Friday, Nov. 21, 2008

Panthers Playoff Plans Halted by Carroll

CHHS Football

By Kevin Lonnquist

Staff Writer

Teammates Bryan Barton and Steven Hill were inconsolable.

The tears of heartbreak flowed as the two football players sat on the bench last Saturday at Texas Stadium. They held each other to support each other’s grief. No passers by could say anything.

Colleyville Heritage’s much-anticipated regular season that resulted in the most prolific performance and a 9-1 record was over just like that in the bi-district round of the Division II Region I Class 5A playoffs. Everything that could have gone wrong did in the 31-7 loss to Carroll.

The Panthers, who probably wasted their best chance to beat Carroll, are now 0-10 lifetime against the Dragons.

"I just didn’t have it," said Hill, who threw for 200 yards, two interceptions and one touchdown. "It was just very frustrating out there. This was our worst game by far. Our defense was great, but our offense didn’t show up."

Coach Mike Fuller finally had his first full season to implement his turbo spread offense. Hill had an assortment of receivers to use. Plus, the running game emerged with senior Bryan Head. He accounted for nearly 1,400 yards rushing and receiving in his 11 games.

In every game, the Panthers scored 28 points. Even in their regular season loss to Euless Trinity, the Panthers showed enough resolve to fight back. Down 35-14, they scored twice and had the ball at midfield before time expired and they fell by a 35-28 final.

But from the start on Saturday, nothing clicked. The timing was off. If it wasn’t Hill, it was the receivers. When they did have chances, they wasted them.

The worst was at the start of the second half when they recovered Carroll’s fumble and did nothing with it.

"We picked a bad time to have this kind of game," Fuller said. "It’s hard to say what exactly went wrong. But it’s my fault because I didn’t have them prepared to play the game."

Key seniors lost: QB Steven Hill, RB Bryan Head, DL Matt Hornbuckle, LB Bobby Schneider, DB Eddie Foster

Key returners: DB Nick Young, WR Jake Skinner, RB Bailey Crego, DB Cameron Armstrong, DL John Miles

Highs: The Panther offense averaged nearly 42 points and well over 400 yards per game. In their nine wins, they scored at least 35 points. Plus, they defeated rival Grapevine for the third consecutive season. Hill finished by passing for 3,088 yards, including 28 touchdowns and nine interceptions.

Lows: Saturday against Carroll. To lose to Trinity is one thing. The Panthers could move the football. But the performance against Carroll was stunning. It was as if Colleyville Heritage fans didn’t recognize the team they had been watching since Labor Day through the first week of November.

What went well: The defense secured 35 sacks and nearly 130 tackles for loss. The defensive line was the best unit of the bunch as it played a very physical brand of football. Schneider and Foster each had all-district worthy seasons.

What caused struggles: Sometimes, the defense would have some lapses and give up some big plays. But until Saturday, there weren’t a lot of things that were an issue.

Coach Fuller said it: "We’re crushed right now. But we should be very appreciative to everything our seniors gave. Now, we just have to get ready for next year."