Kilgore Hangs On For 42-35 Win Over Chapel Hill

KILGORE -- Chapel Hill almost did enough to upset the Kilgore Bulldogs at R.E. St. John Memorial Stadium on Friday night.

Almost. That's a big, six-letter word.

Kilgore broke a late-game tie, then survived a last-gasp attempt by Chapel Hill to tie things again as time expired, and won this District 9-4A Division I contest, 42-35.

Kilgore, now 5-1 overall and 2-0 in district play, will head to No. 1 Carthage for a showdown next week. Chapel Hill (3-3, 0-2) will play host Center as the jockeying for playoff positioning in the district continues.

Kilgore quarterback Patrick Jackson scored on a 17-yard run with just under a minute left in regulation Friday night, then Elivan Torres kicked the extra point to break a 35-all tie and give the Bulldogs, Kilgore's version, the 42-35 edge.

But Chapel Hill quarterback Khalan Griffin completed a couple of passes and scrambled his way into scoring range. Chapel Hill had only one timeout remaining, though, with seconds rapidly bolting off the scoreboard. Chapel Hill was forced to take that time out when Kilgore defensive end Demorrea Richardson sacked Griffin, with three seconds to play.

Griffin heaved a pass downfield, only for it to be batted down as time expired.

Jackson and his Kilgore Bulldogs were under the gun early when a punt went wrong, forcing Torres to try and scramble for the first down. Torres didn't make it, and set Chapel Hill up with the ball at Kilgore's 20. Griffin made Kilgore pay for the mistake with an 8-yard scoring pass to Robbie Williams, and put his team up 7-0 early.

Kilgore tied the game on a 17-yard run by Nick Hooper, and subsequent extra point by Elivan Torres (the Torres brothers are twins). Elivan did miss a field goal late in the game but was 6-of-6 in extra point attempts.

Chapel Hill broke the tie with a 14-yard pass from Griffin to Quinzarius Daniel, who had a big night with eight catches for 140 yards). And then Kilgore tied it again at 14 with a 6-yard run by Briant Mumphrey.

Momentum swung Kilgore's way when the Bulldogs took their first lead of the night on a 6-yard run by Jackson, and then Chapel Hill tied it again, at 21-all, on a 37-yard scramble by Griffin that saw him just edge the corner of the end zone.

Kilgore took a 28-21 lead into the halftime break when Jackson found Daniel Sifford across the middle for a 48-yard touchdown pass.

Kilgore stretched its lead to 35-21 on a 12-yard, third-quarter score by Mumphrey, and then Chapel Hill managed to stay within a touchdown with a 14-yard pass to Daniel, his second of the night, with six minutes left in the game.

Chapel Hill tied it at 35 with 1:53 remaining on a 35-yard pass from Griffin to Williams. But Jackson, boosted by a 43-yard run by Hooper on first down, scored his go-ahead touchdown and then the Bulldogs' defense did the rest.

Jackson finished 3-of-5 for 80 yards and two touchdown passes, and ran for 134 yards and two scores. Mumphrey had a touchdown catch and a touchdown run, and 116 rushing yards.

Griffin was 20-of-34 for 275 yards, four touchdowns and the touchdown run. Daniel and Williams each caught two touchdown passes, and Hunter Branin had 45 yards rushing on nine carries.