While some coaches might be wary of the distractions of homecoming week, Aledo’s Tim Buchanan isn’t among them.
“There’s not a player out there that wants to lose homecoming,” Buchanan said. “Honestly, Senior Night is harder to prepare for. You have to alter your pregame (for all the seniors to be honored). Homecoming, you might have a little longer halftime. Really, homecoming is not that big a distraction.”
Which might come as bad news for the South Hills Scorpions. They probably wouldn’t mind if the Bearcats were a little distracted come Friday night when Scorpions are the homecoming opponents.
It would be quite the challenge to find two teams going in more opposite directions. After an 0-2 start, the Bearcats are 4-0 in District 3-5A Division I and have outscored their opponents 229-54.
The Scorpions’ lone win was over Class 4A Division II Venus, 42-21. In fact, those are the only points South Hills has scored all season as they have been outscored in their four losses 227-0, including 185-0 in league play.
Ever the coach, Buchanan said, “We’re going to prepare for them just like any other game. Hopefully they’ve gotten better and it’ll be a good game. They’ve got good athletes in Fort Worth.”
South Hills has enjoyed success in recent seasons. In 2017 the Scorpions were 10-0 and district champions in the regular season before losing in the first round of the playoffs. Since that season they are 11-33.
Through the first six games of the season, Aledo receivers have been targeted 121 times and have just seven dropped passes. Six of those came in two games, three in the season opener at Dallas Parish Episcopal and three against Azle.
“We work really hard on that. Hopefully, when we get to the playoffs we won’t have any drops,” Buchanan said. “We work really hard to eliminate drops and turnovers as the season progresses.
“We’re getting better. Our turnover ratio is back in our favor (10 takeaways, 7 turnovers) and Hauss’ (Hejny, quarterback) completion percentage is up.”
In their four district contests, Aledo has outscored its opponents 97-7 in the first quarter. The second quarter hasn’t been much better for foes as Aledo has an 84-21 advantage there.
“It’s important (to get a big lead early), especially if you’re playing somebody who doesn’t think they can beat you but has the potential to,” Buchanan said. “I call it, ‘Don’t give ‘em any courage.’ You know, like the lion in the Wizard of Oz who was looking for courage. You can’t let them have it.”
Out of the 16 quarters Aledo has played in district, they’ve scored in 14, including all eight first-half periods.
And once the big lead is built, opponents aren’t doing any rallying around the substitutes in the second half as Aledo has a 48-26 advantage.
The Bearcats moved up a notch to No. 6 in Class 5A Division I in this week’s state rankings from Dave Campbell’s Texas Football and the Associated Press. Also from the district, Denton Ryan was once again in the No. 3 spot.
In other rankings:
*MaxPreps has Aledo No. 3, Burleson Centennial No. 8 and Ryan No. 19.
*Padilla has Centennial No. 4, Aledo No. 5 and Ryan No. 12.
Ryan travels to face Centennial Friday. Aledo goes to Centennial on Oct. 14 and the Bearcats travel to Ryan on Nov. 21.
| Team | District | Overall |
|---|---|---|
| Denton Ryan | 4-0 | 4-1 |
| Aledo | 4-0 | 4-2 |
| Burleson Centennial | 3-0 | 5-0 |
| Justin Northwest | 2-1 | 3-2 |
| The Colony | 1-3 | 1-5 |
| Azle | 1-3 | 1-5 |
| FW Brewer | 1-2 | 1-4 |
| FW South Hills | 0-3 | 1-4 |
| Saginaw | 0-4 | 0-6 |
Last week’s results
Aledo 52, The Colony 7
Ryan 50, South Hills 0
Brewer 42, Saginaw 14
Northwest 58, Azle 7
Centennial bye
This week’s games
Friday, all at 7 p.m.
South Hills at Aledo
Brewer at The Colony
Ryan at Centennial
Northwest at Saginaw
Azle bye
Game at a glance
South Hills Scorpions (1-4, 0-3 in District 3-5A Division I) at Aledo Bearcats (4-2, 4-0)
When: 7 p.m. Friday, Bearcat Stadium
South Hills offensive leaders: Not available.
Aledo offensive leaders: RB Hawk Patrick-Daniels 85 carries, 691 yards, 10 TD; QB Hauss Hejny 43-for-81, 866 yards, 7 TD, 3 interceptions passing, 35 carries 324 yards, 4 TD rushing; WR Jalen Pope 22 catches, 479 yards, 6 TD; TE Tyson Timms 14 catches 196 yards, 1 TD; WR Kaydon Finley 8-225, 3 TD; RB Caleb Pope 26 carries, 182 yards, 7 TD; WR Gavin Olenjack 8 catches, 111 yards.
South Hills defensive leaders: Not available.
Aledo defensive leaders: LB Dahvon Keys 43 tackles, 2 for loss, 1 interception returned 73 yards for a touchdown; LB Andrew Parkhurst 32 tackles, 6 for loss, 2 sacks; S Jake Gillespie 33 tackles, 1 for loss, 1 interception; LB Ky Howington 23 tackles, 1 for loss, 1 interception; CB Chris Johnson 19 tackles, 2 for loss, 2 interceptions returned a total of 60 yards, 1 fumble recovery; S Boogie Owens 22 tackles, 1 for loss, 1 fumble recovery.
Team rushing yards per game: South Hills NA, Aledo 252.0.
Team passing yards per game: South Hills NA, Aledo 187.7.
Team rushing yards surrendered per game: South Hills NA, Aledo 105.5.
Team passing yards surrendered per game: South Hills NA, Aledo 195.7.
Turnovers: South Hills NA, Aledo 7 (3 fumbles, 4 interceptions)
Takeaways: South Hills NA, Aledo 10 (7 fumbles, 3 interceptions)
Notable: Aledo has won 107 consecutive district games dating to 2007…This is the third meeting ever between the Bearcats and Scorpions. Aledo won both, 49-0 in 2012 and 77-16 in 2013…After posting a 10-1 record in 2017, the Scorpions are 11-33 since.
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