Organization news and notes

The No. 5 area-ranked Pearland Oilers continued to remain perfect with a 48-22 win over Clear Creek. The win assures the Oilers a share of the District 24-5A championship, but head coach Tony Heath and his warriors don't want to settle for half of the crown as they approach their showdown with Alvin at Memorial Stadium on Friday, November 4 at 7:30 p.m.

Fans had better get their tickets early if they want a seat in Alvin to witness the potential second perfect regular season registered by the Oilers since Heath took over the Pearland football fortunes in 1997.

In 2001, the same scenario faced the Oilers and Yellowjackets when they invaded neighboring Alvin.

At 9-0, Pearland had clinched a playoff spot and a share of the league title prior to the regular season finale. Alvin had to beat the Oilers to advance to the post-season for the first time since 1995. Pearland beat the Jackets 31-7 to finish 10-0 and went on to advance to the Class 5A Division I state semifinals before falling to San Antonio Taft in the Reliant Astrodome to finish 13-1 setting a new school record.

In 2005, Pearland is 9-0 and assured of the playoffs and a share of the district title. However, Alvin can still lose and make the playoffs if Brazoswood beats Clear Creek. In 2001, Alvin had to win to advance.

But the Oilers certainly aren't going to offer any sympathy to the Yellowjackets in their quest to complete a perfect season.

When Clear Creek came to The Rig this past Friday to face the Oilers and the sold out homecoming crowd, Pearland made sure that the surging Wildcats weren't going to pull off an upset in their bid to make the post-season.

Clear Creek, who was 0-11 in district play the past two seasons, began the 2005 season with a new coach and a renewed dedication to compete each week. As a result, the Wildcats find themselves just one victory away from clinching a playoff spot at 2-3 in district play. Clear Creek beat district rival Clear Lake who shared the district title last year while advancing to the 5A Division II state semifinals to finish with a 13-2 mark. Lake is winless in district play this year at 0-5 and Ball High (7-2, 4-1) will likely complete the whitewash this Friday leaving the Falcons in the cellar with one of the worst free-falls in Texas this season at 2-8 which is an 11-game drop from 2004.

The first half against Clear Creek was the Fozzy Whittaker and Pearland offense show as the junior speedster rushed for 186 yards on 16 carries with three scoring runs of 43, 25, and 12 yards giving the Oilers a 21-7 lead.

Facing third-and-seven on Creek's 43, Whittaker blew through a hole created by Landon Davis, Alan Pelc, David Webster, and Steven Kenney for the first touchdown. Alex Bolan added the extra point and the Oilers were ahead 7-0 after just three plays with 10:28 remaining in the opening period.

The second possession saw Pearland take over the ball at their own 20. Whittaker ripped off a 28 yard run that almost broke free. Quarterback Michael Speciale hit Karlton Johnson for 17 yards and then Speciale rumbled for 17 more setting up the Oilers at the Creek 25. Whittaker took the handoff and was off to the races for another score giving Pearland a 14-0 advantage.
Clear Creek took advantage of a blown pass coverage on their next possession when Neal Warden found a streaking Taylor Echols for a 67-yard scoring bomb. The extra point was good and the gap was closed to 14-7 with 2:49 remaining in the opening period.

But that would be as close as the Wildcats would get in the first half as Speciale burned the Creek defense for a 38-yard scoring jaunt that was made possible by two good blocks by Davis and Pelc. Speciale scored again on an six-yard run with 2:57 left before intermission for a 27-7 lead.
Whittaker contributed a 28 yard run on the seven-play, 81-yard drive.

The final score of the half came when Pearland took over on their own 49 with 52 seconds remaining before halftime. Speciale hit Roosevelt Weeks for a 29 yard pass play to the Creek 17. Four plays later, Whittaker added his third touchdown on a 12 yard run. Bolan added his fourth extra point as Pearland took a 34-7 lead into the dressing room.

The Wildcats took the second half kickoff and drove from their own 29 to the Pearland 34. Facing fourth-and-12, Warden pitched the ball to running back Keegan Malbrough who caught the Pearland defense napping as Robert McLemore was all alone at the Oilers five-yard line. All he had to do was catch the ball and walk into the end zone, but the wide receiver dropped the ball giving Pearland the ball at their won 34.

The Oilers took advantage of the shocked Creek team and Speciale cashed in on a pass to Ernest Buch for a 44 yard bomb to the Wildcats' 13. Macus Bradley got the next call and scored giving the Oilers a 41-7 lead with 5:31 left in the third period.

Creek wasn't going to give in despite the lopsided score as Warden again went to the air completing a pass to Austin Yancy for 32 yards and then Jereme Brooks broke free for a 34 scoring run at the 3:02 mark making the score 41-15 after the two-point conversion.

Pearland was forced to punt as Heath put in his second team offense.
Clear Creek took over at their own 25 and Warden hit Brooks on a 75 yard scoring bomb to close the gap to 41-22 with 9:03 remaining in the game.
After Pearland recovered an onside kick attempt, Heath put his starting offense back in the game to let Creek know who was in command and it took only six-plays to complete the 60-yard drive as Speciale hit Buch for a 39 yard completion to the 26 before fullback James Williford carried three straight times with the final tote covering eight yards for the score. Bolan hit the extra point and the 48-22 final score was posted with 6:33 remaining in the contest.

Speciale had his best passing performance of the season hitting 9-of-12 for 163 yards while picking up 60 yards on seven carries and two touchdowns. Whittaker, who didn't play in the second half, finished with 186 yards to improve his season total to 1,500 yards and 15 touchdowns.

The Pearland offense rolled up 533 total yards while the Creek offense had 349 total yards including 229 yards through the air. Take away three plays of 67, 34, and 75 and the Wildcats would have finished with 133 yards.

A sold out crowd is expected in Alvin on Friday, November 4 and standing room only tickets will be sold at the gate.

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