Breckenridge Texan

By Brant Thurmond/Breckenridge Texan

In front of a packed house at Buckaroo Stadium on Friday night, the Breckenridge Buckaroos varsity football team kicked off the 2022 season on a strong note as they cruised to a 42-13 win over the Jacksboro Tigers.

State Rep. Glenn Rogers flips the coin before Friday’s football game in Buckaroo Stadium. Click here to see more photos from the game. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)

“We did some good things and did some things to give ourselves a chance,” head coach Casey Pearce said following Friday’s win. “We stalled two drives, and I’ll take that. We kind of got a little passive in the play calling going in and that’s on me. I’ll eat that, and we will go on.

“I was very happy with how well we played in space,” he continued. “We played with our feet. We tackled in space and blocked in space. Proud of how we got after it and proud of this coaching staff.”

With a senior-driven team to lead the charge, Pearce noted that it helps to have that leadership to settle any nerves that might form.

“We got dudes that are reflective of what they have experienced in three years of playing,” he said. “We got five or six guys that played as a freshman. When they go out there, they kind of calm everybody’s nerves that hadn’t played. When you got Anson Rodgers, Zeke Castillo, or Jerry Lawson around, you kind of settle in and rise to their level and you play.

“That’s what we did tonight. Proud of how we responded the first night out. We had a couple of turnovers that we shouldn’t have, but if we are going to throw the football around, it’s going to happen,” Pearce continued. “We are going to have to make better decisions, and the play calls need to be a little more conducive for success. That’s on me, and we are going to fix that. Overall, I’m proud of this staff and proud of these kids.”

It didn’t take long for the Bucks to get on the stadium’s new scoreboard. They took their opening possession 59 yards in five plays and capped the drive off with a 28-yard touchdown pass from Chase Lehr to Anson Rodgers. The PAT by Sawyer Wimberly was good, giving the Bucks a 7-0 lead with less than two minutes off the clock.

Buckaroo Quarterback Chase Lehr avoids the Jacksboro defense during Friday night’s game. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/ Breckenridge Texan)

A Jacksboro punt ensued on their first drive of the game, but just two plays into the next Buckaroo drive, Lehr’s pass was picked off by Jacksboro’s Cannon Valenzuela.

The Tigers were unable to get anything going offensively as the Buckaroo defense stood its ground and came away with a fourth down stop.

Breckenridge scored once again, eight plays later, as Lehr connected with Rodgers, this time on a 16-yard touchdown pass. Lehr aided the Bucks with 49 rushing yards on the drive. Sawyer Wimberly connected on the PAT and gave the Bucks a 14-0 lead with 3:55 left in the first quarter.

Following a Jacksboro punt, Breckenridge had another promising drive building as the Bucks were able to string together an 11-play drive that stretched 40 yards. But the drive was put to an end as Lehr had another pass intercepted on a fourth and long attempt.

After trading punts for most of the second quarter, the Bucks stretched their lead following a 36-yard touchdown pass from Lehr to Adrian Ruiz. Wimberley’s extra point attempt was good, giving the Bucks a 21-0 lead with 26 seconds left in the first half. Rodgers had 28 yards rushing on the drive to help the Bucks.

After forcing a punt on the Tigers’ opening possession of the third quarter, the Bucks drove the ball 70 yards in five plays en route to a 31-yard touchdown run by Jerry Lawson. Lawson also had another big run of 30 yards to help the Buckaroos. Wimberly connected on the PAT, giving the Bucks a 28-0 lead with 10:06 remaining in the third quarter.

“We came out in the second half and got a stop and a score, and that changed the whole complexion of the ball game,” Pearce said. “We got another stop and allowed us just to put our foot down. That was a long third quarter when you look up and you are up 42, you got to try to sub people and play others. When you got 28 dudes and they are playing both ways, whether they are starting both or not, give them a shot and let them play.”

Buckaroo Sawyer Wimberley and a Jacksboro player watch as one of Wimberley’s kicks scores an extra point for Breckenridge. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)

The Buckaroo defense came up with another stop and forced a punt on the Tigers’ ensuing drive.

Four plays and 88 yards later, Rodgers scored on a 40-yard touchdown run. Lehr had a 46-yard pass to Lane Castillo to aid the Bucks on the drive. Wimberley connected once again on the PAT attempt, making the score 35-0 with 6:36 left in the third quarter.

A punt from the Tigers’ own eight-yard line, and a 10 yard punt return by Alexis Franco and a facemask penalty by the Tigers, set the Bucks up in great field position on the Jacksboro 15-yard line.

Three plays later, Lehr connected with Hunter Eaton on a 12-yard touchdown pass. Wimberly’s PAT attempt was good, giving the Bucks a 42-0 lead with 3:30 left in the third quarter.

Jacksboro was able to get on the board on their next possession early in the fourth quarter following a 33-yard touchdown pass from Lando Belcher to Valenzuela with 11:22 left in the fourth. The PAT was good, making the score 42-7.

The Bucks were forced to punt on the ensuing drive, and the Tigers were able to move the ball 70 yards in six plays and capped the drive off with what would end up being the final points of the game with a 55-yard run by Belcher. The PAT was no good making the score 42-13 with 5:11 left in the game.

The Buckaroos finished the game with 308 yards rushing on 37 attempts and 194 yards passing for a total of 502 yards of total offense.

Breckenridge’s Anson Rodgers runs with the ball during the Aug. 26 game against Jacksboro. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)

Lehr completed 10 of 19 passing attempts for 189 yards. He also had four passing touchdowns and two interceptions.

Lawson rushed for 123 yards on 10 carries and had one touchdown, while Rodgers rushed for 90 yards on nine carries and one touchdown. Rodgers also had four receptions for 73 yards and two touchdowns.

Jacksboro finished the game with 74 yards rushing on 25 attempts and completed 17 of 27 passes for 172 yards.

The Bucks will make a long road trip to Childress on Sept. 2 to take on the Bobcats. Kick-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.

“It’s like I just told them, we got a three-hour bus ride with a homecoming date, and they didn’t schedule you for homecoming if they didn’t think they couldn’t whip your tail,” Pearce said regarding next week’s game. “We better make our plans to be a spoiler. We have talked about doing that all year, and it’s going to be one week at a time. We spoiled Jacksboro tonight, and we got to go try and spoil Childress next week. We are going to get hit in the mouth, and they can match us with our foot speed. It’s going to be a tough one. We better be able to handle the distraction of the travel and the atmosphere when we get there.”

The Buckaroo Cheerleaders get ready for the school song prior to the Breckenridge-Jacksboro football game Friday, Aug. 26. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)

District 3-3A Results (district teams in bold)

Cisco 41
Clyde 13

Breckenridge 42
Jacksboro 13

Holliday 28
Iowa Park 7

Vernon 56
Wichita Falls City View 0

Graham 41
Bowie 22

Hawley 30
Tuscola Jim Ned 7

Sept. 2 Games

Holliday at Jim Ned

Bowie at Bridgeport

Benbrook at Iowa Park

Gainesville at Vernon

Breckenridge at Childress

Eastland at Clyde

Click here to see a Breckenridge Texan photo gallery from the Breckenridge-Jacksboro game.

The Pride of Breckenridge Buckaroo Band entertained the crowd during halftime during the season-opener football game. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)

Cutline, top photo: Breckenridge senior Jerry Lawson, powers through a crowd of Jacksboro players during the football game Friday night. Lawson rushed for 123 yards on 10 carries and had one touchdown in the 42-13 win over the Tigers. Click here for more photos. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)

Editor’s note: This story was updated on Aug. 28, 2022, to correct the listing for the Vernon-Gainesville game on Sept. 2.

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