Gilmer Uses Late Drive to Take Down Kilgore in Scrimmage
GILMER -- It was only a scrimmage, but Gilmer looked the part.
The Buckeyes needed a deep pass with less than a minute remaining to put them in scoring position. Mason Hurt entered the game at quarterback and threw a long pass to Christian Fluellen to set up the only touchdown of the one-quarter scrimmage Friday evening.
Gilmer then intercepted a Kilgore pass on the ensuing drive to seal the 7-0 victory.
Although Gilmer certainly made its fair share of errors in the scrimmage, coach Matt Turner wasn't upset. The game, like all scrimmages, was a chance for him to analyze his team before the start of the regular season.
"We got to play a lot of people," he said. "That's what you need right now. Some of it was good, some of it wasn't. But you've just got to get out here so the process begins. This is one step on a long journey. We've got to take this video, watch it, study it and get to practice next week. Hopefully we're a little better version of ourselves next Thursday."
Each team's first string offense and defense got to run 15 plays before the second string ran 10. Then the first string ran 10 more before the one-quarter game started.
Each team had players that showed flashes of potential ahead of the season. Kilgore's Nick Hooper showed off his speed and evasiveness on a long run in which he juked at least three defenders. Gilmer's Trae Fluellen showed tremendous ball skills and was tough for defenders to bring down.
There were plenty of mistakes. Gilmer probably turned the ball over more than it would have liked. Turner said the Buckeyes tried to put those errors out of their minds.
"I told the kids, 'You drop a ball, get ready because we're throwing you another one,'" he said. "We didn't do all this work with a guy and because of one mistake we're gonna throw him in the trash. Players came to play. You're going to make mistakes. You've got to coach them up so they make fewer."
The scrimmage was designated as "Our Day to Shine", with all proceeds going to the Texas High School Coaches Foundation Benevolence Fund. Turner said the team chose to do so because the foundation has had a personal impact on them after the passing of receiver Desmond Pollard in 2014.
"(The foundation) was a real blessing to that family," he said. "That's got a real special place in our hearts. We're going to do that every year. We were the benefactor in a time that was really hard for us. They were there for us. They were there for the family. That meant a lot to Gilmer. In honor of all that, we're going to make sure we do our part for somebody else."
Gilmer will next face Henderson on Thursday in Henderson.