The Tigers bested the Trailblazers through much of the game and held the lead or tie until 1:51 remained in regulation when Americas took their first lead on a two-point conversion. Frenship and Americas went back and forth in a hard-fought slugfest pitting Frenship’s high-flying offense against the old school rushing attack of the Trailblazers.
The Tigers got things rolling with a Donovan Smith five-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, the first of three rushing touchdowns on the evening by the senior. Smith planted a foot in the ground and spun out of a defender’s tackle in the middle of the line to complete this rushing score. In the second quarter, it was Klein Coker snagging a running toss from Donovan Smith and hugging the sideline for a 41-yard score. Junior running back William Bayouth also found a highlight-worthy opportunity in the fourth quarter as he exploded through the defense and took it 50 yards to the house.
Donovan Smith finished the evening going 16/25 for 258 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception. He tacked on another 54 yards on 7 carries for 3 touchdowns. Smith finished the season 213/328 for 3,123 yards, 25 touchdowns, and 8 interceptions through the air, on the ground he added another 96 carries for 489 yards and 13 touchdowns.
William Bayouth finished the season as the Tigers’ leading rusher racking up 911 yards and 13 touchdowns on 135 carries. Drew Hocutt led the way in receiving with 947 yards and 9 touchdowns on 59 receptions. Cooper Scott was close behind with 51 receptions for 804 yards and 4 touchdowns, and Jordan Maden added 50 receptions for 691 yards and 6 touchdown snags.
The defense made their presence known against Americas, most notably forcing a fumble that was recovered in plus territory by Tristan Laughlin. This defensive play led to the Tigers’ first score on the day. On the season it was Laughlin, Colton Anderson, and Jake Gilbert leading the way in tackles with 91, 82, and 80 respectively. Logan Douglas and Evan Barboza notched 6 and 4 sacks on the season, and each added 6 tackles for loss along with Cayson Brito.
One of the most telling stats of the evening was time of possession. The Tigers only held the ball 9:48 in the contest with Americas controlling it 38:12, Frenship only held the ball 2:06 in the second half. The Tigers’ quick-strike offense was impressive on the evening with none of their scoring drives lasting longer than 1:55 and four of five lasting less than :53.
The Tigers undoubtedly took a significant step forward in 2019 after building up the program over the two previous seasons. Frenship finishes the season 7-4 (3-2) with numerous firsts on the board in the Jay Northcutt era. They won their first district game, first road game, notched their first back-to-back district victories, and first playoff berth since Northcutt arrived at Frenship in 2017. Several seniors will have the opportunity to continue their football careers at the next level. Donovan Smith is currently committed to Texas Tech University and Drew Hocutt has received Preferred Walk-On offers from Tulsa, Texas Tech, and SMU.