In the end, Judson shows why it’s No. 1.
JUDSON 51, STEELE 48 Teams trade late scores before Rockets finally prevail
Judson coach Rodney Williams preaches to his players the importance of playing hard from the opening kickoff to the final whistle.
It there was any doubt the message was more than coachspeak, it was erased Friday night.
Judson quarterback Michael Chandler II ran for two fourthquarter touchdowns, including the game-winner with 56 seconds left, as the top-ranked Rockets outlasted No. 3 Steele 51-48 in a District 26-6A opener at Lehnhoff Stadium.
The win was Judson’s 500th in program history.
“When you’re playing against the Steele Knights, you know you’re going to get the best they got,” Williams said. “Like I told our kids at halftime, you’ve taken every blow that they can give. That’s a testament to our kids and our coaches. In the end, you’ve got to find a way to win.”
Trailing 48-44 with 1:53 left after Steele running back De’Quavion Thomas scored on a 5-yard run — his fourth TD of the night — Judson answered quickly.
Chandler connected with wide receivers Amarea BaileyDavis and Antony Shelton for 42 and 36 yards on consecutive plays. Shelton’s reception gave Judson (4-0) a first-and-goal from Steele’s 5-yard-line.
Chandler took it in himself on the next play for the winning score. The senior completed 5 of 11 passes for 179 yards and a score and rushed 15 times for 134 yards and three TDs to go with 229 yards.
“It’s do-or-die, really,” Chandler said. “We’ve got players all over the field that can make plays.”
In a showdown between stateranked squads — Judson is 10th and Steele is 22nd in Texas Football magazine’s Class 6A rankings — the game more than lived up to the hype. The teams combined for 1,182 yards of offense.
Judson, which defeated Steele on the road for the first time in five tries, used a big third quarter to take a 37-34 lead into the final stanza.
Chandler ran for a score and connected with Bailey-Davis for a 70-yard touchdown, and running back De’Anthony Lewis scored on a 1-yard run, one of his three rushing TDs to go with 229 yards.
Linebacker Treylin Payne scooped up a fumbled snap on an extra-point attempt and returned it for two points.
Steele (3-1) led 21-14 at halftime after Judson had rallied from a 14-0 deficit to pull even.
The Knights used a balanced attack in the opening 24 minutes, rushing for 157 yards and passing for 123 more while amassing 16 first downs.
Steele quarterback Wyatt Begeal completed 12 of 14 passes in the first half for 123 yards. He also had nine carries for 47 yards and a touchdown, a 21-yard run that put his team up 14-0 with 3:37 left in the opening quarter. For the game, he was 19 of 23 for 286 yards and a TD.
Jaylon Jones scored on a 59yard sweep around left end on the game’s second play, and Thomas bulled in from a yard out with 4:24 left in the first half to put the Knights up 21-14.
Down 14 points less than 8½ minutes into the contest, and after missing a field goal after driving to Steele’s 14-yard-line on its first offensive possession, Judson found its footing.
The Rockets marched 69 in six plays, needing only 68 seconds, to pull within 14-7 on Lewis’ 1-yard run. After forcing a Steele punt, Judson moved 83 yards in seven plays, benefiting from two defensive pass interference calls against the Knights, to tie it at 14-14 on Lewis’ 10-yard run.
Lewis had 73 yards on nine attempts in the first half, and Chandler rushed eight times for 102 yards as the Rockets totaled 177 yards on 18 carries. They completed only 2 of 6 passes for 31 yards and had 208 total yards in the opening half.