San Angelo Bobcats’ Spunk Outlasts El Paso Montwood 52-49

SAN ANGELO, TX — Senior night filled with cloudy skies and rain saw the San Angelo Central Bobcats (0-1) battle with the El Paso Montwood Rams (0-1) tonight, Sept. 2, at San Angelo Stadium, at 7 pm. The ‘Cats looked to repeat the same success they had in their previous contest last year, where the Bobcats won 34-29. Tonight, these two teams duked it out for four quarters, and in the end, the Bobcats' defense came up with a key stop to win the game. San Angelo Central won their first game of the season, 52-49.

The Rams won the toss and received the first-half kickoff. The drive began at the Rams’ 42-yard line. Montwood wasted little time moving the ball down the field. The Bobcats put up a decent fight on defense but a long 3rd and nine tuned into a 27-yard pass down the field. CB Luke Gould intercepted a pass at the San Angelo 42-yard line, but an offsides penalty negated the play. Eventually, the Rams caught a pass in the back of the endzone for the first points of the night. However, a missed extra point left the score at 6-0.

Senior Quarterback Tyler Hill and the rest of the offense began their first drive at the Central 27-yard line. Hard running from Tyler Hill and Tyree Brawley, including a 15-yard run from Hill and a 16-yard run from Brawley, respectively, pushed the Bobcats deep into Rams’ territory. Faced with a 4th and five at the 15-yard line, Hill converted the first down with a bruising 8-yard run, breaking two tackles in the process. Two plays later, Hill walked into the endzone for the Bobcats’ first touchdown. The Bobcats claimed the lead with 3:18 to go in the 1st quarter, 7-6.

The ‘Cats’ defense came to play on their second trip on the field. DT James Burney came up with a sack to force a 3rd and long, and the Rams went three and out. On 4th down, a group of Bobcats broke through the line and blocked the punt. S Austin Johnson scooped up the blocked punt and walked into the endzone for a touchdown. Bobcats extended their lead, 14-6. The ensuing possession went much the same as the first. The Rams connected a 40-yard bomb to a well covered receiver to set up a 1st and goal at the 5-yard line. In the following play, Luke Gould finally got the pick he wanted as he stepped in front of the Montwood receiver in the endzone and took the ball for the Bobcats.

Now with the ball at the San Angelo 20-yard line, the Bobcats marched the ball 80 yards in 8 plays on their way to another touchdown. A healthy combination of run and pass showed how dynamic the ‘Cats are when firing on all cylinders. Hill completed several passes, one to Keevon Rice and two to Jacob English, to move the ball into Rams’ territory. The Bobcats then shifted gears and pounded the ball on the ground with Brawley, Hill, and RB Jayvion Robinson. Hill made his case for the highlight of the game when he scrambled for 23 yards, breaking tackles and hurdling defenders on his way to set up the ‘Cats inside the 20-yard line. Brawley capped off the drive three plays later on a 2 yard run by Brawley. The ‘Cats extended their lead again with 6:00 left in the 2nd quarter, 21-6.

The Montwood Rams answered the score with one of their own on the ensuing possession. Free plays from offsides set up the Rams deep in the Bobcats’ side of the field. A broken coverage in the secondary allowed a touchdown, and the Rams pulled closer, 21-14.

San Angelo Central’s offense continued to fire unimpeded as the Bobcats drove the ball 71 yards on eight plays on their way to another quick score. Hill seemed to want to involve the entire receiving core tonight as he found another new receiver, WR Cedric Fuentes, two different times for 32 yards. Gallegos added another 10 yards to his total, and Brawley did the rest of the work on the ground. He carried the ball for the final three plays and capped it with a 3-yard touchdown. Bobcats led with 2:45 to go in the half, 28-14.

The Bobcats continued to struggle against the Rams’ explosive offense allowing several more deep strikes. The Rams caught the ‘Cats off guard twice in a row, causing them to jump offsides and giving the Rams free plays. Montwood scored with a minute to go in the 1st half, and the Bobcats headed to the locker room leading at the half, 28-20.

After receiving the 2nd half kick, the ‘Cats’ finally looked human on offense. Three straight plays went nowhere, and the ‘Cats had to kick the ball away for the first time in the contest. Montwood took over around midfield and methodically pushed their way deep into ‘Cats’ territory. The Rams made it too easy for the Rams who walked into the end zone untouched. Another successful 2-point conversion the Rams had tied the game at 28-28.

The Cats had to answer with the ball at the San Angelo 25-yard line. Hill started the drive with a quick 14-yard scramble, and then a pass to Gallegos put the ball into Rams’ territory. Tyler Hill broke through the line, breaking three different tackles on his way to a 47-yard touchdown. His breakaway run capped off a 4-play 77-yard drive and put the Bobcats back on top, 35-28.

The ‘Cats’ defense held up much better on the ensuing possession than on previous drives. However, in the end, the Rams proved to be tough to stop. Marching down the field on more than ten plays, they found themselves in the end zone. Tying the game again, 35-35.

The track meet continued with two more scores from both offenses. First, a 59-yard sprint from Tyler Hill put the Bobcats back up by seven, and then the Rams turned right around with another long drive of their own. With 7:09 to go in the contest, the deadlock continued 42-42.

A mistake on special teams gave the ‘Cats the ball at the Rams’ 44-yard line. But, a broken play where the snap went over Hill’s head seemed like a death knell for the ‘Cats past the midpoint in the 4th quarter. But, instead, Hill picked the ball up, outran two different Rams’ defenders, and then found Jacob English all alone 32-yards down the field in the end zone. Bobcats reclaimed their lead, 49-42.