Central's Going to be Fine: 3 Takeaways from Central's Loss to Cedar Park

CEDAR PARK, TX-- While the Central Bobcats suffered their first loss of the season last night, the matchup with 5A power Cedar Park served its purpose: Central got better...a lot better.

Here are three takeaways from Central’s 37-22 loss to Cedar Park:

Central will be Fine

In the first half the offense, led by sophomore Malachi Brown in his first start, looked the part of one who was being led by an inexperienced quarterback. This typically high octane offense posted 54 yards of total offense in the first half of that game.

Brown settled down in the second half and finished with 151 yards passing and one touchdown.

The sophomore quarterback also rushed for 44 yards last night to lead the team.

He was able to sustain decent drives in that second half against the state powerhouse. Doing that in your first start and on the road is not an easy task.

Once Brown gets fully settled as a quarterback, the dual-threat signal caller will likely look real good taking snaps.

People have had doubts if they will make it to playoffs this year after Maverick McIvor’s season ended abruptly to a knee injury. Those doubts and fears are entirely invalid.

Central’s Defense Should not be Overlooked

Last night was rough for each an every Bobcat.

It was especially rough for Central’s defense who had to face 84 plays from Cedar Park’s loaded offense. For perspective, the Bobcat offense ran just 48 plays last night.

Central continuously bent on defense in last night’s game without relief from their offense, causing the defense to get tired.

That didn’t stop Central from forcing four turnovers last night.

Thanks to Jashon Hall’s pick-six and Tristan Lopez’s fumble return for a touchdown, the Bobcats were able to immediately cash in for points.

If the offense had been able to sustain drives early on, this game may have been closer than the 15 point margin.

Brown’s Future is Promising

Malachi Brown is a true dual-threat quarterback.

He was real good running the ball for Central in last night’s loss. That will be big for Central’s offense going forward.

As the playbook opened up for the sophomore, you could tell he was settling in nicely.

Each play he showed more poise than the play before and laid down a really good base to build on.

He’ll get another good test with El Paso Pebble Hills coming to town this week and will  grow even more as Central closes out nondistrict play.