Game Balls: Playoffs Week 3 – Central Texas
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The playoffs have entered the quarterfinal stage for Central Texas teams, but it is important to look back at this past Christmas week to see who came away with great performances in their stocking. 1. Rhenden Lopez (SR-WR) – Steele…
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Continue ReadingThe playoffs have entered the quarterfinal stage for Central Texas teams, but it is important to look back at this past Christmas week to see who came away with great performances in their stocking.
1. Rhenden Lopez (SR-WR) – Steele High School (Cibolo, TX)
The Steele Knights came away with a 41-17 win over United South thanks in large part to Lopez. He had nine receptions for 126 yards and two touchdowns in the game making him pretty much unstoppable for the Panther defense. This was arguably Lopez’s best performance this season, rivaling the game against Judson when he had 15 receptions for 145 yards. Lopez has had a quiet season, but this recent playoff explosion could continue to help him as Steele prepares for Westlake.
2. Cade Klubnik Cade Klubnik 6'2" | 180 lbs | QB Austin Westlake | 2022 State TX (JR-QB) – Westlake High School (Austin, TX)
The Chaparrals walked through Bastrop Memorial Stadium with a 71-14 win over Stevens on Saturday. The sheer number of points was thanks to Klubnik, who threw for 364 yards and four touchdowns while also scoring a rushing touchdown. In total, Klubnik accounted for 30 points nearly half of the total score for Westlake. Overall, the Westlake offense was unstoppable, which has been the case all year, including performances by senior running back Grey Nakfoor, who scored two touchdowns, and sophomore Jaden Greathouse Jaden Greathouse 6'2" | 210 lbs | WR Austin Westlake | 2023 State TX , who also scored two touchdowns. Westlake has proven time and again that it is one of the best teams in the state led by one of the best quarterbacks in the state.
3. Ryan Sheppard (JR-RB) – Vandegrift High School (Austin, TX)
Another defensive contest for Vandegrift led to a 20-6 win over Brennan on Saturday. One of the stand out performances was from Sheppard, who rushed for 140 yards and one touchdown. The biggest stat was also the 30 carries he had. This just speaks to how long Vandegrift had the ball, and how much the coaching staff trusted Sheppard to get the job done. Sheppard has gotten a good chunk of yards this season, 847, but has not scored that much, only rushing into the endzone five times this season. After this performance, it will be interesting to watch to see if Sheppard gets the same amount of carries as Vandegrift continues through the playoffs, preparing for Hays.
4. Josh Cameron (SR-WR) – Cedar Park High School (Cedar Park, TX)
The game ball could have also gone to senior quarterback Ryder Hernandez Ryder Hernandez 6'0" | 190 lbs | QB Cedar Park | 2021 TX , but it is the fact that Cameron had 11 receptions for 174 yards and two touchdowns that really makes him standout in Cedar Park’s 27-16 win over Canyon. Nearly having 200 receiving yards is rare for receivers on top of having two receiving touchdowns. Although the Canyon defense seemed to be able to hold down the other receivers somewhat well, the Cougars had no answer for Cameron. This was one of the lower-scoring affairs for Cedar Park this season, and as the Timberwolves get deeper into the playoffs, it is worth watching to see if the offense faces any more challenges or bounces back into the insane scoring that is seen by Westlake.
5. Jalen Becerra (JR-WR) – Rouse High School (Leander, TX)
Becerra was one of the players listed down to watch in the preview for this past week of the playoffs and this performance shows off why. Becerra had nine receptions for 227 yards and two touchdowns. He averaged 25.2 yards per reception and was simply on fire. The game turned into a shootout, with Rouse taking a 56-42 loss to Liberty Hill, more on that below, but Becerra finishes off his junior season with 921 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns. Considering he has one more year to go with the Raiders, Central Texas better look out.
6. Blake Simpson (JR-RB) – Liberty Hill High School (Liberty Hill, TX)
One of the causes for the Rouse loss was Simpson who…hold on…had 298 rushing yards and five touchdowns. Five. Touchdowns. And. Almost. 300. Rushing. Yards. Besides what has been seen from Round Rock senior running back Israel Morgan, few have reached such a feat, and even fewer have reached it in a playoff setting against a pretty tough team. This was easily Simpson’s best performance this season, even beating his 213-yard and five-touchdown performance against Marble Falls the day before Halloween. Simpson is a beast and the fact that he has one more year should be scary. Liberty Hill has entered dark horse territory for the state title.