GRUVER — If you ask both the Farwell and Gruver football teams, District 1-2A Division II is a gauntlet. Out of that five-team league, three of them — the aforementioned Steers, Greyhounds and Stratford — carry winning traditions and dreams of deep runs within the postseason.
While all three are locks to return to the playoffs, it comes down to momentum and positioning.
Gruver gained the upper hand in a tilt between two of the three district title contenders, overwhelming Farwell with a lopsided 56-14 outcome on Friday at Greyhound Stadium.
On Senior Night, the Greyhound faithful witnessed an exceptional showcase from senior quarterback Briggs Satterfield, who was 15-of-26 for 207 yards with four touchdowns compared to one interception. Satterfield then rushed for 137 yards and three more touchdowns.
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Satterfield didn’t keep count. As long as he had his teammates alongside him, he didn’t need to.
“It’s just crazy that I’ve played four years with my brothers, and it’s such a credit to my offensive line, my running backs and my receivers for what I’m able to do,” Satterfield said, following his performance. “Without them, I’m nothing.”
In the first half alone, Satterfield passed for three touchdowns and rushed for two more. Again, he tipped his hat to those also donning the Gruver red and black.
“I can’t say enough good things about them,” said Satterfield. “Those guys work so hard. Our offensive line just grinds, and grinds, and grinds. They work their butts off. (Senior wideout Brock Butler, teammate Nick Shepard and sophomore receiver Mason Lankford), all of those guys, they’re just so good. (Senior running back Dax Conyers and teammate Emmanuel Valverde) just do everything right. I love them.”
According to Gruver head coach Kurt Haberthur, the Greyhounds had some extra motivation earlier in the day.
“We had a really special, emotional pep rally with the little kids and seniors,” Haberthur said, recalling the soul-stirring moment. “For our seniors and our team to see what kind of impact they’re making on the future of Gruver, and then to come out and execute like we did, was huge for us. I thought we put together a complete, three-phase game (against Farwell).”
The Gruver defense also played lights out, allowing just 12 rushing yards, sacking Farwell freshman quarterback Kolson Allen on five occasions and capturing one interception.
Gruver sealed the No. 2 spot within the district, while Stratford gained the inside track in the league title chase with a 42-0 victory over Vega on Friday at E. L. “Sam” Bass Stadium in Stratford. Farwell currently sits as the No. 3 seed out of District 1-2A Division II.
While the Steers took a tough loss on the chin, hope is far from lost. For Farwell head coach Derrick Shelton, the Steers know they have to move on in a hurry.
“That’s all we can do at this point,” Shelton said. “Gruver’s a very good football team. They’re very well coached. All we can do is take this loss that we took, and learn from it. We need to see what we need to get better at, where we need to focus our areas of practice and everything. Then, just continue to grow and get better as a team.”
Farwell dipped down to 6-2 overall with a 2-1 record in district.
Despite their four-game wins streak going by the wayside, the Steers have one more game left in the regular season schedule. The Steers have a chance to take down Stratford, in a big district matchup set for 7 p.m. on Friday at W. M. Roberts Stadium in Farwell.
“It’ll be our Senior Night,” Shelton said. “We have 10 seniors on this team, and they’ve done a great job of buying into everything that we ask them to do. It’s going to take a great week of preparation to beat (Stratford).”
“Our district is a tough district,” added Shelton. “We have some really, really good teams that can make runs in November and December. On Monday, we just have to go back to work and put days together throughout the week. That’s really when the game is won or lost. Hopefully, we get some days strung together and come out on top.”
Gruver finished its regular season with a 3-1 record in district play and 8-2 overall. Even though there is a bye week ahead, the Greyhounds will not allow that small gap between the regular season and the playoffs to best them.
“We just have to keep practicing hard,” Satterfield said. “You can lose on your open week. That’s what we like to say. We just have to keep practicing and playing hard. We have to play every game like it’s our last.”
Coach Hab concurred with his quarterback.
“Our expectations are, obviously, to not get beat by the open week,” said Haberthur. “We’re going to get some much needed rest. It’s been 10 straight games, and we need to sharpen up on some of our stuff that we’re not really sharp on — end of game type of scenarios. We’ll put in some trick stuff, so we’ll keep everything fresh.”
The Greyhounds went to work, putting up 14 points in the first period.
For the first score, Satterfield lofted a pass to Lankford, who snagged the football with one hand for the 10-yard TD at the 6:56 mark. The PAT missed the mark, but provided Gruver with a 6-0 lead.
Satterfield and Lankford then connected once more, this time for a 33-yard score right before the start of the second stanza. Satterfield then found Butler open in the endzone for the two-point conversion.
Farwell got on the board soon after, as Allen went deep to senior Andrae Pullen for a 49-yard touchdown. Sophomore Wilman Flores’ kick was good, allowing Farwell to cut the Greyhounds’ lead in half at 14-7.
Then, Gruver took over. Satterfield responded with a 35-yard touchdown pass to Shepard at the 7:53 mark, followed by a 14-yard touchdown with 4:48 remaining until halftime and a five-yard scoring scamper with 2:16 to play until intermission.
By the time both teams went to the locker room, the Greyhounds had built up a 35-7 advantage.
The third quarter sang the same tune, as Satterfield broke away from defenders and scored from 35-yards out with 8:11 to go in the period. Following senior Valverde’s PAT, Gruver extended their lead to 42-7.
Farwell struck paydirt once more, as Allen found a streaking wideout in sophomore Joel Juarez for a 65-yard touchdown. With 6:32 remaining in the third, the Steers trimmed the lead down to 42-14.
The final stretch saw Conyers score on a two-yard touchdown run with 11:36 left, before Lankford snagged a 15-yard touchdown pass from Satterfield. From there, Gruver was able to send in its reserves on offense and put the game to bed.
Lankford was fantastic, grabbing five catches for 71 yards and three touchdowns. Shepard reeled in five receptions and recorded one touchdown, along with an interception. Butler had five catches for 58 yards.
The defense was led by senior Victor Flores, who came up with several stops throughout the game. Both Satterfield and Haberthur noted that Flores “brings energy” to the Greyhounds.
“He’s the anchor of our defense,” said Satterfield. “He just gets us going. When we need energy, he go to him.”
Haberthur elaborated on Flores.
“As soon as we got beat in the semifinals (last season), he made the comment that he needs to go to the line, so he can help us out,” Haberthur said. “That’s a selfless thing to do, and he’s just gotten better and better. He’s been a rocket for us for two years now, and he’s a bowling ball type kid with a lot of energy when he’s playing. When he hits, he brings a load when he gets there.”
For Farwell, Pullen acquired 75 yards receiving and one TD in two receptions and Juarez finished with 72 yards and a score in two catches. Sophomore Coy Miller ended up with 37 yards on eight carries and 26 yards on one pass.
Although it was not the best showing, Shelton knows that he has playmakers on both sides of the football.
“We have some great players, man, with (freshman) Tak Miller, (sophomore) Coy Miller, (senior) Hudson Agee, (Allen) and (Pullen),” he said. “(Pullen) had a great game, I thought. We’re blessed with great skill kids. It was one of those nights where we just didn’t get to make the plays we should have, and we usually do. That’s a big testament to Gruver and their kids, and how well they’re coached.”
On defense, junior linebacker Franklin Valle posted seven solo tackles for the Steers, including one quarterback sack. Senior linebacker Bo Reed had five solo stops, while sophomore Yael Jimenez and junior Hunter Ruthardt each obtained one tackle for a loss.