Mules vs. Breckenridge (11-20-2014)

Mules vs. Breckenridge (11-20-2014)

The Mules football season ended Thursday night on Snyder High School’s Tiger Stadium turf. The Breckenridge Buckaroos out muscled the Mules. The Mules had faced teams with some big players all season but not in almost every position like the Bucks put on the field.

The Mules scored first and had several opportunities but could never get the ball back in the end zone. The Bucks scored twice in the second quarter and that would have been enough but added a TD in both the third and fourth quarters to defeat the Mules 28-7.

“We intended to pass on them all week to try to loosen them up so we could make the run work”, said Mule coach David Wood. “Danny (Campos) was not ready to go the whole game and we did not want him to run with the ball so we stayed with the ones that had brought us to the dance.”

“Our red zone offense was almost nonexistent tonight. When the zone shrinks things get really clogged up. Keagan (Gonzales) had not had to make the throws we needed tonight. But the kids left it all on the field and continued to make things happen. I was very proud of them and their effort.”

The Bucks won the toss and kicked off to start the game. Gonzales hit Chamel Regalado for a first down on the first play of the game. Josh Lopez hit the right side of the defense behind Issac Acosta and Dagen Dunham pulling on the play for six yards.

Lopez circled wide to the right out of the backfield and Gonzales delivered him the ball. Lopez gained 10 yards to the Buck’s 39-yard line. Regalado ran a hitch and go. Gonzales tossed him the ball and Regalado reached the Breckenridge 22.

A second hitch and go catch by Regalado moved the Mules to the Buck nine yard line. A holding penalty cost the Mules nine yards and the offense stalled out. Felipe Guerrero attempted a 36-yard field goal that bounced off the cross bar and back into the end zone.

Breckenridge took over at the Mule 20. Three plays later the Bucks pitched to the tailback and headed wide right. Javy Perez came up his safety spot for the stop and Saul Sanchez ripped the ball free. The ball flew out and Regalado recovered at the Buck 22.

Jason Florez was the lone receiver on the left side on first down. Florez ran a down and out pattern and Gonzales fired him the ball for a first down at the Breckenridge 12. The Mules emptied the backfield and Gonzales ran up the middle for three yards.

On second down the Mules again emptied the backfield and Gonzales took the snap, took a step forward to freeze the linebackers and fired a bullet to Regalado standing all alone three yards deep in the end zone for a touchdown with 3:39 left in the first period. Guerrero’s kick was good and the Mules led 7-0.

The Bucks strung together an 11-play 58-yard drive that ended on a three-yard touchdown dive into the end zone by Austin Dooley. The PAT kick was good and the game was tied at 7-7 with 9:43 left in the first half.

Just over five minutes late the Bucks scored a second time on a 28-yard fourth down run to cap a nine-play 66-yard drive with 4:23 remaining before the intermission.

The Bucks insurance TD was a 67-yard quarterback sneak with 4:31 left in the third period. Breckenridge’s final score was a one-yard run that capped a 15-play 74-yard drive that ate up over eight minutes in the final period.

The Mules had a total of 261 yards of offense with 53 being on the ground and 208 through the air. Gonzales rushed 12 times for 37 yards and completed 22 of 37 passes for 200 yards. Lopez rushed four times for 17 yards and caught five passes for 27 yards.

Regalado made seven receptions for 78 yards and a touchdown. Sanchez made six catches for 53 yards. Tony Vasquez and Florez made three receptions each for 25 yards apiece.

Javy Perez and Ryder White led the Mule defense with 20 tackles each. Sanchez made nine tackles, one being for a loss and caused a fumble. Roman Franco had nine tackles and Dominik Hasley made eight tackles, three being for losses, one sack, one quarterback hurry, broke up a pass, recovered a fumble and made a special teams tackle.

Regalado had eight tackles, one being for a loss and recovered a fumble and Braden Bessire made eight tackles with one being for a loss. Dagen Dunham had seven tackles with one being for a loss, David Rodriguez made seven tackles and Cameron Hardwick had six. 

The Mules will now make the transition to basketball and play their first game in Hale Center against the Owls December 2, 2014.