San Angelo Gashed by Amarillo Tascosa's Triple Option

A poor start for the defense meant that the Bobcat offense had to step up and answer back. Starting their first drive at the Central 25-yard line, QB1 Tyler Hill shouldered most of the work with his arm, stretching the field with his receivers. Receptions by RB Samuel Navarrette and WR Trevor Scott moved the ball past midfield to the Rebel 40-yard line. One play later, Hill launched a 40-yard bomb to Jacob English in the air that the defender initially tipped. English snagged the tipped ball out of the air and fell into the endzone for the 40-yard score. The ‘Cats answered Tascosa’s opening touchdown with points of their own, 7-7.

The Bobcats had no answer for the Tascosa run game on their second drive. The Rebels gashed the Bobcats for huge yardage every time they ran a play. It took only seven plays running the ball to move the football inside the Bobcat 10-yard line. The defense finally made a few stops to force a 4th and goal at the 2-yard line. Despite the stop, the ‘Cats did not manage to keep the Rebels out of the endzone as Tascosa forced their way in on 4th down. Rebels retook the lead, 14-7.

Dropped passes plagued the Bobcats on their next possession. Starting the second drive of the night at the 25-yard line, Hill continued to deliver accurate balls to his receivers, and the Bobcats drove to midfield. A pass over the head of a wide-open Navarrette and two dropped passes in a row forced the Bobcats to punt. Tascosa took over at their own 35-yard line. Following the punt, the Central defense simply failed to find a way to slow down the Tascosa offense. The triple-option rushing attack by the Rebels continued to gash the Bobcat defense and, with another impressive effort, extended their lead on a 4-yard touchdown run by the quarterback. A missed extra point attempt by the kicker left the game at 20-7.

With the game on the line early and falling further and further behind, the Bobcats had to get their offense going again. Tyler Hill used his legs to get the drive going with an early 11-yard run. He continued to push the ball down the field with his arm, connecting with Cayden Box for a 22-yard yard gain. However, the Bobcats ran into a wall around the Rebel 36-yard line and, facing a 4th and 9 yards to go, turned the ball over on downs. Tascosa continued to shove the ball down the throat of the Bobcats 26-7

Misfortune continued for the Bobcats on their ensuing drive. A mishandled exchange between quarterback and running back left the ball on the turf. Hill almost recovered the ball himself but was beat to the punch by the Rebels. After retrieving the fumble, Tascosa took over at the Central 43-yard line. It took the rebels five plays to drive 43 yards and another touchdown. Tascosa led the Bobcats 32-7.

Hoping to dig themselves out of an ever deepening deficit, the ‘Cats took over at their own 24-yard line. Tough running by both Darius Floyd and Samuel Navarrette helped the Bobcats grind their way past midfield but again failed to produce inside Rebel territory. A facemask penalty on 4th and 10 ‘Cats kept the drive alive with less than a minute in the first half to go. A 15-yard run by Hill drove the Bobcats inside the 5-yard line. However, Hill came down inside the field of play with no timeouts remaining and under 25 seconds now, the clock kept ticking away. The Bobcats quickly lined up for first and goal to go at the 3-yard line, and Hill connected on a short pass to Navarrette as time expired. Navarrette crossed the goal line with the ball, but a missed call by the referees ruled the ball short. An animated and clearly frustrated coaching staff had a heated discussion with the referees to no avail. The Bobcats headed into the locker room at the half with nothing to show for an outstanding drive, 32-7.

The Bobcats received the second half kick-off and did little with their first opportunity. Two incomplete passes and a costly sack forced the ‘Cats to punt the ball away after a 3-and-out. The Rebels turned around and finally made their first mistake of the evening. The Tascosa quarterback threw a rare deep pass into the endzone where the Bobcat defense picked it off. The ‘Cats returned the ball to the Central 9-yard line and finally found a way to stop the Rebels.

Following the takeaway by the Bobcat defense, Tyler Hill and the offense took over at the Central 9-yard line. The ‘Cats then proceeded to display their most impressive drive of the night. The production came mainly from Floyd on the ground and Hill to Navarrette in the passing game. Floyd had several bruising carries where he broke multiple tackles and flattened the secondary in front of him. His best run of the drive, a 16-yard trucking out to near the 50-yard line, looked like something football fans love watching on Sundays. Floyd broke more than three tackles and dragged the final defender another five yards before finally going to the ground. Two different receptions by Navarette closed the Bobcats to the endzone where Floyd capped off the drive with a 4-yard touchdown run. Central narrowed Tascosa’s lead 32-14.

Not wanting to make the same mistake of their previous drive, Tascosa kept the ball on the ground to avoid throwing another interception. That decision proved to be fruitful as Central put up little resistance on their way to another touchdown. With time running out in the 3rd quarter, Tascosa led 39-14.

Whatever adjustments Head Coach Kevin Crane made at halftime continued to work for the Bobcat offense. With the ball at the 30-yard line, the ‘Cats had success both on the ground and through the air. Floyd and Navarrette continued to pound the ball, and as the defense began to crown the box, Hill punished them through the air. WR Jaedyn Gipson caught a wide receiver screen and then sprinted another 30-yards down the field. The ‘Cats ran the ball inside the 10-yard line, and Samuel Navarrette capped the drive off with a 3-yard touchdown. At the start of the 4th quarter, Central tried to keep it a game, 39-21. Now in the 4th quarter and with the lead, Tascosa started to milk the clock on offense. They tried to milk the clock until Rebel RB Majoy Everhart broke out of the interior defense and sprinted 58-yards to the endzone. Even with time remaining in the 4th quarter, this score effectively put the game out of reach for the Bobcats, 46-21.

The game was well out of hand at this point, but the ‘Cats’ offense continued to fight. A 75-yard touchdown drive primarily on the ground pulled the Bobcats closer. Tyler Hill had a 25-yard run to the 50, and Darius Floyd had a 25-yard reception to the Rebel 25-yard line. Three plays later, Samuel Navarrette dove into the endzone for a 4-yard touchdown.

Tascosa ran out the remaining time on the clock and defeated the Central Bobcats, 46-28. Although the Bobcats lost their second game this season by a large margin this week, the offense continued showing signs of growth.

Watch San Angelo Central Bobcats Head Coach Kevin Crane on thee loss to Tascosa:

San Angelo Central closes out non-district play with a .500 record (2-2). District play begins next week, when the ‘Cats take on the Frenship Tigers on Sept. 24th at 7 pm at San Angelo Stadium in San Angelo.