No. 10 Lions begin defense of District 2-4A Division I crown at Big Spring

October 5, 2023 at 6:30 am Derrick Stuckly

The Brownwood offense will attempt to bounce back from a season-low 71 rushing yards last week as they face a Steers defense that has given up at least 50 points in each of the last four games.

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The Dave Campbell’s Texas Football Class 4A Division I No. 10 Brownwood Lions find themselves in a position they haven’t been in since the 2011 campaign – preparing to defend a district championship.

The reigning 2-4A Division I champion Lions (5-1, 0-0) hit the road for a 7 p.m. Friday showdown with the Big Spring Steers (1-5, 0-0) in the league opener for both squads.

“Everybody’s 0-0 now and everybody’s going to come out fighting,” said Lions sixth-year head coach Sammy Burnett. “It’s new life and the time when the games really count. Those six games we’ve played have prepared us for where we are right now. We’ve maintained our focus, we’ll learn from the mistakes we made last week and fix those for this week and beyond. We know everyone is going to try and knock us off the hill.”

Big Spring gave the Lions their closest contest during the 2022 district campaign as Brownwood picked up a 41-10 victory at Gordon Wood Stadium to begin the league slate. Brownwood outscored its four district foes 200-40 last year.

“Our message to our kids this week is we may be playing a team that’s 1-5 but I think they’re highly talented,” Burnett said. “They return seven on offense and five on defense. They’re big and I was really impressed with their offensive line last year and a lot of those guys are back for them.”

Big Spring dropped its season opener to Pampa (35-25), then picked up its lone win over Lubbock High (32-21), before falling in the last four contests against Monahans (52-14), Sweetwater (56-30), Snyder (56-13) and Seminole (51-33).

Offensively, the Steers are producing 25 points per game led by quarterback Gavin Padron, who has passed for 1,553 yards with 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions. Leading receivers include Jose Munoz (57-626, 2 TDs) and Zeyire Franklin (40-802, 9 TDs). The ground game is anchored by Kavien Ford (436 rushing yards, 1 TD), who has missed most of the season with an injury but rushed for 174 yards and a touchdown against Seminole last week. Munoz also hurled a 56-yard touchdown pass in last week’s outing.

“Last year they took the ball and marched it right down our throat the first drive until Sam Kallman picked off a pass inside the 10 on fourth down,” Burnett said. “They had a possibility to score on that first drive but our kids were resilient then and I think they’re more resilient now.”

Brownwood’s defense is yielding 21 points and 312 yards – 171 passing and 141 passing – per outing, with six takeaways but none in the last two games.

Leading the charge are Sam Kallman (76 tackles, 6 for loss, 4 sacks), Jake Jetton (66 tackles, 1 fumble recovery, 1 INT), Noah Gonzalez (62 tackles, 5 for loss, 1 sack), Stevie Ramirez (62 tackles, 1 for loss, 1 sack, 1 INT), Zakk Zabecki (34 tackles, 2 for loss), Weston Wolf (30 tackles, 2 for loss, 2 sacks), Robert Trowbridge (24 tackles, 2 for loss, 1 sack), Hayden Noe (24 tackles, 1 INT), Jordyn Nickerson (23 tackles), and Quinten McCarty (22 tackles, 3 sacks).

On the flip side of the ball, the Big Spring defense is surrendering 45 points per game on average and in each loss during the Steers’ current four-game slide, the defense has given up at least 50 points. Last week against Seminole, Big Spring’s defense gave up 537 total yards, including 431 through the air with seven touchdown passes.

“What I’ve seen on film is it doesn’t look like they are flying to the football,” Burnett said of the Big Spring defense. “They’re waiting on someone else to make a tackle, so if we can get to the second level and to their linebackers we can have some opportunities to make big plays. This week we want to emphasize the running game. If we start running the football, they’ll bring more people into the box which allows us to take shots over the top which we have the ability to do. But we need to dictate what goes on, not them.”

Behind the blocking of McCarty, Cole Miller, Davis Le, Aidan Packheiser and Logan Knight, the Lion offense is generating 35 points and 368 yards – 185 passing and 183 rushing – per contest, with seven turnovers.

Quarterback Ike Hall has connected on 51 of 101 passes for 960 yards with eight touchdowns and four interceptions, while rushing for a team-best 594 yards and eight more touchdowns. Top receiving threats are Carson Noe (23-299, 2 TDs), Aaron Edmonds (12-204, 2 TDs), Morsello Hooker (6-187, 4 TDs), Hayden Noe (6-133, TD), Levi Pearson (6-55), Wolf (5-88, TD) and Stone Ratliff (4-99, TD). Jaylan Brown (207 rushing yards, 5 TDs) and Pearson (153 rushing yards, TD) have seen the bulk of the work in the backfield.

On the injury front, Burnett stated Brown is likely to miss a second straight contest, but that decision is not yet final. All other Lions who have suited up during the regular season are expected to be available for action Friday night.

According to Harris Ratings Weekly, Brownwood is a 35-point favorite.

Brownwood Lions 2023 Football Season Stats

Through 6 Games (5-1)

TEAM OFFENSE

34.8 points per game (209)

367.8 yards per game (2,207)

182.8 rushing yards per game (1,097)

185.0 passing yards per game (1,110)

54.7 completion percentage (64 of 117)

PASSING

* Ike Hall

51 of 101 for 960 yards, 8 TDs, 4 INTs

* Braeden Stacks

13 of 16 for 150 yards, 3 TDs

RUSHING

* Ike Hall

594 yards on 69 carries, 8 TDs

* Jaylan Brown

297 yards on 54 carries, 5 TDs

* Levi Pearson

153 yards on 49 carries, TD

* Braeden Stacks

43 yards on 9 carries, TD

* Case Burnett

27 yards on 7 carries

* Logan McKibben

12 yards on 4 carries

* Noah Gonzalez

8 yards on 1 carry, TD

* Aaron Edmonds

-2 yards on 1 carry

* TEAM

-15 yards on 2 carries

RECEIVING

* Carson Noe

23 catches, 299 yards, 2 TDs

* Aaron Edmonds

12 catches, 204 yards, 2 TDs

* Morsello Hooker

6 catches, 187 yards, 4 TDs

* Hayden Noe

6 catches, 133 yards, TD

* Levi Pearson

6 catches, 55 yards

* Weston Wolf

5 catches, 88 yards, TD

* Stone Ratliff

4 catches for 99 yards, TD

* Xavier Zepeda

2 catches, 34 yards

* Jaylan Brown

1 catch, 11 yards

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TEAM DEFENSE

21.1 points per game (127)

312.0 yards per game (1,872)

140.7 rushing yards per game (844)

171.3 passing yards per game (1,028)

60.1 opponents completion percentage (80 of 133)

TACKLES

* Sam Kallman

76 tackles, 6 for loss, 4 sacks

* Jake Jetton

66 tackles, 1 fumble recovery, 1 INT

* Noah Gonzalez

62 tackles, 5 for loss, 1 sack

* Steve Ramirez

62 tackles, 1 for loss, 1 sack, 1 INT

* Zakk Zabecki

34 tackles, 2 for loss

* Weston Wolf

30 tackles, 2 for loss, 2 sacks

* Robert Trowbridge

24 tackles, 2 for loss, 1 sack

* Hayden Noe

24 tackles, 1 INT

* Jordyn Nickerson

23 tackles

* Quinten McCarty

22 tackles, 3 sacks

* Jaylan Brown

21 tackles, 1 for loss

* Cole Miller

19 tackles, 1 for loss

* Morsello Hooker

18 tackles, 1 for loss, 1 INT

* Kenyan McDowell

16 tackles, 1 INT

* Julius Lara

13 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 for loss

* Isaiah Rosas

5 tackles

* Gray Stewardson

4 tackles, 1 sack

* Ricky Vasquez

4 tackles

* Jamaria Harmon

3 tackles, 1 for loss

* Case Burnett

2 tackles

* Yovani Figueroa

2 tackles

* Davis Le

1 tackle

* Xavier Zepeda

1 tackle

* Tyler Beal

1 tackle

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KICKING

* Junior Martinez

6 of 7 FGs – long of 52, missed from 44

27 of 27 PATs

45 points

22 punts, 841 yards, 38.2 average – long of 52; 2 inside opponents’ 5

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TURNOVER MARGIN (-1)

* Brownwood: 7 (3 fumbles, 4 interceptions)

* Opponents: 6 (1 fumble, 5 interceptions)

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PENALTIES

* Brownwood: 36 for 328 yards (6 for 54.6 per game)

* Opponents: 40 for 317 yards (6.7 for 52.8 per game)