Jason, here's the answer....

[LH Panther Mom]

On fourth-and-2 with 19 seconds to go, Hanson ran 11 yards to Jasper's 2-yard line before being pulled down by his face mask. Several Panthers later said that Hanson popped up and shouted, "face mask!" but that officials heard his shout as a request for a timeout — Liberty Hill's last of the game. None of the Panthers players and coaches interviewed said they called for a timeout or heard one requested.

[HornetMom]

Wow, not much to say, but I do feel for LH. That make the loss that much harder. This game reminded me of our (Caldwell) game with Navasota. It came down to the wire, too. Yesterday I was just as nervous as in our game and just as heartbroken as Navasota must have been with the loss.

LH was very impressive in the second half, came out to hold Jasper and very nearly pulled out a win. Which I thought for sure they would do. Outstanding run for State by LH.

I enjoyed meeting you and the others. Wish we would have had more time to talk.

[LH Panther Mom]

By Matthew Obernauer

AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Sunday, December 12, 2004

COLLEGE STATION — Among all the tiny Central Texas towns with big football dreams in 2004, Liberty Hill stood tall. But on Saturday, the Panthers fell a few seconds and one yard short.

Trailing 35-27 in the final minutes of their Class 3A, Division II state semifinal game against Jasper, Liberty Hill drove 66 yards on 16 plays to the Bulldogs' 1. Quarterback Dexter Hanson had kept his team alive, converting on two fourth-down runs, including the one that brought the Panthers desperately close to the Jasper goal. But with 13 seconds to play, Hanson was stopped at the line of scrimmage on a quarterback keeper to end the game, sealing Jasper's first state semifinal victory after losses to Burnet in 2002 and 2003.

"It's tough to think about right now, being so close," Hanson said. "We were right there. We had our chance."

After the game, questions remained as to whether a miscommunication cost the Panthers one more opportunity.

On fourth-and-2 with 19 seconds to go, Hanson ran 11 yards to Jasper's 2-yard line before being pulled down by his face mask. Several Panthers later said that Hanson popped up and shouted, "face mask!" but that officials heard his shout as a request for a timeout — Liberty Hill's last of the game. None of the Panthers players and coaches interviewed said they called for a timeout or heard one requested.

Unable to stop the clock after Hanson was stopped on the next play, Liberty Hill's players watched helplessly as the final seconds drained away and the Jasper sideline poured onto the field.

It was a sad ending for Liberty Hill, which fell just short of engineering a thrilling fourth-quarter comeback. With their team down 35-20 at halftime, the Panthers' coaching staff made defensive adjustments and head coach Jerry Vance gave a speech to his seniors, the first class at Liberty Hill to play four years for the coach they used to call "Crazy J."

"He said that the end of this season was going to be real emotional for him, because we were freshmen when he got there," Ryan Lawhorn said. "He said, 'If we're going to go out, let's go out fighting.' "

Jasper never scored again and managed only 61 total yards in the second half.

Early in the fourth quarter, Lawhorn cut Jasper's lead to 35-27, capping a 10-play, 80-yard drive with a 15-yard touchdown run. Liberty Hill had the ball one more time, at its 33-yard line with 5:26 to go, and ran 17 plays before time ran out.

Liberty Hill had never faced a team with Jasper's speed, and it showed early on. The Bulldogs needed just three offensive plays to put their first 21 points on the board. On the game's opening play from scrimmage, Bulldogs quarterback Gilbert Moye dropped back to pass, then scrambled up the middle 63 yards for a touchdown. After a Liberty Hill touchdown drive, DeKendrick Gilder ran back a Panthers' kickoff 82 yards for a score. And on the Bulldogs' next possession, running back Jordan Patton took an option pitch left and bounced back across the field for a 53-yard touchdown, giving Jasper a 21-7 lead.

"They were so fast," Lawhorn said, "but I saw them break a few tackles, too. It wasn't just speed. They did it all."

The Panthers' loss ensured that Saturday's game would be the final performance of one of the most prolific trios Central Texas has ever seen. Running backs Lawhorn, Casey Kociuba and Matt Escamilla combined for 286 yards and three touchdowns, bringing their season total to 6,401 yards rushing and 97 scores.

Jasper held Lawhorn in check, holding the fullback to 32 yards on nine carries. But Hanson ran for 106 yards and threw a touchdown pass.

"Everyone was watching those three, and that opened things up for (Hanson)," Panthers Coach Jerry Vance said. "He's a champion any way you want to spell it. People say he just hands the ball off, but he does so much for us."