Organization news and notes

Pearland head coach Tony Heath saw his troops tested to the limit when they had to play three games in eight days with all of them coming against District 24-5A foes. The No. 5 area-ranked Oilers opened up against Clear Lake and took out the Falcons 14-3 and then traveled to face the Clear Brook Wolverines at District Stadium in League City on a Tuesday night where they dominated the league contest for a 34-7 victory.

While Ball High had an open date during the week, the Oilers hosted the Tors on Saturday at The Rig and completed the eight day run with a solid 17-14 win to take command of the District 24-5A title race.

It was a week of surprises for the other teams as Clear Lake, who advanced to the Class 5A Division II state semifinals last season, is still searching for their first district win of the year. The Falcons fell to the Oilers, Brazoswood (28-12), and Clear Creek (31-27).

Clear Creek, who entered district play with a 20-game losing streak, finally won their first game of the season under new head coach Darrell Warden with a 14-9 win over Alvin before knocking off the Falcons. The Wildcats are now 2-4 on the year and 2-0 in district play sitting a half-game back of the Oilers for first place.

Clear Brook (2-5, 1-2) lost to Ball High (4-2, 1-1) and Pearland (7-0, 3-0) before pulling out a last minute score to beat Brazoswood (3-4, 1-2) 17-10.
The Pearland coaching staff and players accepted the challenge of the re-scheduling due to Hurricane Rita to remain perfect on the season at 7-0 and 3-0 in district action.

"It was a challenge for us and I thought the players did an excellent job in every game," Heath said. "Our win against Ball High was a total team effort."
Ball High got on the scoreboard first with a six-play, 64-yard drive capped by a 32-yard scoring pass from quarterback Reginald Thompson to Marcus Littleton. The extra point was good for a 7-0 lead.

The Oilers began their first possession at their own 28 and drove the ball to the Tors' five-yard line. On third-and-goal, Fozzy Whittaker raced around left end for what appeared the game-tying touchdown. Whittaker held the ball out to cross the goal line, but the officials ruled it a fumble when he got hit denying the score that took 7:50 off the first quarter clock.

Pearland's second possession saw them fumble the ball at their own 22 setting up the Tors with excellent field position. But the Oilers' defense forced the Tors to settle for a 33-yard field goal attempt. The snap was mishandled and the desperate pass was completed but came up short giving the Oilers the ball on their own seven-yard line with 3:51 remaining in the first half.

Whittaker raced for a 32 yard gain to give the Oilers some breathing room, but were forced to punt leaving the Tors ahead 7-0 at intermission.

Pearland had to punt on their opening possession of the second half, but the Tors fumbled the ball giving the Oilers the ball at the 32. It took only four plays for Pearland to knot up the game as Whittaker skirted right end for a 13-yard touchdown. Alex Bolan hit the extra point for a 7-7 tie.

The Oilers increased their aggressiveness and intensity on the defensive side of the ball forcing the Tors to punt.

Beginning at their own 20, the Pearland offense marched down the field to score again on a 22-yard scoring dash by Whittaker to complete the 80-yard, eight-play drive. Bolan booted the extra point and the Oilers had a 14-7 lead with 11:52 remaining in the game.

The key play in the drive was a third-and-five pass play from quarterback Michael Speciale to Ernest Buch covering 23 yards. Whittaker was the workhorse of the drive with four carries for 52 yards.

The Tors fumbled a punt return as Mario Burk fell on the ball at the Ball 28 yard line.

The Ball High defense held at their own 12 forcing the Oilers to settle for a 35-yard field goal by Bolan with 2:32 remaining in the game which would later prove to be the deciding factor in the game.

Ball wasted little time finding the end zone as Thompson hit Littleton on a 41-yard scoring strike with 1:15 left in the contest. The extra point was good leaving the Oilers clinging to a 17-14 lead.

The onside kick attempt was covered by Ernest Buch setting up the Oilers at their own 46. Pearland ran out the game clock to post the hard-fought district win.

Whittaker had 203 yards on 32 carries and two scores to give him an area-leading 1,206 yards for the season. Speciale had 18 carries for 72 yards rushing giving him 536 yards for the year. The signal-caller hit 3-of-5 passes for 34 yards. The Pearland offense racked up 16 first downs and 314 total yards.

The Pearland defense held the Tors potent offensive attack to 224 total yards with 104 yards rushing and 120 yards passing and nine first down.

The Oilers get a much needed rest with an open date on Friday, October 14 before traveling to Brazoswood on Friday, October 21 at 7:30 p.m.

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