Week 7 of the 2022 high school football season brought some clarity to district races across the greater San Antonio area. With four weeks left on the schedule, each win and loss has a greater impact on the final standings and playoff positioning.
Steele, Judson and San Marcos all took a step closer to a potential 27-6A title by picking up wins in their district openers, but New Braunfels, East Central and Clemens still have time to recover. South San is a prime example. The Bobcats defeated Eagle Pass Winn to improve to 2-3 in District 13-5A Division I, and are a little closer to catching the top half of the district standings. One win can change the trajectory of a team’s season. That’s just a snapshot of the larger picture as we prepare for the home stretch.
As always, our Big Game Coverage (BGC) featured some phenomenal matchups and incredible plays! Let’s recap the biggest moments from the week that w as in the Best of BGC .
On Instant Replay, we selected the best of the best, including highlights from Harlan, Steele, Highlands and Sam Houston!
>> Click here to check out the Best of BGC from Week 7! <<
Be sure to check out all of the highlights from Week 7 as well:
(Copyright 2021 by KSAT – All rights reserved.)
The top five 5A and 6A teams from last week’s KSAT 12?s Top 12 remain the same, but the rest of the rankings saw plenty of new faces. Who made the cut heading into Week 8?
>> See the full Week 8 rankings by clicking here! <<
(Copyright 2021 by KSAT – All rights reserved.) (KSAT)
STEELE 42, NEW BRAUNFELS 24
The Knights opened District 27-6A play in style with a dominant victory over a hard-nosed Unicorns squad.
Steele (6-0, 1-0) put 14 points on the board in the first five minutes of game action. Royal Capell scored a 75-yard touchdown on the game’s first play, and Joe Perez found the end zone on the Knights’ second offensive possession for a quick 14-0 lead. New Braunfels (3-3, 0-1) countered with an impressive 24-yard TD pass from Leighton Adams to Landon Marsh that cut the deficit to four points early in the second quarter, but that was the closest the Unicorns would get for the remainder of regulation.
The Knights rattled off 21 straight points to close out the half. Moments after New Braunfels’ touchdown, workhorse running back Jaydon Bailey ripped off a long run of his own to set up first and goal. He capped the drive off with a two-yard score for a 21-10 lead. Then, Perez found the end zone again on a beautiful seven-yard reverse to make it 28-10. Finally, on the first play of their next offensive possession, quarterback Chad Warner uncorked a perfectly-thrown deep ball for a wide open Jalen Cooper and a 61-yard touchdown. Within the span of six regulation minutes, Steele had opened up a 25-point lead.
It grew even larger in the third quarter. Bailey scored his second touchdown of the game on a one-yard plunge for the Knights’ final points. Bailey carried the ball 15 times for 148 yards, while Warner completed eight passes for 215 yards and a score, as Steele cruised through the final 19 minutes of regulation.
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JOHNSON 31, CLARK 28
The Jaguars and Cougars traded touchdowns throughout regulation on Thursday night. That’s not a metaphor, they literally went back and forth all night long.
Johnson (4-2, 3-1) opened the scoring on quarterback Ty Hawkins’ 11-yard touchdown pass to Lorenn Johnson late in the first quarter. Clark (5-2, 3-2) returned fire with a 14-yard touchdown run from Nic Lee on the final play of the first quarter, and the tone had been set. Hawkins’ 16-yard TD pass to Alejandro Tavarez was answered by Chris Goertz’s eight-yard TD run. Tavarez then returned the ensuing kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown, but that 21-14 lead lasted a little more than two minutes. Lee hit Michael Vasquez for the game-tying score with 36 seconds left on the clock, as both teams entered the halftime locker room tied at 21-all.
Midway through the third quarter, Hawkins found the end zone again — this time with his legs — on a 15-yard scamper for a 28-21 lead. That score held up until late in the fourth quarter. Lee connected with Vasquez again on a 14-yard TD to tie the game at 28-28 with 4:34 left in regulation. It came down to who had the ball last. Hawkins and the Jaguars made sure the Cougars wouldn’t get another opportunity. After marching deep into the red zone and burning as much clock as possible, Harrison Stone kicked the game-winning 19-yard field goal with four seconds left to give Johnson a much-needed bounce-back victory and keep them in the hunt for the District 28-6A title.
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BURBANK 28, MCCOLLUM 21
Two 2-2 teams hit the gridiron at SAISD Sports Complex on Thursday afternoon, and the Bulldogs emerged with a leg up in District 14-5A Division II
Burbank (4-2, 3-2) jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter thanks to a pair of touchdown passes from quarterback Keven Hernandez to Rene Espinoza and Peter Peralta. McCollum (2-4, 2-3) answered with two straight touchdowns of their own from Jonathan Longoria, first on a five-yard TD run, then on a 15-yard TD reception from quarterback Justin Rodriguez that tied the game 14-14 entering halftime. The Cowboys then surged ahead late in the third quarter on a 15-yard QB-keeper from Rodriguez for a 21-14 advantage.
It didn’t take long for the Bulldogs to bite back. Hernandez tied it up at 21-21 thanks to a 19-yard run with eight seconds left in the frame, and he later ripped off a go-ahead 49-yard touchdown run with 2:10 left in regulation. Hernandez ended the game with 303 total yards of offense, including 238 rushing yards and four total touchdowns, as Burbank snapped their two-game losing streak.
PEARSALL 28, CARRIZO SPRINGS 27
For the second time this season, the Mavericks managed to win a one-point game that came down to the final possession.
Pearsall (6-1, 1-0) roared out to a 21-7 halftime advantage thanks to touchdowns from Elijah Luna and Joey Ramirez. Late in the third quarter, Luna scored his third rushing TD of the game for a 28-13 lead. The dual-threat quarterback headlined an impressive rushing attack by racking up 247 yards on 29 carries. Ramirez added 74 yards on 19 carries, as the Mavericks survived a 14-point fourth quarter from Carrizo Springs (2-5, 0-1) to win their first game against District 14-4A Division II competition.
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Friday night, I took the BGC Fan Cam out to Pieper for the first time and got to experience their Coliseum firsthand. The venue was packed and loud all night long for the Warriors’ game against Kerrville Tivy. It looked like the home team had control of the game early in the first quarter thanks to an interception from Jackson Hopper, but the Antlers responded with 12 straight points. Logan Edmonds scored the game’s first touchdown from a yard out, and Kyle Lackey hit Jackson Johnston for a four-yard TD pass to go up 12-3. Pieper’s offense found its rhythm in the second quarter on Jake Stratchan’s first touchdown pass to Mason Krueger. Stratchan finished the game with 317 passing yards and four TDs, two to Krueger and two to Nathan Martinez. But Lackey threw for 166 yards and 3 TDs while rushing for 116 yards and two scores, as the Antlers pulled away in a 54-30 victory. Do yourself a favor and swing out to Pieper when you get a chance and enjoy a fantastic football environment!
Saturday afternoon, I bounced around all over the city, covering Trinity and UIW at the college level and three high school games: Jay vs. Holmes, TMI vs. St. Anthony and Taft vs. Stevens. The then-No. 7 Raiders found themselves in a real battle with the Falcons at Gustafson Stadium. When I arrived, Taft trailed 21-13 late in the second quarter before promptly seizing control of the game. Quarterback Johnie Lott hit Devon Ewertz for a 17-yard touchdown with 2:09 left in the half. Then, on the ensuing possession, the Raiders used a perfectly-executed flea-flicker to set up Lott for a go-ahead nine-yard TD run, and Taft entered halftime with a 26-21 advantage. They wouldn’t relinquish that lead in the second half. Lott combined with teammates TJ Andrews, Prometheus Oliver-Elmore, Clay Porter and Jayden Aleman to amass 337 total rushing yards and four rushing TDs. Following their district-opening loss to Brennan, the Raiders have reeled off three straight wins and are now 5-1 overall, 3-1 in District 29-6A. Keep your eye on Taft as the season winds down.
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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 7!
Andrew Cely, KSAT 12 Sports Producer and Reporter
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