Buckaroos drop first game of season to Jacksboro, 13-0
By Brant Thurmond|Breckenridge Texan
The Breckenridge Buckaroo football team opened the 2020 season Friday evening, Aug. 28, by traveling to Jacksboro to take on the Tigers.
In his first game as head coach of the Breckenridge Buckaroos, Casey Pearce talks to the players during the Jacksboro game on Friday, Aug. 28. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/ Breckenridge Texan
It was the dawning of a new era for the Bucks as Breckenridge High School graduate and head football coach Casey Pearce began his efforts to turn the tide for the Buckaroos in his first game at the helm.
Facing a veteran team in Jacksboro, the Buckaroos fought to stay in the game, but ultimately it was Jacksboro that came away victorious, 13-0.
The loss started the Bucks off at 0-1 for the season, but it’s a long season and there is a lot of time to improve before District 3-3A play starts in October.
In Friday’s game, the Buckaroo defense played well, but a few key big plays and the physical play of Jacksboro were a big factor in the game.
“We gave up some explosive plays, and they (Jacksboro) just got more physical than us in the second half,” Pearce said. “We are going to have to rise to that occasion. We put them in a hole and then let them out of a hole. That is very, very frustrating. We got to get better defensively.”
Pearce said the biggest take away on offense is the need to clean things up.
“Offensively, we got to clean it up,” Pearce said. “We absolutely got to clean it up. It’s going to come. We better make a push.”
The Buckaroo defense held its own early in the game as they came away with a fourth down stop on the Tigers’ opening possession, but the Buckaroo offense picked up just one first down on the ensuing drive before being forced to punt.
Jacksboro put together a long drive that stretched 91 yards in 12 plays that chewed up the remaining 3:41 of the first quarter and another 2:08 of the second quarter. The drive was capped off with a 29-yard touchdown pass from Jordan Yount to Landon Davenport. The PAT was good, and Jacksboro took a 7-0 lead.
The two teams traded punts on their next possessions, before the Bucks put together their longest drive of the game while driving the ball 57 yards in 14 plays to the Jacksboro 20-yard line.
The Bucks’ drive ended with a fumble on a fourth down attempt while trying to fight for extra yardage.
The Buckaroos take down a Jacksboro ball carrier in the first game of the season Friday night. For more photos from the game, click here to see the Breckenridge Texan’s Photo Gallery. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)
As positive as the long drive for the Bucks may have been, Pearce emphasized the need to finish the drive with points.
“Long drives are great, but you got to finish them,” Pearce said. “If you do not finish it, a long drive means nothing. We are playing kids both ways, and we got to find a way to get on and off the field offensively and defensively. If we don’t do that, it’s going to be a long night like tonight, especially in this kind of heat.”
The Bucks were forced to punt on the opening possession of the second half and a long drive ensued for the Tigers.
The Tigers capped off the 58-yard 13-play drive with a 2-yard touchdown run by Baylor Laake with 3:14 left in the third quarter. The PAT attempt failed after a bad snap, putting the Tigers up 13-0.
The remainder of the second half became a defensive battle as both teams moved the ball and ran time off the clock, but both defenses forced punts.
Offensively, the Buckaroos had 103 yards of total offense with 84 coming from the rushing attack and 19 through the air.
Anson Rodgers rushed for 26 yards on 9 attempts, while Jerry Lawson had 26 yards on 5 attempts. Henry Johnson completed 4-9 passing attempts for 19 yards.
Defensively, the Bucks were led by Lawson with 12 tackles. Isaiah Lehr and Logan King finished with 11 and 10 tackles, respectively.
Jacksboro had 193 yards rushing on 46 attempts and completed 1-9 passing attempts for 29 yards and one touchdown.
The Bucks travel to Ballinger next Friday night to take on the Bearcats. Kick-off is set for 7:30 p.m.
District 3-3A Scores (winners in bold)
Jacksboro (1-0) 13
Breck (0-1) 0
Cisco (1-0) 39
Clyde (0-1) 14
Ballinger (1-0) 20
Jim Ned (0-1) 14
Wall (1-0) 38
Eastland (0-1) 3
Bangs (1-0) 28
Early (0-1) 0
Brady (1-0) 81
TLC Academy (0-1) 8
Sept. 4 Games
- Breckenridge @ Ballinger
- Clyde vs Idalou
- Wall vs Cisco
- Jim Ned @ Sweetwater
- Early vs Tolar
- TLC Academy vs Junction
The Buckaroos and Tigers shake hands after Friday night’s game. To see more photos from the game, click here to see Tony Pilkington’s Photo Gallery. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)
Cutline, top photo: Breckenridge Buckaroo Jerry Lawson runs with the ball during Friday night’s game against the Jacksboro Tigers in Jacksboro. The Buckaroos will travel to Ballinger on Sept. 4. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)
For more photos from Friday night’s game, click here to see the Breckenridge Texan’s Photo Gallery.
