Texans win, set up district rematch at regional semi-final

The Wimberley Texans faced off against the Orange Grove Bulldogs in round two of the UIL football playoffs last week.

The match-up took place on Friday, Nov. 18. The Bulldogs had come off of a win against Raymondville, hoping to build momentum.

“Coach Kornegay is a good coach and will have his team ready,” Texans Head Coach Doug Warren commented on Orange Grove prior to the game. “They have a lot of talent from their skill positions, and their statistics show a team with the ability to move the ball.”

Orange Grove averaged 380 yards per game with nearly 4200 yards for the season.

Enter Code Red. “I liked our intensity at the start of the game, the way we came out,” Warren said. “We were really physical from the get go on both sides of the ball. That set the tone, and we steamrolled through the first half and got them on their heels.”

“To me, that goes back to the preparation we had throughout the week,” he continued. “Once again, we had three really good days of workouts. When you practice good, then you’ll play good. That was the result tonight.”

The final from Southwest Legacy Stadium in Von Ormy was 48 - 0, thanks to a stone-cold, solid Texans defense that barely permits first downs, much less points. The Texans have not allowed a score in the playoffs, and no team has scored against them in 13 consecutive quarters, going back to the fourth quarter of a Week Ten matchup v. Lago Vista.

“This week was about alignments,” Defensive Coordinator Wes Lambert said. “We were concerned with getting lined up, making sure that we are playing sound fundamental football, and executing the game plan.”

Big hits came from across the defense with Jack Riser, Kason Pritchard and Lane Patek leading the attack, disrupting the Bulldog offense. The defensive front was key to the strategy, slowing down a persistent run attack fueled by a quick and elusive sophomore, Diego Garza. Garza accounted for nearly fifty percent of attempts for a stymied Bulldog offense.

“I’m just proud of these guys. They understood what we were trying to do with our scheme and knew everybody’s roles. They played solid all the way around,” Lambert said. “When we wanted to bring stuff inside, we did things to make the inside open up, getting some quick heat. We were mixing it up, trying to bring things from the edge.”

“We ran Patek — who has been a great player for us all season — off the edge which is a different pace for us,” Lambert specified. “He brought a lot of pressure and did a lot of good things.”

The entire defensive front of Owen O’Neal, Troy Heugly and Hanson Collie — when they weren’t creating havoc of their own — worked to create spaces for defensive attacks from Brady Barbee and Riser. Wyatt Franchione, Dane Hennessee and Gabe Wray were tested and came up with significant plays at critical junctures throughout the evening.

“The mantra all week long was ‘let’s get lined up and let’s play fast.’ The Garza kid is hard to bring down and if you missed the tackle on him, he was quick to explode and make a big play,” Lambert said. “But we also knew that if we swarmed to the ball at the point of attack, we could rally up and get him bottled in.”

When asked whether the defensive results are due to scheme or desire, Coach Warren was emphatic.

“Both. Coach Lambert and his staff do a great job preparing these kids and they never let an offense get comfortable,” he said. “But the kids love playing Code Red defense. They love being the most physical team out there and they love hitting. They fly to the football and get after you. So it’s really a combination of design and desire.”

The offense continues to click with efficiency, scoring a total of 129 points in two playoff games and 195 in the past three. Quarterback Cody Stoever completed ten of sixteen passes for 166 yards and three touchdowns with an interception.

“We don’t prepare for the other team,” said Stoever. “We scout their defense, of course, but we come out to work every day, staying focused on what we do. We want to get better every day no matter the opponent.”

“I think the main thing it boils down to is we have so much fun,” he continued. “This group just loves to be with each other — that’s the culture. The coaches put in the right game plan, and we trust them.”

The Texans’ nearly 300 yards of rushing was led by Johnny Ball with 140 yards on a dozen carries with two touchdowns. Stoever carried ten times for 99 yards, also scoring twice. Jack Boyle followed up with thirty-seven yards on five attempts, and Braden Cayce picked up twenty-two yards while carrying three times behind the power of the Texan O-line anchored by Caden Romo, Jackson LaBoulier, Kaedon Gonce, Kaeden Coltharp and Tristan Herring.

“Our offense is executing at a high level,” Coach Warren remarked. “All things are clicking because the guys up front are resetting the line of scrimmage, knocking defenders off the ball.”

“You look at the way Johnny Ball ran the football tonight,” he continued. “He is a load: a really good running back that can run between the tackles and also get it outside. We’ve got so many weapons that can hurt you. From the start of the year to now, we’ve evolved, and you can really see the growth.”

Texan receivers Ryan Shaw — two catches, forty-two yards, two touchdowns — and Tru Couch — two catches, thirty-one yards, one touchdown — produced scores with Cody overall leading in receptions (3) and tying Shaw in yards (42.) Lane Patek, Cayden Heatley and Eli Dubuisson each had a catch for twenty-three, eighteen and ten yards respectively.

“I feel like for us, all of our receivers know it doesn’t matter who we put out there. Everyone wants what’s best for the team whether they’re scoring the touchdown or not,” noted Stoever, adding, “It’s just amazing to see the selflessness of this team. But you know, at this time of year, you want to be playing your best football. We’re starting to get hot and we’re really having fun.”

“There’s something special, some bond about these kiddos that that kind of drives them,” said Coach Warren, echoing Stoever’s sentiments. “This group is not typical. They don’t fight. They don’t care who gets the accolades. I wish you could have been at Tuesday’s workout, seeing the emotion that was coming from both sides of the ball as they cheered for each other. It was as loud as any Friday night.”

The four teams of district 13 are all that remain in region four.

“That’s never happened to me in the thirty- four years I’ve been coaching. It’s pretty rare that it does happen. But it’s not surprising to me after playing the teams in our district and the way the matchups fell,” Warren said. “We had our district meeting a couple of weeks ago, and the other three coaches felt we each had a great chance to advance. It’s gonna be fun that all four of us are involved in these last games at Thanksgiving because we have relationships with those coaches. We know them well, and they know us.”

This week’s games — Jarrell v. Wimberley, Navarro v. Lago Vista — are rematches from week seven of the district schedule. The Texans and Cougars lock up Friday Nov. 25, 6 p.m. at John Gupton Stadium in Cedar Park.