Pearland thumps Fulshear 52-28 in season opener

    Last season, Pearland dropped a 19-12 heartbreaker to the Fulshear Chargers but 2025 proved to be a much different game as the Oilers took control early for a 52-28 season opening non-district victory.
    “I am proud of how the kids competed,” head coach B.J. Gotte said. “With it being the first game of the year, it is always exciting to get on the field and compete.
    “Just like every first game of the season, this one was no different, we showed signs of doing some things well but also showed some things that will be important to improve upon if we want to achieve our goals.”
    While the two teams battled in the first quarter with the Oilers and Chargers tied 7-7 — the second period proved to be the difference as the momentum shifted to the Oilers who scored 31 points for a 38-21 halftime advantage.
    “We took care of the ball on offense with zero turnovers and were efficient in the passing game,” Gotte said.  “We played the run relatively well on defense and were able to give a lot of young players their first varsity experience.”
    Pearland opened up the scoring on their second possession when senior RB Ja’Maurey Champion
scored on a 3-yard plunge to complete a 6-play, 62-yard scoring drive with 7:48 left in the first quarter and a 7-0 lead.
    The big play in the drive was a pass completion from senior QB Jake Westmoreland to FB Dominic Teichelman covering 33 yards to the Fulshear 3-yard line. Westmoreland also completed a 12-yard pass to senior WR Jordan (Jet) Hernandez in the drive.
    The Charger would go on a 71-yard, 10-play scoring drive to tie up the game 7-7 with 2:46 remaining in the opening quarter.
    After the two teams traded punts, the Oilers would score again using a little trickery as Westmoreland pitched the ball to Hernandez on a sweep around right end. The Jet stopped and threw back to Westmoreland who had slipped out down the left sideline catching the Chargers completely napping.
    The senior signal-caller gathered in the perfect pass and streaked down the sideline to complete a 17-yard scoring pass to give the Oilers a 14-7 lead with 6:40 left in the second period.
    That’s when things turned sideways for the Chargers as the Oilers took total command of in the final minutes of the first half.
    The Pearland defense forced Fulshear to punt following their score but a roughing the punter gave the Chargers new life until the quarterback fumbled, and senior LB Joseph Credit scooped up the ball and raced 40-yards for a defensive touchdown to increase the Pearland lead to 21-7 with 3:44 remaining in the first half.
    It took Fulshear only 13 seconds to answer as they took the kickoff back 89-yards for a score to close the gap to 21-14 with 3:31 left in the opening half.
    That’s when Pearland took total control when Westmoreland faked a roll out handoff and sprinted down the left sideline for a 46-yard scoring jaunt with 1:47 left and a 28-14 lead.
    The Oilers then recovered the ensuing kickoff when Fulshear just watched the ball bounce on the turf allowing Pearland to recover the ball at the Chargers 12-yard line.
    After a Westmoreland to Hernandez pass completion to the Fulshear 4-yard line, Royce Swan would easily score on the next play with 1:06 to play.
    Pearland would kickoff and watch Fulshear do the same thing to allow the Oilers to get the ball back.
    As the first half clock ticked down to 0:00 – Pearland junior kicker Holden McNeish would boot a 42-yard field goal to extend the halftime lead to 38-21.
    The Oilers added two more scores in the third quarter while holding the Chargers scoreless for a 52-21 advantage.
    Teichelman scored on a 17-yard run with 7:59 left in the third quarter and Swan added the final score for Pearland on a 34-yard run with 3:16 remaining in the third.
    Fulshear managed one more score in the final period to post the 52-28 final score.
    Pearland outgained Fulshear on offense 370 to 295 while the Oilers defense limited the Chargers to only 59 yards on the ground.
    Westmoreland had a great game hitting 12-of-15 passing for 152 yards while also rushing for 51 yards on three carries. The senior signal caller scored twice with one rushing and one receiving.
    Swan led the ground attack with 77 yards on seven carries and two scores.
    Hernandez had four catches for 60 yards while Teichelman had two grabs for 41 yards. Michael Shawyer had three catches for 21 yards.
    The Oilers grabbed two interceptions by Sam Armstrong and Edward Smith while Joseph Credit recovered a fumble for a 40-yard touchdown.
    “We need to be more consistent up front in the run game on offense and develop some confidence and consistency on the back end of our defense,” Gotte concluded. “We also, need to clean up some special team’s issues that could hurt us later down the road if we don’t get it corrected.”
    Pearland (1-0) will travel to face the Spring Branch Memorial Mustangs (1-0) on Saturday, September 6 at 6:00 p.m. at Tully Stadium.