MonkeyJoe
12-14-2003, 03:16 AM
The Gainesville Leopards are the Class 3A Division I state champions after defeating the Burnet Bulldogs 35-24 in front of 16,211 fans at Texas Stadium Saturday night.
The championship is is the first football title in the history of Gainesville High School. The Leopards also finished with a perfect 15-0 record for the first time ever.
Gainesville had to come from behind for the third-straight week to win, and they did it against the No. 1 ranked team in the state.
Burnet (14-1) scored on the opening kickoff as Jordan Shipley ran 87 yards to put the Bulldogs up 6-0. They missed the extra point.
Gainesville took their first lead later in the quarter as Terrius Purvey scored on a 5-yard run. Steven Arenas added the extra point kick to make it 7-6.
Burnet needed just two plays on offense as Stephen McGee hooked up with Shipley on a 50-yard pass for a TD. Their try for two was good and they led 14-7 with 53 seconds left in the first quarter.
In the second quarter, the Leopard defense got their first of two big turnovers as Darcel McBath stripped the ball from Shipley and Jeremy Franklin was there to fall on it.
The Leopards used 8 plays to go 43 yards and tie the game on a 1-yard run by Purvey.
Again, Burnet answered with a long 5-minute drive. They got 30 yards on a fake punt that set up a touchdown with 23 seconds left in the half to put them ahead 21-14.
But as has been the case the past 3 weeks, the Leopards came out and scored on their first possession of the third quarter. Purvey had runs of 17 and 20 yards before scoring on a 3-yard run to tie the score at 21.
Early in the fourth quarter, the Bulldogs retook the lead on a 29 yard field goal by Shipley. That would be the last lead for Burnet.
Darcel McBath returned the ensuing kickoff out to the 48 yard line. Purvey ran 29 yards on first down to get the ball to the 13. Three plays later, quarterback Chris Brown snuck in from 2 yards to put the Leopards up 28-24 with 8:20 left in the game.
But it wasn't over, Burnet used 8 plays and almost 4 minutes to drive down to the Leopard 27. But on second and 10, McGee fumbled the snap and Clint Stoffels was there to fall on it for GHS.
The Leopards then sealed the victory on their next drive. After a holding penalty, Gainesville faced second and 19. Brown hit Amos Berryman on a 26 yard pass for a first down. On the next play, Brown ran 36 yards to the 16. Two plays later, Brown scored on a 15-yard run to make the score 35-24 with 1:37 left in the game.
Burnet drove into GHS territory, but the game ended on a sack by Stoffels and the Leopards started to celebrate.
Gainesville finished with 332 yards rushing including 232 from Purvey. Brown rushed for 77 and threw for 77 more.
For Burnet, they passed for 187 yards. Shipley caught 5 passes for 119 yards.
The championship is is the first football title in the history of Gainesville High School. The Leopards also finished with a perfect 15-0 record for the first time ever.
Gainesville had to come from behind for the third-straight week to win, and they did it against the No. 1 ranked team in the state.
Burnet (14-1) scored on the opening kickoff as Jordan Shipley ran 87 yards to put the Bulldogs up 6-0. They missed the extra point.
Gainesville took their first lead later in the quarter as Terrius Purvey scored on a 5-yard run. Steven Arenas added the extra point kick to make it 7-6.
Burnet needed just two plays on offense as Stephen McGee hooked up with Shipley on a 50-yard pass for a TD. Their try for two was good and they led 14-7 with 53 seconds left in the first quarter.
In the second quarter, the Leopard defense got their first of two big turnovers as Darcel McBath stripped the ball from Shipley and Jeremy Franklin was there to fall on it.
The Leopards used 8 plays to go 43 yards and tie the game on a 1-yard run by Purvey.
Again, Burnet answered with a long 5-minute drive. They got 30 yards on a fake punt that set up a touchdown with 23 seconds left in the half to put them ahead 21-14.
But as has been the case the past 3 weeks, the Leopards came out and scored on their first possession of the third quarter. Purvey had runs of 17 and 20 yards before scoring on a 3-yard run to tie the score at 21.
Early in the fourth quarter, the Bulldogs retook the lead on a 29 yard field goal by Shipley. That would be the last lead for Burnet.
Darcel McBath returned the ensuing kickoff out to the 48 yard line. Purvey ran 29 yards on first down to get the ball to the 13. Three plays later, quarterback Chris Brown snuck in from 2 yards to put the Leopards up 28-24 with 8:20 left in the game.
But it wasn't over, Burnet used 8 plays and almost 4 minutes to drive down to the Leopard 27. But on second and 10, McGee fumbled the snap and Clint Stoffels was there to fall on it for GHS.
The Leopards then sealed the victory on their next drive. After a holding penalty, Gainesville faced second and 19. Brown hit Amos Berryman on a 26 yard pass for a first down. On the next play, Brown ran 36 yards to the 16. Two plays later, Brown scored on a 15-yard run to make the score 35-24 with 1:37 left in the game.
Burnet drove into GHS territory, but the game ended on a sack by Stoffels and the Leopards started to celebrate.
Gainesville finished with 332 yards rushing including 232 from Purvey. Brown rushed for 77 and threw for 77 more.
For Burnet, they passed for 187 yards. Shipley caught 5 passes for 119 yards.