WHO’S THE GREATEST? THE WEST ORANGE-STARK MUSTANGS!
Friday night was the five hundredth game in the history of West Orange-Stark High School football. The Mustangs rallied from an eight-point deficit scoring a touchdown late in the game and then a field goal in the last six seconds to win the contest 24-21 over the Silsbee Tigers at Dan R. Hooks Stadium.
The five hundredth game makes West Orange-Stark eligible to be ranked with the all-time winningest Texas high school football teams. The victory Friday night was the four hundredth in the school’s illustrious history giving the Mustangs an .803 winning percentage which ranks them number one all-time.
Coaches and players gathered after the game for a large group photo that included a banner signifying the Mustangs as the winningest team in Texas high school football history. Former head coach Dan Hooks stood next to his long-time defensive coordinator and the Mustangs’ current head coach Cornel Thompson for the picture taking excitement.
As thrilled as Coach Thompson was with the four hundredth win, he was even more ecstatic about the win coming in the opening game of district. West Orange-Stark (3-4, 1-0) has found victories harder to come by this season than in their highly successful past. Silsbee (3-4, 0-1) may feel like it let one slip away in this key district game.
The Tigers took a 21-13 early in the fourth quarter. Facing a fourth-and-one at the Mustangs’ 48, running back Antonius Arline picked up enough yardage for the first down on an off-tackle run, then refused to go down, before breaking away to complete the touchdown play which with the point-after gave Silsbee an eight-point lead with 10:37 left in the fourth quarter.
The Mustangs were flagged for two penalties on the kickoff, but were fortunate only one was marked off against them. Starting at their 23, the Mustangs began to march. Quarterback Tyrone Wilson picked up a first down with a 10-yard run. Then another one with a pass to Jay’zn Robinson into Silsbee territory.
The West Orange-Stark ground game began to click. Justin Sibley got the Mustangs’ third first down of the drive with a run. On a third-and-short Wilson popped a 17-yarder for a first-and-goal at the seven. Wilson contributed 44 yards rushing to go with his 111 yards passing by completing 9 of 16 aerials.
Two plays later Kavyn Cooper used second and third effort to find the end zone. Cooper started slow, but finished the game strong as the leading Mustang runner gaining 92 yards on 21 carries. Sixty-two of his yards came in the second half.
The WO-S coaches called a time out to discuss strategy on the two-point conversion. Lining up with the swinging gate formation Wilson took the long snap from center and ran the ball in for two points that tied the game 21-21 with 4:01 to play in regulation.
Following the kickoff Silsbee was stoned by the West Orange-Stark defense and brought out punter Diego Carreon-Gonzalez. He took the snap, dodged one Mustang in the backfield, and then ran for nine yards and a first down at midfield.
The Tigers called on their star runner Dralyn Taylor who picked up six yards on two carries before an incomplete pass set up a fourth-and-three. Taylor got the call again, and the Mustangs stampeded him for no gain.
With time running down and only two time outs remaining the Mustangs made a huge play on first down. Wilson threw a short pass to Brettlin Wiley who dodged one tackler, broke another tackle, and then ran in the open field before being brought down at the Silsbee 21 after a 38-yard gain. Wiley was the leading receiver for the Mustangs with four catches good for 77 yards.
Wilson could not find an open receiver on the next play so he threw the ball away setting up second-and-ten. He then ran a quarterback draw for nine yards to the Tigers’ 12.
Both teams called time outs, West Orange-Stark to stop the clock, and Silsbee to try to freeze the Mustangs’ kicker Angel Ibarra. The latter strategy did not work as Ibarra coolly kicked the ball straight and long through the up rights for a 29-yard field goal that gave the Mustangs a 24-21 lead with only six seconds left.
Silsbee had time for one play and from the Wildcat tried two lateral passes. Taylor took the snap and threw across the field to Chris Martin who was lined up as a flanker. Martin then threw the ball back to Taylor who got up a head of steam running diagonally across the field before hitting the sidelines in front of the Mustangs bench. There he was hemmed in and brought down as the clock expired giving West Orange-Stark an exciting and historical victory to chalk up on the locker room wall.
The game started with a bang as the Mustangs’ Robinson took a short kick from Carreon-Gonzalez at the 31. He found a crease and pretty much ran straight ahead down the sideline in front of the Silsbee bench for a 69-yard return. Ibarra added the point-after for a 7-0 West Orange-Stark lead just 11 seconds into the game.
West Orange-Stark had an opportunity to add to the lead when Jalen Thompson recovered a Tigers’ fumble at the 45 on Silsbee’s second play from scrimmage. The Mustangs could only make one first down and were stopped on a fourth down run at the Silsbee 31.
An eleven-play drive moved the ball for Silsbee from its 31 to the WO-S’ 20. The Mustangs stopped Taylor in the Wildcat formation from getting a first down in the red zone.
After the Mustangs went three and out, the Tigers used ten plays to travel 53 yards and tie the game. Arline carried the ball four times for 23 yards. Raymond Foster completed his only two passes of the game to Cameron White totaling 17 yards.
With first-and-goal from the ten, Silsbee gave the ball twice to Taylor who scored from the nine. Carreon-Gonzalez’s kick tied the game 7-7 with 7:55 left in the first half.
A good drive by West Orange-Stark moved the ball to the Silsbee 26, but was then stalled by two major penalties. The Mustangs eventually punted and the ball went into the end zone giving Silsbee possession at its 20.
Two runs by Taylor gave the Tigers a first at their 31. On third-and-nine Foster threw a long pass to the left which was intercepted by the Mustangs’ Renaldo Rose. Taking the ball near midfield Rose ran it back down the sideline 42 yards to the Silsbee 9.
A flat pass from Wilson to Elijah Gales moved the ball to the two. Wilson was sacked and Cooper had a short run setting up fourth down at the six. Ibarra was called on and he booted a 22-yard field goal to give West Orange-Stark the lead 10-7 with just 54 seconds before halftime.
It did not take Silsbee long in the second half to grab its first lead of the game. On the second play from scrimmage Taylor busted one straight up the middle for 54 yards and the touchdown. Taylor was the leading rusher in the game with 131 yards on 23 carries and two touchdowns. Carreon-Gonzalez made it 14-10 with only a little over a minute gone in the third quarter.
West Orange-Stark responded with a sixteen-play drive that did not reach the end zone, but netted points on the board. Ten running plays moved the ball from the 15 to the Silsbee 45. Wilson passed twice to Wiley. On the second catch Wiley broke a tackle and gained 24 yards to the Tigers’ 18. The drive stalled there, but Ibarra kicked his second of three field goals, this one being the longest from 33 yards, to cut the lead to 14-13 with 3:44 to play in the third quarter.
Silsbee would pad its lead, but as mentioned the Mustangs staged an historical comeback to win the game. After the thrills of this Friday night the Mustangs could use a break, and West Orange-Stark will have its bye this coming week. The Tigers hope to rebound at home against the Hardin-Jefferson Hawks next Friday.
-Dan Perrine, KOGT-
SIL 0 7 7 7- 21
WOS 7 3 3 11- 24
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