Last week, arguably the biggest rivalry in six-man football went live for the 101st time in history.
The Strawn Greyhounds hosted the Gordon Longhorns in their annual match up, which as of late has been a non-district face off, though many years in the past has been a district championship game. The two teams are just eight miles apart and have one of the richest rivalries in all of Texas high school football.
The Gordon Longhorns are coming off a huge season where they went undefeated, 15-0 through the regular and post season, earning a trip to the state finals, and their first state championship in decades. On the other side of the field, Strawn is in a bit of a rebuild, but still showing why they are one of the top six-man programs in the state.
Strawn started the game off with first possession, but couldn’t find the endzone on the first drive, allowing Gordon to take over. Though the Longhorns are a strong defensive team, their offense is unmatched. They found the endzone multiple times in the night, many in the first possession after a turnover or kickoff.
Gordon finished the game with 315 total yards, led by Stryker Reed with 163 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Brayden Walters led receivers with 45 yards on two catches and a touchdown, while Ry Reed also found the endzone twice on 52 yards rushing and Aiden Shank found the endzone on a 79 yard kickoff return in the first quarter. Shank also passed for a 30-yard touchdown. Noah Kostiha, who finished the game with 50 passing yards, also threw for a touchdown.
Strawn finished the game with 14 points and 168 total yards on the night. Quarterback Kaison Nunez ran for a touchdown and had 15 rushing yards of his own, while Michael Barcenas led Strawn runners with 80 yards, but found the endzone on a Nunez pass for a 30 yard touchdown catch. Nunez passed for 81 yards total, targeting Barcenas, junior Chico Hughes three times for 15 yards, and Ben Hopkins a pair of times for 31 yards.
Both of the Greyhounds touchdowns came in the first quarter, which made for an exciting first half of football for the rivalry game, but the Greyhounds were unable to keep that rhythm alive, and unfortunately found themselves scoreless for the rest of the game, while Gordon continued to put points on the board, finally ending the game in the third quarter by the 45-point rule, finishing the game 60-14.
The Gordon Longhorns get the bragging rights of winning the historic game for the year, until the two meet up again next season and Strawn will look to dethrone them.
