After clinching their 23rd consecutive berth in the 7-on-7 Division II state tournament last weekend at Burnet, the Brownwood Lions put forth their most impressive performance of the summer Saturday at their own qualifier, posting a 3-0 record – all against teams the maroon and white will face in the fall campaign.
The Lions cruised to victories of 33-6 over Burnet and 34-12 over Glen Rose, scoring the first three touchdowns in each of those contests. Brownwood then rallied from an early two-touchdown deficit to knock off District 2-4A Division I rival San Angelo Lake View, 33-25, to complete the Pool A sweep.
“Scoring more than 30 points a game is big,” said Lions head coach Sammy Burnett, who observed Saturday’s action. “We had opportunities in the first two games to blow the game open and we did, and we hadn’t done that in the last two tournaments. I like the fact that we took advantage of that. The third game we came out a little flat and weren’t executing offensively and busted some coverages that allowed them to score. But no one panicked, they encouraged each other, they found a way to get back in the ball game and pulled it off at the end, and that shows growth. Earlier in the qualifying season we were getting on each other but we focused on not doing that and I’m pleased they found a way to finish that last game. Going 3-0 is a big deal.”
Brownwood’s offense – which had not hit the 30-point mark in a 7-on-7 qualifying game prior to Saturday – scored on 70 percent (14 of 20) of its possessions as quarterback Ike Hall connected on 55 of 82 pass attempts – a 67 percent clip – with 12 touchdowns and no interceptions. Hall was whistled for four seconds just four times and the Lions receivers dropped only four passes – the best marks in a tournament this summer. Braeden Stacks saw his first action of the qualifying season at quarterback and completed 9 of 13 tosses with a touchdown.
Carson Noe continued to lead the charge among the receiving corps with 16 catches and three touchdowns followed Jaylan Brown with 10 grabs and a score and Jake Jetton with nine receptions and three trips to the end zone. Also getting into the offensive act were Morsello Hooker (7 catches), Stone Ratliff (5 catches, 1 TD), Xavier Zepeda (4 catches), Jordyn Nickerson (3 catches, 3 TDs), Hayden Noe and Aaron Edmonds (3 catches each), Logan McKibben (2 catches, 1 TD) and Noah Gonzalez (1 catch, 1 TD).
Regarding the biggest keys to offensive improvement Saturday, Burnett said, “We reduced the drops and busted routes and ran our routes the right way. Ike did a great job of throwing the ball and we did a great job of catching it.”
After picking off six passes in four games in Burnet last weekend, the Lions recorded eight interceptions in three contests Saturday. Nickerson picked off three passes, Colton McMillian added two – including one for returned for a touchdown – Jetton also nabbed a pair, and Gonzalez upended an extra point attempt with a pick. The Lions also allowed touchdowns on just seven of 19 opposing drives (37 percent).
“It’s understanding what we’re supposed to do and where we’re supposed to be,” Burnett said on the 14 total interceptions in the last seven qualifying games. “We were disciplined with our eyes, we’re reading our assignment and not watching the quarterback. They all believe in each other and go out there and support each other and they each did their job and it showed.”
In the victory over Burnet, the Lions led 19-0 at halftime thanks to scoring tosses by Hall to Jetton, Ratliff and Gonzalez. Jetton hauled in another touchdown from Hall for a 26-6 lead, then Nickerson intercepted a pass that set up a Stacks to Carson Noe score for the final 33-6 score.
Against Glen Rose, Brownwood jumped out to 20-0 halftime edge as Hall hooked up with Brown, Nickerson and Carson Noe in the end zone before the break. Interceptions by Nickerson and Jetton set up the second and third scores. Leading 20-6 in the second half, the pick six by McMillian foiled any hopes of a Glen Rose rally.
In the finale against Lake View, the Lions trailed 13-0 before Hall found Nickerson for the first Brownwood score of the contest. Down 19-7, Hall and McKibben connected to close the gap to 19-13 and, after a Jetton interception in the end zone, Hall and Nickerson teamed up again for the tying score, and Hooker added the extra point to push Brownwood in front, 20-19, at halftime.
A touchdown pass from Hall to Jetton boosted the Lions lead to 26-19 early in the second half. Clinging to a 26-25 lead late, Brownwood tacked on an insurance score when Hall hit Carson Noe on a fade and Jetton added the extra point in the final minute.
The Lions will take part in their final 7-on-7 state qualifier at Jim Ned on Saturday, June 10, then head to Veterans Park and Athletic Complex in College Station June 22-23 for the 7-on-7 Division II state tournament.
“We just want to continue to grow,” Burnett said of the goals for the rest of June. “We’re going to take this opportunity to look at some other guys and grow in what we’re trying to do offensively and continue to do what we’ve been doing defensively.”
Clyde and Ponder earned the two berths from Brownwood in the 32-team 7-on-7 Division II state tournament field.
