Thorndale wraps up playoff spot with convincing win over Granger Bulldogs to make fifth straight post-season appearance
BY BILL MARTIN
Reporter Sports Editor
THORNDALE—From day one, way back in the summer, Thorndale Coach Todd Doughty was telling anyone who would listen that there was no need to worry, his team was going to be better at the end of the year.
While showing the patience of Job, Doughty and Bulldog fans have been rewarded as Thorndale ground up district favorite Granger 28-0 Friday night at Bulldog Stadium to earn a playoff berth, it’s fifth straight.
It was the Bulldogs’ third straight victory and four out of their last five as they improve to 4-5 on the season and 3-1 in District 26A action.
Thorndale travels to a surprising Holland (4-5, 2-2) for a 7:30 kickoff to end the regular season.
“It was a huge win for us and puts us in the playoffs because we own the tiebreakers,” Doughty said. “We need to keep our eyes and our focus forward though, so we can keep the momentum we have gained over the last five weeks.
“Our kids and assistant coaches have done a great job of taking it one game at a time and not getting too high or getting too low.”
“Thorndale executed better,” said first-year Granger Coach Allen Dews. “The turnovers were terrible. We definitely didn’t tackle well enough and we had blown coverages. It’s hard to think about positives.
“Coach Doughty does a great job. You can’t take anything away from them.”
At 4-5 and 2-2, Granger—the preseason district champion pick—is in danger of totally missing the playoffs after going 12-2 a year ago.
To get in, the Lions must defeat district champion Bartlett (6-3, 4-0) in the season finale Friday and pull for Thorndale to beat Holland (4-5, 2-2).
If Holland wins, Holland will make the playoff trip while Granger sits at home.
Bartlett, which was 0-10 last season, claimed the crown with a 21-0 win over Thrall.
Granger, which has been attacked by injuries all season, was forced to play without the catalyst of its team, quarterback Kenny Sifuentes, after an ankle injury knocked him out of the game in the first quarter.
“That took the winds out of our offense,” Dews said.
Sifuentes is also the Lions’ leader on defense and had intercepted a Cody Schneider pass on the possession before he was injured.
Jason Finn assumed the controls for Granger, but was picked off four times. The Lions also coughed up the ball three times.
Thorndale wasn’t exactly stingy with the ball as well, as Schneider was picked off twice and the Bulldogs also fumbled three times for a total of 12 turnovers between the two teams.
The difference was, Thorndale was able to turn the miscues into points.
The same team that rushed for 346 yards and totaled 416 yards of offense in its loss to Holland last week, could manage just 54 yards on the ground on 27 carries and 127 total yards against the Bulldogs.
Trailing 14-0 at intermission, Granger came out slinging in the second half as Finn went to the air 19 times with seven completions for 70 yards.
The Bulldogs were able to remain grounded during the game, rushing the ball 55 times for a season-high 310 yards.
“I thought we controlled the game up front on both sides of the ball, Doughty said. “There were a lot of turnovers early for both teams but we took advantage of a couple.”
Shea Maupin, the Bulldogs’ leading ground gainer on the season, churned out 92 yards on just 10 carries including touchdown runs of 16 and 38.
Paxton Jordan played the role of workhorse with 89 yards on 20 totes and a one-yard touchdown.
After two consecutive 100-yard performances, Schneider turned in 50 yards on 10 carries.
Scouting Holland
Holland is aiming for its first playoff appearance since 1998 when they went 8-3 in Class 2A. That was also the last time they posted a winning record.
“Holland runs a spread offense team that makes a lot of big plays with their passing game,” Doughty said. “They play an aggressive defense and attempt to get penetration to give you negative plays so we need to play with our eyes pre-snap.
“They are on a good roll right now as well winning their last two games and giving themselves a very legit chance to make the playoffs.”
The Hornets are led by 1,000-yard rusher Doug Murphy who racked up 84 last week against Milano with a couple of touchdowns.
Thorndale handled Holland 35-7 last season.
PAW PRINTS—Friday’s matchup marked the first time the Kuhl brothers faced off as coaches. Kelly Kuhl has been at Thorndale for several years and is also the head baseball coach, but this is Kody Kuhl’s first year as an assistant at Granger after recently graduating from Texas A&M. The Kuhl’s father is long-time Taylor baseball coach Doug Kuhl.
