DAVID BARBER

Sports Correspondent

A near-perfect performance offensively for the Van Vandals was too much for the Spring Hill Panthers to overcome Nov. 10 in Tyler as Van advanced to the Area round of the Class 4A, Division 2, state football playoffs with a 63-34 victory.

Coach Jared Moffatt’s Vandals (8-3 overall), the runner-up team in District 8-4A, Division 2, will face the Aubrey Chapparals (8-3) in a 7:30 p.m. kickoff Friday, Nov. 17 in Royse City with the winner advancing to take on the winner of the Gilmer/Sunnyvale matchup in the third round of the state playoffs at a site and date yet to be determined.

Spring Hill, the third-place team in District 7-4A, Division 2, ended their season with an overall record of 4-7.

Against Spring Hill, the Vandals had 10 offensive possessions resulting in nine touchdown drives and a kneel-down on the final play of the game at the Panther 6-yard line.

Van finished with an impressive 30 first downs and 454 yards of total offense against Spring Hill, including 353 yards rushing and 101 yards passing.

The Vandals ran 62 offensive plays, including 57 running attempts and completing all five of their passing attempts.

Van was led offensively in their running game by running back Austin Moffatt with 140 yards rushing on 20 carries and one TD in addition to catching a 17-yard TD pass from twin brother Jaxon Moffatt, while RB Colton Miller had 76 yards rushing on 13 carries and four rushing TD’s.

Reserve RB Cannon Rainey had 50 yards rushing on nine carries and one TD and reserve RB Chris Fabian also had 50 yards rushing on five carries and one TD.

Vandal QB Jaxon Moffatt completed all five of his passing attempts for 101 yards, two TD’s, and no interceptions.

WR Caden Rowe caught two passes for 43 yards and one TD and WR Easton Hinch caught two passes for 41 yards.

Defensively, the Vandals had four players with double digit tackles led by defensive end Logan Fattig, linebacker Wyatt Dale, and linebacker Foster Rust with 13 total tackles each; and defensive end Tuff Arozamena with 11 total tackles.

Spring Hill finished the game with 13 first downs and 352 yards of total offense including 210 yards rushing and 142 yards passing.

“I was real happy with the way our kids played after our performance the week before against Bullard,” said Jared Moffatt. “Against Bullard, we did not play well, and we did not play with a lot of emotion and energy which was not like us. I was happy to see us respond well against Spring Hill and to see us start fast against them. Going into halftime leading 35-7, I felt good about our first half performance, but we did not have a great third quarter defensively and on special teams. Overall, I was pleased that we won and get to continue our season.”

“Offensively, we were seven out of seven on third down in addition to scoring touchdowns on our first nine possessions,” recalled Jared Moffatt. “Our ability to run the ball against Spring Hill was huge. I thought our offensive line really controlled the line of scrimmage and our running backs ran hard. We are at our best when our offensive line plays well and get strong production from our running backs. We were five for five passing.

“Defensively, I thought we played well in the first half,” continued Jared Moffatt. “We got pressure on their quarterback. In the second half, we gave up two big pass plays and made a couple of big penalties.”

Despite losing their previous two games entering their bi-district matchup against Spring Hill, Jared Moffatt said that his players never lost confidence in preparing for their playoff game.

“I thought going in that we had a great chance to win the game,” recalled Jared Moffatt. “Our kids never lost confidence in their ability to play. I knew we would play well against Spring Hill. I was proud of our kids. I don’t know if that was our best performance of the season, but it was pretty efficient.”

Against Spring Hill, the Vandals also had back the services of defensive coordinator Jaron Rainey as he missed the regular season finale Nov. 3 against Bullard due to an emergency appendectomy Oct. 30.

“You can’t minimize the absence of Coach Rainey, not only in the game against Bullard, but also in practice,” pointed out Jared Moffatt. “Our defensive coaches did a great job while Coach Rainey was away. You also can’t minimize the return of Coach Rainey to the sidelines against Spring Hill. He does a tremendous job coordinating our defense each week. Our kids know exactly what their roles are here. We play great team defense here.”

The Vandals set the tone for the evening by receiving the opening kickoff and moving 76 yards in 11 plays (10 running) as Miller ended the march with a 5-yard TD run. Josh Christian made the first of his nine extra points giving the Vandals a 7-0 advantage with 6:10 remaining in the first quarter.

Utilizing three different kickers, the Vandals have made all 54 of their extra point attempts this season.

Spring Hill wasted little time in getting the game tied up as their first play from scrimmage resulted in an 81-yard TD run by Trevor Allen. Alejandro Jacquez added the extra point to deadlock the contest at 7-7 with 5:51 to play in the first quarter.

The Vandals responded by taking the lead and never giving it back again as they advanced 65 yards in six plays to break the tie as Miller again found the end zone, this time on a 4-yard TD run. Christian added the extra point giving Van a 14-7 lead with 3:32 remaining in the first quarter. Key plays in the go-ahead scoring drive for Van included a 35-yard pass completion from Jaxon Moffatt to Hinch and running gains of 13 yards by Austin Moffatt and 11 yards by Jaxon Moffatt.

Following a Spring Hill punt, the Vandals widen their lead as they moved 59 yards in four plays as Jaxon Moffatt ended the march by connecting with Rowe on a 32-yard TD pass play. Christian added the extra point giving the Vandals a 21-7 advantage with still 28 seconds to play in the first quarter.

The Panthers, facing a fourth down and three at their own 41 on their next offensive possession, attempted a fake punt but RB Julius Hawkins was tackled for no gain giving the Vandals excellent field position at the Spring Hill 41.

Six plays later, the Vandals took full advantage of the opportunity as Miller’s 3-yard TD run ended the march. Christian added the extra point giving Van a 28-7 lead with 8:09 remaining in the second quarter. A 21-yard run by Austin Moffatt opened the scoring drive for the Vandals.

Spring Hill was again stopped on downs on its next series of downs as a pass from QB Travis Allen to Caden Rhodes on fourth down and three was incomplete again giving the Vandals excellent field position at the Panther 42.

Eight plays later, including seven straight rushing attempts, Jaxon Moffatt connected with Austin Moffatt on a 17-yard TD pass play on the only pass play in the scoring march. Christian added the extra point giving the Vandals a comfortable 35-7 advantage with 1:20 remaining before halftime.

Spring Hill moved from its own 34 to the Vandal 8-yard line in seven plays, including a 12-yard run by Hawkins and a 34-yard pass completion from Travis Allen to Trevor Allen before the first half clock expired.

The Panthers received the third quarter kickoff and advanced 70 yards in 10 plays as Hawkins ran 10 yards for a TD to end the scoring march. Jacquez’s extra point cut the Vandal lead to 35-14 with 6:32 remaining in the third quarter. Running gains of 14 yards by Carson Tidwell, and 27 and 10 yards by Trevor Allen, and two Vandal defensive penalties (face mask and pass interference) were key plays for Spring Hill in its scoring drive.

Following the first of several unsuccessful onside kicking attempts by Spring Hill, the Vandals moved 54 yards on six consecutive running plays on their next scoring drive as Rainey ended the march with a 7-yard TD run. Christian added the extra point giving the Vandals a 42-14 advantage with 3:07 to play in the third quarter. Running gains of 14 yards by Rainey and 13 yards by Miller were key plays in the Vandal scoring drive.

Spring Hill showed no signs of giving up as Trevor Allen raced 70 yards for a TD on the ensuing kickoff return. Jacquez added the extra point cutting Van’s lead to 42-21 with 2:54 remaining in the third quarter.

Van again rallied as the Vandals put together a 52-yard scoring march in six plays with Austin Moffatt ending the drive with a 37-yard TD run on the final play of the third quarter. Christian added the extra point giving the Vandals a 49-21 lead at the end of the third quarter. An 11-yard pass completion from Jaxon Moffatt to Rowe was a key play in the scoring drive for the Vandals.

The Panthers wasted little time in getting on the scoreboard again as Spring Hill advanced 73 yards in three plays with Travis Allen connecting with Dakylan Johnson on a 54-yard TD pass. Jacquez added the extra point cutting Van’s lead to 49-28 with 10:41 to play in the fourth quarter. A 22-yard run by Hawkins began the scoring drive for the Panthers.

Van then executed five consecutive running plays to move 56 yards for their next scoring march as Miller ended the drive with a 15-yard TD run. Christian added the extra point giving the Vandals a 56-28 lead with 8:01 to play in the game. A 10-yard run by Miller and a face mask penalty against Spring Hill were key plays in the Vandal scoring drive.

Spring Hill was stopped on fourth down and three at its own 36 on its next offensive series giving the Vandals possession as Trevor Allen was tackled for a six-yard loss.

Two plays later, Fabian raced 27 yards for a TD. Christian added his final extra point of the game giving the Vandals a 63-28 advantage with 6:04 remaining.

The Panthers closed out the scoring on what turned out to be their final offensive possession of their season as Travis Allen connected on a 43-yard TD pass to end a four-play, 65-yard scoring march cutting Van’s lead to 63-34 with 4:29 to play in the game. A 10-yard run by Hawkins opened the final scoring drive for Spring Hill. The two-point conversion attempt was no good.

Following another unsuccessful onside kick attempt by the Panthers, Van advanced from the Spring Hill 35 to the Panther 6-yard line on seven consecutive running plays, including a 10-yard run by Fabian, to end the game.

“The number of times that Spring Hill onside kicked against us was not a surprise because they have shown that all season long,” pointed out Jared Moffatt. “We definitely had a plan for that. We changed our kickoff return alignment. That football can sure bounce some funny ways sometimes. Everybody did a great job covering those onside kicks. We spent extra time on that in practice.”

Jared Moffatt recognized the individual efforts of defensive end Tuff Arozamena, center Justus Anderson, receivers Easton Hinch and Caden Rowe, running back Austin Moffatt, linebacker Foster Rust, linebacker Wyatt Dale, defensive end Logan Fattig, defensive back Gabriel Bachert, defensive back Cade Christensen, offensive linemen Cooper Hullum, Trae Derrick, Ace Bostick, and Jose Suarez; running back Colton Miller, defensive back and running back Cannon Rainey, running back Chris Fabian, deep snapper Garrett Phillips, and kicker Josh Christian.

Defensive statistics for the Spring Hill game were recently released by the Vandal coaching staff and the numbers were as follows:

Logan Fattig, 13 total tackles, one QB sack, and one QB pressure: Wyatt Dale, 13 total tackles; Foster Rust, 13 total tackles; Tuff Arozamena, 11 total tackles, and two QB pressures; Cannon Rainey, eight total tackles; Cade Christensen, eight total tackles, and one batted pass/pass breakup; Easton Hinch, six total tackles; Reggie Johnson, five total tackles, and one QB pressure; Colten Miller, five total tackles, and two QB pressures; Luke Horton, four total tackles; Gabe Bachert, four total tackles; Armando Lozano, four total tackles; Carter Admire, two total tackles; Garrett Phillips, one total tackle; and Anthony Skitt, one total tackle.