By Jim Irish
Photo by Jim Irish
Bastrop and Liberty Hill football take vastly different approaches to offense.
The Bears rely heavily on the arm of sophomore quarterback Weston Nielsen and a corps of fleet receivers in their spread formation. Liberty Hill, on the other hand, counters with an army of running backs in the Slot-T formation.
The two will determine which offense reigns supreme in a titanic clash for the District 12-5A Division II championship Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Memorial Stadium.
Bastrop has not captured a district football title since 2009 with quarterback Josiah Monroe.
Bastrop head coach Jake Griedl initially said he is doing his best to keep it low key.
“I want to enjoy this week,” he said. “Obviously, there’s a task at hand, and that’s to go in and win a district championship. We’ve been working for this since last November. This is 365 days, full circle.
“It’s cool to be in the same sentence as a perennial powerhouse like Liberty Hill. Wow, you guys are playing Liberty Hill for an outright district championship. And I want our kids, this community, and our staff to be proud of that.”
"We're not complacent with the fact we're here."
-- Bastrop head coach Jake Griedl
But then he added an element of determination and grit.
“We’re not complacent with the fact we’re here,” he said. “… It does show the growth we’ve made, and that’s really exciting for the program. It would be a lot of fun to beat those guys..”
Griedl lost to Liberty Hill in his first two years at Bastrop. Last year, Liberty Hill won in a blowout 81-31, but the Bears played without injured quarterbacks Weston Nielsen and Quintaelyn Joyner.
This season, Bastrop (7-2 overall, 6-0 in district) has won six consecutive games after losing two of its first three and appears to be peaking.
”Those two losses early in the season had us reevaluate some things, put kids in different positions to where we could be hitting our stride night now,” Griedl said. “And I think we’ve been playing better football every single week. It’s what you want to be doing at this point in the season.”
Nielsen, a Division I recruit, has completed 68% of his passes for 2,460 yards, 30 touchdowns, and 6 interceptions. His primary targets are Keyshon Moore, Ramonz Adams, and Jaelyn Gratten, all with more than 30 receptions each and a combined 24 touchdowns. Brent Carter, a tight end, has grabbed five touchdowns.
LaDainian Merino balances the offense with 529 yards rushing and seven touchdowns.
Bastrop’s defense features nose tackle Tiki Hola, a 6-3, 290-pound junior, who leads the team with 70 tackles. Defensive back Bryan Pauley, who switched from receiver, is second with 66 tackles.
Liberty Hill’s only loss was against Class 6A powerhouse Steele 41-16 in the season opener.
”Steele played really good, disciplined football,” Griedl said. “They read their keys."
Liberty Hill’s Kyle May and Bryce Muchow lead the high-octane attack with 1,226 and 1,068 yards, respectively. But the Panthers also have three other backs who have each rushed for more than 300 yards. Liberty Hill has scored 60 rushing touchdowns.
"Liberty Hill is the best in the state at running (the Slot-T), hands down."
-- Griedl
With a ground game as explosive as that, Liberty Hill has thrown only 16 passes in nine games.
”Liberty Hill is the best in the state at running (the Slot-T), hands down” Griedl said. “For a team to beat them, it has to be more disciplined in reading its keys and be more violent than them for four quarters. That’s a tall order to do, defensively.”
Liberty Hill (8-1, 6-0) counts on the offense to score more points than their opponents. who have scored on the Panther defense this season. The top athlete on defense is lineman Alister Aiello, a 6-4, 280-pound junior who has seven quarterback sacks. Griedl spoke highly of transfer cornerback Eyan Jones, who has 33 tackles and 6 interceptions.
“When they walk into a stadium, they command your attention, just because they have an LH on the side of their helmets,” Griedl said. “There’s pedigree there. They’re used to shootouts. They’re used to close games.”
Liberty Hill coach Kent Walker did not respond to emails and a phone call.
Jim Irish is a freelance writer in Bastrop, Texas
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