Cougars Fly High Until North Shore Showdown

By Terry Carter

The Cinco Ranch football team soared this fall, posting a 9-4 record before battling one of the two Region III-6A giants, North Shore, on Friday at Rhodes Stadium.

Nationally-ranked North Shore (13-0) didn’t humiliate the Cougars the way the Mustang can against many opponents. But a 49-21 victory over Cinco Ranch still eliminated the Cougars after a stellar season, highlighted by offensive firepower.

North Shore trailed the Cougars 14-7 in the first quarter after Cinco Reach scored quickly. However the Mustangs took the lead for good in the second period with a 14-0 burst for a 28-14 lead at intermission. North Shore continued that relentless pounding offensively and defensively, pulling away with 14, fourth-quarter points.

Cinco Ranch lost only four games this fall. Three of those defeats came to ranked or epic offensive foes:

  • Two losses, to Katy, 56-28, and North Shore, came at the hands of the two most dominant 6A teams in Region III without much debate. North Shore is gobbling up state titles in bunches in recent years, and Katy is chasing its elusive 10th state crown after winning 8-of-9 championships in the last 25 years.
  • One loss to Morton Ranch, a team that would not quit when the Mavericks and Cougars collided with playoff hopes on everyone’s mind. Morton Ranch won in a record-setting 77-63 District 19-6A contest. Cinco Ranch finished second in district, and Morton Ranch grabbed the final playoff berth.
  • One loss to Klein Oak, 40-35. Except for this loss to a team that finished 3-5 and missed the postseason, the Cougars

Overall Cinco Ranch senior QB Gavin Rutherford was held to 14-of-31 passing for 167 yards and a single TD pass to Cougar WR Seth Salverino. Fischer Reed pulled in six passes for 51 yards against North Shore’s hard-hitting defense, which pressured Rutherford the whole game on Friday.

For the season, Rutherford, a SFA Lumberjack commit, threw 32 TD passes on 3,326 passing yards. RB Sam McKnight rushed for 762 yards and 23 total scores.

North Shore ended Cinco Ranch’s season, but the Cougars will rake in plenty of off-season accolades, beginning with all-district selections. WRs Noah Abboud and Salverino led Cinco Ranch with 12 and 11 receiving TDs also.