Marble Falls Mustangs Pflugerville Connally to win season opener
The Marble Falls Mustangs were simply better in the than trenches than Pflugerville Connally as evidenced by the offensive linemen turning the Cougar front seven and not allowing them to get into gaps to close running lanes, which led to seven Marble Falls touchdowns. Photo by Martelle Luedecke/Luedecke Photography
The Marble Falls High School football team earned an impressive 52-7 win against Pflugerville Connally Aug. 25.
Next up is the home opener against Brownwood at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 2, at Mustang Stadium, 2101 Mustang Drive. It’s also homecoming.
The Mustangs (1-0, District 13-4A Division I) dominated the Cougars in every phase of the game. They had 260 yards of total offense to the Cougars’ 68 yards. Connally also had five turnovers with more than half inside their own 20.
“We have a great program and a great group of kids,” head coach Brian Herman said. “We’re not worried about any individuals or superstars. They showed up.”
Herman, who serves as the offensive play caller, used 10 different ball carriers, including junior quarterbacks Jamie Castillo and Kody Smith who engineered scoring drives on short fields. The Mustangs had only one holding call the entire game. Herman said he used that many ball carriers because he wanted to see what they could do and they delivered.
“I’m proud of them,” he said. “The things thst didn’t go well, we need to fix those. Kids stepped up and answered the call.”
The Mustangs scored on their opening drive of the second half from the one-yard line for a 32-7 lead.
Senior Jasuel Ruiz added a nine-yard touchdown, while junior Cameron Graham scored from two yards out, and junior Josh Deberard rounded out the scoring with a three-yard plunge.
Ruiz led all ball carriers with 19 carries for 72 yards followed by junior Bram Bowen with eight carries for 44 yards, and Castillo had nine carries for 43 yards.
Herman said he intentionally scheduled Class 5A opponents “to learn how to compete. We’re hoping it’ll translate to success in Class 4A. We’re not playing a soft schedule — that was intentional. I got to see what these kids can do. I’m so excited. For them to have the success they had tonight is unreal.”
While the Mustangs enjoyed tremendous success inwhe020 and 2021 by advancing to th playoffs and winning four contests, Herman said he believes District 13-4A Division I will be a bigger challenge.
“The last two years in that district allowed us to be competitive,” he said. “This season will be the hardest since I’ve been here. We’re going after it. If we can progress in our non-district and district games, I like our chances.”
FIRST HALF
The Marble Falls High School football team leads Pflugerville Connally 24-7 at the half.
Connally scored on its opening drive after recovering an onside kick on its 47. The Cougars needed two plays: a 53-yard pass completion to junior receiver Owen Garcia from junior quarterback Kaden Nguyen and an 18-yard run to paydirt for a 7-0 lead.
The Mustangs answered on their opening drive, covering 67 yards in eight plays. Junior quarterback Jamie Castillo capped the drive with a three-yard touchdown run and senior Jasael Ruiz added the two-point run for an 8-7 lead midway through the opening quarter.
After the Marble Falls defense recovered a fumble, Ruiz completed the nine-play, 40-yard drive with the four-yard run to paydirt. Castillo scored the two-point run for a 16-7 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Another Connally fumble led to another Marble Falls score. The five-play, 12-yard drive ended when sophomore Kole Becker scored from the one. Castillo added the two-point run for a 24-7 lead at the half.
The Cougars had 63 yards of total offense in the first half, while the Mustangs had 130 yards of total offense.
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