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| HUNTSVILLE - As expected, Longview spent the entire game running the ball and Spring passing it.
But oddly enough, the Lobos' only pass completion of the night broke open a tight contest and sent them to a rousing 49-25 Class 5A bi-district triumph over Spring's Lions here Friday night at Bowers Stadium on the campus of Sam Houston State University. The win lifted Longview's season mark to 9-1-1 and pairs them in the area round against the Temple-Round Rock winner at a site and time to be determined today. The Lions end their campaign at 6-5. Lobos signal-caller Cory Hutchings connected with Daydrion Taylor for 44 yards as time ran out in the first half to put the Lobos in front by a 21-13 margin and overcoming what had been a 13-7 Spring lead. Then, when Longview completely controlled the ball in the third quarter, allowing the Lions only nine snaps, and keeping the ball out of the hands of highly-touted quarterback Bubba Williams, it turned into a rout. Williams, the leading passer in the Great Houston area, was able to throw just four passes in the third period, hitting just one for eight yards. Meanwhile, the Lobos used an offensive line that manhandled the smaller Lions defense, and let tailbacks L.V. Fite and Chris Butcher, along with Hutchings, pile up over 300 yards rushing. Fite picked up a game-high 122 on 20 carries and eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark - the sixth straight season for a Longview back - and scored twice on runs of five and nine yards early in the fourth quarter. Butcher finished with 87 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries and Hutchings had 92 and a touchdown on 17 tries. Butcher scored in the second period with 5:18 left and Darren Danielson added the point-after to put the Lobos on top, 14-13, fir the first time. Butcher had scored on a one-yard run in the opening quarter. Beginning with Butcher's second touchdown, Longview scored 42 unanswered points. Hutchings' score came midway through the third quarter and only 34 seconds later Monte Rollins recovered a Williams fumble in the end zone when Victor Anthony crashed into Williams and knocked the ball loose. Fite's touchdowns capped the Longview scoring. It was the most points they had scored in a game this season. Williams, who had almost 2,300 yards passing in regular season play, showed why. He finished the game 25 of 37 for 263 yards and hit 11 consecutive in the fourth quarter. He also had three scoring tosses, 10 to Derrick Brown in the second, 11 to Brent Thompson and 23 to Chris Young, both in the last quarter, and was intercepted just once. Brown also scored the game's first touchdown, a six-yard run with 5:41 left. Rollins and Deontrea Jones recovered fumbles for Longview, while Horace Woods had the interception, his third in two games. In the final statistics, Longview 293 yards rushing and 44 passing for 337 total, while Spring had 293, only 30 on the ground. Lorenz Leon caught six passes for 45 yards as the game's top receiver. Jones' recovery came at the Spring nine following a fumble on a kickoff return, and on the ensuing play Fite scored around the left end and came just 17 seconds after his five-yarder. |