Smithville Tigers fall to Salado in Season Finale, 48-21

By Kristen Meriwether, Publisher

A journey that started in August for the Smithville Tigers football team came to an end on Friday, as they fell in their season finale to Salado, 48-21.

The Tigers came out flat in the first half, trailing 21-0 after the first quarter, and eventually digging a 41-0 hole by halftime.

But as they have for much of the year, they came out of the locker room fired up and had a phenomenal second half.

“I told them in the locker room, ‘guys, I want you to show Smithville your heart tonight. Give them your heart. Show them who you are, and play with heart tonight,’" head coach Layne Neumann said after the game. “And they did.”

Smithville received the ball in the second half and senior Trip Davis had a nice return, setting up the Tigers with good field position. They marched the rest of the field with senior running back Justin Gurley punching it in for a 3-yard touchdown to get the Tigers on the board.

Smithville opened the fourth quarter by finishing a long drive and converting on a fourth-and-3 with junior quarterback Rorry Johnson throwing to junior receiver Aiden Peacock for a touchdown.

On a later drive, Davis recovered a fumble on defense and took it to the house for Smithville’s final score of the night. (our apologies Trip, we didn’t get any video, but it was a great play!)

The loss sent the Tigers to their second 0-10 season in a row.

“People can say what they want, but this team, these kids, had a lot of heart, but things didn't go the way we wanted this year,” coach Neumann said, adding the rash of injuries didn’t help this season. “But these kids never quit. They never gave up, and they showed heart.”

Tonight marked the final game for the senior class. Following the game the senior football players, band members, and cheerleaders met with their families at the 50-yard line for a final embrace on the football field.

“I just told our boys to really take in tonight. Take the whole day in, take this experience in,” Neumann said. “This will be your last memory you have of being a high school football player. So just enjoy the moment. Embrace the moment and just enjoy it with your fellow seniors. Enjoy it with your teammates, just have fun, and let it all hang out.”