Burnet-Liberty Hill contest should be one to remember

JENNIFER FIERRO • PICAYUNE STAFF

BURNET — Burnet High School head football coach Kurt Jones still remembers the trip like it was yesterday.

In 2002, the Bulldogs would play for the Class 3A Division I state championship.

But along the way, they had a District 25-3A away game at Liberty Hill.

“We pulled in at our usual time, about 5 o’clock, at Liberty Hill’s old stadium,” Jones recalled. “Our students dropped off our bags in the locker room. Our kids walked the field, which is something we’ve done hundreds of times. Those stadiums are (usually) empty (at that time.) But on that day, it was already packed. We were told later that the line (to get in) started at noon that Friday.”

Don’t be surprised if that happens again when the two former district rivals meet in a Class 4A Division I state quarterfinal game 7:30 p.m. Dec. 5 at the Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex, 10211 W. Parmer Lane in Austin. The Bulldogs (11-2 overall, 4-1 district) are the co-District 13-4A champions, while the Panthers (11-2, 5-0) captured the District 14-4A title.

“We have a little bigger stadium (this week),” Liberty Hill head coach Jerry Vance joked. “I think there’s a lot of interest in this game.”

Vance has been at Liberty Hill since 2001. Both teams entered the 2002 and 2003 contests with identical 9-0 records. The Bulldogs won both games.

The teams continued playing each other from 2004 to 2007, when Burnet moved up a class. But the victor didn’t change. The Bulldogs won 28-27 in 2004 and 63-34 in 2005.

But the series shifted in 2006. Since then, Liberty Hill has won six of the past eight meetings.

“The programs have been phenomenal,” Vance said, “two of the very best in Central Texas. I coached at Gregory-Portland, and it ranks right up there with Gregory-Portland and Corpus Christi Calallen. Their kids date our kids, our kids date theirs. The parents work with each other.”

“The two teams have a lot of respect for each other,” Jones said. “That makes for a great rivalry.”

While the campuses are 18 miles apart on Texas 29, the offensive philosophies are decades apart, Vance joked.

The Panthers have been a Slot-T run-first offense since the coach arrived 13 years ago. By contrast, the Bulldogs have been a spread offense that equally emphasizes the run and the pass since 2001, when former head coach Bob Shipley took over the program.

“Coach Jones is a lot younger than I am,” Vance said with a grin. “I think it’s a tribute to both systems that the kids believe in them.”

Burnet enters the contest after defeating district foe Waco Robinson 38-35 in a regional quarterfinal contest Nov. 28, while Liberty Hill beat Rockport-Fullerton 31-21.

In Liberty Hill’s win, the Panthers were facing a 21-17 deficit with 38 seconds left in the game when senior quarterback Nick Hernandez found sophomore Garrett Wright for a 49-yard touchdown, making it 24-21 in their favor. Nineteen seconds late, on Rockport-Fullerton’s following possession, Liberty Hill’s Colton Cunningham recovered a fumble and returned it 17 yards for a touchdown to secure the Panthers’ victory.

“Our kids exhibited, and we talk about having composure and taking our best shot,” Vance said. “Our coaches did a great job of play calling, and our kids made a play.

“I think it’s ingrained in our kids that, until the zeros are up on the scoreboard, we still have a chance,” he added. “We’ve been in these situations all year long. It paid off for us.”

Against the Bulldogs, Vance said the Panthers will aim to shorten the game by running the football and the clock to keep it the contest low scoring.

“One thing about our offense,” he said, “it gives us a chance to be competitive with a more skilled, more athletic team.”

When Liberty Hill has won close games against Burnet under Vance, the Panthers have forced turnovers and rushed for about 300 yards. When the Panthers won blowout games, they rushed for more than 450 yards.

When Burnet has won, the Panthers have only rushed for under 150 yards.

No matter the outcome, both coaches believe this game will be another one fans will talk about for years to come.

“lt has gone back and forth,” Jones said. “It’s two great programs and teams going at it.”

Listen the the game on KBEY 103.9 FM Radio Picayune or at KBEYFM.com starting with a 7 p.m. pre-game show. The winner advances to the Class 4A Division state semifinals against the victor of the Navasota-Henderson contest.

jfierro@thepicayune.com

BURNET (11) VS. LIBERTY HILL (9) SERIES

2013: Liberty Hill 14-7

2012: Burnet 44-36

2011: Liberty Hill 65-33

2010: Liberty Hill 17-13

2009: Burnet 48-6

2008: Liberty Hill 36-29

2007: Liberty Hill 34-17 (non-district)

2006: Liberty Hill 28-16 (non-district)

2005: Burnet 63-34 (non-district)

2004: Burnet 28-27 (non-district)

2003: Burnet 65-21

2002: Burnet 42-7

2001: Burnet 54-7

2000: Burnet 50-12

1999: Burnet 33-12

1998: Burnet 48-8

1997: Liberty Hill 50-29

1996: Liberty Hill 26-21

1995: Burnet 49-0

1994: Liberty Hill 28-22

ABOUT LIBERTY HILL: The Panthers are led by junior running back Jon Shannon, who has 269 carries for 1,811 yards and 25 touchdowns. Senior running back Hunter Lindsay has 108 rushes for 767 yards and seven touchdowns.

ABOUT BURNET: The Bulldogs enter the contest averaging 490 yards of total offense thanks to its spread formations. Junior quarterback Austin Moore has completed 237 passes for 3,770 yards, 35 touchdowns and eight interceptions.