Buffalos get revenge, return to state semis
The peak moment many are used to Fort Bend Marshall quarterback Malik Hornsby producing hadn’t truly revealed itself this postseason.
It came on time and often in the Class 5A Division II Region III championship on Saturday at Freedom Field.
Hornsby completed 8-of-14 passes for 264 yards and two touchdowns with 11 carries and 135 rushing yards en route to Marshall’s 40-10 win over Manvel.
Marshall (13-1) avenges a 38-34 loss to Manvel from District 11-5A play earlier this season and secures a spot in the state semifinals for the second consecutive year in the process.
Hornsby did rush for 141 yards and two scores in the bi-district playoff win against Port Neches-Groves, but he hadn’t reached 100 passing yards in a playoff game this year until Saturday.
“You know last week against Huntsville, he didn’t play a great game and he knew that,” Marshall coach James Williams said. “So this week he refocused, had a great week of practice. He was determined to be the leader that he is and he was that (on Saturday), took advantage of what the defense gave him and did well.”
Otherwise for Marshall this postseason, it’s been the Devon Achane Show. The Texas A&M commitment had 15 carries for 132 yards and four touchdowns against Manvel, upping his score count to 16 during this playoff run.
The senior is at 120 total career touchdowns and Williams is running out of words to describe him.
It’s also been Marshall’s defense carrying the load at times. The unit was impressive on Saturday against a Manvel team with a history of high-scoring affairs, even if the Mavericks have changed stylistically in recent years.
It’s been more ground-and-pound for Manvel and it did get a 109-yard rushing performance from running back Donovan Eaglin, who was heating up in the playoffs. Marshall’s defense might consider that a win compared to the 288 rushing yards and five scores Eaglin collected against Barbers Hill last week, though.
Saturday still points back to Hornsby. His two touchdown passes went to Brandon Tryon for 91 yards in the second quarter and Jamaal Ulmer for 26 yards to put the game further out of Manvel’s reach in the third quarter.
There were a few head-turning open field runs in this game but Hornsby might have had the best one - a 60-yard run where he silvered and slipped through a crowd of Manvel defenders and down the sideline. It was nearly a touchdown run but Achane later ended the drive with a 2-yard score.
“It’s very easy to throw a 6-yard route and they take it 60,” Hornsby said. “It takes a lot of pressure off me. We’re all playing as one and if we play as one, can’t nobody beat us.”
Marshall had three untimely holding penalties, too, to wipe out more scoring. It might be why both Williams and Hornsby say this Marshall team is still capable of a better game, which bodes well with a state semifinal looming.
Meanwhile, little worked for Manvel (13-1). Manvel coach Kevin Hall said things schematically went awry in a way they hadn’t all year on defense, for example.
“Bottom line was when you play a great team, you’ve got to be perfect,” Hall said. “The way we played today at times is not indicative of how wonderful this team is.”
Manvel has nine double-digit win seasons in 10 years and moves up to Class 5A Division I in 2020.