By George Slaughter
Thanks to Katy’s 66-13 victory over Tompkins Friday night at Rhodes Stadium, the Katy City Council can expect a special guest at its Monday meeting at City Hall: Fulshear Mayor Aaron Groff.
Earlier this week, Groff and Katy City Council Member-at-Large made a good-natured bet on the Falcons-Tigers game. If the Falcons won, then Harris, or perhaps Mayor Pro Tem Durran Dowdle or new Ward A Council Member Frank Carroll, would wear a crimson shirt and say nice things about the Falcons team during the public comments portion of the next Fulshear City Council meeting.
If, however, Katy won by 10 or more points, Groff would wear a red shirt and say nice things about the Tigers during the public comments portion of Monday’s Katy City Council meeting.
The Tigers improve to 4-1 and 1-0 in district play. Tompkins falls to 5-1 overall and 1-1 in district play.
Katy asserted itself immediately. On the first play from scrimmage, the Tigers ran a reverse before giving the ball back to quarterback Bronson McClelland, who completed a 75-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Jordan Patrick.
“They were undefeated, and we wanted to take a shot,” Katy coach Gary Joseph said. “We did. I wasn’t real sure about the play going into the wind. But he (McClelland) made a good enough throw and he (Patrick) was wide open.”
McClelland said he thought the first play would be a pitch, but the team wanted to make a statement instead.
“The offensive line blocked great, everybody did their job, and it was awesome,” McClelland said.
Tompkins came into the game feeling confident, buoyed by the first 5-0 start in its history. They were determined not to be intimidated, and needed only three plays place to score their own touchdown, a 67-yard run by junior running back R.J. Smith.
On the ensuing possession, Katy scored again, this time on a 72-yard run by senior running back Deondrick Glass. The touchdown was the first of two he scored. He finished with 215 yards on 16 carries.
After a Tompkins punt, the Tigers scored again, this time on a 34-yard pass from McClelland to junior wide receiver Steven Stiles. The touchdown came with 3:12 left in the first quarter.
Tompkins drove down the field on its next possession but had to settle for a 40-yard field goal by senior kicker Jacinto Esteban.
Katy had an 11-point lead at this point, and on the ensuing kickoff, it broke the game open with an 85-yard kickoff return by junior Bryan Massey.
Massey credited his blockers, particularly junior defensive back Matt Heichel in particular, for opening the hole through which he ran. Massey said Heichel made a key block on the Tompkins kicker.
“I eyed the ball all the way in,” Massey said. “Once I caught it, I looked. The call was to the middle. I looked and it was the biggest hole. I just ran full speed.”
Tompkins held the ball for most of the second quarter, but was only able to add a 37-yard field goal by Esteban with 3:34 left in the first half.
Katy, meanwhile, scored its last touchdown of the half on a 14-yard touchdown pass from McClelland to junior wide receiver Matthew Stanley,.
In the third quarter, Katy added two more touchdowns. One was a 62-yard run by Glass, the other was one-yard run by senior running back Dawson Gonzales.
In the fourth quarter, Katy scored on a 24-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Jacob Bernard, who had taken over for McClelland to sophomore tight end Fernando Garza. Later the Tigers added a 25-yard field goal by junior kicker Josh Rodriguez.
The Falcons later fumbled deep in their territory, and the Tigers recovered and returned it for a touchdown. Rodriguez’s extra point ended the scoring.
Tompkins faces Mayde Creek Thursday at Legacy Stadium. Meanwhile, Katy faces Morton Ranch Friday at Legacy Stadium.