Pilot Point pulls off upset, unseats top seed

By Jerry Kirby

Contributing Writer

       The Pilot Point Bearcats left the Gopher-Warrior Bowl in Grand Prairie with their first playoff victory in four seasons, defeating the Mexia Black Cats 36-32 Nov. 15.

       The Bearcats relied on big plays in all three phases of the game to come from behind in the hotly contested matchup.

       “I’m super happy with our performance,” said Chad Worrell, Pilot Point athletic director and head football coach. “We went out there and battled, and it wasn’t always easy. We had to make some adjustments defensively to account for their speed, but our defense stepped huge in the second half, and our offensive line had their best game of the year. … It was a complete and total team win.”

       Mexia struck first with a 16-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Braden Wilson to receiver Kyran Bedford, taking a 6-0 lead after a missed extra point kick.

       Pilot Point responded with its first score of the game when receiver Jordan Young recovered his own teammate’s goal line fumble in the endzone for 6.

       The Bearcats took the lead 7-6 after a successful kick by Anthony Torres.

       The Black Cats answered with two touchdown runs over 50 yards from Kelan Collins and Jacques Cooper, regaining the lead 20-6.

       Pilot Point capitalized on a Mexia special teams’ miscue when defender Caden David recovered a fumble on the extra point attempt and returned it 98 yards for 2 points, making it a 20-9 game near the end of the first quarter.

       David followed up that special teams play with a 17-yard touchdown catch from quarterback Garrett Evans on the ensuing drive, cutting Mexia’s lead to 5 in the second quarter.

       Mexia scored first in the second half, with Wilson and Bedford connecting for a 22-yard touchdown strike in the third quarter, pushing the Black Cats lead to 26-15.

       The Bearcats fought back with a 39-yard touchdown run by receiver Ashton Williamson and made it a one possession game at 26-23 after Garrett Evans found David in the endzone on the 2-point conversion.

       The two teams traded possessions going into the fourth quarter until Bearcats slot receiver Hunter Newman found a crease in the Black Cats defense and raced through it for a 91-yard touchdown run, giving Pilot Point a 30-26 lead.

       “I took the hand off, and I saw my left tackle, Preston Akins, making a good block,” Newman said. “He kicked out his guy, and I filled that gap in between him and the receiver. Then I made a little juke move on one of the [defenders], and from that point on, it was open field.”

       The Bearcats added another fourth quarter score on a trick play, with receiver Luke Conner throwing a 19-yard touchdown to tight end Dylan Hamblin, extending Pilot Point’s lead to 36-26.

       The Black Cats added another touchdown as the clock expired, making the final score 36-32.

       Worrell spoke highly of the Bearcats’ defensive performance in the second half, led by linebacker Tristan Zambrano (8 tackles; 3PD; 1 FF), who came in the game after an injury to Evans.

       “I knew it was my chance to help my team,” Zambrano said. “I just went out, executed and made sure I didn’t make any mistakes, and I got the job done.”

       Despite the difference in the teams’ playoff seeding, Worrell said the Bearcats knew they had the ability to win.

       “We weren’t content with just making the playoffs,” he said. "… Our kids believed all week that we were going to win, and now we’ve turned our attention to Liberty-Eylau, and we’re going to do the same thing.”