By JOE DODD
For the first three-and-a-half minutes of Saturday's Class 3A Division I State Championship game it appeared that the Gilmer Buckeyes were on their way to their second title in four years. For the final 44-and-a-half minutes the Liberty Hill Panthers showed why they have won 24 games in a row including their second straight state championship game with a 38-13 win over the Buckeyes.
Gilmer's Justin Johnson took the opening kickoff 82 yards for a touchdown to give the Buckeyes a 7-0 lead with only 14 seconds off the clock. Then the Gilmer defense held the Panthers to 25 yards on 5 plays, forcing Liberty Hill to punt for only the 15th time all season.
From that point on it was all Panthers, as Liberty Hill's defense held the Buckeyes' offense to a season-low 135 total yards while the Panthers offense rolled up 354 yards and 6 touchdowns rushing.
“They just outplayed us,” admitted senior receiver Lamar Harris who scored the Buckeyes only offensive touchdown on a 35-yard reception in the third quarter.
The Buckeyes entered the game with the top offense in the state, averaging 497.5 yards and 49.2 points per game, but with wind gusting throughout the game at 27 miles per hour and sophomore quarterback Darian “Stump” Godfrey playing with a dislocated thumb, Gilmer's offense could never crank in the subfreezing wind chill.
“Obviously the wind was a huge factor, but I think more than that, Stump's thumb injury was tough on him. He just couldn't catch a snap and I feel bad for him,” said Buckeyes' head coach Jeff Traylor, who refused to excuse the loss to the wind and Godfrey's injury.
“We thought we had a good plan; we just didn't execute it very well,” said Traylor, who saw his record fall to 85-15 in his eight seasons at Gilmer. “We dropped the very first snap and three-and-outed and then punted into that wind.”
Gilmer's first punt gave Liberty Hill the football at the Buckeyes' 49-yard line. Three plays later the Panthers Dustin Gonzales scored from 11 yards out with 6:35 to play in the first quarter. Craig Havens extra point attempt sailed wide left preserving the Buckeyes' lead at 7-6.
Gilmer's next three possessions all ended on failed fourth down attempts by the Buckeyes. The first failed attempt gave the Panthers the football at the Gilmer 41-yard line after Johnson was stopped for no gain on a 4th-and-3.
Five plays later, Gonzales scored from 31 yards out giving Liberty Hill a 12-7 lead with 3:24 remaining in the first quarter. The Panthers two-point conversion attempt was stopped by Gilmer's defense.
The Buckeyes gave the football back to the Panthers four plays later when Godfrey was thrown for a 5-yard loss on a 4th-and-1 play at Gilmer's own 32-yard line.
It took the Panthers six plays to cover the distance, but Liberty Hill scored on a Doug Allman 4-yard run with 11:35 to go in the second quarter. Once again the Buckeyes' defense stopped the Panthers' two-point conversion, making the score 18-7.
Johnson sparked the Buckeyes again, returning the kickoff 25 yards to the Gilmer 43-yard line, only to go unused in the series, as Gilmer threw the ball on 7 consecutive plays before Jeremy Jackson came up 6 yards short on a 4th-and-10 reception at the Liberty Hill 27-yard line. The Buckeyes' defense rose to the challenge on the Panthers' next possession, forcing another punt just 4 plays later, returning the football to the Buckeyes' offense at their own 47-yard line with 8:59 to play in the first half.
This time the Buckeyes managed to convert a 4th-and-4 when Godfrey connected with Tuminello for an 8-yard gain at the Panthers' 39-yard line. A 5-yard penalty against Liberty Hill's defense moved the Buckeyes to the Panthers' 34-yard line, but on the next play Godfrey's handoff to Johnson ended up on the ground and the Panthers' Marlowe Poitier recovered the fumble at the Liberty Hill 32-yard line with 7:16 remaining in the half.
Gonzales scored his third touchdown of the first half on the next play when the senior running back ran to his left only to run into two Buckeyes' defenders. Gonzales broke free from the two defenders, reversed field to the right, picked up a nice block and raced 62 yards untouched down the Buckeyes' sideline with 7:01 left on the first half clock. Havens’ extra point kick was good, giving Liberty Hill a 25-7 lead.
Despite having trailed in each of their four playoff wins, the Buckeyes looked shell-shocked and responded as such, gaining no yards on their next three plays before punting the football back to the Panthers with 6:14 to play in the half.
Liberty Hill proceeded on an 8-play drive that ate up 5:38 off the clock. But the Panthers gave the Buckeyes a ray of hope on a 4th-and-1 play when Allman burst through the middle for a 5-yard gain then fumbled the football forward to Gilmer's Paul Chesnut who picked up the loose ball at the 37-yard line and returned it to the Panthers' 24-yard line with 1:39 remaining in the half.
The Panthers were flagged for a flagrant face mask penalty on the play, so the Buckeyes got the ball at the Liberty Hill 12-yard line for a chance to cut the Panthers' lead and gain momentum before halftime.
But once again the Buckeyes' offense couldn't convert a 4th-and- 2 attempt from the 4-yard line, as Johnson was stuffed in the backfield for a loss of a yard, returning the football to Liberty Hill with 28 seconds left on the clock.
“We still had our chances,” confirmed Traylor. “We just couldn't execute on offense. That's it in a nutshell.”
The Buckeyes never gave up and continued to manufacture opportunities in the second half, including an onside kick of the opening kickoff that bounced off the chest of a Liberty Hill player and was recovered by Gilmer's Braylon Webb at the Panthers' 46-yard line.
Inspired by the success of the onside kick, the Buckeyes' offense converted only their second 4th down of the game when Jeremy Jackson gained 2 yards on a 4th-and-1 from the Panthers' 37-yard line. On the next play, Godfrey hit Harris in stride with the touchdown pass. Gilmer's two-point attempt failed, but the Buckeyes had cut the Liberty Hill lead to 25-13 with 10:21 to play in the third quarter.
“Stump is a great player. For him to lead us to the state championship game is amazing. It's been an honor to play with him,” Harris said.
Liberty Hill responded with a 12-play, 66-yard scoring drive that took 5:38 off the clock. Allman collected his second touchdown of the game with his run from 4 yards out to push the Panthers' lead to 32-13 with 4:43 left in the third quarter.
On the Buckeyes' next series, Gilmer's offense advanced to the Liberty Hill 25-yard line thanks to a couple of defensive penalties, but on 4th-and-7, Godfrey's pass to Harris fell incomplete, turning the ball over to the Panthers.
The Buckeyes' defense held the Panthers to only 18 yards in 5 plays, forcing Liberty Hill's third punt of the game and giving Gilmer the football at their own 17-yard line.
The Buckeyes' offense continued its fourth down struggles on the next series. Facing a 4th-and-12 at their own 28-yard line, Gilmer was flagged for an offensive penalty and pushed back five yards. Godfrey's pass attempt on the next play was incomplete, and the Panthers took possession of the football at the Buckeyes' 23-yard line.
Liberty Hill covered the 23 yards in 8 plays, finishing the scoring with a 6-yard run by Clint Gavin with 3:39 remaining in the game. Havens’ extra-point kick was no good, leaving the score 38-13; the worst loss of Traylor's career.
“I knew they were that good, I just thought we could score with them,” said Traylor. “I think our defense did all that they could do; we just needed to score with them and we just couldn't.”
The Panthers put the exclamation point on the victory with the recovery of another Buckeyes' fumble at the Gilmer 16-yard line with 2:18 to play. After picking up a first down, the Panthers mercifully ran the remaining time off the clock and celebrated their second consecutive title. “We're proud of our season, but right now we're awfully disappointed,” Traylor said.
“I'm disappointed, but we had a good run,” said senior linebacker Brennan Thompson. “We're real proud that we're here and had an opportunity to be here for two years out of our four years.”
“It's really not so hard on me now because I feel like I left it all out there on the field and I know that my teammates did too,” said Harris. “They just outplayed us.”
Godfrey, who was scheduled to undergo surgery on his thumb this week, said that this season was a learning experience for him. “I know what to do to get here; I've just got to work harder to win here.”
Mirror Photo / Mary Laschinger Kirby
JUSTIN JOHNSON bursts into the clear on the opening kick off as the Liberty Hill kicker Craig Havens tries to stop his dash to the end zone. Johnson stepped out of his and two other tackle attempts and put the Buckeyes ahead 7-0. The Panthers came back with four unanswered touchdowns in the first half and won the state championship game, 38-13.
Photo Gallery: Gilmer vs. Liberty Hill (UIL 3A D1 Final)
Iris Images Gallery
Photos by Ruel Gallery
For the first three-and-a-half minutes of Saturday's Class 3A Division I State Championship game it appeared that the Gilmer Buckeyes were on their way to their second title in four years. For the final 44-and-a-half minutes the Liberty Hill Panthers showed why they have won 24 games in a row including their second straight state championship game with a 38-13 win over the Buckeyes.
Gilmer's Justin Johnson took the opening kickoff 82 yards for a touchdown to give the Buckeyes a 7-0 lead with only 14 seconds off the clock. Then the Gilmer defense held the Panthers to 25 yards on 5 plays, forcing Liberty Hill to punt for only the 15th time all season.
From that point on it was all Panthers, as Liberty Hill's defense held the Buckeyes' offense to a season-low 135 total yards while the Panthers offense rolled up 354 yards and 6 touchdowns rushing.
“They just outplayed us,” admitted senior receiver Lamar Harris who scored the Buckeyes only offensive touchdown on a 35-yard reception in the third quarter.
The Buckeyes entered the game with the top offense in the state, averaging 497.5 yards and 49.2 points per game, but with wind gusting throughout the game at 27 miles per hour and sophomore quarterback Darian “Stump” Godfrey playing with a dislocated thumb, Gilmer's offense could never crank in the subfreezing wind chill.
“Obviously the wind was a huge factor, but I think more than that, Stump's thumb injury was tough on him. He just couldn't catch a snap and I feel bad for him,” said Buckeyes' head coach Jeff Traylor, who refused to excuse the loss to the wind and Godfrey's injury.
“We thought we had a good plan; we just didn't execute it very well,” said Traylor, who saw his record fall to 85-15 in his eight seasons at Gilmer. “We dropped the very first snap and three-and-outed and then punted into that wind.”
Gilmer's first punt gave Liberty Hill the football at the Buckeyes' 49-yard line. Three plays later the Panthers Dustin Gonzales scored from 11 yards out with 6:35 to play in the first quarter. Craig Havens extra point attempt sailed wide left preserving the Buckeyes' lead at 7-6.
Gilmer's next three possessions all ended on failed fourth down attempts by the Buckeyes. The first failed attempt gave the Panthers the football at the Gilmer 41-yard line after Johnson was stopped for no gain on a 4th-and-3.
Five plays later, Gonzales scored from 31 yards out giving Liberty Hill a 12-7 lead with 3:24 remaining in the first quarter. The Panthers two-point conversion attempt was stopped by Gilmer's defense.
The Buckeyes gave the football back to the Panthers four plays later when Godfrey was thrown for a 5-yard loss on a 4th-and-1 play at Gilmer's own 32-yard line.
It took the Panthers six plays to cover the distance, but Liberty Hill scored on a Doug Allman 4-yard run with 11:35 to go in the second quarter. Once again the Buckeyes' defense stopped the Panthers' two-point conversion, making the score 18-7.
Johnson sparked the Buckeyes again, returning the kickoff 25 yards to the Gilmer 43-yard line, only to go unused in the series, as Gilmer threw the ball on 7 consecutive plays before Jeremy Jackson came up 6 yards short on a 4th-and-10 reception at the Liberty Hill 27-yard line. The Buckeyes' defense rose to the challenge on the Panthers' next possession, forcing another punt just 4 plays later, returning the football to the Buckeyes' offense at their own 47-yard line with 8:59 to play in the first half.
This time the Buckeyes managed to convert a 4th-and-4 when Godfrey connected with Tuminello for an 8-yard gain at the Panthers' 39-yard line. A 5-yard penalty against Liberty Hill's defense moved the Buckeyes to the Panthers' 34-yard line, but on the next play Godfrey's handoff to Johnson ended up on the ground and the Panthers' Marlowe Poitier recovered the fumble at the Liberty Hill 32-yard line with 7:16 remaining in the half.
Gonzales scored his third touchdown of the first half on the next play when the senior running back ran to his left only to run into two Buckeyes' defenders. Gonzales broke free from the two defenders, reversed field to the right, picked up a nice block and raced 62 yards untouched down the Buckeyes' sideline with 7:01 left on the first half clock. Havens’ extra point kick was good, giving Liberty Hill a 25-7 lead.
Despite having trailed in each of their four playoff wins, the Buckeyes looked shell-shocked and responded as such, gaining no yards on their next three plays before punting the football back to the Panthers with 6:14 to play in the half.
Liberty Hill proceeded on an 8-play drive that ate up 5:38 off the clock. But the Panthers gave the Buckeyes a ray of hope on a 4th-and-1 play when Allman burst through the middle for a 5-yard gain then fumbled the football forward to Gilmer's Paul Chesnut who picked up the loose ball at the 37-yard line and returned it to the Panthers' 24-yard line with 1:39 remaining in the half.
The Panthers were flagged for a flagrant face mask penalty on the play, so the Buckeyes got the ball at the Liberty Hill 12-yard line for a chance to cut the Panthers' lead and gain momentum before halftime.
But once again the Buckeyes' offense couldn't convert a 4th-and- 2 attempt from the 4-yard line, as Johnson was stuffed in the backfield for a loss of a yard, returning the football to Liberty Hill with 28 seconds left on the clock.
“We still had our chances,” confirmed Traylor. “We just couldn't execute on offense. That's it in a nutshell.”
The Buckeyes never gave up and continued to manufacture opportunities in the second half, including an onside kick of the opening kickoff that bounced off the chest of a Liberty Hill player and was recovered by Gilmer's Braylon Webb at the Panthers' 46-yard line.
Inspired by the success of the onside kick, the Buckeyes' offense converted only their second 4th down of the game when Jeremy Jackson gained 2 yards on a 4th-and-1 from the Panthers' 37-yard line. On the next play, Godfrey hit Harris in stride with the touchdown pass. Gilmer's two-point attempt failed, but the Buckeyes had cut the Liberty Hill lead to 25-13 with 10:21 to play in the third quarter.
“Stump is a great player. For him to lead us to the state championship game is amazing. It's been an honor to play with him,” Harris said.
Liberty Hill responded with a 12-play, 66-yard scoring drive that took 5:38 off the clock. Allman collected his second touchdown of the game with his run from 4 yards out to push the Panthers' lead to 32-13 with 4:43 left in the third quarter.
On the Buckeyes' next series, Gilmer's offense advanced to the Liberty Hill 25-yard line thanks to a couple of defensive penalties, but on 4th-and-7, Godfrey's pass to Harris fell incomplete, turning the ball over to the Panthers.
The Buckeyes' defense held the Panthers to only 18 yards in 5 plays, forcing Liberty Hill's third punt of the game and giving Gilmer the football at their own 17-yard line.
The Buckeyes' offense continued its fourth down struggles on the next series. Facing a 4th-and-12 at their own 28-yard line, Gilmer was flagged for an offensive penalty and pushed back five yards. Godfrey's pass attempt on the next play was incomplete, and the Panthers took possession of the football at the Buckeyes' 23-yard line.
Liberty Hill covered the 23 yards in 8 plays, finishing the scoring with a 6-yard run by Clint Gavin with 3:39 remaining in the game. Havens’ extra-point kick was no good, leaving the score 38-13; the worst loss of Traylor's career.
“I knew they were that good, I just thought we could score with them,” said Traylor. “I think our defense did all that they could do; we just needed to score with them and we just couldn't.”
The Panthers put the exclamation point on the victory with the recovery of another Buckeyes' fumble at the Gilmer 16-yard line with 2:18 to play. After picking up a first down, the Panthers mercifully ran the remaining time off the clock and celebrated their second consecutive title. “We're proud of our season, but right now we're awfully disappointed,” Traylor said.
“I'm disappointed, but we had a good run,” said senior linebacker Brennan Thompson. “We're real proud that we're here and had an opportunity to be here for two years out of our four years.”
“It's really not so hard on me now because I feel like I left it all out there on the field and I know that my teammates did too,” said Harris. “They just outplayed us.”
Godfrey, who was scheduled to undergo surgery on his thumb this week, said that this season was a learning experience for him. “I know what to do to get here; I've just got to work harder to win here.”
Mirror Photo / Mary Laschinger Kirby
JUSTIN JOHNSON bursts into the clear on the opening kick off as the Liberty Hill kicker Craig Havens tries to stop his dash to the end zone. Johnson stepped out of his and two other tackle attempts and put the Buckeyes ahead 7-0. The Panthers came back with four unanswered touchdowns in the first half and won the state championship game, 38-13.
Photo Gallery: Gilmer vs. Liberty Hill (UIL 3A D1 Final)
Iris Images Gallery
Photos by Ruel Gallery
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