The Tomball Cougars went into Tully Stadium last Thursday and survived against the Stratford Spartans 41-39 in a back-and-forth game that was full of energy and came down to the wire.
The Cougars started the game by kicking off to the Spartans’ Jonathan Joseph Jr., son of former Texans cornerback Johnathan Joseph, which he returned for a touchdown. Tomball would get momentum back as the offense seemingly scored at will with little offensive miscues as they rolled to a 21-6 lead at the end of the first quarter and extended it to 28-6 early in the second before the half ended 28-21.
The second half turned into a shootout with plenty of points and mistakes for both sides. However the Cougars were able to make a big 4th down stop with about three minutes left and still pulled out a victory. The team looked very good, nearly unstoppable at times, in their season opener but the inconsistency in all three phases is the primary issue that needs to be cleaned up.
Special teams seemed to be an issue as they allowed two kick return touchdowns which allowed Stratford to get back in the game. There were also good highlights as special teams had a key fake punt and two PAT blocks, but there are still areas that need cleaning up to avoid miscues that may be costly.
Offensively the Cougars put together many great drives and found the end zone 6 times against Stratford but they also had two turnovers and got themselves in a handful of risky situations.
If this unit can avoid mistakes it can absolutely run with some of the best offenses in Texas. There is lots of talent at the skill positions and the offensive line looked dominant, but there are little mistakes here and there that need to be corrected.
Defensively Tomball was strong when it mattered but the overall performance was far from consistent. Tomball allowed zero offensive touchdowns up until about midway through the second but the second and third quarters allowed Stratford to find the endzone multiple times.
However the defense at its strongest points ultimately decided the game, with two fourth-down stops, one of which to ice the game as well as two stops on two-point conversions. If the defense finds a way to put together playing at their highest level for four quarters they can take this team a long way.
Player highlights
#0 Oswaldo Morales- 189 rushing yards, four rushing touchdowns
#3 Jaxyn Faldyn- 110 rushing yards, rushing touchdown, 176 passing yards, 1 passing touchdown
#17 Hunter Rathke- 115 receiving yards, receiving touchdown
*Defensive stats not recorded
Key defensive players:
#98 Lucas Pernas
#13 Connor Lowe
