Missed Opportunities Haunt Central Bobcats Against Amarillo 

SAN ANGELO, TX — The Central Bobcats football team didn’t take advantage of some early opportunities Friday against Amarillo High, and they found themselves playing catch-up the rest of the night.

From scoring no points on two drives inside the 10-yard line, to allowing the Sandies to convert one third-and-long after another, the missed chances loomed large when the dust settled on a 41-21 loss at San Angelo Stadium.

Central fell to 0-2, while Amarillo improved to 2-0.

Central’s new quarterback, Micah Smith, looked much sharper in his second start as he was 18-of-31 for 215 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions.

Colton Hill had seven catches for 96 yards and a TD to lead the receiving corps.

Sophomore running back Zey Johnson did not play, however, and the rushing game was limited to 76 total yards.

The Bobcats were unable to punch it in with a first-and-goal from the 2-yard line midway through the second quarter — then missed the field goal — and Amarillo drove down the field and kicked a field goal of its own for a 17-7 lead.

Central countered with a Hill TD catch with two minutes left in the second quarter, but Amarillo's explosive offense struck on a third-and-9 with a 71-yard TD catch by Austin Sluder for a 24-14 halftime lead.

"Defensively, we couldn’t get off the field on third down. That was the story for me,” Central head coach Mark Smith said. “That was a good team. They did a good job, and they put us in some stressful positions and exposed some things that we have to work on.

“We’ve got to play cleaner football, and we have to do a better job on third down defensively, but I’m proud of the energy. We’ll be better from this. We’re better this week than we were last week, and we’re going to keep improving and get better.”

Two quick TDs by the Sandies to start the second half put the game out of reach.

Central got within 38-21 after a 6-yard TD catch by Gabriel Garcia, but the Bobcats' final drive of the night came up empty after they reached the 8-yard line. Jimmy Edwards appeared to have a diving TD catch, but it was ruled incomplete.

Edwards finished with five catches for 46 yards, while Johnson had four catches for 52 yards, including a 30-yard TD.

Despite the mistakes, Smith said he was happy with the progression of the offense.

"I thought schematically we did a good job of getting ready to play these guys, and we put them in a bind," Smith said. "But it gets a little bit harder when you get behind on teams, and then you have to get out of your game plan a little bit and press in areas."

Amarillo QB Jett Lopez — a 3,000-yard passer last season — was 15-of-29 for 309 yards and three TDs with one INT.

Sluder had six catches for 146 yards and two TDs, while Oliver Parsons had three catches for 105 yards and a TD, along with a TD run.

Jude Dunavin had 16 carries for 145 yards and a TD.

The Bobcats will look to earn their first win of the season next week when they host Abilene Cooper. The Sandies will visit Midland High for their next game.

Amarillo High 41, San Angelo Central 21

Amarillo   14   10   14   3 – 41

Central   7   7   7   0 – 21

First Quarter

A — Jude Dunavin 56 run (Sam Webb kick), 10:58 remaining

C — Gavin Johnson 30 pass from Micah Smith (Caleb Holbert kick), 3:04

A — Oliver Parsons 10 run (Webb kick), :00

Second Quarter

A — Webb 26 field goal, 3:10

C — Colton Hill 7 pass from Smith (Holbert kick), 2:00

A — Austin Sluder 71 pass from Jett Lopez (Webb kick), :57

Third Quarter

A — Parsons 53 pass from Lopez (Webb kick), 7:49

A — Sluder 12 pass from Lopez (Webb kick), 5:24

C — Gabriel Garcia 6 pass from Smith (Parsons kick), :44

Fourth Quarter

A — Webb 41 field goal, 10:28