The Cuero Gobblers passing attack and physical defense was too much for the Ingleside Mustangs last Friday night. The Gobblers defeated the Mustangs 40-14 on Parent’s Night to clinch a playoff berth.
“I think our defense continues to get better, gain confidence, and do some really good things,” Coach Fikac said. ”I’m proud of those guys. I think Jayce has grown a ton as a quarterback. He threw a lot of good balls tonight. They had a really good running quarterback and I thought we held him at bay. And so, we’re just continuing to get better, and I think that’s where we want to be right now, and that’s playing our best football going into the playoffs.”
The Gobblers defense opened up the night with a big sack by Ka’Son Roy on fourth down. The Gobblers would take over at the 40.
The Gobblers rushing attack, led by SeanDylan Salazar drove the ball inside the 30. Facing a 4th and 4, Tony Perez took the ball on a reverse and raced 28 yards to the endzone, making the score 6-0.
Defense continued to dominate. Ingleside’s next three possessions would end with punts. Quarterback Jayce Gua-jardo would move the ball downfield, finding receivers , Brayden Hernandez and Walker Dietze, en route to a 93 yard scoring drive. He eventually found Hernandez from 1-yard out to make the score 14-0.
The Gobblers would open up the second quarter with a 91 yard scoring drive. Guajardo threw a rocket over the middle of the field to Dietze for a 44 yard touchdown, making the score 22-0. The Gobblers next possession started at their own four and never got going. They were forced to punt for the first time.
Ingleside would capitalize on the good field position, scoring with five minutes left in the second quarter. Quarterback Sawyer Chalk found a wide open Isaac Freeman for a 44 yard touchdown. The score was 22-7.
On their next possession, Guajardo found Hernandez for 22 yards on third down, putting the Gobblers in scoring position. Two plays later he found Tony Perez in the back of the endzone for a 20 yard touchdown. The score was 28-7 at halftime.
The Gobblers received the kickoff to start the second half. Three plays later Guajardo found Dietze for their second touchdown connection, this one for 46 yards. The score was 34-7. After a first down run from Chalk, Ingleside’s next drive stalled. They were forced to punt. The Gobblers would take over and move the ball back inside the 20, with passes from Guajardo to Hernandez and Jordan Mays. A Walker Dietze pass was intercepted by Ingleside safety Jayce Huerta, who returned the pick to the 49.
Ingleside scored their final touchdown a few plays later, when Chalk found Freeman again, this time from 17 yards out. The score was 34-14 with 4:33 left in the third quarter. The Gobblers chewed up the rest of the quarter with runs by Davyon Varela and Salazar. Varela opened up the fourth quarter by scoring from 18 yards out, giving the Gobblers their final touchdown of the night. The score was 40-14.
Tony Perez would intercept a Chalk pass to seal the ballgame. Both teams ran out the clock and the Gobblers were victorious.
“Tonight, we all really worked as a team,” Cash Cooper, center, said. “It’s good to see all five of us O-Linemen working together, hitting our blocks, and really driving downfield. That’s what we’ve been working on-just finishing our blocks to the whistle and dominating them up front.”
