SMITHSON VALLEY 45, HARKER HEIGHTS 27
Quick Take: It wasn’t difficult to identify the Smithson Valley game plan Friday night — pound the ball with quarterback Jalen Nutt and his partner in the backfield Gabe Hoskins. The challenge for Harker Heights was stopping it. The Knights didn’t have much success in that endeavor. They surrendered 178 yards and four touchdowns on the ground to the two Rangers and lost 45-27.
Highlights: The Rangers (1-0) struck first with an early 30-yard field goal from kicker Austin Hosier and followed with a 3yard touchdown on a quarterback draw from Nutt to take a 10-0 lead. Early in the second quarter, Knights quarterback Shaun West floated a deep pass down the right sideline to LaPrinceton Dixon, who had created about 4 yards of separation from the trailing cornerback to set up an uncontested catch-and-run leading to an easy six points. Midway through the second quarter, Hoskins took a handoff on an outside zone play, planted his foot near the ride sideline and sliced back toward the middle of the field as he powered his way into the end zone for a 12-yard touchdown. Eighteen seconds later, the Knights responded with their second 50-plus-yard touchdown of the half, this time on a 54-yard pass from West to playmaking wideout Terrance Carter, who muscled the ball away from the cornerback, shook him off and trotted over the goal-line to cut the deficit to 17-13. The Rangers squeezed in one more score before the half, capitalizing on a short field caused by a Knight turnover and punched in a 1-yard touchdown run by Hoskins, his second of the quarter.
Early in the fourth quarter, Nutt connected with junior receiver Zack McDonald on a fly route down the left sideline to extend the Smithson Valley lead to
45-20. With less than a minute left, Harker Heights running back Aimeer Washington bruised his way behind a pair of blockers across the goal line from 11 yards out, rounding out the final score of the game at 45-27.
What it means: Coming into Friday’s game, there were a lot of uncertainties on both offense and defense for a Smithson Valley team that lost 14 of its 22 starters from last season. Despite the inexperience throughout the roster, the Rangers weathered the turnover with solid performances on both sides of the ball. Behind the playmaking ability of Nutt and a mayhem-generating defensive front, Smithson Valley has the tools to contend for the District 26-6A championship.
Harker Heights snuck into the playoffs last year after winning four of the last seven games of the season and will have to start from behind once again after Friday’s season-opening loss. The Knights were a few careless mistakes away from making this a much more competitive game. Game balls: Hoskins was a consistent runner for the Rangers all evening, finishing with 16 carries for 100 yards and three touchdowns. Nutt was equally effective on the ground, carrying the ball 17 times for 78 yards and a touchdown to go with 125 passing yards and another touchdown. The Knights received an electric performance from West through the air, with the senior completing 15 of 23 passes for 346 yards and three touchdowns against relentless pressure from the Smithson Valley front seven. Carter flashed his big-play ability with six catches for 129 yards and a score.
Up next: Smithson Valley will head south to face Madison at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Heroes Stadium. Harker Heights will take on Georgetown East View at 7 p.m. Friday at home.