WINNIE, Texas — It was a beautiful night to begin the 2012 high school football season in Winnie, Texas as the Orangefield Bobcats took on the East Chambers Buccaneers.

After a jittery start in the first half the Bobcats found themselves in a 20-0 hole. The showed heart and determination as they came back the second half to give the home crowd a scare but they would eventually fall short 36-28.

The Bobcat offense was lead by Eric Truncale as he racked up 115 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries. Tyron Como was also a major contributor as he gained 117 yards on 19 totes. Dustin Verret, Dustin Selman, and Colby Choate each would add a rushing touchdown to the cause.

East Chambers won the toss and started the season opening drive on their 44. The Bobcats would start the year out on the right foot immediately forcing a three and out.

The Bobcat offense would not be as fortunate. They started the drive on their own 28 and managed to work their way to the 40 before the Buccaneers’ Cody Martin scoops up a loose ball and carried 40 yards the other way for the first score of the game. The Bucs missed the PAT but had the early 6-0 lead with 7:27 left in the first quarter.

The next drive for the Bobcats showed promise as they started out on their own 43 and were able to work their way within 20 yards of pay dirt. Truncale carried for 36 yards on the drive on four carries before the Bobcat offense gave up possession on another fumble.

The ensuing Buccaneer drive would quickly cover the 80 yards needed to put another six points on the board. Glen Roberts fueled the attack by providing two runs of 25 and 20 yards. However it was Johnson who found Cody Martin open in the end zone to complete the drive with a ten yard touchdown pass. Guevara would add the point after to give the Bucs a 13-0 lead with 11:55 left in the first half. 

After forcing the Bobcats to punt the Bucs would take over on the Bobcat 43. They would quickly find the end zone with the arm of Brandon Johnson leading the way as he had two big completions for 36 total yards. Glenn Roberts capped the scoring drive off with a 12-yard touchdown run. Mario Guevara was successful on the extra point the put the Bucs ahead 20-0 with 4:55 left until half time.

The Bobcats would make a few halftime adjustments and come out swinging in the third quarter. The offense would set up shop on the Bucs 32-yard line and only need six plays to find the end zone. The drive was aided heavily by a 30-yard run by Como and would be finished off by a brilliant 14-yard run by Colby Choate. David Rainey came through on the point after to make the score 20-7 in the Bucs favor.

The Bucs next drive was stopped short thanks to a Dustin Selman interception. The offense would set up shop on their own 29. They slowly chipped away at the field position using eleven plays to cover the 71 yards needed. Como was the leading producer on the drive picking up 26 yards on four carries. It was Dustin Verrett that would find a seam in the defense and carry it eight yards for another Bobcat touchdown. The point after would be blocked by the Bucs Dominick Marshall and the score would read 20-13, Bucs, with 2:12 left in the third quarter.

The Bucs Glen Roberts would answer quickly with a spectacular 22-yard touchdown run as he weaved his way through the defense. The PAT would fail but the Bucs extend their lead to 26-13 with 12 second left in the third.

The Bobcats would only need three plays to respond. Dustin Verret would break through the line and find a running lane and brake several tackles as the only thing that would stop him would be the endzone 58 yards later.  Rainey would add the extra point to bring the score to 26-20 with 11 minutes left in the game.

The Bucs would quickly add a field goal and a touch down provided by the elusive running back Roberts. The Bucs would extend their lead to 36-20

While things looked bleak the Bobcats did not give up. They would cover 70 yards on nine plays in two minutes and twenty seconds. The drive resulted in an 11 yard touchdown run by Selman. Truncale would complete the two point conversion force the score to 36-28 with only two minutes remaining.

The Bobcats attempted an onside kick but the Bucs fell on the ball to seal the fate of the Bobcats on opening night.

The Bobcats will travel to face the Bulldogs of Jasper next week at 7:30 p.m. (Sept. 7, 2012).

East Chambers 36

Orangefield 28



OF       0       0       13       15 - 28

EC       6       14       6       10 - 36



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                             OF             EC

First downs          15               18

Rushes-yards    60-398      25-245

Passing               000            145

Comp-Att-Int       0-2-0       12-21-1

Fumbles-Lost      2-2              0-0

Penalties-yards   6-50         12-85



INDIVIDUAL STATS

Rushing: OF, Tyron Como 19-117, Eric Truncale, 20-115, Dustin Verret 6-76 , Selman 3-24, Choate 4-24, Wiley 3-20, Wold 3-17, EC, Glenn Roberts, 17-218

Passing: OF, Truncale, 0-2-0 0; EC, Ficken, 12-21-1 145.

Receiving: OF, None; EC, Cody Martin 4-66, Jarrod Guillory 1-32.