BANGS – The opening half of the Bangs Dragons’ first road contest of 2024 couldn’t have gone much better last week, while the second half couldn’t have gone any worse.
Leading 27-0 at halftime, the Dragons suffered a 38-27 loss to Grape Creek to fall to 1-2 on the season. Bangs is back on the road this week, looking for a complete four-quarter as it visits the winless Abilene TLCA Eagles.
Friday’s 7 p.m. contest will be played at Wilford Moore Stadium on the campus of McMurry University.
“Our game plan is we have to play four quarters,” Buzzard said of the approach in practice this week. “I don’t want to have one quarter in there where I feel like we didn’t play very well. That was my challenge to the kids this week. We’re going to play hard and like the game is 0-0 on every single snap. If we do that we’ll be okay.”
Reflecting on last week’s performance in which Bangs outgained Grape Creek 240 yards to -12 in the first half, only to finish with 286 yards and three turnovers to the Eagles’ 199 total yards, Buzzard said, “We were playing really sound football, really great football, kids were doing exactly what we coached them up to do throughout the week and we were having a lot of success. After halftime, a different team walked out basically. We didn’t take care of the football, we weren’t reading our keys, we weren’t playing assignment football like we were supposed to. We can’t think some team is just going to lay down because they’re getting beat.
“This is a learning thing for us, you can’t take any lead for granted. We have to go out there and play every play, and we didn’t do that. That’s my fault. I take a lot of the blame because I didn’t get the guys going the way I should have, and I take a lot of the blame myself. We know what our ceiling can be. We need to stay there, we don’t need to leave it. The kids know it too. We can be pretty good if we do what we’re asked to do.”
Part of the second-half downfall for Bangs was three turnovers, giving the Dragons eight through the first three outings. As for how the Dragons are addressing improvement in that department, Buzzard said, “In practice we have to make sure we’re working the kids hard enough to where they’re getting tired, and still focusing on the football. We’re amping up the intensity in practice and treating it like a game. That’s the only way you can get better at taking care of the football. You can do so many drills, but when you get in a live situation you have to take care of the football.”
The Dragons on Friday will be facing an Abilene TLCA squad that has been outscored 173-14 thus far this season with losses to Munday, 57-6, Cross Plains, 64-8, and Haskell 52-0. The Eagles posted a 1-9 record a year ago and moved up to Class 2A Division I after being a 2A Division II school the previous two seasons.
TLCA players to watch are quarterback AJ Rico, receiver Manuel Rios, and running backs Ladanian Bolts and Joe Bolts.
Bangs enters the contest averaging 20 points and 224 yards – 173 rushing and 53 passing – per outing.
Leading rushers include Aden Jones (160 yards, 1 TD), Brayden Gatlin (139 yards, 2 TDs), Eliseo Rivas (85 yards, 1 TD) and quarterback Skylar Minshew (85 yards). Minshew has also connected on 15 of 33 pass attempts for 156 yards with a pair of scoring tosses and two interceptions. Primary receiving threats include Cason Tidwell (4-67, TD), Rex Guerrero (4-35, TD), and Noah Castillo (4-17).
On the flip side of the ball, the Dragons are yielding 28 points and 272 yards – 151 through the air and 121 on the ground – with six takeaways and a pair of defensive touchdowns.
“We’re still installing things on both offense and defense,” Buzzard said. “We didn’t want to move too fast to where we’re not good at anything. We’re right where we thought we would be both on offense and defense in terms of the install.”
According to Harris Ratings Weekly, Bangs is a 47-point favorite.
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Bangs Dragons 2024 Football Season Stats
Through 3 Games (1-2)
TEAM OFFENSE
19.7 points per game (59)
223.6 yards per game (698)
173.3 rushing yards per game (520)
59.3 passing yards per game (178)
PASSING
* Skylar Minshew
15 of 33 for 156 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs
* Hunter Withers
1 of 6 for 22 yards
RUSHING
* Aden Jones
160 yards on 25 carries, 1 TD
* Brayden Gatlin
139 yards on 26 carries, 2 TDs
* Eliseo Rivas
85 yards on 13 carries, 1 TD
* Skylar Minshew
85 yards on 22 carries
* Jackson Edmiston
45 yards on 15 carries
* Connor Bible
8 yards on 1 carry
* Navaeh Menefield
4 yards on 2 carries, 1 TD
* Hunter Withers
-6 yards on 3 carries
RECEIVING
* Cason Tidwell
4 catches, 67 yards, 1 TD
* Rex Guerrero
4 catches, 35 yards, 1 TD
* Noah Castillo
4 catches, 17 yards
* Brayden Gatlin
1 catch, 27 yards
* Connor Bible
1 catch, 22 yards
* Michael Parrott
1 catch, 6 yards
* Braxton Wommack
1 catch, 4 yards
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TEAM DEFENSE
28.3 points per game (85)
272.0 yards per game (816)
121.0 rushing yards per game (363)
151.0 passing yards per game (453)
TACKLES
* Eliseo Rivas
20.5 tackles, 3 for loss, 1 sack, 1 fumble recovery
* Hunter Crowell
18.5 tackles, 1 for loss, 1 sack
* Cason Tidwell
13.5 tackles, 1 for loss
* Nevaeh Menefield
10.5 tackles, 1 for loss, 1 sack
* Rex Guerrero
10.5 tackles
* Kristopher Kelly
6.5 tackles, 2 for loss
* Brayden Gatlin
6.5 tackles, 1 for loss
* Conner Bible
6.5 tackles, 1 for loss,1 INT
* Kian Kelly
6 tackles, 1 for loss
* Chris Valdez
6 tackles
* Skylar Minshew
6 tackles
* Michael Parrott
4.5 tackles
* Noah Castillo
3 tackles, 1 for loss, 2 sacks, 2 fumble recoveries
* John Paul Rangel
2.5 tackles, 1 for loss
* Hunter Withers
2 tackles, 1 fumble recovery
* Aden Jones
2 tackles
* Mason Minshew
1 tackle
* Kason Klutts
0.5 tackle
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TURNOVER MARGIN (-2)
* Bangs: 8 (6 fumbles, 2 interceptions)
* Opponents: 6 (5 fumbles, 1 interception)