DAVID BARBER

davidb@vanzandtnews.com

Following their surprising loss at Pittsburg Oct. 24, Van Vandal Head Football Coach Jared Moffatt said that his team’s word for the week leading up to their visit to Paris North Lamar Oct. 31 was ‘respond.’

The Vandals did just that and more as they raced to a 37-0 halftime lead and never looked back blowing past the winless Paris North Lamar Panthers, 58-7, in Paris.

Van is now 6-3 overall and 3-1 in District 7-4A, Division 2, play as they will face their biggest challenge when they host the highly regarded state-ranked Texarkana Pleasant Grove Hawks, 4-0 in district play, to close out their regular season and district schedule.

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 7, at Van’s Memorial Stadium. The Hawks are ranked second in the state in Class 4A, Division 2, according to Dave Campbell’s Texas Football Magazine. 

Defending state champion Carthage is currently ranked number one in the state rankings.

The Vandals finished the contest at Paris North Lamar with 29 first downs and 506 yards of total offense including 259 yards rushing and 247 yards passing.

Van’s defense held the Panthers to 10 first downs and 242 yards of total offense including 243 yards passing and (-1) yard rushing.

The Vandals rolled to a 16-0 lead after the first quarter, 37-0 at halftime, and 51-7 at the end of the third quarter. 

Running back Da’Quavion Williams led the Vandal running attack with 17 carries for 156 yards rushing and three touchdowns. Williams also had a 33-yard pass reception.

Quarterback Rawly Hinch completed 16 out of 18 passes for 247 yards, two TD’s, and no interceptions in addition to carrying the ball seven times for 29 yards rushing.

Receiver Aiden Willis caught five passes for 66 yards and two TD’s and receiver Cash Walker had five receptions for 55 yards. Receiver Braxton Bass caught three passes for 39 yards. Ian Hopson had a 45-yard pass reception.

Defensively, linebacker Carter Admire led the Vandals with 14 total tackles, three tackles for losses, one QB sack, two pass breakups, and one QB pressure.

Defensive tackle Waylon King had three total tackles, one tackle for a loss, one QB sack, five batted passes/pass breakups, and one QB pressure.

“It was a good night and we won big,” recalled Moffatt. “I was proud of our team. Obviously, we did not play well last week at Pittsburg and ended up losing a close game. I was proud of the way that we responded against Paris North Lamar. We challenged our players to start fast and they did that. There were a lot of good things to come out of that game. We were able to put them away early. Our kids played hard throughout the game. We took advantage of our opportunities.”

The Vandals set the tone for the game early by receiving the opening kickoff and scoring on their first offensive possession as they moved 67 yards in 10 plays with Williams ending the initial scoring march with a 1-yard TD run. Alex Aceves kicked the first of his eight extra points to give Van a 7-0 advantage with 8:02 to play in the first quarter. Key plays in the Vandal scoring drive including running gains of 11 yards by Williams and 10 yards by Hopson in addition to a 24-yard pass completion from Hinch to Walker.

Following a Panther punt, the Vandals advanced 56 yards in nine plays to increase their lead as Williams ended the drive with a 6-yard TD run. Aceves added the extra point, giving Van a 14-0 lead with 1:49 remaining in the first quarter. An 18-yard run by Williams was a key play in the Vandal scoring march.

Van’s defense got into the scoring act on Paris North Lamar’s next offensive play on first down at the Panther 12 when a heavy pass rush forced Panther quarterback Jack Rusak’s pass to sail out of bounds near the point of Rusak’s throw.

The officials flagged Rusak for intentional grounding in the end zone as they awarded the Vandals a safety increasing Van’s lead to 16-0 late in the first quarter.

Following Paris North Lamar’s free kick, the Vandals had excellent field position at the Panther 47.

Four plays later, Hinch connected with Willis on a 22-yard TD pass play. Aceves added the extra point, giving Van a 23-0 advantage with 11:53 remaining in the second quarter. An 11-yard run by Hinch set up the TD pass play for the Vandals.

After another Panther punt, the Vandals needed only two plays to move 49 yards and score again as Parker Rainey, operating out of the ‘Hulk’ short yardage, and goal-line formation, ran into the end zone from four yards away for the TD. Aceves added the extra point, giving Van a 30-0 lead with 9:37 remaining in the second quarter. The short scoring drive started with a 45-yard pass completion from Hinch to Hopson.

The Panthers put together their first scoring threat on their next possession as they moved from their own 24 to the Vandal 5-yard line in nine plays including two defensive penalties against Van (offsides and a personal foul) in addition to a 36-yard pass completion from Rusak to wide receiver Keylan Gray.

Van’s defense stiffened near the goal line as they sacked Rusak for a seven-yard loss on fourth down and goal at the Vandal 5-yard line giving Van possession.

The Vandals then executed their two-minute plus drive to near perfection as they moved 88 yards in 10 plays to extend their lead before intermission as Williams ended the drive with a 2-yard TD run. Aceves added the extra point, giving the Vandals a comfortable 37-0 advantage with 39 seconds to play before halftime. Key plays in the scoring drive for Van included pass completions from Hinch covering 11 yards to Walker and 33 yards to Williams in addition to a 15-yard run by Williams.

Paris North Lamar (0-9, 0-4) took the second half kickoff and put together its only scoring drive of the contest as the Panthers moved 66 yards in 10 plays to get on the scoreboard. 

Rusak connected with FB Aiden Adamson on a 4-yard TD pass play to end the long time-consuming march. Dallas Foster added the extra point, cutting Van’s lead to 37-7 with 7:48 remaining in the third quarter. Key plays in the Panthers’ only scoring drive of the contest included pass completions from Rusak covering 12 and 25 yards to Gray and 20 yards to Adamson.

Van came right back with a 65-yard scoring march in six plays as Hinch connected with Willis on a 30-yard TD pass play to end the drive. Aceves added the extra point, giving Van a 44-7 advantage with 5:41 remaining in the third quarter. A 10-yard run by Hinch set up the TD pass play for the Vandals.

The Panthers faced a fourth down and one at their own 34 when Rusak was sacked by the Vandal defense for an eight-yard loss giving the ball back to the Vandals in excellent field position.

Two plays later, reserve RB Marcus Fabian ended the short 26-yard scoring drive with a 2-yard TD run. Aceves added the extra point, giving the Vandals a commanding 51-7 advantage with 4:33 to play in the third quarter. A 24-yard pass completion from Hinch to Bass set up Fabian’s TD run.

The Panthers drove from their own 27 to the Vandal 35 in six plays on their next series of downs before facing a fourth down and 19 at the Van 35. 

The scoring threat for Paris North Lamar ended when Rusak’s pass to RB Conner Bateman was complete for only five yards giving Van possession.

On the next play, Williams raced 36 yards before fumbling the ball which was recovered by Paris North Lamar at the Panther 34. Van had scored on its first seven offensive possessions before the fumble.

After a Panther punt, the Vandals put together their final scoring drive of the game as they moved 62 yards in eight plays. Reserve RB Adam Beall ran four yards for a TD to end the scoring march. Aceves added the extra point, giving Van a 58-7 advantage with 2:34 remaining in the fourth quarter. Key plays in Van’s final scoring drive of the contest included a 16-yard pass completion from Hinch to Bass and a 33-yard run by Beall.

“I thought our defense played really well against Paris North Lamar,” pointed out Moffatt. “They had a hard time running the ball against us. We made them a one-dimensional team. Our defense has gotten better throughout the year. Our guys are well coached, and they play hard on every down. The more we play, the better we are going to get on defense. Our defensive ends, Ti’ler Williams, and Brigg Barton, are getting better every week. Parker Rainey, our strong safety, is also improving every week. Our defense has gotten consistently better this season, and our defensive coaches continue to do a great job.

“Defensively against Paris North Lamar, we felt that we matched up well against their run game, but we knew that their quarterback and their receivers presented challenges for us,” said Moffatt. “They took the ball at the start of the second half and drove it down the field for their only touchdown. That was not how we wanted to start the second half.

“Offensively, we threw the ball and caught the ball well,” pointed out the Vandal head coach. “Our goal in each game is to have at least a 60 percent pass completion rate. We were 16 out of 18 against Paris North Lamar. Rawly Hinch threw the ball well and our receivers stepped up and made some plays. Our offensive line continues to play well, especially our three seniors, Karter Broyles, Collier Bryant, and Landon Robinson. We need those guys to continue playing well. Our offense starts with our offensive line. We ran the ball efficiently against Paris North Lamar. Braxton Bass, our receiver, is continuing to get better since he came back from his collarbone injury. He is an explosive player as a first-year varsity player.”

Moffatt recognized other individual performances against Paris North Lamar including Beall, Williams, Walker, and Admire.

“When we play really well as a football team, we can beat anyone in front of us, but I also believe that we have not played our best football game yet,” summarized Moffatt. “When we don’t play well, we can lose to just about anybody we play against as well. We have a great opportunity in front of us Friday night and beyond.”