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The Bulldogs take to the field on opening night.
Photo by Chris Darus
August 30, 2022
Bulldogs lose season opener to Poteet, 38-14
By Brady Keane
BHS coaching staff
The Bandera varsity football team went back and forth with Poteet for the majority of Friday night’s season opener before the Aggies pulled away late in the second half of a 38-14 finish.
Poteet struck first on the game’s opening possession, connecting on a 42-yard touchdown pass. Defense took over on the next several possessions though, before Bandera evened things up at 7-7 on a 54-yard touchdown pass from senior Riley Haley to Alex Dirck with just over six minutes remaining in the first half.
The Aggies took a 14-7 lead into half time after connecting on a 29-
yard touchdown pass on the ensuing possession.
Bandera had several opportunities to even the score up in the third quarter, but untimely turnovers and penalties kept the Bulldogs from capitalizing in the red zone.
Bandera’s Solomon Alexander scored the team’s second touchdown o f the night on a 16-yard, highlight-reel worthy touchdown reception from Haley in the corner of the end zone to make it a two-score game early in the fourth quarter before the Aggies added a touchdown in the final minutes to put the game away.
Alexander shined in all three phases of the game for the Bulldogs while making his varsity debut and finished with five catches for 66 yards and a touchdown. Alexander also had 7 tackles and two interceptions while averaging 17.2 yards per kickoff return.
Other standouts for the Bulldogs included junior Jesse Cardenas, who rarely came off the field. Cardenas paced the Bandera offense with 133 yards on 19 carries and had five tackles and a pass break up defensively. Haley threw for 120 yards and two touchdowns, and Dirck finished with one catch for 54 yards and a score. Junior Carson Powers and senior Isaac Martinez each had a sack defensively while senior Eric Straeter had 10 tackles, sophomore Josh Goff and junior Dylan Gherman had nine tackles each, and junior Daniel Freeman finished with eight tackles. The Bulldogs fell to 0-1 on the season with the loss but will look to bounce back and even their record while traveling to Cotulla Friday night. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
Poteet struck first on the game’s opening possession, connecting on a 42-yard touchdown pass. Defense took over on the next several possessions though, before Bandera evened things up at 7-7 on a 54-yard touchdown pass from senior Riley Haley to Alex Dirck with just over six minutes remaining in the first half.
The Aggies took a 14-7 lead into half time after connecting on a 29-
yard touchdown pass on the ensuing possession.
Bandera had several opportunities to even the score up in the third quarter, but untimely turnovers and penalties kept the Bulldogs from capitalizing in the red zone.
Bandera’s Solomon Alexander scored the team’s second touchdown o f the night on a 16-yard, highlight-reel worthy touchdown reception from Haley in the corner of the end zone to make it a two-score game early in the fourth quarter before the Aggies added a touchdown in the final minutes to put the game away.
Alexander shined in all three phases of the game for the Bulldogs while making his varsity debut and finished with five catches for 66 yards and a touchdown. Alexander also had 7 tackles and two interceptions while averaging 17.2 yards per kickoff return.
Other standouts for the Bulldogs included junior Jesse Cardenas, who rarely came off the field. Cardenas paced the Bandera offense with 133 yards on 19 carries and had five tackles and a pass break up defensively. Haley threw for 120 yards and two touchdowns, and Dirck finished with one catch for 54 yards and a score. Junior Carson Powers and senior Isaac Martinez each had a sack defensively while senior Eric Straeter had 10 tackles, sophomore Josh Goff and junior Dylan Gherman had nine tackles each, and junior Daniel Freeman finished with eight tackles. The Bulldogs fell to 0-1 on the season with the loss but will look to bounce back and even their record while traveling to Cotulla Friday night. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.