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November 5, 2021
Bandera falls to Hondo in second half
Playoff spot is still a possibility
By Chris Darus
The Bandera Prophet
With a win, they are in, that’s the playoff situation for the Bulldogs.
It will take a win over Pearsall this Friday for Bandera to make the playoffs.
The Bulldogs were looking to avenge last year’s loss and the previous year’s first round playoff loss to the Owls on Friday. Instead, a hard fought contest ended up with a third straight loss to the Owls, this a 20-10 setback.
A low scoring first half saw both teams playing good defensively, shutting down each others offense and special teams play entered the game with three field goals the only scoring for the first two quarters.
Bandera scored first with a 34 yard kick by Beto Muzquiz to put Bandera up, 3-0, in the first.
Hondo answered with a 35 yard field goal of their own to tie the game and then kicked another, this a 34 yarder, with under 30 seconds left in the second, to take a 6-3 lead into the locker rooms at the half.
Hondo extended their lead to 13-6 with just over five minutes left in the third with a touchdown and a good PAT
and Bandera responded less than three minutes later with 2:08 left on a Brock Johnson rush from the nine to keep it a one score game at 13-10 after a good PAT from Muzquiz.
Hondo would score once again a few minutes into the fourth to get the 20-10 victory and take the third seed in district.
Hondo’s defense disrupted Bandera’s offensive plan, holding the Bulldogs to under 200 yards of offense with just 35 yards passing and 157 yards on the ground.
“At times we played well, at times we didn’t. We didn’t make the plays we needed to make and it cost us. There were some drive killers, an incomplete pass or a penalty, that killed our momentum. When you play a good football team, you have to convert those third downs to sustain a drive. Defensively, there were times we couldn’t get off the field when we needed to and I feel our special teams played well, coach Joel Fontenot-Amedee said.
With the loss, Bandera falls to 5-4 (1-3) and will host Pearsal,l 0-9 (0-4) in the final regular game of the season.
Pearsall is having a rough year, going winless nine games in a row, and a win in the last game of the season is high on their list.
Currently, Bandera is tied with Crystal City with a win each in district, but Bandera defeated Crystal to own the tiebreaker if it comes down to that.
A win over Pearsall will put the Bulldogs at 5-1 at home and into the playoffs for only the second time since 2009, the other was the 2019-2020, 8-2 season that ended with the first round loss to Hondo mentioned above. If the Bulldogs get in, the seniors will have qualified twice, another thing that has been missing since 2009.
Bandera is beginning to see the ability, and an expectation, to be competitive in football and making the playoffs on a regular basis. That's a product of the current coaching staff and student athletes being on the same page and believing it will happen.
"We are building a program here, our JV is 4-4, some of those players had never won a game since starting seventh grade football. If the JV wins Thursday, it will be the first winning season in a while for them. They have been competitive in almost every game this season," Fontenot-Amedee said.
Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m. Friday and as it is Senior Friday Night Lights Night, come out and support your Bulldogs and the seniors, football, band, cheerleaders and Star Steppers, in their last home game ever at Bulldog Stadium.
Bandera at Hondo
Bandera stats:
Passing_ T. Moore, 4-15-35-0-1
Rushing_ B. Johnson, 23-131, Moore, 7-26
Receiving_ B. Miller, 2-18, Johnson, 1-11, undetermined 1-6
Tackles_ M. Staton, 8, J. Cardenas, 7, D. Gherman, 6, B. Miller, 5, E. Rutherford, 5, K. Rodriguez, 4, J. Cabasos, 3, Z. Lowhorn, 3, K. Morgan, 3, K. Son, 3
Assists_ Staton, 7, Cabasos, 5, Gherman, 5, I. Martinez, 5, Cardenas, 4, Rutherford, 4
It will take a win over Pearsall this Friday for Bandera to make the playoffs.
The Bulldogs were looking to avenge last year’s loss and the previous year’s first round playoff loss to the Owls on Friday. Instead, a hard fought contest ended up with a third straight loss to the Owls, this a 20-10 setback.
A low scoring first half saw both teams playing good defensively, shutting down each others offense and special teams play entered the game with three field goals the only scoring for the first two quarters.
Bandera scored first with a 34 yard kick by Beto Muzquiz to put Bandera up, 3-0, in the first.
Hondo answered with a 35 yard field goal of their own to tie the game and then kicked another, this a 34 yarder, with under 30 seconds left in the second, to take a 6-3 lead into the locker rooms at the half.
Hondo extended their lead to 13-6 with just over five minutes left in the third with a touchdown and a good PAT
and Bandera responded less than three minutes later with 2:08 left on a Brock Johnson rush from the nine to keep it a one score game at 13-10 after a good PAT from Muzquiz.
Hondo would score once again a few minutes into the fourth to get the 20-10 victory and take the third seed in district.
Hondo’s defense disrupted Bandera’s offensive plan, holding the Bulldogs to under 200 yards of offense with just 35 yards passing and 157 yards on the ground.
“At times we played well, at times we didn’t. We didn’t make the plays we needed to make and it cost us. There were some drive killers, an incomplete pass or a penalty, that killed our momentum. When you play a good football team, you have to convert those third downs to sustain a drive. Defensively, there were times we couldn’t get off the field when we needed to and I feel our special teams played well, coach Joel Fontenot-Amedee said.
With the loss, Bandera falls to 5-4 (1-3) and will host Pearsal,l 0-9 (0-4) in the final regular game of the season.
Pearsall is having a rough year, going winless nine games in a row, and a win in the last game of the season is high on their list.
Currently, Bandera is tied with Crystal City with a win each in district, but Bandera defeated Crystal to own the tiebreaker if it comes down to that.
A win over Pearsall will put the Bulldogs at 5-1 at home and into the playoffs for only the second time since 2009, the other was the 2019-2020, 8-2 season that ended with the first round loss to Hondo mentioned above. If the Bulldogs get in, the seniors will have qualified twice, another thing that has been missing since 2009.
Bandera is beginning to see the ability, and an expectation, to be competitive in football and making the playoffs on a regular basis. That's a product of the current coaching staff and student athletes being on the same page and believing it will happen.
"We are building a program here, our JV is 4-4, some of those players had never won a game since starting seventh grade football. If the JV wins Thursday, it will be the first winning season in a while for them. They have been competitive in almost every game this season," Fontenot-Amedee said.
Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m. Friday and as it is Senior Friday Night Lights Night, come out and support your Bulldogs and the seniors, football, band, cheerleaders and Star Steppers, in their last home game ever at Bulldog Stadium.
Bandera at Hondo
Bandera stats:
Passing_ T. Moore, 4-15-35-0-1
Rushing_ B. Johnson, 23-131, Moore, 7-26
Receiving_ B. Miller, 2-18, Johnson, 1-11, undetermined 1-6
Tackles_ M. Staton, 8, J. Cardenas, 7, D. Gherman, 6, B. Miller, 5, E. Rutherford, 5, K. Rodriguez, 4, J. Cabasos, 3, Z. Lowhorn, 3, K. Morgan, 3, K. Son, 3
Assists_ Staton, 7, Cabasos, 5, Gherman, 5, I. Martinez, 5, Cardenas, 4, Rutherford, 4