The Brownwood Lions’ 50th appearance in the Texas high school football playoffs, and 15th consecutive trip, kicks off at the friendly confines of Gordon Wood Stadium at 6 p.m. Thursday in the Region I-4A Division I bi-district round of the playoffs against the San Elizario Eagles.
Back-to-back District 2 champion Brownwood (9-1), playing its seventh home game for the first time since 2006, welcomes District 1 fourth-seed San Elizario (2-7). The home playoff game is also a first for the Lions since 2006, when Brownwood defeated Ennis in the first round and Lake Dallas in the third round, both at Gordon Wood Stadium.
“It’s hard for people to come into Gordon Wood Stadium and beat the Brownwood Lions and that’s because of our fan base and the support we have from the community,” said Lions sixth-year head coach Sammy Burnett, coming off his 100th career victory in Brownwood’s 28-14 win over Andrews in its most recent outing on Oct. 27. “Everybody’s excited, hopefully it’s a sell out, we’re going to have room on both sides. It’s going to be a great atmosphere and all the support we get from the community will help rally us for a victory. It’s intimidating for people to come to Gordon Wood Stadium and see how many people we have. And for the seniors, it could be the last time they step on that field as Brownwood Lions, so that’s a big deal.”
San Elizario earned its playoff berth by rallying from a 20-7 halftime deficit to defeat El Paso Irvin, 25-20, in its last regular season game. The Eagles also own a 47-6 victory over winless Class 3A Division II squad Tornillo.
In the victory over Irvin, the Eagles finished with 318 yards of total offense – all rushing – as San Elizario bases out of the flexbone. Zamar Vargas rushed for 245 yards and three touchdowns, while Jesus Garcia chipped in 60 yards on the ground.
“They run the football a lot,” Burnett said. “They’re a lot like Andrews except they’re a double slot with one running back behind the quarterback and that’s it. They do a lot of motion, but they’re going to run the football. In the last four games they’ve thrown the ball seven times, so we have to be disciplined like we were against Andrews and not give up the big play. We want to force them to run the football, which leans into what we feel we do best and that’s stopping the run. We have to control the line of scrimmage and dominant their offensive line. They’re 3 yards and a cloud of dust so we can’t let them get a surge. We need to hit them in the backfield.”
The Brownwood defense enters the contest yielding 16 points and 275 yards – 141 rushing and 134 passing – per outing, with eight takeaways.
Standouts include Sam Kallman (115 tackles, 7 for loss, 6 sacks, 1 fumble recovery), Stevie Ramirez (102 tackles, 5 for loss, 2 sacks, 1 INT), Noah Gonzalez (94 tackles, 6 for loss, 2 sacks), Jake Jetton (90 tackles, 1 sack, 1 fumble recovery, 1 INT), Zakk Zabecki (68 tackles, 3 for loss), Weston Wolf (51 tackles, 5 for loss, 5 sacks), Quinten McCarty (45 tackles, 2 for loss, 4 sacks), Robert Trowbridge (37 tackles, 2 for loss, 1 sack), Jordyn Nickerson (36 tackles), Hayden Noe (33 tackles, 1 INT), Morsello Hooker (32 tackles, 1 for loss, 2 INTs), Cole Miller (31 tackles, 1 for loss, 1 sack), and Jaylan Brown
(31 tackles, 1 for loss).
The Lions may be without their leading tackler Kallman, who may sit out to rest nagging injuries, but Burnett stated that decision isn’t final and, if needed, Kallman could play. The rest of the Lions who have played during the regular season are expected to suit up for the bi-district contest.
The San Elizario defense surrendered just 143 yards to Irvin – 112 passing and 31 rushing. Leading the charge for the Eagles were Martin Juarez, Gabriel Rodriguez, and Vargas.
“We have to be physical up front on offense, control the line of scrimmage, move the ball on the ground, and if we have to throw the ball be capable and able to do that,” Burnett said. “They’re a cover 4 team which means they’re soft on the back end and they’ll give you the underneath stuff so we have to take advantage of that with our quick screen game to get the ball on the perimeter and make yardage that way, which will move people out of the box and allow us to continue to run the ball like we want to. If they start tightening down and putting more people in the box, it gives us the opportunity to take shots over the top”
Behind the front line of McCarty, Miller, Davis, Aidan Packheiser and Logan Knight, Brownwood’s offense produces 39 points and 404 yards – 246 on the ground and 155 passing – per game, with 11 turnovers.
Quarterback Ike Hall has completed 81 of 146 passes for 1,329 yards with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions, while rushing for a team-best 1,250 yards and 18 scores. Other weapons in the backfield include Levi Pearson (560 rushing yards, 5 TDs; 9-123, TD receiving), Brown (328 rushing yards, 7 TDs), Xavier Zepeda (162 rushing yards, 2 TDs), and Logan McKibben (117 rushing yards, 2 TDs). Receiving threats are Carson Noe (28-370, 3 TDs), Aaron Edmonds (23-281, 2 TDs), Hooker (10-238, 5 TDs), Stone Ratliff (8-177, TD), Hayden Noe (6-133, TD) and Wolf (6-109, TD).
The Lions’ bye finally fell in Week 11, following the completion of the 10 regular-season games for Brownwood. Having not a played a game since Oct. 27 is a small concern for Burnett, but San Elizario is in the same position with its bye taking place last week as well.
“Not having played at game speed in what will be two weeks, you lose a little bit so we’ll have to knock off some rust quickly and go out and perform at the level we want to,” Burnett said. “The first half after a bye you always seem to be trying to get back into the groove and get back to game speed because nothing can simulate game speed. Playing a fourth-seeded team, hopefully we’ll be able to afford a mistake if it happens and be able to overcome it until we get back to game speed.”
According to Harris Ratings Weekly, there is no line is this week’s game. Brownwood is rated 90 points higher than San Elizario in the Harris system.
Thursday’s winner will face either District 3 runner-up Canyon Randall (6-4) or District 4 third seed Burkburnett (3-7) in the area round of the playoffs next week. A victory Thursday night would be the 75th playoff win in Lions’ history.
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Brownwood Lions 2023 Football Season Stats
Through 10 Games (9-1, 4-0)
TEAM OFFENSE
39.4 points per game (394)
403.6 yards per game (4,036)
245.9 rushing yards per game (2,479)
155.7 passing yards per game (1,557)
57.7 completion percentage (97 of 168)
PASSING
* Ike Hall
81 of 146 for 1,329 yards, 11 TDs, 5 INTs
* Braeden Stacks
16 of 22 for 228 yards, 4 TDs, 1 INT
RUSHING
* Ike Hall
1,250 yards on 122 carries, 18 TDs
* Levi Pearson
560 yards on 112 carries, 5 TDs
* Jaylan Brown
328 yards on 62 carries, 7 TDs
* Xavier Zepeda
162 yards on 13 carries, 2 TDs
* Logan McKibben
117 yards on 15 carries, 2 TDs
* Braeden Stacks
78 yards on 11 carries, TD
* Case Burnett
27 yards on 7 carries
* Noah Gonzalez
8 yards on 1 carry, TD
* Aaron Edmonds
-2 yards on 1 carry
* TEAM
-22 yards on 3 carries
RECEIVING
* Carson Noe
28 catches, 370 yards, 3 TDs
* Aaron Edmonds
23 catches, 281 yards, 2 TDs
* Morsello Hooker
10 catches, 238 yards, 5 TDs
* Levi Pearson
9 catches, 123 yards, TD
* Stone Ratliff
8 catches for 177 yards, TD
* Hayden Noe
6 catches, 133 yards, TD
* Weston Wolf
6 catches, 109 yards, TD
* Xavier Zepeda
3 catches, 32 yards
* Ike Hall
2 catches, 61 yards, TD
* Jordyn Nickerson
1 catch, 17 yards
* Jaylan Brown
1 catch, 11 yards
###
TEAM DEFENSE
16.2 points per game (162)
275.4 yards per game (2,754)
141.1 rushing yards per game (1,411)
134.3 passing yards per game (1,343)
57.5 opponents completion percentage (115 of 200)
TACKLES
* Sam Kallman
115 tackles, 7 for loss, 6 sacks, 1 fumble recovery
* Steve Ramirez
102 tackles, 5 for loss, 2 sacks, 1 INT
* Noah Gonzalez
94 tackles, 6 for loss, 2 sacks
* Jake Jetton
90 tackles, 1 sack, 1 fumble recovery, 1 INT
* Zakk Zabecki
68 tackles, 3 for loss
* Weston Wolf
51 tackles, 5 for loss, 5 sacks
* Quinten McCarty
45 tackles, 2 for loss, 4 sacks
* Robert Trowbridge
37 tackles, 2 for loss, 1 sack
* Jordyn Nickerson
36 tackles
* Hayden Noe
33 tackles, 1 INT
* Morsello Hooker
32 tackles, 1 for loss, 2 INTs
* Cole Miller
31 tackles, 1 for loss, 1 sack
* Jaylan Brown
31 tackles, 1 for loss
* Kenyan McDowell
26 tackles, 1 INT
* Julius Lara
24 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 for loss
* Gray Stewardson
23 tackles, 1 sack
* Ricky Vasquez
13 tackles
* Isaiah Rosas
12 tackles, 1 sack
* Tyler Beal
8 tackles
* Jamariea Harlmon
7 tackles, 2 for loss, 1 sack
* Xavier Zepeda
6 tackles
* Yovani Figueroa
3 tackles
* Ross Strasner
2 tackles
* Colton McMillian
2 tackles
* Case Burnett
2 tackles
* Davis Le
1 tackle
* Logan McKibben
1 tackle
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KICKING
* Junior Martinez
7 of 9 FGs – long of 52, missed from 44, 40
52 of 53 PATs
73 points
25 punts, 963 yards, 38.5 average – long of 52; 2 inside opponents’ 5
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TURNOVER MARGIN (-3)
* Brownwood: 11 (5 fumbles, 6 interceptions)
* Opponents: 8 (2 fumbles, 6 interceptions)
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PENALTIES
* Brownwood: 51 for 443 yards (5.1 for 44.3 per game)
* Opponents: 60 for 460 yards (6.0 for 46.0 per game)