Burnet defense gets crucial turnover in double-OT win
Burnet’s Sterling Galban battles a Gatesville defender for the ball during the Bulldogs-Gatesville game Oct. 14. The Bulldogs won the game, 38-35, in the second over time. Burnet head to Liberty Hill where they’ll face the Panthers on Friday, Oct. 21 with a 7:30 p.m. kick off. Photo by Glenn Morris/FTMOG.com
DANIEL CLIFTON • EDITOR
BURNET — With Gatesville’s Alex Thompson about to bull his way into the end zone to give the Hornets an edge in the second overtime of the night, Burnet’s defense forced and recovered a fumble, putting the Bulldogs in control of the game.
The move denied the Hornets a score and set up Burnet on a potential game-winning drive in the second. After moving the ball from the 25-yard line to the five-yard line, it came down to kicker Tyler Torres.
Torres didn’t disappoint. He nailed an 18-yard field goal to lift Burnet over the Hornets 38-35 in double-overtime.
The win puts Burnet at 1-1 in District 13-4A Division I as they head to Liberty Hill next Friday, Oct. 21. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m. Listen to the game on KMPN 95.9 FM powered by KBEY or at KBEYFM.com starting with a 7 p.m. pregame show.
“I’m just so proud of our kids,” Burnet head coach Kurt Jones said. “We had a lot of ups and downs in a game like this, but they hung in there and broke through when they needed to.”
Burnet jumped out to a 7-0 lead when Koby Edwards hit Kyle Cavender for a 34-yard score in the first quarter. Gatesville tied things in the second quarter.
Both teams’ defense kept each other’s offense somewhat in check the first half as they went into the locker room at the half tied 7-7.
Gatesville came out in the second half and scored first when quarterback Jett Truss rambled in from eight yards out. But Burnet tied it up when Edwards connected with Kiser for another 34-yard score.
Burnet then took off for a 28-14 lead on a 45-yard Edwards-to-Tyler-Ford pass, which the Bulldogs followed up with a recovered fumble on the ensuing kickoff. Burnet wasted no time finding the end zone, this time with a touchdown pass from Edwards to Sterling Galban.
It looked like things were under control for the Bulldogs. But Gatesville rattled off two touchdowns, and it was back in business with things tied up 28-28.
And that’s where it stayed as the teams headed into overtime.
Burnet jumped into the lead on their drive with a Edwards-to-Steven-Gallardo touchdown, but Gatesville answered back to send it into a second overtime tied at 35-35.
This time, the Hornets got the ball first and bulled down to the five-yard line. Alex Thompson, who had been a burr in the Burnet defense’s side all night, put his head down and plowed ahead. It looked as if he was about to put the Hornets up, but then the Burnet defense recovered a fumble, giving the Bulldogs a chance to win the game.
And that’s just what they did.
“It was just teamwork and staying positive, even when things got a bit tough,” Koby Edwards said in describing how they won the game. “Nobody would give up.”
With the win putting them 6-1 overall and 1-1 in district as they get ready for Liberty Hill, Edwards added it definitely gives the Bulldogs a shot of confidence heading into the Texas 29 rivalry game.
“I think (this win) will really up our tempo in practice,” he said. “And it will really give us a lot of confidence heading into Liberty Hill. We’ll be ready.”
daniel@thepicayune.com