The Dalhart Golden Wolves found out painfully that the Falcons prefer to attack quick and sharply.
Bushland used big plays to jump on top early, then used the element of surprise to put away the Wolves to start the second half. The result was predictable, as the Falcons soared to a 48-14 victory for their eighth straight win to close the regular season, not to mention an outright district championship.
It was an appropriate way for Bushland’s seniors to close out their home careers as they have the open week next week to end the regular season and prepare for the playoffs. By taking care of business against Dalhart, the Falcons (9-1, 4-0 in district) can both reflect and look forward for the next two weeks.
“We knew what was at stake and sometimes you can put too much on yourself,” Bushland coach Josh Reynolds said. “I felt the first half we tried to do too much. Our guys were trying to do things other than do their jobs the best we can. The good thing is we still went in with a halftime lead even though it wasn’t as clean as we wanted.”
Big plays in the first half were the difference, as Bushland had two plays for 65 yards which resulted directly or indirectly in scores in taking a 21-7 halftime lead.
Ironically, the Falcons took the lead with a methodical drive after the opening kickoff. They cashed in on a fourth-and-goal on Dawson Jaco’s 5-yard scoring pass to Tanner Adams for a 7-0 lead.
That lasted 20 seconds. On the first play after the ensuing kickoff, Adams took the ball on a jet sweep and dashed 65 yards for a touchdown and a 14-7 lead.
Adams accounted for three touchdowns on the night, catching two and running for one.
“Just the momentum changes in the game are big for us and that’s what gets our offense going,” said Adams, who accounted for 145 total yards rushing and receiving. “Every week our speed is huge for us because we’re not the biggest team out there. Our first half could have been a lot better but we got the win and that’s all that matters.”
The Falcons then forced the only punt of the first half, and Jaco hit Max Rodriguez on a 68-yard gain to put the ball at the Dalhart 7-yard line. Jaco then ran in from the 3 to make it 21-7.
In his final start at home, Jaco showed he’s worthy of Bushland’s quarterback tradition, as he completed 17-of-25 passes for 275 yards and four touchdowns.
“Big plays are always going to give you a lot of energy,” Jaco said. “You try to get a play called before they can get lined up after a big play. We were all going to be motivated with all us seniors last time to be playing at Bushland in front of our home crowd. They’re always there to support us.”
The Wolves still could make it a game as they were set to receive the second half kickoff. However, the Falcons gambled, and it paid off, as they tried an onside kick and recovered it at midfield.
“It’s worth taking because you’ve got to trust your kids,” Reynolds said. “If it doesn’t work you trust your defense to get a stop. It was kind of the right time to do that. We thought it was a calculated risk.”
Bushland turned it into six points only 89 seconds into the second half as Jaco hooked up with Adams a second time on a 25-yard scoring pass for a 28-7 lead. That was the first of Jaco’s three second half scoring passes which highlighted a run of 41 unanswered points.
“I’ll give all the credit to Bushland and coach Reynolds,” Dalhart coach Joey Read said. “Their team’s very, very talented. We had some things not go well for us and Bushland had some big plays. That onside kick to start the second half really took the wind out of our sails.”
In the other District 2-3A Division I contest on Friday, Shallowater pulled out a 27-19 victory at Muleshoe on Friday night.
The Mustangs move to 1-2 in the league and 4-5 overall. Muleshoe falls to 7-2 and 1-2.