VIDEO: Konlyn Anderson (2), who rushed for a team-high 132 yards, scores the final Brownwood touchdown on this 4-yard carry in the fourth quarter.
BURNET – A two-touchdown deficit, a pair of turnovers and 15 penalties for 165 yards – more flags and yardage than the Lions had been whistled for the entire season – were all obstacles No. 6 Brownwood had to overcome, but at Friday night’s conclusion the maroon and white emerged with a 33-20 victory to sour the Burnet Bulldogs’ homecoming.
Trailing 14-0 after one quarter, the Lions grabbed the lead just before halftime, 17-14, en route to scoring 33 consecutive points.
“I’m proud of our kids’ resilience,” said Lions fifth-year head coach Sammy Burnett, who improved to 25-22 at his alma mater. “We didn’t have a great week of practice and I told them that. We came off a big win in Week 2 and sort of rested on our laurels. The coaches had to coach hard this week and got on the kids to try and get them motivated and they started coming around Wednesday and Thursday, but they learned a lesson tonight. You cannot practice poorly and show up and expect people to lay down. Burnet fought hard, played hard and they’re a good football team.”
The Lions (2-1) finished with 436 yards of total offense – 246 passing and 190 rushing – compared to 240 yards – 155 through the air and 85 on the ground – for Burnet (1-2). After two possessions, however, Brownwood had been outgained 111 yards to 36 and the first of two Lion turnovers led to the Bulldogs’ initial score.
Lion quarterback Ike Hall, who completed 14 of 20 passes for 246 yards with a touchdown, was hit on his second pass attempt of the game and the ball fluttered into the hands of a Burnet defender at midfield for an interception just 96 seconds into the contest. Seven plays later, Grant Jones scored on a 5-yard fly sweep for Burnet, staking the Bulldogs to 7-0 lead with 7:09 left in the first quarter.
The Lions’ second possession resulted in a punt after one first down, and Burnet marched 65 yards in five plays as Tanner O’Hair hooked up with Trenton Park on a 23-yard scoring toss, and Brownwood stared into a 14-0 hole with 2:20 left in the opening stanza.
“That’s what we looked like all week in practice and that’s where the frustration came in,” Burnett said of the sluggish start. “But the guys just started talking, started communication with (offensive coordinator) Coach (Dex) Dennard in the booth about what they were doing wrong and how to fix it. They knew they were never out of it and we started moving the ball and started getting big chunks when we executed.”
Defensively, after giving up Burnet’s first two scores, the Lions surrendered just 129 yards the rest of the contest.
“We made some adjustments,” Burnett said. “They were hurting us with some zone stuff and (assistant head) Coach (David) Jones changed the coverages up and did some different things up front to keep them off-balance. The plays that were successful for them early, we changed our coverages based on Burnet’s formations and the kids responded and executed those well.”
Leading tacklers for the Lions were Chance Jones with eight tackles, two sacks and one tackle for loss; Noah Barron with seven takedowns; Stevie Ramirez with six, one sack, and one for loss; Sam Kallman with six, one sack, and one for loss; Case Markham with six; Jaylan Brown with five and one sack; Cole Miller, Morsello Hooker and Jordyn Nickerson with five each; Hayden Noe and Davis Le with three apiece; Trent Loftin, Jake Jetton, and Hayden Deen with two each; and Xavier Zepada, Logan McKibben, and Azariah Dillard with one apiece.
Brownwood’s first scoring drive culminated on the first play of the second quarter as Hall scored on a 2-yard carry to cap a 75-yard, eight-play trek. The march featured a 16-yard pass from Hall to Jordan Leach on the first snap, a 20-yard carry by Konlyn Anderson on the second, a Hall 12-yard scramble and an 11-yard connection between Hall and Thad Hinds to set up the score.
Burnet’s ensuing possession ended with a failed fake punt attempt at its own 47, and the Lions turned the short field into three points. After a 12-yard run by Anderson, a 31-yard pass from Hall to Hinds followed, which set the stage for a 22-yard field goal by Junior Martinez that brought the Lions within 14-10 with 6:55 left in the half.
The Lion defense then forced its first takeaway of the game on Burnet’s next drive, as Will Johnson was stripped off the ball after a short completion and Quinten McCarty pounced on the loose ball at the Brownwood 34.
A 66-yard, 13-play drive followed, and the Lions overcame two 10-yard penalties, a 15-yard penalty and first-and-27 at one point to take their first lead. Completions of 16 yards to Hinds, and 12 yards to both Leach and Anderson helped prolong the possession. Then, with 26 seconds in the half, Hall – who rushed for 25 yards and two scores – plunged his way into the end zone from1 yard out to give Brownwood a 17-14 halftime edge.
The second half began with Burnet going three-and-out, then an errant snap on a punt attempt from the Bulldog 32 resulted in a safety – similar to what happened to the Lions against Abilene Wylie in the season opener – as Brownwood’s lead increased to 19-14 just 68 seconds into the third period.
The Lions were unable to capitalize after the free kick, but the Brownwood defense again forced a three-and-out on Burnet’s second possession. This time, the Lions cashed in on just one play, as Hall hit Hinds in stride for a 53-yard scoring strike, and Brownwood’s lead grew to 26-14 with 6:49 left in third quarter.
Hinds finished with a career-high nine catches for 185 yards and a trip to the end zone. Leach chipped in four grabs for 49 yards, and Anderson caught a 12-yard screen pass.
“With Jason Jackson out someone had to rise up and Thad Hinds, every time his name was called he made big plays,” Burnett said. “On the other side, Jordan Leach made some plays as well.”
The two teams traded fumbles later in the third period – with Sam Kallman making the recovery for Brownwood – but neither team was able to make the most of the takeaway. Then, after a Burnet drive stalled on the Lion 21 with 10:07 left in the contest, Brownwood pieced together a game-sealing 12-play, 79-yard journey that chewed 4:57 off the clock and ended with a 4-yard touchdown carry by Anderson for a 33-14 lead with 5:10 left.
Behind the line of Slayde Espinoza, Damian Sanchez, Chris Robinson, Roan Aguinaga and Isaac Gray, Anderson finished with a team-high 132 yards on 22 carries, and the final touchdown for the Lions.
“Up front, it took a little bit but we got settled down and started doing what we can do and we were successful,” Burnett said. “Once we got up 12, we were able to control the clock.”
Burnet added a final score with 16 seconds left, aided by three 15-yard penalties along the way.
“I don’t often say things like this, but it seems like we had to overcome a lot of penalties that were unseen by us and I was really frustrated by that,” Burnett said. “But the lesson to be learned is play the next play. What has happened is out of your control, go play the next play and believe in yourself that you’re going to be successful.”
Next week, the Lions return to Gordon Wood Stadium to host Glen Rose (3-0), ranked No. 7 in Class 4A Division II by Harris Ratings Weekly, which is coming off a 49-14 win over Graham.
“We’ve seen Glen Rose on film already and they’re a very good football team, ranked in the Top 10 for a reason,” Burnett said. “We’re going to have our hands full and we’re going to go to work and hopefully practice hard all week long. If we come out ready to fight, we can play with anybody.”
***
Lions 33, Burnet 20
SCORE BY QUARTERS
| Brownwood | 0 | 17 | 9 | 7 | – 33 |
| Burnet | 14 | 0 | 0 | 7 | – 20 |
SCORING SUMMARY
Bur: Grant Jones 5 run (extra point kick), 7:09, 1st
Bur: Trenton Park 23 pass from Tanner O’Hair (extra point kick), 2:20, 1st
Bwd: Ike Hall 2 run (Junior Martinez kick), 11:56, 2nd
Bwd: Martinez 22 FG, 6:55, 2nd
Bwd: Hall 1 run (Martinez kick), 0:26, 2nd
Bwd: Safety – punt snapped into end zone, 10:52, 3rd
Bwd: Thad Hinds 53 pass from Hall (Martinez kick), 6:49, 3rd
Bwd: Konlyn Anderson 4 run (Martinez kick), 5:10, 4th
Bur: Jayce Brizendine 2 pass from O’Hair (kick failed), 0:16, 4th
***
| TEAM STATS | Bwd | Bur |
| First Downs | 23 | 20 |
| Total Offense | 436 | 240 |
| Rushes-Yards | 38-190 | 30-85 |
| Passing Yards | 246 | 155 |
| Comp-Att-Int | 14-20-1 | 18-28-0 |
| Penalties-Yards | 15-165 | 4-25 |
| Fumbles Lost | 1 | 2 |
| Punts-Average | 2-38.5 | 2-43.0 |
***
PLAYER STATS
RUSHING: Brownwood – Konlyn Anderson 22-132, TD; Logan McKibben 7-33; Ike Hall 9-25, 2 TDs. Burnet – Jose Rodriguez 16-59; Grant Jones 6-31, TD; Trenton Park 4-18; Will Johnson 4-13; Tanner O’Hair 5-(-36).
PASSING: Brownwood – Hall 14-20-1-246, TD. Burnet – O’Hair 18-28-0-155, 2 TDs.
RECEIVING: Brownwood – Thad Hinds 9-185, TD; Jordan Leach 4-49; Anderson 1-12. Burnet – Park 4-38, TD; Johnson 4-17; Braden Ellett-Clark 3-49; Jones 2-27; Anthony Perez 2-12; Garner Krause 2-11; Jayce Brizendine 1-2, TD.
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KICKING – Brownwood – Junior Martinez 1 of 1 FG: Made 22. 4 of 4 PATs. 2 punts, 77 yards, 38.5 average.
