KINGSVILLE, Texas — It wasn’t the prettiest ending, but by the final whistle it didn’t matter. Game Night South Texas featured a barn burner, as the Moody Trojans (4-1) defeated the H-M King Brahmas (4-1) 49-47 at Javelina Stadium.
The final score indicated a back-and-forth affair with offenses trading blows, but it was much more one-sided until the final moments.
With two minutes left in the third quarter, Moody's Rigoberto Hernandez caught a 23-yard touchdown to put the Trojans up 43-19. It looked to be all but over, until the very next play. H.M. King’s Jasiah Rivera returned the ensuing kickoff to the house, cutting the deficit to 18 late in the third.
Still an uphill battle, but the Brahmas were willing to climb. After Kayden Defour and Demarious Montgomery traded rushing touchdowns, it was 49-33 with 9:46 to play.
H.M. King’s defense, who had been gashed by the run all night, buckled down when it needed to most. They forced a punt to put the ball back in the hands of Dylon Everett and the Brahmas’ offense. He darted 38 yards to set up another Montgomery touchdown.
Next possession, the Trojans’ potent run game was halted again. The Brahmas crowd came to their feet. The team used the fans’ energy, driving down easily to bring the score to 49-47 with 2:36 to play.
With two timeouts left for both teams, a game that once seemed out of reach was one play away from overtime. Everett tossed a screen pass to his right, but Moody junior Raul Banda burst through a block and stopped the ball carrier in his tracks. The Trojans gained possession and after a first down, the clock ran out on H.M. King’s miraculous comeback attempt.
"You just beat a playoff team,” Moody head coach Mike Cantu said to his team post game.
For a team who hasn’t made playoffs since 2004, holding on in a close finish will only bolster its confidence.
Adrian Luna, referred to as the thunder of the Trojans’ backfield, had three touchdowns on the ground. Defour added two scores of his own. Romeo Castillo had a speedy outside run to end the half on a Moody touchdown.
Despite the late scare, Moody took one step closer to its goal of reaching the postseason for the first time in two decades.
Moody has a bye week for week 6 before kicking off UIL 5A-DII District 14 play against Miller.
