Liberty Football Overpowers John Paul II, 65-32
02:21 AM CDT on Saturday, October 22, 2011
By Patrick Hayslip / For the Denton Record-Chronicle
PLANO — The Liberty Christian Warriors took a meaningful step toward hosting a playoff game as they pummeled the Plano John Paul II Cardinals 65-32, Friday night at John Paul High School.
The Warriors outgained the Cardinals 546 yards to just 176 yards in a turnover-littered game that saw four, third-quarter touchdowns scored in a span of just under two minutes. Both teams turned the ball over three times, but it was the Warriors with their highly potent offense that were able to overcome the mistakes and respond with points.
“We knew we had to play solid in all three phases of the game,” said Liberty head coach Greg Price. “Everybody had their opportunities. We got some turnovers in all areas, which always helps your cause. I think we did a good job of turning turnovers into points, which helped to extend the lead quite a bit.”
Senior Warrior quarterback Josh Cousins led Liberty to a late, first-half touchdown, completing four out of five passes for 49 yards, including a seven-yard touchdown to junior running back Dylan Sprock with 28 seconds remaining. Sprock caught the ball in the right flat and ran in untouched to put the Warriors ahead, 23-6.
Cousins continued his stellar play into the third quarter as the Warriors began the second half with a scoring drive finished off by a 22-yard touchdown to Kyle Metzger on a back shoulder, fading pass to the right corner of the end zone.
On the ensuing drive for the Cardinals, Tim Douglass, a senior inside linebacker who also doubles as running back, intercepted a pass by Plano quarterback Christian Boese and returned it 38 yards for the touchdown to put Liberty up 37-6.
“The ball was tipped by Brad Horton, so that helped,” Price said. “I think he read screen, and it hung up in the air for a little bit until he ran underneath it and made a good play. He was probably hawking the running back in that situation, so he was ready for the play. It was a great scheme by our defensive coaches.”
Senior Liberty running back Miles Smith led the Warriors with 184 yards on 21 carries, including an eight-yard touchdown that put his team ahead, 51-24.
Senior linebacker Adam Hawkins helped the Warriors off to a strong start with a fumble recovery on the second play of the game as Boese was sacked and fumbled on the Cardinals’ own 20-yard line. Three plays later, Liberty opened the scoring with a five-yard touchdown by junior running back Aaron Deaver.
It didn’t take Plano long to respond as they put together a nine-play, 64-yard drive capped by a seven-yard touchdown pass from Boese to junior running back Cook. However, on the ensuing extra-point attempt, sophomore kicker Andres Nunez had his kick blocked and returned by Liberty junior Kole Kellner for two points to bring the score to 9-6.
Liberty continued to have the upper hand offensively in the second quarter as the Warriors began the quarter with an 11-play, 78-yard drive that culminated in a two-yard touchdown on an inside run by Douglass.
“Tim is the captain on the team and a big cog in the system,” Price said. “He’s a leader on and off the field. He just plays hard. Although he can’t do it by himself because everybody kind of filled in behind him, he was kind of the center piece of it.”
Liberty 65, John Paul II 32
Liberty 9 14 21 21 — 65
John Paul II 6 0 18 8 — 32
Scoring summary
First Quarter
L — Aaron Deaver 5 rush (Mikeal Sroka Kick) 10:06
P — Ryan Cook 7 pass from Christian Boese (Kick Bocked) 7:02
L — Kole Lellner Extra Point try returned for Conversion
Second Quarter
L — Tim Douglass 2 rush (Mikeal Sroka Kick) 6:51
L–Dylan Sprock 7 pass from Josh Cousins (Mikeal Sroka Kick) :28
Third Quarter
L– Kyle Metzger 22 pass from Josh Cousins (Mikeal Sroka Kick) 8:45
L– Tim Douglass 38 Interception (Mikeal Sroka Kick) 8:25
P– Chase McCoy 64 rush (Failed Conversion) 8:12
P– Ryan Cook 12 pass from Christian Boese (Failed Conversion) 7:31
P– Jordan Reisman 60 fumble return (Failed Conversion) 5:17
L– JonAaron Howell 63 rush (Mikeal Sroka Kick) 3:33
Fourth Quarter
L– Miles Smith 8 rush (Mikeal Sroka Kick) 11:53
L– Jet Milner 1 rush (Mikeal Sroka Kick) 7:21
P– Alex Steinkirchner 14 pass from Christian Boese (Chase McCoy Conversion) 5:10
L– Jensen Nash 41 rush (Mikeal Sroka Kick) 2:34
Team Statistics
P L
First Downs 9 20
Rushing 15-9 57-385
Passing 17-31-1 15-21-1
Passing Yards 167 161
Total Yards 176 546
Fumbles-Lost 2-2 4-2
Penalties 2-10 8-70
Individual Statistics
Rushing – P: Chase McCoy 7-12, Daniel Loch 6-(-20), Alec Bradley 2-17. L: Miles Smith 21-184, Aaron Deaver 1-5, Tim Douglass 4-22, JonAaron Howell 3-70, Josh Cousins 3-30, Camron Cornett 5-13, Kyle Metzger 1-(-12), Jet Milner 4-1, Dylan Sprock 4-23, Mitchell Rowsell 1-4, Jensen Nash 7-51, Foster Ford 3-(-6).
Passing – P: Christian Boese 17-31-167-1. L: Josh Cousins 15-21-161-1.
Receiving – P: Chase McCoy 5-4, Ryan Cook 7-92, Jordan Reisman 2-18, Cameron Meziere 3-44, Alex Steinkirchner 2-9. L: Kole Lellner 1-0, Miles Smith 1-8, Dylan Sprock 4-33, Foster Ford 1-7, Kyle Metzger 3-34, Daniel Loch 3-58, JonAaron Howell 1-21.
Thank you to the Denton Record Chronicle for this story.