Organization news and notes

Defense continues strong play
The No. 7 area-ranked Pearland Oilers traveled to Kenneth B. Hall Stadium to face the Elkins Knights and returned home with a solid 34-19 victory to improve to 2-0 for the 2005 football campaign.

Pearland's Jamaal Driver recovered a fumble on the opening kickoff giving the Oilers the ball on the Elkins' 27 yard line.

On the fourth play of the game, Fozzy Whittaker shot through a big hole on the left side of the offensive line to score on a 10-yard run. Alex Bolan hit the extra point giving the Oilers a quick 7-0 lead at the 9:57 mark of the first quarter.

Elkins, who lost to the Oilers 35-0 last year, showed much improvement as they began at their own 27 and drove to the Pearland 30 in nine plays. Facing fourth-and-one, linebacker Texavier Henry met running back Michael Simpers at the line-of-scrimmage for no gain giving the ball back to Pearland.
On the first play, quarterback Michael Speciale threw a pass that was picked off Lee Stockman giving Elkins excellent field position at the Oilers' 27.
Five plays later, Michael Barry booted a 20-yard field goal to make the score 7-3 with 4:01 remaining in the opening period.

Pearland quickly moved the ball down the field after the kickoff, but Speciale once again went to the air and Jamal Stachan picked off the pass.

Elkins drove from the Pearland 41 to the 30 before Barry attempted a 43-yard field goal that bounced off the left upright leaving the score 7-3.

The Oilers offense stayed on the ground and marched 74-yards in seven plays capped off by a 25-yard scoring run by Speciale. The senior quarterback also had a 27-yard run during the drive that took only two and a half minutes. Bolan added the extra point and the Oilers had a 14-3 lead at the 8:13 mark of the second period.

The Pearland defense forced Elkins to punt after three plays and the offense set up at their own 48.

After picking up a first down, Speciale took off on a keeper as Landon Davis and Alan Pelc made key blocks that sent the signal-caller on a 34-yard scamper to the Elkins three yard line. Whittaker got the call to score his second touchdown of the contest with 5:22 remaining in the first half. Bolan booted the extra point and the Oilers had a 21-3 advantage.

Elkins made one last attempt to cross the Pearland goal line with eight play drive covering 67 yards, but the Knights had to settle for a 25-yard field goal by Barry with only 1:49 remaining before intermission making the score 21-6.
Pearland wasted no time getting on the scoreboard in the second half. After starting at their own 36, Whittaker burned the Elkins defense on a 60-yard jaunt for his third touchdown of the game. Bolan hit the extra point and the Oilers were ahead 28-6 with 11:06 remaining in the third quarter.

The Knights came back with a 11-play, 38-yard drive that ended with a missed field goal attempt.

The Oilers drove 69 yards in 11 plays capped off by a one-yard run by Deforester Jones. Key plays in the drive included a 20 yard run by Whittaker and a Speciale to Davis pass covering 22 yards to the Elkins two-yard line. Josh Juneau missed the extra point leaving the score at 34-6 with 3:00 remaining in the third period.

Elkins finally found paydirt when Sam Gilmore hit Christian Sterling on a 21-yard scoring toss at the 11:52 mark of the fourth quarter. Barry hit the extra point to make the score 34-13.

The Knights added one more score with 50 seconds remaining in the game on a 20-yard scoring pass from Daitric Williams. The two-point conversion failed and the final 34-19 final score was posted.

Whittaker finished the game with 165 yards on 15 carries and three touchdowns while Speciale had seven totes for 88 yards and one score.

Speciale hit 3-of-9 passing for 34 yards and two interceptions.

Pearland gained 305 yards on the ground and 34 through the air for 339 total yards. Elkins had 70 rushing yards and 230 yards through the air for 300 total yards. Both teams had 18 first downs. The Oilers had three turnovers while the Knights lost one fumble.

The Oilers have a strong ground game and are finding their way through the passing lanes. Defensively, Pearland controlled that side of the ball for most of the game and should continue to improve as the season progresses.
Pearland will host Spring Branch Memorial on Friday, September 9 at 7:30 p.m. at The Rig.

Pearland fans need to get to the game early as the RE/MAX parachute team will bring in the American flag, Texas flag, and the game ball prior to kickoff.