It’s been a break even proposition for the Tascosa Rebels through four non-district games this season, but odds for success still looked pretty good after Thursday night.
That’s not to say there wasn’t some disappointment with the end result for the Rebels at the end of their game against Class 6A Odessa Permian at Dick Bivins Stadium. A frustrating second half offensively left Tascosa wondering about what might have been after losing 23-21 to drop to 2-2 heading into District 3-5A Division I play next Friday night at Lubbock Coronado.
Ironically, such disappointment with leaving some points on the field could be considered good news in a game which didn’t start until half an hour after scheduled due to a lightning delay. The Rebels left knowing they can play with high-quality programs, which was also reflected in a 20-14 loss at Lubbock-Cooper a week earlier.
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Like that game, the showdown with Permian (3-1) hung in the balance for the second half, although neither team looked ready to take control of things in the third quarter. The Rebels survived a pair of missed Permian field goal attempts and both teams lost fumbles around midfield, but neither team was able to turn those miscues into points.
“The third quarter we went a little bit dormant offensively and a lot of that had to do with the adjustments (Permian) made,” Tascosa coach Ken Plunk said. “We left too much out there. I don’t think we played bad offensively, we just had some unfortunate things like a fumbled snap and we had a pitch where they made a great play and made us put it on the ground. We got better tonight I think.”
Tascosa hung with storied Permian throughout the first half, using two prototypical drives to get on the board. Permian, though, used back-to-back big pass plays in the last two minutes of the first half to take a 17-14 halftime lead.
Both teams punted only once in the game but didn’t always take advantage of situations. Permian got a Tascosa fumble from quarterback Coltyn Fulton at its own 42-yard line to start the second half and moved into field goal position but the Rebels blocked a 36-yard attempt by Iker Munoz. The Panthers also missed another field goal and lost a fumble in the second half, but the Rebels couldn’t turn those miscues into points.
It’s to Tascosa’s credit that the game didn’t get out of hand and that the Rebels still had a shot at winning in the final minutes.
“We have a good football team,” Plunk said. “In some areas that was the best game we’ve played. I though we just played outstanding all night on defense although that first drive wasn’t so outstanding. We were a little bit timid on that first drive, but past that we were pretty good.”
Permian set the tone by taking the opening kickoff and marching for a touchdown. Quarterback Jakob Garcia was 5-for-5 for 59 yards in the drive, concluding it with a 13-yard scoring pass to Cameron Mattingly for a 7-0 lead.
Tascosa responded with a drive which was both typical and atypical for the Rebels. It was typical in that it was 18 plays and went 75 yards and took almost eight minutes, atypical in that they had two completions.
Tendrick Sargent went in from a yard out 37 seconds into the second quarter as the Rebels tied it 7-7.
Permian retook the lead on the next possession when Munoz kicked a 45-yard field goal for a 10-7 lead. The Rebels responded with another methodical drive as Fulton scored on a 3-yard run for a 14-10 lead with 3:18 left in the first half., the only time they led the entire game.
Tascosa looked primed to take some momentum into halftime as Permian faced a third-and-11, but Garcia escaped a pass rush and hit Cason Navarrette for a 49-yard gain. The next play, the Panthers resorted to some trickery, as they ran a reverse and Cayden Hernandez hit a wide-open Aaron Navarrete for a 42-yard touchdown and a 17-14 lead with 1:20 left in the half.
“We travel well I think and we have a good routine as far as keeping our kids focused,” Permian coach Jeff Ellison said. “I’m very proud of how we handled that and the rain delay. We’ve played Tascosa for years in the playoffs and the regular season when we were in the same district. We know what to get out of them with coach Plunk their kids and we know they’re never going to give up.”
Permian’s lone punt of the game was a masterpiece, as Munoz booted it 51 yards and it hopped sideways out of bounds at the Tascosa 1 early in the fourth quarter. However, the Rebels were up to the challenge, as they not only got out of the shadows of their own goalposts, but moved down to the Permian 32 in threatening to take the lead.
However, after Fulton pitched it to Reese Cabe, Permian’s Caleb Jamison jarred the ball loose and the Panthers recovered it at their own 42. That led directly to points, as Garcia hit Navarrete on a 6-yard scoring pass to make it 23-14 with 3:04 left in the game.
The Rebels responded with a drive which showed they could throw the ball when necessary, including a 25-yard completion from Fulton to Cabe. That set up a 23-yard scoring pass from Fulton to Chet Creery to cut it to 23-21 with 1:24 left.
“Catching the vertical in the end zone, we’ve been wanting to do that for awhile with Creery because he’s 6-7,” Plunk said. “That’s something we think we can use as a weapon. I’m not displeased.”
Fulton completed 5-of-12 passes for 75 yards, after completing only one a week earlier against Cooper. He was also Tascosa’s leading rusher with 82 yards on 18 carries, and his touchdown gave him 208 career points, placing him fifth on the school’s all-time list.
Permian’s Gavin Black ran for a game-high 100 yards on 12 carries.