STERLING CITY, TX — Take notice six-man football world — the Sterling City Eagles are back.
After four years away in 11-man, Sterling City made an emphatic return to six-man Friday with a 66-27 win over a Grandfalls team ranked No. 10 in the state in Class 1A Division II.
Sterling City was coming off a 1-9 season last year, but they were a state power the last time they were in six-man.
The Eagles were six-man state champs in 2020, and they reached the state quarterfinals in 2021, losing to eventual state champ Westbrook by three points.
The Sterling City boys, it seems, were just built for six-man.
That’s why they were given the immediate respect of being ranked No. 23 in the state in 1A D-I heading into this season, and they backed it up Friday.
Sterling City will travel to play No. 21 Westbrook for a rematch of their 2021 state quarterfinal.
No. 14 Water Valley Rolls Past Garden City
The No. 14-ranked Water Valley Wildcats hit the ground running Thursday with a 61-12 win over Garden City.
Water Valley lost all but one starter from last year’s state semifinalist, but the lone returner is all-state player Branson Lacy.
After moving from running back to spread back this year, Lacy had an impressive debut with 13 carries for 171 yards and four touchdowns. He was also 8-of-10 passing for 115 yards and a TD, and he added 12 tackles on defense.
Lance Doss had four carries for 71 yards and three TDs, and he had an interception on defense.
Race Ashley had a 44-yard TD catch and recorded a tackle for a safety.
Cole Baker had an interception that he returned for a TD.
Garden City’s Brody Walts had 18 carries for 103 yards and a TD, and he also threw a TD pass.
Water Valley will play again next week when it hosts No. 1 Rankin in a rematch of last year’s state semifinal. Garden City will visit O’Donnell.
No. 16 Ozona Opens With Big Win Over Brackettville
The No. 16-ranked Ozona Lions began the season Friday with a 64-27 win over Brackettville.
It was Ozona’s first game since 3,667-yard running back Christian Villarreal graduated, and some new playmakers emerged.
Running behind Ozona’s vaunted offensive line, which was ranked No. 2 in the state in 2A, Jay Borrego had 12 carries for 186 yards and two touchdowns.
Overall, the Lions had 28 carries for 334 yards and five TDs.
New quarterback Boston Pitts also had a strong debut, throwing for 192 yards and two TDs on 8-of-11 passing.
Andon Glosson was the top receiver with four catches for 146 yards and two TDs. Defensively, he had six tackles, two tackles for loss, a sack, two QB hurries and two forced fumbles.
Freshman Jason Borrego had three catches for 87 yards and a TD in his first game.
Isaac Vega had a team-high 11 tackles, while Stockton Bean and Kaleb Ramon each had eight stops. Jadon Vega and Leo Blanco had seven tackles.
Christoval Runs Wild in Win Over Eldorado
The Christoval Cougars had a monster rushing performance Friday with 586 yards in a 35-14 win over Eldorado.
Danny Alfaro led the way with nine carries for 170 yards and four TDs.
Ryan Leggett added nine carries for 76 yards, followed by Ty DeBusk (7-70), Cooper Kattner (5-58) and Jett Whitlow (4-46, TD).
Christoval threw only seven passes with DeBusk going 3-of-7 for 49 yards.
Defensively, linebacker Kash Bates had a standout performance three interceptions and eight tackles.
Christoval will host Miles next week, while Eldorado will host Brackettville.
Winters Comes Up Short Against Shamrock
The Winters Blizzards had a solid defensive effort but couldn't find enough offense in a 15-8 loss to Shamrock.
Winters held Shamrock off the scoreboard through the first three quarters and took an 8-0 lead into the final period before the Fighting Irish stole the game late.
Hayden Collins had 24 carries for 118 yards and a TD to lead the Blizzards.
Sophomore quarterback Julian Perez was 8-of-12 passing for 89 yards in his debut. Nolan Martinez had five catches for 28 yards.
Freshman Malachi Westbrook had a team-high 10 tackles, while Caleb Rutherford and Woody Rios each had eight stops. John Pierce had a sack.
Winters will play again next week when it hosts Colorado City.
Robert Lee Overwhelmed by Defending State Champ
The Robert Lee Steers lost 71-26 in their opening game against No. 3-ranked Jayton, which won the 1A Division II state title last year.
Robert Lee jumped out to an early 14-8 lead but couldn’t keep pace with the Jaybirds.
Malachi Wauqua was 10-of-19 passing for 154 yards and a TD, and he added 10 carries for 45 yards and a TD.
Justice Immel had a 56-yard catch and returned a fumble for a TD, while Major Smith had a 49-yard TD catch.
Josh Garcez led the Steers with 10 tackles.
Robert Lee will play next week at home against Grady.
Sonora Holds Off Miles in Defensive Battle
The Sonora Broncos' defense led the way to a 14-6 road win over Miles.
Jayden Welborn had two interceptions, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery to lead the Broncos, while Alex Portillo had a team-high 13 tackles.
Welborn also a big game on offense with five catches for 128 yards and two TDs.
Quarterback Aaron Segura threw for 313 yards and two TDs on 20-of-26 passing with one INT.
Despite the loss for Miles, it was an encouraging improvement after opening last year with a 40-0 loss to Sonora.
Miles quarterback Liam Yancy was 17-of-25 passing for 172 yards and a touchdown, though he was intercepted twice.
Kane Brock led the receiving corps with five catches for 88 yards and a TD, and he had eight tackles, a tackle for loss, a sack, a QB hurry and a pass breakup.
Ryder Satepauhoodle had 14 carries for 55 yards, and he had eight tackles, a tackle for loss and a fumble recovery.
Kaden Karmany had a team-high 11 tackles, a tackle for loss and an interception. Cooper Smith added eight tackles and two pass breakups, and Jaxon Hohensee had six tackles and a sack.
Miles will play at Christoval next week, while Sonora will host Harper.
Coleman Rallies Past Grape Creek
The Coleman Bluecats scored a fourth-quarter TD to clip Grape Creek 16-12.
Coleman trailed 12-8 heading into the fourth quarter before Hunter Edington thew a TD pass to Jayden Smith.
Edington was 14-of-25 passing for 123 yards and a TD, while Smith had four catches for 60 yards, along with an interception on defense.
Chantz Adams led the ground game with 14 carries for 55 yards, and he had a team-high 18 tackles and two tackles for loss.
Ki'yan Matta also had a strong game on defense with 17 tackles, a forced fumble and a QB hurry.
Coleman's defense held Grape Creek's rushing attack to 37 carries for 164 yards.
No stats were available for Grape Creek.
Coleman will visit Big Spring Pathway next week, while Grape Creek will travel to Reagan County.
Blackwell Falls in Shootout to Aspermont
The Blackwell Hornets found some offensive success but dropped a 64-36 decision to No. 24-ranked Aspermont.
Blackwell, a 1A D-II school, held its own much of the night against 1A D-I Aspermont.
Blackwell was led by Craig Guelker, who had five catches for 167 yards and a TD, five carries for 49 yards, and 11 tackles.
Brayden Clayborn was 9-of-21 passing for 218 yards and four TDs, along with 14 tackles.
Zade Linman had a team-high 18 tackles, and he had two catches for 44 yards.
Slade Wilkinson led the ground game with 13 carries for 55 yards.
Samuel Campbell had two catches for 35 yards and two TDs. Rennder Gardenhire had five tackles, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
Blackwell will play again next week at Santa Anna.
Veribest Shuts Out Santa Anna
The Veribest Falcons rolled to a 48-0 shutout win over Santa Anna.
Lorenzo Hight rushed for 154 yards and two TDs on 11 carries, and he was a perfect 6-of-6 passing for 54 yards and a TD.
Jayden Saucedo was a menace on defense with 10 tackles, five tackles for loss, two sacks and a forced fumble. He also had four carries for 57 yards and two TDs.
Veribest will play again next week when it hosts Paint Rock.
Brady Loses Late Against Comfort
The Brady Bulldogs had two 100-yard rushers but came up just short in a 32-29 loss to Comfort.
Johnny Roque had 21 carries for 141 yards and a TD, while Benjiman Valdez had 15 carries for 138 yards and a TD.
Roque also added three catches for 37 yards, while Valdez had a 3-yard TD catch.
Brady trailed 24-15 in the third quarter before rallying to take a 29-24 lead in the fourth on quarterback Blaine' James 22-yard run.
James finished 8-of-14 passing for 69 yards and a TD with two INTs.
Comfort was able to retake the lead in the fourth quarter to earn the win.
Roque led Brady's defense with 12 tackles and a tackle for loss, while Nasir Menefield had eight tackles and two tackles for loss.
Brady will be on the road again next week at Ingram Moore.
Mason Cruises Past Reagan County
The No. 5-ranked Mason Punchers were extremely impressive in a 58-0 win over Reagan County.
Mason had 495 yards of offense while locking down the Owls to only 32 yards.
Ryder Balmos was 11-of-13 passing for 234 yards and five TDs, with Kington Garza hauling in three passes for 84 yards and two scores.
Luke Tharp had three catches for 59 yards and a TD, Slade Buell had two catches for 50 yards and a TD, and Cass Dutton had a 32-yard TD grab.
The Punchers had 261 rushing yards, led by Buell with seven carries for 89 yards. Jarrett Worrell had three carries for 83 yards and a TD, while Tharp and Barron Ramsey also had TD runs.
Mason has a huge test next week when it travels to play defending 2A D-I state champion Hamilton.
San Saba Downed by De Leon
The San Saba Armadillos were unable to keep up with No. 18-ranked De Leon in a 40-7 loss.
San Saba had some success with its rushing attack, led by Graden Lebow with 11 carries for 72 yards. Jason Everett added 18 carries for 59 yards and a TD, while Enrique Mendoza had 14 carries for 54 yards.
San Saba will play next week at Eastland.
Other Week 1 Scores
San Angelo Central 28, Abilene High 23
San Angelo Lake View 41, Fort Stockton 19
Wall 42, Canyon West Plains 35
Tahoka 39, San Angelo TLCA 25
Ballinger 27, Eastland 6
Goldthwaite 59, Junction 27
Eden 42, Paint Rock 30
Blanket 72, Panther Creek 26
Buena Vista 42, Irion County 39
Menard 60, Bronte 0
Richland Springs 64, Lometa 24
Sidney 25, Rochelle 22
Dawson 60, Olfen 14
Rankin 66, Rocksprings 46
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