Burnet dominates both sides in Llano scrimmage

JENNIFER FIERRO • STAFF WRITER

BURNET — The Burnet High School football team scored multiple times in different ways against Llano on Aug. 14 during both teams’ first scrimmage of the 2015 season.

Burnet senior quarterback Austin Moore threw three touchdown passes during the controlled portion of the scrimmage. Those included one to senior receiver Joel Johnson on a 58-yard touchdown pass and the others to junior receiver Steven Gallardo on 67-yard and 13-yard tosses.

Moore also hit Gallardo on a five-yard touchdown pass against Llano’s goal-line defense. Senior athlete Brock Foster scored on a one-yard touchdown run against the Yellow Jackets’ goal-line defense.

Burnet junior quarterback Koby Edwards found senior running back Kendrick Hill on a 14-yard touchdown pass.

Meanwhile, the Llano offense recorded two first downs without the aid of a defensive penalty while facing the Burnet starting and second-string defenses. One was on an 11-yard run, while the other was a 12-yard pass to senior receiver Cody Miller from senior quarterback Wyatt Casey.                                                                                                                                               

Burnet head coach Kurt Jones called it a good scrimmage for his team on both sides.

He noted that while his defensive players might not look intimidating to offenses, their approach will change the minds of the opposing teams.

“Those guys on defense are playing really scrappy,” he said. “We’re not going to overly impress anybody to just look at us. But we play fast, and we play physical. And they’re smart kids, too.”

The explosive plays that went for touchdowns were the result of the Bulldogs feeling comfortable with the scheme and knowing where to be to get open, Jones said. He credited the offensive line for playing its best ball of the month.

“It’s starting to iron itself out,” he said. “Offensive line made a giant step forward.”

The offensive depth shined, the coach added, as multiple players carried the ball or caught passes demonstrating the comfort level of the quarterbacks and their teammates.

“A lot of our kids are confident in our offense and know what we’re looking for,” he said.

Llano head coach Craig Slaughter said the Jackets entered the scrimmage looking for consistency on both sides of the ball.

“Defensively, we’re slightly disappointed we gave up some long runs and had some blown coverages,” he said. “That’s a tough situation. I think Burnet is as good of a team as we’ll see all year.”

He credited his players for continuing to battle and raising their level of play as the scrimmage wore on, especially defensively when the Jackets recorded some sacks.

“I thought they responded well,” he said. “We definitely made a few plays where he was going down. Offensively, we made a few pass plays here and there, but we never got our running backs loose.”

Both teams will play in their final scrimmages Aug. 20.

The Bulldogs are at Wimberley with the sub-varsities taking the field at 6 p.m. followed by the varsity at 7:30 p.m. The scrimmages are at Texan Stadium, 200 Texan Blvd.

Llano will host Sonora with the sub-varsities playing at 6 p.m. and the varsity at 7 p.m. at Llano Stadium, 400 Texas 71 East.

jfierro@thepicayune.com