Bulldogs fall to Hondo in close game
Senior Brock Johnson rushed for 131 yards and a touchdown and senior Matthew Staton racked up 15 tackles, but the Bulldogs fell just short in the second half as Hondo edged the Bulldogs 20-10 in Friday night’s battle for third place in District 15- 4A Division II.
After Hondo scored the game’s first touchdown to make it 13-6 with 5:05 remaining in the third quarter, the Bulldogs drove down the field quickly to pull back within a field goal. Johnson punched it in on a 9-yard touchdown run to make it 13-10 with 2:08 to go, but the Bulldogs were unable to pull ahead in the fourth quarter.
The Owls’ final score came with 7:16 to go in the fourth. Bandera had a few chances to again cut into the deficit, but penalties and untimely mistakes prevented the Bulldogs’ from building the momentum they needed to fuel the comeback.
“It’s never a good feeling to lose to Hondo,” Bandera athletic director and head football coach Joel Fontenot-Amedee said. “We had a chance to clinch our spot in the playoffs and weren’t able to get it done.”
Bandera forced a pair of turnovers in the first half as senior Brandon Miller got off to a strong start defensively by recovering a Hondo fumble and coming up with an interception just outside of the red zone.
The Bulldogs went on to take an early 3-0 lead after a 34-yard field goal before Hondo bounced back with a pair of field goals of its own, including one from 35-yards with just 22 seconds remaining in the second quarter that made it 6-3 in favor of the Owls at the break.
Bandera was able to battle back in a second-half defensive slugfest, but Hondo hung on to move into sole possession of third place in district entering the final week of the regular season.
The Bulldogs, now 5-4 and 1-3 in district play, are in sole possession of fourth place, and will clinch a playoff berth with a win over Pearsall Friday night.
A playoff berth would be the program’s second playoff berth since 2009, and Bandera last advanced to the playoffs after going 8-2 in the 2019 regular season. Kickoff against Pearsall is set for 7:30 p.m. Friday night at Bulldog Stadium.
“We are playing for our spot in the playoffs Friday night and are looking forward to clinching that spot in front of a big home crowd,” Amedee said. “We want to send our seniors out on the right note, and that means leaving Bulldog Stadium with a win and keeping our season alive Friday night.
“The Class of 2022 has the opportunity to do something that hasn’t been done since the 2009 football season, and that is to qualify for the playoffs twice in their high school career. That is a big deal for them and for the future of our football program. A win Friday night will go a long way toward continuing to establish the culture we are building and the expectations we have for the Bandera football program.”