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5 BIG THINGS: Bridgeland survives, FB Marshall upset, Willis wins first playoff game since 2010
HOUSTON - If you didn't fasten your seatbelt on Friday night for the opening round of the 2021 Texas high school football playoffs, it was a wild ride.
The slate was full of great talent and match-ups across the board with some big surprises in the end. Here are my five big takeaways from the busy night.
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Barbers Hill STUNS Fort Bend Marshall
It’s game day! Bi-District playoffs vs Ft Bend Marshall! Excited to see our Eagles compete! #EFH pic.twitter.com/8eBI3F71VC
— Carl Abseck (@abseckbhfb) November 12, 2021
When Carl Abseck came over to Barbers Hill in the offseason from perennial power Cedar Park, we knew something special could happen with his magic touch. Beating undefeated Fort Bend Marshall in the opening round after going 5-5 on the year was not quite on that list. But that's what Barbers Hill did on Friday night with a 42-21 victory.
Brent Holdren was unstoppable for the Eagles, going 15 of 20 (75 percent) for 162 yards, two touchdowns and a pick. Holdren also rushed for 122 yards and two scores in the win. Garrett Hagler busted out of the backfield for 152 yards and two scores on just 29 carries. The Eagles outscored the Buffs 22-0 in the third quarter, which ended up being the difference in the end.
Fort Bend Marshall quarterback Ja'Koby Banks was held to 10 of 24 for 101 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions.
Barbers Hill faces A&M Consolidated next week in the Class 5A Division II Area Round.
Bridgeland Survives Klein Collins
This FINISH!!! @ConnerWeigman to @andrewmaleski6 for the win!! Unbelievable with 15 seconds left ... game of the night!! #txhsfb (🎥: @hayliestmedia | @VYPEU_A) @MaxPreps @KPRC2RandyMc @HTownHSS @CyFairISD pic.twitter.com/PyFd3v8uxb
— VYPE Houston (@vypehouston) November 13, 2021
Bridgeland needed that Conner Weigman magic on Friday night. The Texas A&M-commit with just 15 seconds remaining in the game hit Andrew Maleski on a perfect pass in the end zone to put the Bears up a point in a 34-33 victory over Klein Collins.
The win snapped Klein Collins' six-game winning streak after an 0-4 start to the year for the Tigers. Weigman and company had to dig their way out of a multi-touchdown deficit to pull off this victory. This is a Bridgeland team that doesn't panic and that showed on Friday night when down 33-21 with just 8:18 left in the game. From that point on, Bridgeland outscored Klein Collins 13-0 to win the game.
Bridgeland takes on College Park next week. That game is set to be played at Woodforest Bank Stadium on Friday with kickoff slated for 7 p.m.
Willis notches first playoff win since 2010
WildKat Nation!!! @WillisWildkats1 defeats Dekaney for its first PLAYOFF WIN since 2010!!! The first-ever as a Class 6A program! #txhsfb (@DerekLagway @WillisSchools) pic.twitter.com/wF3CeftgrJ
— VYPE Houston (@vypehouston) November 13, 2021
The previous four trips to the playoffs have been a one and done for the Wildkats of Willis. And never before had they won a Class 6A playoff contest.
Well, check that box off and officially put an end to the streak. Willis defeated Dekaney on Friday 22-14, pushing them to 6-5 on the year and getting the program its first playoff win since beating Magnolia West 46-45 in 2010. This is just the sixth playoff win in program history. The Wildkats came storming back in the fourth quarter with a 13-point frame to beat Dekaney. Quarterback Derek Lagway was 4 of 13 for 75 yards and two scores, while tailback Jerrod McHenry had 107 yards and a score on just eight carries.
This unit will have to produce more than 238 yards of total offense next week when they face Tomball in the Class 6A Division II Region II Area Round. Tomball is coming off a 52-29 victory over Cy Park on Thursday night. This will be the second meeting of the year for Willis and Tomball as the two met in the season-opener back in August. Tomball won that meeting 40-27. The Wildkats haven't reached the third round of the playoffs since 1994.
Willis faces Tomball on Friday, Nov. 19, at 7 p.m. at Planet Ford Stadium in Spring.
Spring Roars in Second Half
TOUCHDOWN!
— VYPE Houston (@vypehouston) November 13, 2021
Bishop Davenport finds Wide open receiver in the end zone for the score! @bishoptheQB
6:51 left in the 3rd Quarter
Lions- 24
Highlanders- 21 pic.twitter.com/aauJfqCBif
The Woodlands held Spring down in the opening half of Friday's bi-district contest, leading 21-17 at the break. But Spring's explosive offense is something that can be held back for a bit but not forever. In the second half, Bishop Davenport, the Utah State-commit and company went to work. The Lions roared to a 35-point second half, while the defense held The Woodlands to just 14 points in an eventual 52-35 win.
Davenport finished the game 15 of 25 for 353 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. He also rushed for another 95 yards. Joey Fussell may of had just 61 yards on 13 carries but three of those totes ended in the endzone. Cadyn Bradley was Davenport's top target with six catches for 224 yards and three scores. The Spring offense amassed 512 total yards of offense.
The Woodlands' Mabrey Mettauer went 17 of 32 for 250 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.
Spring faces Klein Collins next week in the Class 6A Division I Region II Area Round on Friday, Nov. 19 at Klein Memorial Stadium with a 7 p.m. kickoff.
VYPE Postgame: Spring's Gerrod Henderson
Spring’s Gerrod Henderson Jr. dominated all night on defense pic.twitter.com/ICnqbSAKGe
— VYPE Houston (@vypehouston) November 13, 2021
Pearland Dawson avenges season-opening loss
Pearland Dawson's Colin Johnson, Jonathan Lopez, Ashton Stroman, Shamar Jones and Amaurion GreenHow many times have we seen this script play out? A team comes back to defeat someone they lost to earlier in the season in the playoffs. A few years ago, that was North Shore beating Katy in the playoffs after losing the opener to them - North Shore went on to win a state title that year.
So, when the Clear Falls vs Pearland Dawson match-up arose in the opening round, some may have thought this would be an easy win for the Knights since they had beaten the Eagles handily, 31-7, in the opening week. But that was in August. That was a LONG time ago in the high school sports world.
Pearland Dawson didn't back down Friday night avenging that loss with a 35-31 victory, outscoring Clear Falls 14-7 in the fourth quarter to get the win. Pearland Dawson signal-caller Colin Johnson had a phenomenal night going 20 of 28 (71% completion rate) for 313 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. Bryce Burgess was the main back with 24 carries for 106 yards and one score, while Ryan Guillo was Johnson's top target with 10 grabs for 171 yards and two scores. A 17.1 yards/catch mark isn't a bad stat either.
David Smith led the Clear Falls offense with 157 yards and three scores on 23 carries.
The win propels Pearland Dawson into a showdown with Summer Creek on Friday at 7 p.m. inside Humble ISD's Turner Stadium.
FULL #TXHSFB Houston Playoff Scoreboard
VYPE Postgame: Cinco Ranch RB Eric Eckstrom
.@cincofb junior RB Eric Eckstrom discusses the Cougars’ 44-0 6A-D2 bi-district playoff win over Bush tonight. Eckstrom had more than 100 yards rushing and three touchdowns to lead the Cougars. #txhsfb @KatyISDAthletic @CincoAthletics pic.twitter.com/OayjNyt1Th
— VYPE Houston (@vypehouston) November 13, 2021
Wildkats flying high after 35-28 road victory over Klein Collins
HOUSTON - In the opening two games of the season, Michael Wall feels like they had just two bad quarters, which eventually led to losses and an 0-2 start.
"We felt like we won six out of the eight [quarters] but it didn't matter, we lost the game and felt like we needed to clean up us," Wall said.
Since that 0-2 start, Wall admits that they are still not perfect but the improvements they have made has led to three-straight wins over Bellaire (50-27), fifth-ranked A&M Consolidated (24-17) and then capped non-district play with a 35-28 win over Klein Collins on Thursday night at Klein Memorial Stadium.
"Our guys came in with a real business-like atmosphere," Wall said. "They were really focused. Sometimes they get hyped but they came out and had a total team effort. Offense, defense, special teams pulled their weight tonight and it's awesome to get a win on the road again."
This Is ... VYPE All-Access presented by @Academy with @WillisWildkats1 🎥🔥
🎥: @DRISKILLCAM #txhsfb (@WillisSchools @forrester_colby @davidsoriano25 @zach_rogers274 @TannerHayes11 @jadariusbrown7 @Willis_HS_TX @DerekLagway @KPRC2RandyMc @DrHarkrider @michaelwall1212) pic.twitter.com/FnH7Dn4FAN
— VYPE Houston (@vypehouston) September 24, 2021
From the start, once Willis (3-2) got the ball finally with just over three minutes in the first quarter following a clock-draining drive by Klein Collins which ended in a 17-yard touchdown run by Jeremiah Hasan-Hackney, it took one play for Derek Lagway to show his arm strength.
Lagway, who was upgraded to a four-star 2024 prospect this past week by 24/7 Sports, reached back and hit Tallas Harrison in stride for a 41-yard score to tie it up. Trailing 14-7 in the second quarter, Lagway then showed off his legs with a 45-yard touchdown run where he evaded multiple tackles as the pocket collapsed.
"For me personally throwing the ball [has improved]," Lagway who finished 9 of 15 for 160 yards and two touchdowns, said about his improvement since the season opener. "I could always run it. But not mixing it all together and knowing when to use both has helped me a lot."
Harrison showed off his skills on both sides of the ball on Thursday night.
After the 41-yard touchdown catch, Harrison reeled in a 19-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter on which he tip-toed the sideline for the last 10 yards of and then flipped to defense.
"Tallas is my guy," Lagway said. "We've been working all summer. That's what we worked for right there."
VYPE Postgame 🎙:@WillisWildkats1 two-way star @HarrisonTallas who had two receiving TDs and a pick six in the win talks with VYPE. ! #txhsfb (@WillisSchools @forrester_colby @davidsoriano25 @zach_rogers274 @TannerHayes11 @jadariusbrown7 @DerekLagway @KPRC2RandyMc @DrHarkrider pic.twitter.com/XjHmoTCZqu
— VYPE Houston (@vypehouston) September 24, 2021
With 11:36 left in the fourth quarter, Harrison picked off Klein Collins quarterback Tucker Parks and took it back 34 yards for the touchdown.
"It's hard work, you have to train for it," Harrison said. "A lot of running at practice. Work hard and it's really conditioning. Just stay in shape and do your job."
In a tight game, where teams were trading score for score. The defining moment came with 4:47 left in the game and Willis was facing a 4th and 2 from their own 43-yard line.
Wall opted to run his punt team out onto the field and it looked like Klein Collins was about to get it back down just a touchdown. But then Wall reached into his bag of tricks. The snap went to Da'onte Fleeks, who busted up the middle and was gone for a 57-yard touchdown on the fake punt, giving Willis a 35-21 lead and all the momentum.
"Felt really confident in it from the get-go," Wall said. "Just talking with Coach Knicky he felt good about it, so I said let's run it. We were running out of time there. So, the guys excited under pressure and a big play for [Da'onte] and that was the difference-maker."
With the win, Willis goes into the bye week on a three-game winning streak before locking horns with The Woodlands in two weeks for the opening of District 13-6A play.
VYPE Postgame 🎙: Caught up with QB1 @DerekLagway after the win. Had some big plays tonight. ! #txhsfb (@WillisSchools @forrester_colby @davidsoriano25 @zach_rogers274 @TannerHayes11 @jadariusbrown7 @Willis_HS_TX @KPRC2RandyMc @DrHarkrider @WillisHSBand @michaelwall1212) pic.twitter.com/ZDJSS2AdX5
— VYPE Houston (@vypehouston) September 24, 2021