Huge Football Friday for Leps, ‘Horns
La Grange vs. Cuero
A month ago, La Grange and Cuero were struggling for answers.
Now the two hottest teams in 13-4A face one another in the district opener.
Cuero started the season 0-3 while the Leps started 0-2.
But since then La Grange has won three in a row and Cuero has won two straight.
A quarterback change seems to have fueled the Gobblers turnaround. After that 0-3 start Breck Eleby was removed from the quarterback spot and has become an impact player as a running back and receiver. He caught a touchdown pass and ran for a touchdown in Cuero’s 28-0 win over Uvalde two weeks ago.
Meanwhile, junior Jerry Rossett took over the quarterback job for Cuero and he threw for 173 yards and ran for a touchdown and threw for a touchdown against Uvalde. Sophomore running back Tycen Williams ran for 102 yards two weeks ago.
La Grange’s turnaround came after a 40-14 loss to Rockdale in the season opener and a 61-23 setback at Canyon Lake in the second game.
The Leps seemed destined for a 0-3 start when they were down 28-10 heading into the fourth quarter against La Vernia. But La Grange scored 22 points in that final quarter to stun La Vernia 32-28 and the Leps haven’t looked back since. They demolished Taylor 48-20 the next week and then two weeks ago beat Lago Vista 42-26, fueled by a four touchdown night from senior D.J. Taylor.
Caden Cooper has thrown for 586 yards and run for 224 yards. Taylor has now run for 798 yards to go with his 10 touchdowns. Sophomore Bravion Rogers has 355 receiving yards this season.
Senior Adam Faske leads the team in tackles with 46 and Grant Juno leads the team with five tackles for losses and two sacks.
Last Meeting
You’ve to go all the way back to the regular season finale of 2013 to find the last time the Leps played Cuero. La Grange won that year 42-12. Dillon Davis threw for three touchdowns in that game and ran for 100 yards. Bralon Hutchison ran for 143 yards. Current Baltimore Ravens running back J.K. Dobbins was just a La Grange freshmen in that game and returned an interception 40 yards for a touchdown. The victory completed the Leps first undefeated regular season in 14 years.
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Cuero
Records: LG is 3-2. Cuero is 2-3.
Friday’s games:
La Grange at Cuero
Gonzales at Giddings
Navasota at Smithville
Schulenburg vs. Ganado
Schulenburg has had two weeks to try to get the bad taste out of their mouth after a 27-12 upset loss to Weimar which snapped a four game win-streak that had momentarily vaulted the Shorthorns into the state’s Top 10.
But trying to get their first district win of the season will be a tall order against a Ganado team that has found its way after a tough start to the season.
After going 10-4 last year, things looked so bad for Ganado early this season as they not only started the season 0-3 but were outscored 117-35 during that span.
But oh what a turnaround it’s been for the Indians over the last two weeks. On Sept. 19 Ganado pounded Weimar 44-8 and then spanked Burton 65-7 last week.
Ganado quarterback Kyle Bures-Guerrero has thrown for 816 yards and 10 touchdowns and also ran for 313 yards.
Last Meeting
Last year Ganado beat Schulenburg 49-31 in the regular season finale. Temon Glover scored three touchdowns in that game for the Shortorns, but Ganado rallied to score 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to get the win. The outcome was significant because had Schulenburg won, they would have been the district runner-up, but instead they fell to the No. 4 seed going into the playoffs and lost to a district champ, Comfort, 40-31 in the first round of the playoffs.
• Schulenburg has added a game and will play at Shiner St. Paul Oct. 23 at 7:30 p.m.
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Ganado
Records: Schlenburg is 4-1 overall and 1-1 in district. Ganado is 2-3 overall and 1-0 in district.
Friday’s games:
Shiner at Weimar
Schulenburg at Ganado
Flatonia is off