Palestine 43 (4A) Henderson 28

[texasjeremy]

Palestine moves to 3-0, despite their tough schedule. Palestine finishes up the non-district schedule at home against (4A) Jacksonville and Tatum in the next 2 weeks.

[j_dog]

Congratulations Palestine! :)

[texasjeremy]

Palestine gets 514 yards of total offense tonight in Henderson.

Rushing: 385 yards (Jones 17 carries, 200+ yards, Williams 106 yards)

Passing: 129 yards (Williams 9-for-18, 129 yards)


By the way, the score was 49-28 Palestine.

[texasjeremy]

Henderson led 28-21 early in the 4th, then Palestine ran off 4 quick TDs.

[DawgFan91]

I tell you what, Palestine is making some noise up here. They could make some noise in D1 come playoff time. It seemed like the last two yrs in 4A that Peterson was all they had, but they have some talent to beat these first 3 teams the way they have. Good job.

[texasjeremy]

Palestine rallies over Henderson

9-11-04
By Scott Tyler
H-P Sports Editor


HENDERSON - Trailing by seven points entering the fourth quarter, Palestine quarterback Fred Williams walked up and down the Wildcat sideline telling his players it was "crunch time."

Williams and the Wildcats came through in crunch time, scoring 28 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to defeat Henderson 49-28 Friday night at Lion Stadium.

"When it comes down to crunch time this team comes together," Williams said. "The defense did their job and then we did what we were suppose to do on offense."

The win gives Palestine its third straight 3-0 start. The victory also marks the first time the Wildcats have won in Henderson since 1969.

"This was a pretty special win," Palestine head coach Glen Tunstall said. "We were hoping to be 3-2 going into district but with the way we are playing right now, anything is possible."


Trailing 28-21 entering the fourth quarter, it was the Palestine defense that changed the momentum.

On a third down play from the Henderson 23-yard line, Palestine linebacker Ronald Brown came on a blitz through the middle to sack Henderson quarterback Kylon Henson for a loss of 11 yards and forced the Lions to punt out of their own end zone.

Henderson punter Benito Resendiz mishandled the snap as the ball fell in the end zone and all Resendiz could do before Palestine got there was to knock the ball out of the back of the end zone for a safety, cutting the Lions' lead to 28-23.

"The defense struggled early but like last week, when we needed a stop, they stepped up," Tunstall said.

On Palestine's first play after the free kick, tailback Cameron Jones took the handoff, broke a tackle at the line of scrimmage, got to the sideline and went the distance for the touchdown. After the failed two-point conversion, Palestine led 29-28.

"Our offensive line did a great job on that play and Cameron did the rest," Palestine offensive coordinator Tommy Allison said. "Our offensive line took over the game in the fourth quarter."

Jones had a game-high 166 rushing yards on 17 carries and scored two touchdowns.

"Cameron is unbelievable, he has a lot of talent, but even more, he has the biggest heart," Williams said.

After the Wildcat defense forced Henderson three-and-out Jones had a 46-yard run to put Palestine deep into Henderson territory. The drive was finished when Williams faked the handoff to Jones, broke a pair of tackles in the backfield and got the outside for a 9-yard score to give the Wildcats a 36-28 lead.

Henderson had one last-ditch effort, getting into Palestine territory but after two incomplete passes, the Lions were in a third-and-long situation. The Lions lined up for the punt, but it was a fake, read perfectly by Palestine, stopping Gabe Bagley for a 5-yard loss.

Williams took over from there, and after a 23-yard run to get to Henderson's 23-yard line, the Palestine quarterback broke free for a 23-yard touchdown. Williams finished with 108 yards rushing and 128 yards passing.

"Fred has been the leader of this offense all year long and he proved it tonight," Allison said.

Roy Stubblefield put the nail in the coffin when he intercepted Henson with 29 seconds left and returned it 29 yards for the touchdown.

Palestine scored on its opening drive, a 7-yard scat by Jones, but Henderson tied the game in the second quarter on a TD run by Henson.

The game was tied when Palestine got the ball with 1:12 left in the half and the Wildcats executed its two-minute drill to perfection, getting the ball down to the Henderson 6-yard line with six seconds left.

Instead of going for the field kick, the Wildcats went for the touchdown and were successful when Lee Stubblefield, on a fade pass to the back corner of the end zone, went over the defender for the grab and got his feet inbounds for the score.

The third quarter belonged to Henson, who threw three touchdown passes in the quarter, all to Dedrick McClenton to give Henderson a 28-21 lead going into the fourth quarter.

Palestine's lone score in the third quarter was a 62-yard strike from Williams to Nigel Cooper, who faked the defender and was wide open down the middle of the field.

----

Wildcat Notes: Palestine will host Jacksonville next week. ...Cason Davis made all five of his point after attempts. ...It is the second straight game Jones and Williams have both finished with over 100 yards rushing.

[texasjeremy]

Receivers play big role in Palestine offense

9-12-04
By Scott Tyler
H-P Sports Editor


During the spring of 2004, the Palestine Wildcats' coaches knew a change was going to occur on offense.

Gone was the star running back who carried the offensive workload for two seasons. But that departure gave a group of Palestine players a chance to step out of the shadows and into the limelight - the Wildcat receiving corps.

"Coming into the season, we knew we had four receivers who we could put on the field and they could be playmakers," Palestine offensive coordinator Tommy Allison said. "One of the reasons why we have a multidimensional offense is because we know the defense now cannot key on just one player."

Lee Stubblefield, Nigel Cooper and Leon Mickens, who all return from last year's team, combined with Eric Turner, who did not play last year, make up the fearsome foursome Palestine can put on the field at any time.

"I would put these four guys up against any in 3A football," Palestine receivers coach Jason Farrow said. "We have been really pleased with how they are playing as a unit but we still have room for improvement."


Palestine came into the season wanting to use the pass to open the run. Last year, the Wildcats struggled in the passing game, but immense improvement already has been seen in the first three games of the season.

Last year Palestine completed 44 passes for 610 yards and seven touchdowns. In the first three games of the 2004 season, the Palestine receivers have combined for 31 catches and 426 yards along with four touchdowns.

"In a year, these guys have all matured and are bigger, faster and stronger," Farrow said. "These guys did not stand out last year because we were a run-oriented team, but people will start taking notice this season."

The four receivers were looking forward to the new season as they knew they were going to play a bigger role in the offense.

"We knew it was going to be a good thing because it was going to take pressure off our running game," Cooper, a senior, said of Palestine's offensive philosophy of throwing the football. "When we are playing like we can, we are a dangerous team because you do not know what we are going to do."

The Wildcats have already seen how teams are going to defend them because of their receiving threats. After Palestine opened the season with a 200-yard passing performance, the next week, Carthage played a soft zone and Palestine was able to rush for 346 yards.

"For the morale of these guys it was nice to know a team has geared up to stop the pass," Farrow said. "I told (the receivers) after the Carthage win, the reason the running game was successful was because of what we did the week before."

From the beginning of two-a-day practices in August, Palestine has put in extra time with its receivers. After each practice, the Wildcat receivers and quarterback would spend an extra 10 to 15 minutes working on pass routes.

That extra work still occurs, including Wednesday, when Mickens and Stubblefield spent time after practice working on fade passes into the end zone.

Practice made perfect in Friday night's game when Palestine found itself inside the 10-yard line with six seconds left in the first half. The Wildcats went with that fade route to Stubblefield, who caught the pass over the defender at the back of the end zone and got his feet down for the touchdown.

For Palestine, the most important thing for the receivers is not to catch the ball, but to block.

"To play for me, you must block first, catch second," Farrow said. "It all boils down to effort and our kids are dedicated and willing to put in the effort to block for our runners.

"They know if they do not block well, they are not going to catch the ball."

The Palestine receiving corps has not only accepted the fact they have to block, they enjoy that part of the game and take pride in it.

"Blocking for our runners is very fun," Stubblefield said.

Turner added, "If we make a good block and they score, it is just like we scored the touchdown."

Cooper, who is Palestine's most versatile player as he switches from receiver to tailback, leads the Wildcats with 10 catches and 118 yards in three games. Last year's top receiver Cameron Jones, who is now Palestine's starting tailback, had 12 receptions for the season.

Cooper, who had nine receptions last year, had a 62-yard touchdown reception Friday against Henderson.

"Nigel is our all-around go to guy," Farrow said. "Anytime he touches the ball, he can score."

Mickens, a junior, is second on the team with eight receptions for 130 yards and has caught one touchdown.

Leon has great hands and I am impressed with how he is running after the catch," Farrow said.

Mickens' touchdown reception was a circus catch against Carthage when in the back corner of the end zone, on a fade pass, Mickens made a one-handed catch while twisting his body around the defender.

"Leon is a big game receiver for us," Cooper said. "When it is game time, he comes through with great plays."

Stubblefield, who Turner calls a leader because of the way he works in practice, has six catches this season for 93 yards. Stubblefield, a senior, had seven catches for 85 yards last year.

"Lee is a great possession receiver," Farrow said. "He is a smart kid and a very coachable receiver."

Turner, a senior, is the only one of the four who did not play football last year, as he spent his fall on the basketball court. But after a little prodding by Cooper, Turner decided to come out for football this year.

"I knew this was my senior year and the last opportunity to play," Turner said. "I did not want to leave high school and look back and regret not playing."

Turner has caught four passes for 69 yards in the first three games of the season.

"Eric has been a wonderful surprise how he came in and won a starting job," Farrow said. "He runs good routes, caches the ball and is improving each week on his blocking."

Palestine has good depth at the wide receiver positions which include backups Justin Mosley, who can play all four receiver spots, and Hyden Richardson, who Farrow calls Mr. Hustle for his effort every day in practice.

[texasjeremy]

Palestine shows heart, character in wins

9-12-04
By Scott Tyler
H-P Sports Editor


In Palestine's last two football games, the Wildcats have trailed in the second half, but showed what they were made of by coming back to win both games by double digits.

"This team has a lot of heart and character," Palestine head coach Glen Tunstall said. "There is no quit in them, they are battling every play."

Palestine's latest example of heart and character came Friday night in Henderson. In a place where the Wildcats have not won since 1969, Palestine trailed by seven points in the fourth quarter before outscoring Henderson 28-0 in the final period for a 49-28 win.

The comeback mentality was something that seemed to be missing from the 2003 team, who did not trail too often in games, but when they did, there were no comebacks.

"We are building our own identity this year and we are doing it as a whole team," Tunstall said.


Palestine fell behind 28-21 to Henderson in the fourth quarter because of the Lions' passing attack, which put up 21 quick points in the third quarter.

"We knew Henderson had a real good offense and we had a few breakdowns but we came down with stops when needed," Palestine defensive coordinator Booker Bowie said.

The first big play of the fourth quarter came from inside linebacker Ronald Brown, he led the Wildcats with 13 tackles, when on a third down play, he got an 11-yard sack. The sack led to a punt, which was mishandled and ended up being a safety.

Palestine scored on its next possession to give the Wildcats the lead. For the remainder of the fourth quarter, Henderson only ran 13 more plays as Palestine scored three more times.

The Palestine defense stuffed the run all night, holding Henderson to minus-8 yards rushing which included Palestine recording six sacks.

"Our goal was to stop the run and make them throw the ball," Bowie said.

Henderson quarterback Kylon Henson rushed for over 100 yards the week before, but Palestine kept him in the

pocket all night, holding the Lions quarterback to minus-4 yards.

Gerald Singleton Jr. had 2 1/2 sacks while Cole Snyder and Ben Beckworth had one sack each and Lucky Henry had a half sack and a caused fumble.

On offense, for the second straight week Palestine had a pair of 100-yard rushers.

"I am proud of the tremendous effort we gave for four quarters," Palestine offensive coordinator Tommy Allison said. "The times we were stopped were because of our mistakes and that is something we need to work on."

Cameron Jones finished with his first 200-yard rushing performance of the season as he gained 207 yards on 18 carries and two touchdowns, including a 43-yard TD to give Palestine the lead in the fourth quarter.

Quarterback Fred Williams had his second straight 100-yard rushing game as he had 107 yards on 12 carries and scored twice on the run while also throwing for two touchdowns.

"Fred has stepped up and has been the leader we needed," Allison said. "He has a year of experience under his belt and is playing with a lot of confidence."

[RBARKER]

People better watch this Palestine club. I never though that they would be playing at the level they are now with out their stud RB. Congrats to Palestine for proving me and I'm sure others Wrong.

[kaorder1999]

Originally posted by texasjeremy
Palestine moves to 3-0, despite their tough schedule. Palestine finishes up the non-district schedule at home against (4A) Jacksonville and Tatum in the next 2 weeks.

jacksonville will be TOUGH. I knew Palestine woul dhave a good year though even without Peterson. The fall to 3A is going to help them tremendously when it comes district and playoff time!

[texasjeremy]

Originally posted by kaorder1999
jacksonville will be TOUGH. I knew Palestine woul dhave a good year though even without Peterson. The fall to 3A is going to help them tremendously when it comes district and playoff time!

Jacksonville gave Palestine its only regular season loss last season 24-20 in Jacksonville.