Smithville Tigers Battle Back from 21-Point Deficit but Fall 49-34 to Caldwell

By Kristen Meriwether, Publisher

The Smithville Tigers showcased their unbreakable GRIT on Friday night, battling back from a 21-point deficit in the third quarter to make it a one-score game before ultimately falling 49-34 to the Caldwell Hornets at Tiger Stadium in front of a large homecoming crowd.

Costly turnovers hurt the Tigers again in this game, but they never quit, giving fans a glimpse of what this team can do when they protect the ball.

"We can't turn the ball over five times and expect to win. It’s that plain and simple," Tigers head coach Layne Neumann said after the game. "But we're never going to give up. We're always going to fight to the end.”

After deferring the kickoff, Caldwell struck first, marching for a 1-yard touchdown run to take a 7-0 lead with 10:12 left in the first.

The Tiger offense fumbled on its first drive and turned the ball over. But our defense answered with big plays by junior Rorry Johnson and junior Dalton Ellis, and the Tigers held on a big fourth-and-8 with 6:17 left in the opening quarter to keep it close.

The Hornets extended their lead to 14-0 after a short score halfway through the second quarter, but Smithville was not backing down. Senior Caleb Magden had a nice tackle on a Caldwell third-and-8 and Neumann raced down the sidelines to call a timeout to give his team a chance to score before the half.

With just 27 seconds left in the half, senior quarterback Trip Davis threw a bomb on first down to senior Justin Gurley who took it in for the score with just 19 seconds left.

Senior lineman John Perryman, who filled in for injured kicker Zane Perkins for the second game, missed the extra point, trimming the Hornets lead to 14-6.

Caldwell got the ball back and with three seconds left they aired it out with five wide receivers and scored to extend their lead to 21-6 at the half.

The Tigers started the second half with the ball and were able to continue to drive after converting on fourth-and-2. Johnson came in at quarterback halfway through the drive and scored on a 9-yard touchdown run. The Tigers converted the two-point try, closing the deficit to 21-14.

But Caldwell immediately responded, extending their lead to 28-14 with 6:49 left in the third. They tacked on another score after a Tigers punt, ending the third quarter with a 35-14 lead.

With a 21-point deficit, Smithville could have given up. But this Tigers team did not back down, and they opened the fourth quarter with a solid drive, capped off by a big touchdown by Gurley. The extra point was no good, but the Caldwell lead was cut to 35-20 with 10:50 remaining in the contest.

Caldwell answered with a score of their own, giving them a 42-20 lead, and the shootout began.

The Tigers could not answer on their next drive, turning the ball over on downs. But the defense stepped up and delivered a huge fourth-down stop to get the ball back with under five minutes in the game.

Johnson came in again at quarterback and broke for a huge run to score a touchdown. The extra point was no good, but the Tigers closed the gap to 42-26 with 4:14 in the game.

We asked coach Neumann if he would be changing quarterbacks after Johnson’s performance and he said no.

“We're trying to see some different things, trying to do some different things and trying to give other kids different opportunities,” Neumann said.

The Hornets answered with a touchdown of their own to extend their lead to 49-26 with 2:24 left. But the Tigers refused to quit.

Penalties set up a long fourth-and-9 on the 20 and sophomore Dameon Fletcher punched it in for the score. The Tigers converted the two-point try, slimming the Hornets lead to 49-34 with 30 seconds left.

The Tigers were unable to recover the onside kick to get themselves another chance and they dropped to 0-4 on the season.

“These four games don't matter towards making the playoffs,” Neumann said. “The next six are the most important because they're the ones that give you a shot to make the playoffs.”

He acknowledged that Smithville is competing in 4A District 13, one of the toughest Division II districts in the state. Last season four of the seven teams went to the playoffs with Wimberley advancing to the quarterfinals, Lago Vista making it to the regional round, and both Navarro and Salado making it to the area round of the playoffs.

But that’s not going to stop the Tigers from coming out and playing tough in every single game.

“We're going to come out every single week, and we're going to fight hard. I don't care who it is,” Neumann said. “We're going to play, we're going to give you our best effort, and we're going to give you our best punch.”

The Tigers will travel to Jarrell next Friday to take on the Cougars at 7:30 p.m.