It seems like every week of the high school football season has featured at least one ‘Game of the Year’ candidate. You could take your pick of the three games in the Alamodome from the KSAT Pigskin Classic for Week 1. Uvalde’s incredible victory over Eagle Pass Winn in their home-opener headlined Week 2. Jourdanton knocked off Pleasanton in five overtimes in Week 3. And Week 4 was highlighted by some incredible finishes like Pearsall over Poteet, Steele’s overtime win over Midland Legacy and Jefferson’s wild win over Brackenridge.
Week 5 managed to one-up all the rest at least in one way: by delivering two of the highest-scoring games of the season. Harlan and Warren needed overtime to decided a game that saw 111 points scored, while Judson knocked off Midland Legacy at home in a game with 110 total points scored in regulation. Offenses have clearly hit their stride as we near the midpoint of the season with teams steadily leaving non-district play in the rear-view mirror.
Before we take a deep dive into some of the most memorable games from Week 5 of our Big Game Coverage (BGC), let’s recap the biggest moments from the week that was in the Best of BGC!
Week 5 was full of memorable plays from all across the greater San Antonio area! On Instant Replay, we selected the best of the best, including highlights from Harlan, Holmes, Harlandale and Pleasanton!
>> Click here to check out the Best of BGC from Week 5! <<
Be sure to check out all of the highlights from Week 5 as well!
(Copyright 2021 by KSAT – All rights reserved.)
Only one undefeated team remains in this week’s edition of KSAT 12?s Top 12, and there’s been quite the shakeup in the bottom half of the Class 5A and 6A rankings. See who made the cut for the first time this season!
>> See the full Week 6 rankings by clicking here! <<
(Copyright 2021 by KSAT – All rights reserved.) (KSAT)
STEELE 48, FORT BEND CHRISTIAN ACADEMY 7
The top-ranked Knights flexed their muscle under the Friday night lights at Lehnhoff Stadium against Fort Bend Christian Academy.
Steele (5-0) led 7-0 after one quarter of action before putting the pedal to the metal in the second quarter. Star running back Jaydon Bailey doubled the lead with an elusive 50-yard touchdown run, then Alvin Williamson stepped in front of a pass for a 22-yard pick six. Within a matter of minutes, the Knights held a 21-0 advantage. Bailey added another four-yard score later in the frame, and Steele entered halftime with a commanding 28-0 lead.
That trend continued in the second half. Bailey scored again from four yards out midway through the third quarter for a 35-0 lead, and then David Hart added an exclamation point on the first play of the fourth quarter with a blocked punt. He recovered the loose ball in the end zone himself, as the Knights cruised to a convincing 41-point victory.
That concludes their non-district schedule. Now the Knights prepare to start District 27-6A play against New Braunfels (3-2) next Friday.
(KSAT)
HARLAN 59, WARREN 52 (OT)
Saturday is usually reserved for college football, and there definitely were some crazy finishes in Lubbock and at AT&T Stadium. The Red Raiders’ incredible comeback and the Aggies’ thrilling victory over Arkansas were undoubtedly memorable, but the craziest ending to a football game that night might have been at Gustafson Stadium in a District 29-6A showdown between Harlan and Warren.
The Warriors (4-1, 2-1) took control of the game right out of the gates on a pair of touchdowns from Darian Holmes for an early 13-0 lead, but Harlan answered back with 21 straight points. The Hawks (3-2, 1-2) took an eight-point lead on a 13-yard touchdown from quarterback Noah Farris to Payton Matthews and entered the halftime locker room with a 24-21 advantage. After the break, both teams traded scores early in the third quarter until Warren started to pull away. Qwincy Amos stole the lead back for the Warriors with a 75-yard pick six, then Andrew Cisneros added a four-yard touchdown to cap a 21-point third quarter barrage that gave Warren a 42-31 lead entering the final 12 minutes of regulation.
That’s when things got really wild. Farris found Jacob Gonzales for a 49-yard touchdown that made it a four-point game with 10:17 left to play. Harlan got the ball back later in the frame and immediately scored again. This time, Gonzales ripped off a stunning 80-yard touchdown run to put the Hawks up 45-42 with less than four minutes remaining. The reprieve didn’t last long. A little over 20 seconds later, Warren retook the lead on a brilliant effort from wide receiver Elijah Realoza, who caught a quick slant from quarterback Antonio Meza and split a pair of defenders for a 74-yard touchdown and a 49-45 advantage. Thirty-six seconds after that, Gonzales came up with another big play. He caught a quick throw at the Warren 48-yard line and motored his way inside the 20 before being tackled by a trio of Warriors defenders. The ball slipped out of his grasp, but Miky Duesing was right there to recover the loose ball for an eight-yard touchdown — his second of the game — that vaulted the Hawks back in front 52-49. Within the span of a minute, the two teams had traded the lead twice with a combined 21 points. At the end of the night, Gonzales had posted nearly 300 total yards of offense and three touchdowns: 18 rushes for 160 yards and five catches for 131 yards.
>> Click here for highlights from the final minutes of Harlan vs. Warren! <<
Somehow, the roller coaster still wasn’t over. With a little less than three minutes on the clock, Warren moved into field goal range thanks to an incredible leaping grab from Holmes, who finished the night with 19 catches for a whopping 279 yards. Meza commanded Warren’s high-powered offense to the tune of 30 completions for 441 yards and three scores. Kicker Henry Pentz came on to boot a 46-yard field goal with 25 ticks left that tied the game at 52-all and forced overtime.
Harlan took the ball first and promptly scored. Off a pump-fake, Farris found Izayah Manchester on an incredible back-shoulder throw for a 28-yard touchdown. That connection proved to be the game-winner. Elijah Walton recovered a forced fumble on Warren’s next possession, sealing one of the wildest victories you will ever see. With the win, the Hawks are right back in the race for the playoffs at 1-2 in district play.
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SOTOMAYOR 14, HOLMES 8
For the first time in program history, Sotomayor’s football team walked off the gridiron with a victory.
The Wildcats (1-3, 1-1) broke a scoreless tie late in the first half thanks to pressure from sophomore Tristin Woodruff. Holmes quarterback Isaac Martinez was pushed back into the end zone and avoided a sack by getting rid of the ball, but he was ultimately flagged by the referees for intentional grounding. The penalty resulted in a safety, and Sotomayor entered the halftime locker room with a 2-0 lead. Late in the third quarter, the Wildcats offense broke through. Jayden Gutierrez burst through the line on a counter for a 48-yard touchdown run that gave Sotomayor some breathing room up 8-0, but the wildcats weren’t able to make it a two-possession game. Holmes (0-5, 0-3) blocked the ensuing extra point and DeQuincy Jackson returned the loose ball 97 yards for two points, and the Huskies were still alive down 8-2.
That block would loom large as Holmes rallied in the fourth quarter. Martinez found Xavier Rodriguez for a five-yard touchdown that tied the game 8-8 with a little over five minutes left in regulation, but the Wildcats answered in the waning moments of regulation. With 15 seconds on the clock, Trae Dorsey knifed his way through the Husky defense for a five-yard touchdown that ended up being the game-winner.
It wasn’t pretty, but winning rarely is, especially in District 29-6A. Sotomayor has fought hard this season, and the Wildcats have plenty to celebrate as their inaugural season nears its midpoint.
(KSAT)
SAM HOUSTON 26, EDISON 24
District 14-5A Division II is in chaos once again with three teams deadlocked at 2-2 in district play. Sam Houston is fortunate to be one of those three after a thrilling fourth-quarter comeback against Edison on Friday.
The Hurricanes (3-2, 2-2) struck first on a 61-yard pitch-and-catch from quarterback Albert Goodloe to Jeremiah Espitia, but the Golden Bears (2-3, 1-3) returned fire with 17 straight points. Quarterback Roger Lopez and Ethan Escamilla each scored touchdown runs to put Edison up 17-7 late in the half. Unfazed, Sam Houston clawed their way back into the game with a 10-yard touchdown run from Tristan White, and the Hurricanes entered halftime trailing Edison 17-13.
The Golden Bears reinstated their 11-point lead late in the third quarter on a one-yard score from Lopez, and they held a 24-13 advantage as the game shifted into the fourth quarter. That’s when the Hurricanes offense hit their stride. First, Goodloe found the end zone on a one-yard plunge to cut the deficit down to five, 24-19. Then, a little over a minute later, Na’Qwentis Brooks scored on a 14-yard touchdown scamper to give Sam Houston their first lead since the first quarter, 26-24. That would hold up as the game-winning score. Brooks finished with 23 carries for 110 yards and that touchdown, as the Hurricanes placed themselves right back in the thick of the district race.
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Thursday night, I paid a now-weekly visit to Alamo Stadium to catch Harlandale’s showdown with Brackenridge. The last time I saw the Indians in person, their offense recovered from a slow start to take down Edison 20-14. This week, Harlandale came out firing on all cylinders. Jacob Saucedo was pitch perfect early on, finding Pedro Valenzuela for a 17-yard touchdown on the opening drive that ended up being our Catch of the Week, then lobbing one up for Joseph Esparza on a 35-yard TD connection that established an early 14-0 lead. The Indians scored 28 points in the first quarter en route to a 55-43 victory over the Eagles. Saucedo completed 17 passes for 305 yards and five touchdowns, meaning he averaged a whopping 18 yards per completion. Harlandale is 4-1 overall and joins Alamo Heights as the only two undefeated 4-0 teams in District 14-5A Division II. The Indians are definitely a team to watch as the second half of the season rolls around.
Upon returning to the station from enjoying a great atmosphere at TMI Episcopal on Friday night, I found myself gravitating towards the stream of Judson’s home game against Midland Legacy. The Rockets were in desperate need of a win after three-straight losses, and they responded in emphatic fashion. Dynamic running back Nathaniel Stanley was at the heart of one of the craziest games of the weekend, rushing 28 times for 159 yards and four touchdowns while catching six passes for 51 yards and two scores. That’s right, Stanley finished with a ridiculous six total touchdowns, and each one showcased a different weapon in his versatile skill set. Turns out, Judson needed every point. The Rockets led 41-0 after one quarter of play and hung on to win 60-50. Sophomore quarterback Elijah Favela completed 33 of 39 passes for 443 yards and five touchdowns in the victory. Now, Judson has righted the ship as they prepare to enter District 27-6A play next week against 2-3 East Central.
>> Click here to watch all six of Stanley’s touchdowns! <<
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In case you missed it, here’s some more local sports highlights and stories from the last week:
We’ll see you on Thursday night for the start of Week 6!
Andrew Cely, KSAT 12 Sports Producer and Reporter
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