (94 tackles, 4 for loss, 2 sacks, 2 FRs, 1 INT), Tucker Hale (91 tackles, 5 for loss, 1 sack, 1 INT, 1 FR), Korbin Hall (73 tackles, 18 for loss), Franky Villarreal (70 tackles, 6 for loss, 4 sacks, 2 for loss, 2 FRs), Beam (59 tackles, 22 for loss, 6 sacks, 2 FRs), Brown (42 tackles, 3 for loss, 3 INTs), Vic Cooper (40 tackles, 1 INT), Chris Fernandez (37 tackles, 3 FRs), Brooks Clippinger (36 tackles, 5 for loss, 1 FR), Casey Moseley (29 tackles, 3 for loss, 1 FR), Gordon (25 tackles, 6 INTs), and Dalton Adams (24 tackles, 1 for loss).

“The keys to a victory for us are going to be a fast start again and get going from the opening kickoff,” Price said. “We have to take care of the football offensively, and we did a good job of that Friday night against Pilot Point. We need to put together some drives and be a little bit more consistent.

“Defensively we have to show up and play like we have the last few weeks – stop the run, control the line of scrimmage and get after their running backs. We need to get them in second and third and long and then get after them with a good pass rush. I think we match up better on the receivers this week than we did last week. If we get them into throwing downs I like our chances.”

According to Harris Ratings Weekly, Early is a 1-point underdog.

Friday’s winner will face either Bushland (8-3) or Whitesboro (7-4) next week in the regional semifinals.

***

Early Longhorns 2021 Football Stats

Through 11 Games (9-2, 3-2)

TEAM OFFENSE
39.6 points per game (436)

383.9 yards per game (4,223)
177.0 rushing yards per game (1,947)
206.9 passing yards per game (2,276)

PASSING
‒ Jaxyn Price
126 of 216 for 1,916 yards, 28 TDs, 4 INTs

‒ Tucker Hale
23 of 44 for 360 yards, 3 TDs, 2 INTs

RUSHING
‒ Tre Beam
1,366 yards on 191 carries, 14 TDs

‒ Franky Villarreal
214 yards on 41 carries, 3 TDs

‒ Kaleb Ozuna
174 yards on 34 carries, 3 TDs

‒ Tucker Hale
89 yards on 25 carries, TD

‒ Michael Morales
71 yards on 22 carries, TD

‒ Gavin Sanders
33 yards on 1 carry, TD

‒ Riley Hill
32 yards on 4 carries

‒ Ryan Parisi
-3 yards on 1 carry

‒ Jaxyn Price
-29 yards on 25 carries, 2 TDs

RECEIVING
‒ Jeremy Brown
48 catches for 657 yards, 5 TDs

‒ John-Stewart Gordon
36 catches for 551 yards, 8 TDs

‒ Tre Beam
22 catches for 339 yards, 4 TDs

‒ Ki Houston
14 catches for 270 yards, 4 TDs

‒ Cedrick Morelan
6 catches for 176 yards, 2 TDs

‒ Vic Cooper
6 catches for 89 yards, TD

‒ Caleb McCullough
6 catches for 65 yards, 2 TDs

‒ Gavin Sanders
5 catches for 53 yards, TD

‒ Franky Villarreal
4 catches for 47 yards, 2 TDs

‒ Ryan Parisi
1 catch for 20 yards, TD

‒ Kaleb Ozuna
1 catch for 14 yards

‒ Hayden Welch
1 catch for 5 yards

‒ Michael Morales
1 catch for 1 yard

***

TEAM DEFENSE
17.3 points per game (190)

244.2 yards per game (2,686)

119.4 rushing yards per game (1,313)
124.8 passing yards per game (1,373)

TACKLES

‒ Caleb McCullough
94 tackles, 16 for loss, 5 sacks

‒ Kaleb Ozuna
94 tackles, 4 for loss, 2 sacks, 2 FRs, 1 INT

‒ Tucker Hale
91 tackles, 5 for loss, 1 sack, 1 INT, 1 FR

‒ Korbin Hall
73 tackles, 18 for loss

‒ Franky Villarreal
70 tackles, 6 for loss, 4 sacks, 2 for loss, 2 FRs

‒ Tre Beam
59 tackles, 22 for loss, 6 sacks, 2 FRs

‒ Jeremy Brown
42 tackles, 3 for loss, 3 INTs

‒ Vic Cooper
40 tackles, 1 INT

‒ Chris Fernandez
37 tackles, 3 FRs

‒ Brooks Clippinger
36 tackles, 5 for loss, 1 FR

‒ Casey Moseley
29 tackles, 3 for loss, 1 FR

‒ John-Stewart Gordon
25 tackles, 6 INTs

‒ Dalton Adams
24 tackles, 1 for loss

‒ Gavin Sanders
18 tackles, 1 for loss

‒ Cedric Morelan
14 tackles

‒ Houston Ortiz
7 tackles, 1 for loss

‒ Bradly Roman
6 tackles

‒ Ki Houston
6 tackles, 2 FRs

‒ Sebastian Constancio
4 tackles

‒ Riley Hill
4 tackles

‒ Cooper Jacobs
4 tackles

‒ Jaxyn Price
2 tackles

‒ Hayden Welch
2 tackles, 1 FR

‒ Ryan Parisi
1 tackle

***

TURNOVER MARGIN: (+19)
Early 8 – 2 fumbles, 6 INTs
Opponents 27 — 14 FRs, 13 INTs