No. 6 state-ranked Pearland takes out Dobie 43-13

    Having a balanced offensive attack is a desired goal of every coach and Pearland’s offensive effort against the Dobie Longhorns couldn’t have been more balanced as the Oilers had 222 yards passing and 223 yards rushing for a total of 445 yards in their 43-13 district win to remain undefeated at 7-0 overall and 5-0 in district.
    Meanwhile, the Pearland defense remained just as strong as they held Dobie to only 47 yards passing and 185 yards rushing for a total of 232 yards and 13 points.
    The Oilers scored all four possessions of the first half starting with their opening drive that concluded with a 3-yard scoring burst by Ja’Maurey Champion at the 8:30 mark of the first quarter. A rare miss of the PAT left Pearland with a 6-0 lead.
    It only took Dobie 3:02 to answer as they scored on a 15-yard touchdown pass from QB Jalen Miles to TE Nathaniel Belleville. The extra point was good giving the ‘Horns a brief 7-6 lead with 5:28 remaining in the opening period.
    The Oilers quickly answered in 2:27 seconds when QB Jake Westmoreland dropped back to find one of his most dependable receivers in WR Jordan (Jet) Hernandez who had found an opening for a 13-yard scoring strike. Jr kicker Holden Macneish hit the PAT giving Pearland a 13-7 lead.
    The Longhorns began their next drive at their own 6 and drove to the Pearland 6 in five plays thanks to a 67-yard run. The Pearland defense stiffened to force a 23-yard field goal at the 11:05 mark of the second quarter to cut the Oilers lead to 13-10.
    Pearland got the ensuing kickoff at their own 49 and it took only two plays for the Westbrook/Hernandez pass combo to strike again — this time it was a 41-yard scoring bomb giving the Oilers a 20-10 lead at the 9:57 mark of the second frame.
    The ground attack of the Longhorns was extremely good as they began their next drive at their own 40.
    Dobie took 5:03 off the second quarter game clock, moved the ball to the Pearland 8-yard line before they stalled and settled for a 25-yard field goal to make the score 20-13.
    On Pearland’s last possession of the first half, the offense moved the ball from the 50 to the Dobie 30.
    With :54 seconds left, facing fourth and 10, kicker Macneish took the field for a 47-yard field goal. With plenty of leg, the junior kicker sent the ball through the middle of the uprights to give the Oilers a 23-13 halftime lead.
    “We had a couple assignment busts defensively in the first half,” said head coach B.J. Gotte. “We were able to address the issues and settle back down. Defensively I felt we were flat to start the game, but our kids did a good job getting re-focused.”
    It was all Pearland in the second half as the Oilers outscored the visitors 20-0 to capture their seventh game of the season without a loss.
    The Oilers scored once in the third quarter on a 9-yard run by Champion to make the score 30-13 after another missed PAT with 2:34 remaining in the period.
    In the fourth quarter, sophomore RB Royce Swan, who is having a great year, scored on a 20-yard scamper with 8:33 left in the quarter and junior RB Ryan Miller closed out the scoring with an 8-yard scoring dash to post the 43-13 final score.
    Westmoreland was 12-of-14 passing for 211 yards and two TDs while rushing for 10 yards on three carries.
    Champion, who is the leading rusher for the Oilers, had 85 yards on 13 carries and two scores. Swain had 77 yards on 10 totes and one TD. Miller had six carries for 41 yards and one TD.
    Hernandez had his best game of the season with six catches for 121 yards and two scores.
    Coach Gotte summed up the Oilers win saying, “We are steadily improving on the finer details (offensively and defensively)…we just need to work on consistency.”
    Pearland (7-0, 5-0) will travel to Pasadena Memorial Stadium on Thursday, October 16 to face the Pasadena Memorial Mavericks (1-5, 0-4) at 6:30 p.m.