Rockdale’s chance to defend its state championship came to an early end in the first round of the state playoffs, but the 2018 Tigers squad put up a good fight against a larger, more seasoned Grandview team in its 45-21 loss on Saturday afternoon at Waco ISD Stadium.
“We just weren’t able to make plays at the end. Grand-view is a very talented team,” said RHS Head Football Coach and Athletic Director Jeff Miller. “In our mind, this was the best team coming out of that district (9-3A DI). They had that hiccup against West earlier in the season, but played really well after that.”
Grandview lost 42-41 to West in their district opener in overtime then went on to beat their five other district opponents by an average 41 points.
“Their offensive line did a good job of getting to the second level and pushing us around,” said Miller. “They had some good ball carriers obviously, but their line wore us down as the game went on.”
The Tigers offense had a total of 227 yards, sophomore running back Cam’Ron Valdez ran for 113 of those yards. It was no match for Dane Jentsch and Elijah Golden of Grand-view, who rushed for 169 yards apiece. They amassed 338 of the team’s 349 rushing yards.
Play-by-play
The game’s first touchdown came in the final minute of the first quarter and was scored when Golden found his way into the end zone on a two-yard run, which capped a six play, 62-yard drive down the field. Kicker Landon Seale made the point-after-touchdown (PAT) to put the Zebras up 7-0.
After Rockdale was forced to punt, Golden made his way back into the end zone. He ran across the goal line after a 90-yard drive by the Zebra offense and Seale made the PAT, putting Grandview ahead 14-0.
The end of the half belonged to the Tigers. Cam’Ron Valdez scored his first touchdown of the postseason on a 30-yard run. Luis Iruegas made the PAT, making the score 14-7, with four minutes left in the first half. Thirty seconds later, the blue-and-gold forced a fumble, putting them on the Grandview 33-yard line. The Tigers tied the game eight plays later on a two-yard run by Valdez. Iruegas made the PAT to make the score 14-14 at halftime.
“I told our guys that we haven’t played as good as we could play, and we’re still tied,” Miller said about his halftime talk. “We felt like we had the momentum, and we felt really good going into the second half.”
The Zebras controlled the clock for much of the third quarter. After the Tigers missed a field goal early in the half, Grandview held possession for almost four minutes and scored on a run by Austin Boyd. Seale made the PAT, putting his team up 21-14.
On Rockdale’s next drive, they made their way down the field from their 27-yard-line. Kesean Raven caught a 36-yard pass from Jace Robinson to put the Tigers on the 35-yard line. Three plays later, Raven caught another pass for 11 yards, getting the Tigers to the 21-yard line. The Zebra defense prevented the Tigers from getting past the 21, and took over when Rockdale turned the ball over on downs.
Grandview’s next drive extended into the beginning of the fourth quarter, and ended with a22-yard field goal by Seale, improving the Zebra lead to 24-14.
The Tigers scored two minutes later on Valdez’s third touchdown of the game. Iruegas made the PAT. The Tigers trailed 24-21 with more than seven minutes to play.
The Tigers onside kick attempt gave the Zebra’s good field position on the 46-yard-line, which allowed Jentsch to score his first touchdown of the game on the next play.
“We were kicking into the wind, and they would have likely got the ball near the forty-yard line,” said Miller. “We thought we should take the onside kick because if we didn’t recover the ball, they would have started off near the fifty. Plus, it gave us a chance to get the ball back. We would do that again every time.”
Grandview widened the gap three plays later when Jacob Patterson intercepted a Robinson pass for a 31-yard touchdown. Seale made the PAT, and the Zebras lead 38-21 halfway through the final quarter.
The Zebras added to their lead three minutes later when Jentsch scored his second touchdown of the contest. Seale made the PAT and Grandview went on to win 45-21 and claim the bi-district title.
“We had some times earlier in the season that led us to where we ended up. The Troy loss is kind of the one that threw us into playing Grandview,” Miller said. “We were in the red zone four or five times, and never capitalized on those opportunities. If we had taken care of business in that game, we would have finished second. We feel like we would still be playing football right now if we came in second.”
The Grandview Zebras will move on to play the Woodville Eagles, 7 p.m., Friday, Nov. 23 at Rose Stadium in Tyler. The Eagles are ranked tenth on the Texas Football website, and were the district 12-3A DI champions with an undefeated record on the season.
Seniors
Miller said this group of seniors meant a lot to this program over the past four years.
“We had some great leadership because of these guys,” Miller said. “We’ve been extremely successful, and they’ve been a huge part of it. So many of them were a part of last year’s team.
“The way this season ended was a little anti-climatic, and it’s disappointing for them because they put so much into this program. But there’s nothing for them to be ashamed of because they had tremendous careers, and did a great job of solidifying the status of the Rockdale football program,” he said.
The Tigers will lose 17 seniors, including wide receiver Quentin Hughes, who had 373 yards on 24 receptions this season. On defense, the Tigers will look to replace many of their key players. Jackson Perry, Preston Debault, and Will Story led Rockdale in tackles this season and 2017 Texas Sportswriter Association (TSWA) All-State selection Cayden McBride will all graduate in the spring.
Coach Miller and his staff will also have to fill the shoes of defensive back Nate Newlin, a two-year starter in the Tigers secondary, along with linemen Leo Millan, Josh Davenport, Robert Barrera, and Doss Hasselbach.
Future
The Tiger football program’s future is a bright one, according to Miller.
“We have a lot of young kids that got some experience this year,” Miller said. “People are excited for what our future may hold. But what our players have to realize is that the 2019 season starts now, and every position is open. It doesn’t matter what you did this year. Your job is on the line.”
Next season, the Tigers will still have their backfield of Valdez and Raven. Valdez rushed for 1,166 yards on 171 carries this season, and Raven had a combined 789 yards rushing and receiving for the blue and gold this season. Rockdale’s top wide receiver Ross Loth will be back after having 564 receiving yards and seven touchdowns this season. Quarterback Robinson will also return for the Tigers after passing for 1,680 yards and 20 touchdowns in his sophomore season.
“I’m really proud of Jace,” Miller said. “Being a quarterback in our system is very difficult, and he did great things for us. He provided good leadership, and a lot of our younger players stepped up this year.
“But we have to have a good offseason coming up. I feel like we didn’t have a great spring like last year, and we’re going to have to get really creative with all those guys in that small weight room because we need to be bigger and stronger,” he said.
“...there’s nothing for them to be ashamed of, because (the seniors) had tremendous careers, and did a great job of solidifying the status of the Rockdale
football program."
– Coach Jeff Miller
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