Daddy D 11
12-10-2006, 01:47 AM
ROUND ROCK — Instead of congratulating his team on an impressive playoff victory, Liberty Hill football coach Jerry Vance ripped his players for poor behavior.
Vance was not a happy camper after the Panthers wrapped up a 35-28 victory over previously unbeaten Giddings on Saturday afternoon at Round Rock ISD Stadium.
"The purpose of the game is to score more points than your opponents, not to act like macho men," Vance said.
Liberty Hill (11-2) will face Hondo (14-0) in a Class 3A state semifinal game next week.
Aside from some lapses in composure, the Panthers played a terrific game. Carried by running back Doug Allman, who gave piggy-back rides to the Buffaloes all afternoon, the Panthers led 28-0 after three quarters, and withstood a frantic Giddings rally.
Allman scored a pair of touchdowns, rumbling for 165 yards on 28 carries. His 19-yard run on a critical third-down play in the final minute allowed the Panthers to run out the clock.
When a bystander suggested to Allman that he carried the team, he quickly responded, "Nah, my offensive line carried me."
Liberty Hill took advantage of three Giddings fumbles, converting all three into touchdowns.
Giddings (13-1) scored on the first play of the fourth quarter when All-State senior Alan Dock picked up an offensive fumble and rambled 81 yards for a touchdown.
After Giddings defensive lineman Michael Robinson recovered a Panther fumble a minute later, Dock hauled in a 41-yard touchdown pass from backup quarterback Jonathan Locke. In a span of 57 seconds, Liberty Hill's 28-0 lead had been whittled to 28-14 with 10:47 to go.
Another touchdown by Allman, increasing the lead to 35-14, gave the Panthers some breathing room.
The Buffaloes would add two more scores in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter, including a 29-yard touchdown catch by Bill Lawhorn, with 1:16 to go, but they would never catch the Panthers.
Giddings' big comeback came with its leader, quarterback Brock Fitzhenry, missing the entire second half with a knee injury. The Central Texas rushing leader with 2,814 yards, Fitzhenry was hurt on a kickoff in the final 19 seconds of the first half.
Giddings coach Derek Fitzhenry, the quarterback's dad, was angry about the play. Brock was not close to the player who was tackled, he said.
"It was a cheap shot," Derek Fitzhenry said. He declined to say which Panther made the hit.
The coach added that Liberty Hill players "taunted" Giddings throughout the game.
A fourth-quarter skirmish between opposing players resulted in two ejections. Both coaches blamed game officials for lack of control.
"I won't let the Houston chapter (of the Texas Association of Sports Officials) call a game for me again," Vance said.
Derek Fitzhenry said the officials did a "poor job" for both sides.
Fitzhenry said one fumble against his team — which resulted in a touchdown for Liberty Hill in the first half — was clearly a mistake because a TV replay indicated the ground caused the football to come loose.
The coach was proud of his team's fourth-quarter comeback, but he added that the Buffs could have won if all his starters played the entire game.
"We needed one more guy," Fitzhenry said.
Perhaps Brock Fitzhenry?
The coach nodded yes.
This marked the second straight season the Buffaloes have been eliminated in the quarterfinal round. Brock Fitzhenry rushed for 51 yards on eight carries before leaving the game before halftime.
Allman said he is happy to be playing Hondo in the semis. He doesn't hold a grudge against Wimberley — the team Hondo knocked off Friday — but, "We want to beat another unbeaten team."
Liberty Hill will get that chance.
Vance was not a happy camper after the Panthers wrapped up a 35-28 victory over previously unbeaten Giddings on Saturday afternoon at Round Rock ISD Stadium.
"The purpose of the game is to score more points than your opponents, not to act like macho men," Vance said.
Liberty Hill (11-2) will face Hondo (14-0) in a Class 3A state semifinal game next week.
Aside from some lapses in composure, the Panthers played a terrific game. Carried by running back Doug Allman, who gave piggy-back rides to the Buffaloes all afternoon, the Panthers led 28-0 after three quarters, and withstood a frantic Giddings rally.
Allman scored a pair of touchdowns, rumbling for 165 yards on 28 carries. His 19-yard run on a critical third-down play in the final minute allowed the Panthers to run out the clock.
When a bystander suggested to Allman that he carried the team, he quickly responded, "Nah, my offensive line carried me."
Liberty Hill took advantage of three Giddings fumbles, converting all three into touchdowns.
Giddings (13-1) scored on the first play of the fourth quarter when All-State senior Alan Dock picked up an offensive fumble and rambled 81 yards for a touchdown.
After Giddings defensive lineman Michael Robinson recovered a Panther fumble a minute later, Dock hauled in a 41-yard touchdown pass from backup quarterback Jonathan Locke. In a span of 57 seconds, Liberty Hill's 28-0 lead had been whittled to 28-14 with 10:47 to go.
Another touchdown by Allman, increasing the lead to 35-14, gave the Panthers some breathing room.
The Buffaloes would add two more scores in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter, including a 29-yard touchdown catch by Bill Lawhorn, with 1:16 to go, but they would never catch the Panthers.
Giddings' big comeback came with its leader, quarterback Brock Fitzhenry, missing the entire second half with a knee injury. The Central Texas rushing leader with 2,814 yards, Fitzhenry was hurt on a kickoff in the final 19 seconds of the first half.
Giddings coach Derek Fitzhenry, the quarterback's dad, was angry about the play. Brock was not close to the player who was tackled, he said.
"It was a cheap shot," Derek Fitzhenry said. He declined to say which Panther made the hit.
The coach added that Liberty Hill players "taunted" Giddings throughout the game.
A fourth-quarter skirmish between opposing players resulted in two ejections. Both coaches blamed game officials for lack of control.
"I won't let the Houston chapter (of the Texas Association of Sports Officials) call a game for me again," Vance said.
Derek Fitzhenry said the officials did a "poor job" for both sides.
Fitzhenry said one fumble against his team — which resulted in a touchdown for Liberty Hill in the first half — was clearly a mistake because a TV replay indicated the ground caused the football to come loose.
The coach was proud of his team's fourth-quarter comeback, but he added that the Buffs could have won if all his starters played the entire game.
"We needed one more guy," Fitzhenry said.
Perhaps Brock Fitzhenry?
The coach nodded yes.
This marked the second straight season the Buffaloes have been eliminated in the quarterfinal round. Brock Fitzhenry rushed for 51 yards on eight carries before leaving the game before halftime.
Allman said he is happy to be playing Hondo in the semis. He doesn't hold a grudge against Wimberley — the team Hondo knocked off Friday — but, "We want to beat another unbeaten team."
Liberty Hill will get that chance.