EARLY – The Early Longhorns pushed the Clifton Cubs to the brink, but came up short in their bid to notch their first District 5-3A Division II victory under first-year head coach Randall Case, 26-25, Friday night.
Clifton (5-2, 2-0) survived a second-straight one-point district decision, after edging Eastland, 14-13, last week, while Early (1-6, 0-2) put forth its best performance since the season opener, despite coming up short for the sixth game in a row.
“We’re really proud of the way our kids played,” Case said in a Saturday morning phone interview. “They played hard for four quarters. We saw some really good things and some things we need to clean up. There were a handful of plays in that game that either did or didn’t go our way that determined the outcome. The defense made a stop at the end and made them punt to give us an opportunity to win it at the very end, it just didn’t go our way. Our kids gained a little confidence and realized they can do it and have the capability to do it. Hopefully we take that little bit of momentum and confidence and finish out the rest of district strong.”
Tied at 13 at halftime, Early grabbed a 19-13 lead to start the second-half scoring. Clifton surged in front, 20-19, before the Longhorns answered back, 25-20. The Cubs had the final answer, however, scoring the decisive touchdown midway through the fourth quarter.
Early generated 397 yards of total offense – 254 rushing and 143 passing – but were hampered by four turnovers, three interceptions and a fumble. The Longhorns also converted just one of three extra-point attempts, which proved critical in a one-point outcome.
Cameron Love rumbled for a career-best 219 rushing yards and three touchdowns, with one fumble, to pace the Longhorn offense. Quarterback Weston Barton connected on 11 of 23 passes for 143 yards with one touchdown and three picks, and added 29 yards on the ground. Andrew Reedy caught six passes for 82 yards and scored once.
Also hauling in receptions were Brayden Moya with two grabs for 11 yards followed by Ben Bleth with a 36-yard catch and Jaxson Stockman with a 15-yard catch.
Clifton produced 283 total yards with 211 coming on the ground as Joaquin De La Hoya ran for 73 yards and a touchdown, James Liardon added 69 yards with a score, Jackson Ritz tallied 51 yards, and Tristan Hammons chipped in 12 yards and reached the end zone once.
Judd New returned one of Clifton’s three interceptions on the night for a touchdown.
For Early, Kaeden Byrd recorded 24 tackles, Mario Vasquez finished with 20 and a fumble recovery, and Ben Morris contributed 11 tackles.
The Longhorns are back in action next week at Brady (6-1, 2-0), which rolled over Eastland, 47-7, Friday night.
