Quick take
NEW CANEY — Gusty play-calling earned Tomball another week of practice over Thanksgiving break Saturday night at Randall Reed Stadium.
Koby Fosher received a handoff before finding Colby Dawson in the end zone for the game-winning two-point conversion in overtime as Tomball beat Oak Ridge 25-24 in a Region II-6A Division II showdown.
Tomball (8-4) advances to the regional semifinals for the third straight year and will face Cedar Hill, which beat North Forney, 59-21, in the second round.
Each team scored in the first overtime, but it was Tomball that rolled the dice on a two-point conversion. Oak Ridge crossed the end zone first with Larry Debose’s 21-yard touchdown, which made it 24-17 before Fosher answered with a touchdown of his own and the game-winner.
“The coaches asked me before they said, ‘do you want to run bulldog? ’ that’s the play we just ran and I said, ‘yes sir,’ and they’re like ‘you can execute? ’ I said, ‘yes sir,’” Dawson said. “We ran out there and we freaking executed and won the ballgame.”
Highlights
Tomball struck first. Brook Junod capped an 11-play, 70-yard opening drive with a 20-yard touchdown catch from Carter Noyes for a 7-0 advantage.
Oak Ridge (8-4) answered on its opening drive with Markus Erstad’s 28-yard field goal, cutting the deficit to 7-3 heading into the second quarter.
After a Tomball punt, James Scott set up his own touchdown. He hauled in a 28-yard touchdown catch from Jack Emerson before putting the War Eagles ahead 10-7 with an 11-yarder with 7:18 left in the first half.
The Cougars soon forced a turnover on downs and took over at their own 25-yard line. Jaxyn Faldyn capitalized with a 28-yard touchdown catch from Noyes to put Tomball ahead 14-10 at the half.
The teams traded punts twice to start the second half before Oak Ridge put together a drive deep into Tomball territory. After converting on fourth-and-3, Justin Hayes scored with an 18-yard touchdown run to give the War Eagles a 17-14 lead with 33 seconds left in the third quarter.
Tomball responded, again, with Charlie Von Der Meden nailing a 43-yard field goal to tie the game at 17 with 7:24 left in the game.
Oak Ridge was then forced to punt after conceding back-to-back sacks, giving the Cougars a chance to drive down the field. They did just that, moving the ball inside the 30-yard line with less than two minutes left. But Von Der Meden’s 42-yard field goal attempt was blocked by the War Eagles’ defense, giving Oak Ridge the ball at its own 33-yard line.
Emerson quickly took off for a 40-plus yard keeper to put Oak Ridge inside Tomball territory, but the War Eagles were forced to punt, sending the game to overtime.
Fosher’s 2-yard touchdown run made it 24-23 before helping the Cougars convert the two-point try.
“I knew I just had to throw it up and give him a chance, but we’ve been practicing for I don’t know how many weeks,” Fosher said. “I had a feeling we were going to go for the two-point conversion and try to win it all and we did. We just executed it.
“Greatest feeling of all time, there’s no better feeling out there.”
What it means
With the victory, Tomball, which entered the playoffs as the fourth seed from District 15-6A, secured the program’s third consecutive trip to the third round. The team from 2021 reached the state semifinals. The series is now tied 2-2 since 2008.
Oak Ridge was looking to advance to the regional semifinals for the first time since 2002. The Eagles rallied for a 29-28 victory over Dekaney in the bi-district round for their fifth playoff win since 1991.
Quotable
“That’s our goal each year,” Tomball coach Dave Handal said. “We don’t talk about district championships or results, it’s all about getting better and playing our best football in November. That’s what we’re doing right now and that’s what we do. That’s what we’ve done the last three years and it’s a tribute to the kids that have bought into our culture and what we do.”
Game balls
Noyes, who finished with two touchdown passes, threw at least one TD and Fosher hit paydirt for the second consecutive week after the pair helped Tomball beat Cypress Falls 32-6 in the bi-district round. In addition, Faldyn, who went one-for-one with a touchdown pass last week, caught a TD this time.
Up next
Tomball will face Cedar Hill in the regional semifinals at 4 p.m. next Saturday at the Waco ISD Stadium.
“We get to spend more time with our kids and our coaches and that’s the best part of it,” Handal said.
