Burnet beats Somerset 42-17 in bi-district
Burnet head coach Bryan Wood meets with his team after beating Somerset 42-17 to clinch a bi-district title for the first time since 2014. Photo by Martelle Luedecke/Luedecke Photography
The Burnet Bulldogs advanced to the second round of the state football playoffs for the first time since 2014 after beating the Somerset Bulldogs 42-17 in a bi-district contest Thursday, Nov. 9, at San Marcos High School. Burnet (7-3 overall, 4-1 District 13-4A) dominated the game on both sides of the ball despite a wet, windy night.
Burnet opened the game with a return fielded by senior Trenton Park and immediately handed off to senior Grant Jones for a massive gain to midfield. Three plays later, junior quarterback Rhett Murray connected on a 24-yard touchdown pass over the middle to Park, giving the Bulldogs a 7-0 lead.
Somerset (6-4, 3-2 District 14-4A) looked primed to respond on the ensuing drive but coughed up the ball on the 32-yard line and turned it over.
The Burnet offense peppered Somerset with multiple run plays on its second drive of the game. Jones, senior Dash Denton, and junior Khris Kassner were the main benefactors. A defensive pass interference penalty against Somerset put the ball on the 1-yard line. Two plays later, Jones punched it in, and Burnet was up 14-0 early in the game.
Somerset fought back after two big runs by senior running back Josiah Lugo set up a 34-yard field goal for junior kicker Adrian Saldana, making the score 14-3.
Burnet returned to its ground game, but Somerset stiffened, forcing a third down at the 40-yard line. Burnet senior Garner Krause managed to extend the drive with a juggled 12-yard reception at midfield. However, Somerset stymied the Bulldogs later in the drive with a fourth-down stop at the 36-yard line.
Somerset failed to capitalize and punted the ball a measly 9 yards. Burnet didn’t waste any time, with Murray hitting sophomore Riley Howell on a 48-yard touchdown pass and pushing the score to 21-3.
Burnet poured it on, intercepting a Somerset pass for a 25-yard touchdown by senior Jacob Atkinson and a 28-3 lead.
Somerset responded with multiple runs by Lugo to bring the ball into scoring position on the 14-yard line. Senior quarterback Koby Isbell hit senior wide receiver Jaden Faz for a score on the following play, making it 28-10 at the end of the half.
Somerset had to punt the ball away on its first drive of the third quarter after several stops by the Burnet defense.
Burnet struggled early on its first drive of the second half, leading to a third-and-9 at the 30-yard line. Jones rescued the offense on the ensuing play with a 70-yard leaping touchdown catch to expand the lead to 35-10.
The Burnet defense forced another Somerset punt on the next drive by continuing to smother the line of scrimmage.
Burnet looked ready to chew clock on the following drive with several run plays for Denton, including an inside run on third-and-9 for 18 yards and a first down. The Somerset defense rallied later in the drive with an interception by junior safety Nathan Flores on third-and-long to regain possession late in the third.
Somerset attempted another punt after several big stops behind the line of scrimmage by the Burnet defense. But the long snap skied over the head of Somerset’s Saldana and was recovered by a gang of Burnet players.
Burnet took advantage of the short field position with more featured runs for Denton to start the fourth quarter. Later in the drive, the squad elected to keep the Somerset defense guessing by returning to the air for a 16-yard touchdown pass to Park for his second score of the game.
The Somerset squad found Lugo with a receiving touchdown as time ticked away to close the 42-17 contest.
The Burnet Bulldogs take on the winner of a Nov. 10 matchup between the Port Lavaca Calhoun Sandcrabs (6-4, 4-1 District 15-4A) and Zapata Hawks (6-4, 3-3 District 16-4A).