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| MIDLAND - There was good and bad news Friday night at Memorial Stadium. The bad news is Longview fell victim to Cedric Benson and his Midland Lee teammates 40-7, while the good news is there are still nine more games remaining.
Head coach Pat Collins and his staff will assess the Lee game once they've arrived back in Longview today and then begin on Sunday preparing for the Lobos' home opener next Friday against Lake Highlands. "When we came out for the game I knew our kids were excited, they were anxious to play," Collins said. "We didn't have some things go well for us early that kind of knocked us off track, got us out of sync. "But this football team never did quit, and I don't think they ever thought about it. They were disappointed, because I think the expectations may have been a little too high. Not in my mind, but maybe in theirs. I think you have to build a football program to get to the point where they (Lee) are." Benson showed why he is widely considered the top running back in the country as the University of Texas-bound tailback rushed for 142 yards on just nine carries and scored four touchdowns. He did all his damage in the first half, as the No. 2 ranked Rebels built a 40-0 advantage. Longview did win the battle in the second half, holding Lee scoreless as Broderick Thomas finally put the Lobos on the scoreboard behind a 28-yard run with 3:49 remaining in the game. Alex Cammack tacked on the extra point. However, most of the Rebel starters had taken a seat on the bench to open the second half. "I've seen a lot of running backs, but I don't think I've seen anyone better than that," Collins said in reference to Benson. "This guy is a class individual, with great running skills, tremendous power, and he's very uncanny. Mack Brown (UT coach) has got to be the happiest guy in the state of Texas, he's a lot happier than I am right now." Benson and the Rebels wasted little time in getting on the scoreboard, as they marched 51 yards in five plays on their first possession. Benson carried four times, including the final 19 yards, nearly stumbling into the end zone, as he twice slipped out of the grasp of would-be tacklers. One series later, after Longview turned the ball over on downs at its own 26-yard line, Benson scored again on a 4-yard sweep to the left side of the field. The Lobos' strategy was to keep the ball out of Lee's hands - in particular Benson - but it backfired on fourth-and-one. Benson, after taking a brief breather, returned to finish off the five-play series. The Lobos then mounted their deepest threat of the opening half as they used up 11 plays before punting from near midfield. Quarterback Nick Hand slipped and fell on Lee's initial play of their third series, but Benson simply took the ensuing handoff and bolted 85 yards for a 21-0 Rebel lead at the 11:40 mark of the second quarter. Lee would put up 26 points on the scoreboard in the second frame. It would get a 50-yard interception by Ashley Jackson, a 2-point safety - when Lobo punter Tate Casey, after a low snap, had the ball knocked out of his hands in the back of the end zone - another 4-yard scoring tote from Benson and a 22-yard field goal by Michael Wynn. The Lobos, with Joel Armstrong subbing for starter Dustin Wilson in the second half, put together a couple of scoring opportunities. Armstrong ran a bootleg for 53 yards on his first play under center. Willie Andrews also picked up 43 yards on a reverse. But both times the Lobos failed to score, as Cammack was wide left on a 24-yard field goal attempt and later Bo Johnson missed to the right on an attempt from 27 yards. A fumble recovered by Melvin Robertson set up Thomas' scoring run, as Longview moved the ball 31 yards in three plays. |