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Hays-Lehman footballPosted October 8, 2007, 3 a.m.
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Hays Highway Editor
BUDA Finally, the Hays Rebels put up a dominating defensive performance, just in time for their critical run of four weeks that will certainly determine their playoff fate.
The Rebels made four interceptions last Friday night in their 50-13 homecoming win against Lehman at Bob Shelton Stadium. They caught as many Lehman passes as Lehman, which made four pass receptions.
The Rebels allowed only four first downs all night, and only one in the first half. Hays held Lehman to 46 rushing yards in 26 attempts. Lehman's total offense added up to 104 yards.
But there's a catch. Lehman hasn't moved the ball much against anyone. The Lobos have scored only 37 points in five games this season.
And here's where we start to see some questions for Hays. The Rebels, for example, gave up 13 points to Lehman, though seven of them came after a bad Hays punt snap gave the Lobos possession at the Hays nine. But Lehman also busted a 50-yard pass play on the Rebels, setting up its other touchdown.
"I thought we made a lot of big defensive plays, but then we got a little sloppy," Hays Coach Bob Shelton said.
So, it was hard to tell Friday night if the Rebels really are making the defensive progress they will need next Friday, when they venture to New Braunfels to play against Ryan Perez, who could be the best quarterback in District 26-4A. A week later, the Rebels will return home to play face a highly skilled Del Valle offense.
Immediately following those games, the Rebels play Schertz Clemens and New Braunfels Canyon on the road. Right now, the Rebels are 4-1 overall and 2-0 in District 26-4A. But their story will be told in the next four weeks.
Friday night, the only stories told were absolute dominance for Hays in the second meeting between the only two high schools in the Hays CISD, along with a strong fourth quarter effort for a Lehman team that could have been demoralized.
The Rebels scored touchdowns the first five times they took the ball, as well as the sixth time Lehman had the ball. Out of two games between Hays and Lehman, the Rebels played shutout defense for the first seven quarters.
Hays took the opening kickoff to its own 45, then came out throwing as quarterback Clayton Rogers passed 25 yards to Brandon Lawrence and 15 yards to Paul Breyfogle before carrying the final 18 yards by himself for a 7-0 lead. Hays began its second possession at its own 39 with an interception by Ryan Slaughter. Then, Rogers threw 12 yards to Trey Berry and 14 yards to Breyfogle before a 20-yard touchdown pass to Breyfogle made it 14-0.
The Rebels stayed on the ground the third time they took possession, but that worked just as well. A 15-yard run by fullback Nikki DeSantiago, followed by runs of 11 and 20 yards by Rogers, set Rogers up for a five-yard touchdown run on the first play of the second quarter for a 20-0 lead.
The Rebels still weren't done. Before halftime, DeSantiago ran for touchdowns of 17 and four yards, giving Hays a 34-0 lead in time for the crowning of the homecoming king and queen.
Lehman took the second half kickoff, but held the ball for only four plays before Hays linebacker Kyle Wirth intercepted Chad Miles at the Hays 45 and took it back 55 yards for a touchdown, giving the Rebels a 41-0 lead 2:29 into the second half. Lehman's next possession didn't go a lot better. After the Lobos failed to notch a first down, punter Caleb Frank found himself under a heavy rush and took a 20-yard loss to the Lehman 20. The Rebels turned that opportunity into a 26-yard field goal by Alex Perez for a 44-0 lead.
The game turned for Lehman in the fourth quarter when the Lobos defense forced Hays to punt for the first time. The snap went over punter DeSantiago's head. As the ball bounced back toward the Hays goal line, DeSantiago tried the kick the ball through the end zone, but Lehman's Enoch Tamez recovered at the Hays nine. Four plays later, R.J. Hardaway ran two yards for Lehman's second touchdown since an 18-14 win against Johnston on Aug. 30.
Later in the fourth quarter, Miles threw over the middle to Jesse Primeau, who turned it into a 50-yard gain to the Hays three. Two plays hence, Hardaway ran one yard for a touchdown, bringing the Lobos within 44-13.
Hays quarterback Trey Berry ran 53 yards for a touchdown on the game's final play. The Rebels elected not to try an extra point, finishing the game with a 50-13 advantage.
Lehman Coach Steve Davis said he was heartened that his players put some football together in the fourth quarter, but he would have been more heartened if they played that way from the start.
"We've got to do that in the beginning," said Davis, whose team fell to 0-2 in District 26-4A and 1-4 overall. "We can't spot somebody 34 points in the first half. We have to come right out and play."
While Lehman works on putting together four quarters, the Rebels continue trying to tighten up their defense. The Rebels are giving up 276.2 yards per game halfway through their season. But their vulnerability to big plays is a concern, especially against fast teams. The Rebels have allowed three touchdowns this season of more than 40 yards, and they barely stopped Lehmans 50-yard pass short of the goal line Friday night.
More ominously, as Lehman Coach Steve Davis said, "Some of those same plays were there all night and we didn't execute them."
The Rebels received a boost Friday night from the return of free safety Michael Kauffmann, who had missed the entire season with a foot fracture. Kauffmann announced his presence with jarring hit on Lehman running back R.J. Hardaway in the third quarter, turning a pass completion into a five-yard loss.
Perhaps, with Kauffmann's return, the Rebels will be better equipped to stop big plays by opponents and make big plays of their own. Wirth, Slaughter, Kody Smith, and Justin Ortuno all made interceptions Friday.
"One of our goals is to get a lot of guys to the ball and we're doing that now," said Ortuno, the senior strong safety who was one of only two returning starters to the Hays defense this year. "We have to play better because we're playing a better team every week."
Another means of improving the defense is with the continuing advance of the Hays offense. The Rebels have played two games in which they've held the ball for 30 minutes or more. Last week, against Lockhart, they gained 461 total yards. Friday night, the Rebels gained 252 yards in the first half before calling off the dogs.
"We've got a lot of things we can build on," Shelton said.
And they've still got building to do.
| Lehman | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | | 13 |
| HAYS | 14 | 20 | 10 | 6 | | 50 |
H Rogers 18 run (Alex Perez kick).
RUSHING: Lehman Hardaway 12-34, Chad Miles 5-23, Isaiah Ortiz 5-8, Chris Duran 3-1, Caleb Frank 1- (-20). Hays DeSantiago 10-75, Berry 9-67, Rogers 7-52, Erick Pena 9-26, Anthony Pesina 1-3.
PASSING (Att-comp-yards-TD-Int): Lehman Miles 3-6-53-0-2, Ortiz 1-5-5-0-2. Hays Rogers 7-10-107-2-0, Berry 0-3-0-0-0.
RECEIVING: Lehman Hardaway 2-0, Jesse Primeau 1-50, Patrick Hayes 1-8. Hays Breyfogle 3-49, Berry 2-28, Brandon Lawrence 1-25, DeSantiago 1-5.
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H Paul Breyfogle 20 pass from Rogers (Perez kick).
H Rogers 15 run (kick failed).
H Nikki DeSantiago 17 run (Perez kick).
H DeSantiago 4 run (Perez kick).
H Kyle Wirth 55 interception return (Perez kick).
H Perez 26 field goal.
L R.J. Hardaway 2 run (Jacques Rogers kick).
L Hardaway 1 run (kick failed).
H Trey Berry 53 run (conversion not attempted).
LEHMAN HAYS First Downs 4 15 Rushes 26 37 Rushing yards 46 226 Att-comp-TD 4-11-0 7-13-2 Passing yards 58 107 Had intercepted 4 0 Returns-yards 8-123 4-87 Punts-average 2-33.5 1-28.0 Fumbles-lost 0-0 1-1 Penalties 4-35 4-26 Time of possession 24:05 23:55
