LUBBOCK – The cardiac Comanches of West Texas High made the plays when it counted down the stretch in the clutch moments of their biggest game to date to edge Hawley in a thrilling 30-26 victory during UIL Class 2A Division I area round clash at PlainsCapital-Park at Lowrey Field on Thursday night.
By finding a way yet again like they did against Gruver and Panhandle, this win served multiple accomplishments.
West Texas High will not only move on to the third round of the playoffs for the first time since 2019, but it also kept the District 1-2A Division I champions undefeated at 12-0, which is their best mark since 1989.
“We don’t talk about that much in the locker room,” WT High head coach Jeff Smith said. “I didn’t even know that until I heard it recently. The focus we have, is one game at a time and we just want these guys to play their butts off. It was awesome to see them do that in this game and I’m proud of this team.”
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Senior quarterback and linebacker Cayde Winters echoed Smith’s comment.
“It’s just being consistent more than anything,” Winters said. “It’s the little things that has gotten us here. Showing up for workouts, having great practices. We are constantly asking questions to get better. The goal is always to go 1-0 on the week and we’re always focused.”
WT High is now headed to the regional semifinal for a showdown with District 2-2A Division I champion, New Home (10-2) at 2 p.m. next Friday, at Tyer Stadium in Floydada. The Leopards rallied from a 20-0 deficit to shock Stamford 21-20 on Thursday night in the area round.
Hawley (9-3) and WT High were two teams that were mirror images of each other and that showed throughout the four quarters. This back-and-forth battle saw seven lead changes and though the offenses dominated, it came down to defensive stops when it mattered.
The Bearcats held a 22-18 late in the third quarter, as the Comanches were driving to try and take back the lead, only to see running back Kelby Sherwood fumble inside the Hawley 30-yard line. That’s when the WT High defense stepped up and forced its first stop of the game forcing the games only punt.
Flipping the field to the fourth quarter, the Comanches took the ball over after a punt at their own 25-yard line with 9:28 remaining in the game.
Behind Winters and an offensive line that took over in the latter moments, WT High drove the ball 75 yards in 3:30 minutes that resulted in a Winters 16-yard zone read touchdown run, giving the Comanches a 28-26 lead with 6:03 to play. Following a Zach Bryant two-point conversion, the Comanches’ second successful conversion of the night, WT High led 30-26.
The Bearcats had one final chance getting the ball to midfield, but faced a 3rd down and three. This is where the Comanche defense made its mark.
On that third down, Winters, playing linebacker, busted through the line, blowing up a run play to Hunter Hudson for a three-yard loss.
On fourth down, Winters again, blasted through the line forcing quarterback Aiden Ramos to scramble toward the sideline for an eventual sack, giving the ball back to the Comanches with just over three minutes to go.
From there, the WT High offense was able to secure two first downs and run the clock out for the dramatic win.
“We’ve been resilient all year,” Smith said. “Whether it’s been a tip ball and a pick or we dial up a blitz at the right time and we make a play. We had a costly fumble in the third quarter, but we did a great job of overcoming that mistake and making a stop. We feel like late in the game if we get the football, you’re not getting it back and we did that in this one and won it.”
Hawley coach Mitch Able, who led the Bearcats to a 2022 UIL state championship, tipped his cap to the Comanches after the contest.
“It was tough ball game especially for the second round,” Able said. “Give credit to WT High. They are a good ball team and they were better than us in this one. We had momentum off the fumble and didn’t capitalize, and they made the plays.”
The first half was similar to a basketball game. There were six total possessions with five touchdowns, and the only reason the Comanches didn’t score on their third possession, is they ran out of time before the half while driving inside the Hawley 20-yard line.
The Bearcats stole the momentum early, going on a 12-play, 74-yard drive that resulted in a Romo four-yard keeper to go up 6-0. However, the Bearcats’ two-point conversion failed, which was the story of the night. Hawley was only able to execute one of their four two-point attempts.
The Comanches answered back in that first quarter on a Winters to Sherwood swing pass for a seven-yard TD, which was followed by a key two-point conversion giving WT High an 8-6 lead.
That’s how the first half went, as the two teams continued to trade scores. It was the second half where the Comanches offensive and defensive lines took over, thanks to being challenged by Smith and the coaching staff.
“We made a few adjustments, just on the technical end,” Smith said. “We got after the offensive and defensive line at halftime, told them to they have been our bread and butter all year, and they need to take over the game. I feel like we did a better job of that in the second half.”
WT High finished the game with 297 yards with 244 of those coming on the ground. The Comanches also did a stellar job going 8-of-11 on third downs and converted two huge fourth down conversions during scoring drives.
Winters proved why he is one of the best players in all of Class 2A. Not only did he have the defensive play of the night, but the heart and soul of the Comanches also rushed for 157 yards on 28 carries with two scores. Winters then passed for 53 yards on 6-of-8 attempts with another TD.
“The offensive line carried us,” Winters said. “Especially in that second half. Both of our lines took the game over and gave us the momentum we needed to win this one.”
Sherwood shined as well out of the backfield, piling up 63 yards on 15 carries and added a second quarter rushing touchdown to go with his receiving score in the first quarter. TJ Riggs added two catches for 31 yards.