SIX-MAN REWIND: Final week of regular season delivers thrilling results in slate’s top, most important matchups

Week 11 is in the books and the regular season is officially over. But some of the season’s best six-man drama was saved for last, as we have a number of thrilling games to talk about.

Chief among those was our “Big Country Lookahead” Game of the Week, which saw Hermleigh edge Westbrook in District 7-1A Division I action. But that was one of several thrillers that took place in the area.

Without further ado, let’s dive into all of last week’s action in this week’s “Big Country Rewind” column. And make sure you check out our Six-Man/Class 1A Central page when you’ve finished reading for more information on your favorite team(s).

LAST WEEK’S TOP RESULTS

• Hermleigh 75, Westbrook 64 — Hayden Simpson had a huge game on both sides of the football to lead the Cardinals to a thrilling win over the Wildcats in a winner-take-all matchup for District 7-1A Division I’s second playoff spot. Simpson passed for 243 yards and five touchdowns and ran for 151 yards and three more scores while tallying 24 tackles on defense to help Hermleigh (7-3, 4-1) rally from a 34-30 halftime deficit. Zaylan Delce (3-63, 3 TDs receiving, 1 TD rushing), Parker Ashley (4-96, 1 TD receiving) and Markius McClure (4-76, 2 TDs) also had big game to help the Cardinals overcome stellar rushing efforts from Adam Brink (204 yards, 4 TDs) and Shawn Salazar (181 yards, 4 TDs) for Westbrook (7-3, 3-2). 
• Vernon Northside 70, Perrin-Whitt 60 — The Indians outscored the Pirates 36-14 over the game’s first 12 minutes and spent the rest of the game holding off Perrin-Whitt to claim the second playoff spot out of District 6-1A Division I. Perrin-Whitt narrowed the gap to 42-34 by halftime and pulled within two on a pair of occasions in the second half — the last at 50-48 midway through the third quarter — but could never get over the hump. The Pirates, who trailed 58-54 heading into the final period, were led in the loss by Cole Keeney (4 TDs rushing), Riley Sims (2 TDs passing, 1 TD rushing, 1 kickoff return TD) and Julian Ramos (1 receiving TD, 1 kickoff return TD).
• Blackwell 79, Trent 24 — Keagan Reno ran for 108 yards and three touchdowns to lead a list of seven BHS players to rush for at least one score in the Hornets’ blowout win over the Gorillas. Slade Wilkinson, Kreed Cummings, Samuel Campbell, Colson Moffett, Jaxon Shipman and Ryder Antilley also ran for TDs for Blackwell (4-6, 3-1), which clinched the second playoff spot out of District 6-1A DII with the win. Wilkinson, who ran for 63 yards, added 60 yards passing and made all seven of his PAT attempts, while Cummings had a 60-yard pick-six in the victory. Trent closed its season at 6-4 overall and 1-3 in league play.
• Aspermont 46, Paint Creek 22 — Isaiah Johnson ran for 256 yards and five touchdowns to fuel the Hornets to a playoff-clinching win over the Pirates in a key District 8-1A DII matchup. Payce Potts and Tyler Kessinger both had 12 tackles and Graden Rabel  had 10 to lead the Aspermont defense, which limited Paint Creek to one touchdown in the first half to take a 14-8 lead into the break. The victory improved the Hornets to 9-1 overall and 3-1 in district play, while the Pirates (7-3 overall) fell 2-2 in league action.
• Zephyr 41, Gustine 30 — Chayden Woodcock ran for 208 yards and three touchdowns, while Ethan Prochaska passed for 66 yards and two scores to help the Bulldogs clinch the District 13-1A DII championship with a hard-fought win over the Tigers. Zephyr (9-1, 4-0) amassed 370 yards in the win, rushing for 277 of those. Gustine amassed 245 total yards (147 rushing, 98 passing) in closing its season at 6-3 overall and 2-2 in league play.
• Fort Worth Covenant Classical 62, Abilene Christian 56 — The Cavaliers used fast starts to both halves to knock off the Panthers in a matchup for the runner-up spot in TAPPS Division II District 1. Covenant Classical (6-3, 3-1) raced out to a 24-8 lead in the first quarter only to watch ACS tie the game in the second before going to halftime down 40-32. And the second half followed a similar script, as the Cavaliers scored 14 unanswered points in the third quarter and went up 52-40 early in the fourth before holding off a Panthers rally down the stretch. ACS (7-3, 2-2) still advances to the playoffs as the No. 3 seed in their district. 

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

• Hayden Simpson, QB/DB, Jr., Hermleigh — Completed 12 of 18 passes for 243 yards and five touchdowns and ran for 151 yards and three scores  while adding 24 tackles and a tackle for loss in the Cardinals’ win over the Westbrook.
• Isaiah Johnson, RB, So., Aspermont — Ran for 256 yards and five touchdowns in the Hornets’ win over Paint Creek.
• Chayden Woodcock, RB, Jr., Zephyr — Ran for 208 yards and three touchdowns and had a 27-yard reception in the Bulldogs’ win over Gustine.
• Lane Goodson, RB, Sr., May — Ran for 110 yards and two touchdowns, passed for 68 yards and a score and had a 20-yard reception in the Tigers’ 51-6 win over Jonesboro.
• Alex Saucedo, RB, Jr., Bluff Dale — Ran for 188 yards and three touchdowns, caught a 47-yard TD pass and had 14 tackles and an interception defensively in the Bobcats’ 68-16 win over Kopperl.
• Stryker Reed, RB, Sr., Gordon — Ran for 112 yards and two touchdowns and threw a 35-yard TD pass in the Longhorns’ 68-0 win over Gorman.
• Keegan Hayes, QB, Jr., Benjamin — Ran for 88 yards and three touchdowns and threw for 59 yards and two scores on 3-of-3 passing in the Mustangs’ 59-0 win over Harrold. 
• Mason Beck, RB, Sr., Blanket — Ran for 142 yards and two touchdowns, passed for 41 yards and a score and had a 6-yard reception while adding an interception defensively in the Tigers’ 52-8 win over Sidney.
• Keagan Reno, RB, So., Blackwell — Ran for 108 yards and three touchdowns on just seven carries in the Hornets’ win over Trent.

FINAL BCP POWER RANKINGS

DIVISION I

1. Gordon (9-0) ⇔ — The top-ranked and two-time defending DI state champs closed out a perfect regular season with a shutout win over Gorman. The Longhorns title defense starts with a playoff opener against Jonesboro.
2. Water Valley (10-0) ⇔ — The No. 2 Wildcats blasted Paint Rock to finish an undefeated regular season. Hermleigh awaits in the bi-district round.
3. May (9-1) ⇔ — The third-ranked Tigers had no trouble in their regular-season finale against Jonesboro. They’ll take an eight-game winning streak into their bi-district matchup with Gorman.
4. Robert Lee (9-1) ⇔ — The No. 6 Steers had week 11 off, giving them an extra week to prepare for a rematch with Ira in the first round of the playoffs.
5. Ira (8-2) ⇔ — The 10th-ranked Bulldogs shut out Highland close the regular season on a seven-game winning streak. Their last loss came in Week 3 by a 60-14 margin to their bi-district opponent, Robert Lee.
6. Newcastle (7-2) ⇔ — The Bobcats closed out a perfect run through District 6 with an 82-6 win over Bryson. They’ll take on Petersburg in their playoff opener.
7. Hermleigh (7-3) ⇑1 — The Cardinals punched their ticket to the playoffs with a clutch win over Westbrook. The victory earned them a rematch with Water Valley, which downed Hermleigh 56-8 in Week 2.
8. Westbrook (7-3) ⇓1 — The Wildcats saw their season come to an end with their loss to Hermleigh. Westbrook’s two district losses, to Ira and Hermleigh, came by a combined 33 points.
9. Perrin-Whitt (6-4) ⇔ — The Pirates closed their season with losses in three of their last four games to miss the playoffs. A 10-point setback to Northside officially ended their postseason hopes.
10. Roby (6-4) ⇑3 — The Lions completed a solid season with a 74-36 win over archrival Rotan to finish fourth behind Ira, Hermleigh and Westbrook in the District 7. 

First five out — Bryson (5-5) ⇓1, Knox City (2-8) ⇓1, Gorman (4-6) ⇓1, Highland (3-7) ⇑1, Veribest (2-8) ⇓1

DIVISION II

1. Jayton (10-0) ⇔ — The No. 1 and defending DII champion Jaybirds got to rest in Week 11, giving them extra time to prep for this week’s game against Guthrie.
2. Richland Springs (8-1) ⇔ — The third-ranked Coyotes blasted Lohn 75-0 last week to increase their regular-season closing win streak to eight games. They’ll kick off their playoff run against Calvert.
3. Benjamin (8-0) ⇔ — The No. 4 Mustangs completed a perfect regular season with a shutout win over Harrold. A big bi-district clash against Aspermont is up next.
4. Strawn (9-1) ⇔ — The sixth-ranked Greyhounds closed out a dominant run through District 9 with a 68-0 win over Woodson. They haven’t allowed a point since Week 6 and will take a seven-game winning streak into this week’s game against Bowie Gold-Burg.
5. Bluff Dale (9-1) ⇔ — The Bobcats routed Kopperl to enter the playoffs on an eight-game winning streak. They’ll try to extend that nine games this week against Mount Calm.
6. Zephyr (9-1) ⇔ — The Bulldogs closed out the District 13 championship with a win over Gustine. They’ll open the postseason against Evant this week .
7. Blanket (8-2) ⇔ — The Tigers wrapped the regular season with a blowout win over Sidney. They’ll play a tough bi-district game against Oglesby in the bi-district round. 
8. Aspermont (9-1) ⇔ — The No. 10 Hornets locked up their playoff spot with a win over Paint Creek. A tough assignment against Benjamin awaits in Round 1.
9. Three Way (9-1) ⇔ — The Braves blasted Morgan 65-16 to close out the regular season. The second-place team out of District 11 will open the playoffs this week against Oakwood.
10. Gustine (6-3) ⇔ — The only team to crack the DII top-10 to miss the playoffs, the Tigers finished third in District 13 behind toughies Zephyr and Blanket.

First five out — Bronte (7-3) ⇑1, Rochelle (4-6) ⇑2, Paint Creek (7-3) ⇓2, Guthrie (7-2) ⇓1, Rising Star (5-5) ⇔