Apaches dropped after tough fourth quarter

GIDDINGS — Through three quarters the Gonzales Apaches went blow-for-blow against one of the district favorites in Giddings. Through three quarters the Apaches used their rushing attack, behind the backs of the stellar offensive line play and the legs of running back Josh Calvin to frustrate the Bulldogs’ defense as Calvin gashed them for 320 rushing yards. But the game of football is played in four quarters and the Apaches were unable to gain a first down in that final quarter as Gonzales dropped the district game to Giddings, 49-28.

“We played a bad quarter, bottom line,” Gonzales head coach Kodi Crane said. “We played a bad quarter against the #10 team in the state of Texas.”

Giddings, a team that wasn’t in the top 10 in the AP polls last week but were ranked in other polls in the state came into the game undefeated in district and came out the same after scoring 21 unanswered points to go up 49-28.

Up 28-21, Giddings began the third quarter on a four-and-out, going for it on fourth down and not getting the first. The Apaches then answered with a 46-yard touchdown run by Calvin. After another defensive stop, the momentum seemed to have swung in Gonzales’ favor before Giddings changed their defensive personnel to disrupt what the Apaches did well.

“They put a defensive lineman in at nose guard and we weren’t able to move him quite as well,” Crane said, “and that’s what started our defensive struggles the second half.”

After that initial touchdown, the Apaches would gain just one first down for the rest of the half.

Meanwhile, Giddings was able to use their wide receivers’ heights to their advantage, especially #11 Treveon Johnson who grabbed two of the three touchdowns scored in the second half to put the game away.

“They throw it up to big #11 [Johnson] over and over again…we had him doubled once, didn’t get to it,” Crane said. “We were going to have him doubled again, we knew what they were going to do, then they go to empty and once they go to empty they force us out of [the double team] where we don’t have enough people to double [Johnson].”

Despite the loss, Crane gave much credit to his offense, specifically the offensive line and his running backs for their play, especially in the first half.

“I am extremely proud of our kids,” the head coach said. “They had an outstanding football game offensively. Coach [Ryan] Arellano and the offensive line, Coach [Lyon] Lofland and those runnings backs and Coach [Bruce] McDonald for directing it all, I mean I don’t know how many yards Josh Calvin had, it was unreal.”

Calvin ran 32 times for 320 yards and a score. Meanwhile, Elandreus Thorne had three carries for 14 yards, Matthew Grauke had five carries for 30 yards and two touchdowns and quarterback Garrett Rickman had six carries for 14 yards. Rickman’s lone completion was a pass to Wade Miller for 12 yards.

“I love Josh and he’s a really good running back,” he continued, “but that doesn’t happen without those five big boys up front. Our big boys up front were phenomenal.”

Gonzales now falls to 1-2 in district, behind Giddings (3-0), La Grange (2-1) and Caldwell (2-1). They currently hold the tiebreaker over Columbus (1-2), a team that knocked off La Grange last week. This Friday, the Apaches are at Apache Field for their final home game of the season against Caldwell.