Marble Falls football looks to ‘put all the elements together’ against Vandegrift
[box]GAMETIME
Marble Falls Mustangs at Leander Vandegrift Vipers
KICKOFF: 7:30 p.m. Oct. 18
WHERE: Ed. W. Monroe Memorial Stadium, 9500 McNeil Drive in Austin
TUNE IN: Listen to KBEY 103.9 FM or at KBEYFM.com or watch on Northland Channel 15 starting with a 6:30 p.m. pre-game show. Live broadcast starts at 7 p.m.[/box]
JENNIFER FIERRO • PICAYUNE STAFF
MARBLE FALLS — The Marble Falls High School football team will enter the contest at Leander Vandegrift with the aim of playing consistently well for 48 minutes.
The Mustangs (2-3 overall, 0-2 in District 25-4A play) have played well for two quarters against Cedar Park and had long stretches of the same in the 29-14 setback to Leander Rouse on Oct. 11.
Now, head coach Todd Dodge said it’s time to put all the elements together.
“We have four weeks left, 28 days of football,” he said. “We are playing for our playoff lives every week. Our goals are still intact.”
The Vipers (6-1, 3-0) are in a tie atop the district standings with Rouse. Vandegrift is on a four-game winning streak, including division victories against Cedar Park Vista Ridge, 28-21; Dripping Springs, 49-10; and Leander, 35-3.
The Vipers are led by junior quarterback Jamie Hudson, who has completed 29 of 67 passes for 626 yards, seven touchdowns and two interceptions and rushed 92 times for 660 yards and eight touchdowns.
Vipers sophomore running back Travis Brannan has 79 carries for 497 yards and nine touchdowns, and junior running back Christian Reyes has 72 rushes for 309 yards and three touchdowns.
Senior receiver Luke Peterman’s 22 receptions for 494 yards and six touchdowns leads the Vipers. No one else has more than six catches.
The first quarter of the Mustangs’ loss against Rouse illustrated what Dodge has been preaching to his players.
The Mustangs took the opening drive 66 yards in four plays for a touchdown. The drive lasted 62 seconds.
Then, the Marble Falls defense turned away the Raiders (6-1, 3-0) when senior safety Carson Bowen recorded the Mustangs’ first interception of the season.
And when Marble Falls senior receiver Garrett Gray caught a 38-yard touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback Brennen Wooten for a 14-0 lead, it looked like the Mustangs might be on their way to earning a victory.
“We got off to the kind of start you draw up,” Dodge said. “(The Mustangs) came ready to play. They were absolutely focused.”
But two long bombs summarized the second quarter for Marble Falls. One was a dropped pass that went through the receiver’s hands, while officials called the other one an incomplete pass. Had those two plays gone the Mustangs’ way, Dodge said they would have added two more touchdowns.
Instead, the Raiders scored a field goal for a 17-14 half-time lead.
In the third quarter, the Mustangs had two high snaps, with one giving the Raiders a safety and leading to a field goal on the ensuing drive. The Mustangs had the ball for less than three minutes in the period.
“Bottom line is we were in the game,” Dodge said. “But it was over before you could blink an eye.”
The coach complimented the defense, noting it didn’t give up explosive plays, swarmed to the ball and forced Rouse to earn every yard.
“Really, really encouraged to see our kids on defense play the way they played,” he said. “The best thing our defense did (that night) was they didn’t give up a bunch of explosives. Tackling was so much better.”
jfierro@thepicayune.com