BY NOLAN RUTH
X – @RealNolanRuth
BRYAN— The 12th annual Allen Academy Kickoff Classic opened its final day with Parker County’s own Weatherford Christian Lions taking on the Logos Prep Academy Lions from Sugar Land at Baker Field. The game was tight from the beginning with teams trading blows until Logos Prep prevailed 30-24 behind a 22-point second half.
“I told them before the game there was going to be adversity,” WCS head coach Nick Jones said after the loss. “I wanted to see how we responded. We got a lot of guys in there that just came out. We started with 11 guys, we’ve got 20 now…the opportunities were there we just have to execute and today was just not a day we executed.”
Logos Prep elected to take the ball to start the game but things did not go well. Just over a minute into the game a bad exchange rolled into the end zone. Quarterback Brayden Tibbetts picked the ball up with Seth Baldwin bearing down on him. Baldwin was able to make a quick tackle for the safety, giving Weatherford a 2-0 lead.
Logos Prep gambled and recovered an onside kick after the safety, however they stalled at the goal line and gave the ball to Weatherford Christian. Then, just like the opening series, Weatherford Christian gave up a safety as Jace Rodriguez tried to escape the defense, but was eventually caught. This resulted in the rare score of 2-2.
After getting the ball back, Weatherford Christian found the end zone for the first time when Rodriguez dropped to pass and found Grant Vick on the cross pattern. The conversion was unsuccessful, keeping the score at 8-2.
Then in another instance of deja vu, Logos Prep returned the favor on the first play of the ensuing drive as Tibbetts fired a long pass to Caleb Sedgwick for the 54-yard touchdown. The first quarter ended after that with the score tied 8-8.
Defenses took over in the second quarter with both teams trading several turnovers, including a key interception for Weatherford Christian by Boo Finney that prevented a sure touchdown.
It was not until the final play of the half that the next points were scored. Weatherford Christian had the ball with time for one last play. Rodriguez took the clean exchange and looked to throw, but everyone was covered. He decided to tuck it himself and run for it. After a few shifty moves, he beat the defense to the pylon as the clock ran out in the half. The conversion kick gave Weatherford Christian a 16-8 lead going into the break.
Unfortunately that was the last bit of light Weatherford Christian would see until late in the game. The team stalled twice in the third quarter, and Logos Prep was able to take advantage both times, ultimately taking a 22-16 lead going into the fourth quarter.
Logos Prep extended the lead midway through the fourth quarter with another touchdown, putting Weatherford Christian behind 30-16. Not long after, Weatherford Christian finally got back on the board with a 19-yard strike from Rodriguez to Finney, and the two point kick pulled them to within six with just over five minutes to go.
The defense was able to get the stop on the ensuing drive, but the offense was unable to convert on fourth down. Logos Prep took over again and was able to run out the clock to solidify the win.
Despite the loss, Jones remains confident in his team and believes this is just what they needed.
“Today’s game for my guys was a success in a loss,” he commented after the game. “Because I can tell them what we need to do to win, but now they can turn on the film and see for themselves.”
Weatherford Christian (0-1) will look to bounce back at home next week against county rival Perrin-Whitt (1-0) who mercy-ruled Gold-Burg on Thursday, 46-0.
