The Gazette-Enterprise

SEGUIN — The Matador defense held vaunted Steele running back Malcolm Brown to just two yards and even forced the junior to fumble during his first five carries Friday night.

But on his next three touches, Brown ripped off gains of 67, 20 and 18 — including a touchdown run that put the Knights up by 14 late in the first quarter.

Brown finished with a tidy 14-yard per carry average on an abbreviated evening of work, as Steele (7-1, 5-1) notched a 48-0 win over Seguin (2-7, 0-6) in which nearly everyone on the roster made a contribution to the effort.

“I’d say that they’re the most talented team we’ve faced all year — probably even more talented than New Braunfels,” said Seguin head coach Jim Carson after the game. “Brown is a terrific player. I’ve played against some really good players in 35 years and he’s as good a running back as I’ve been on the field with, and that includes Cedric Benson.”

The Matadors snuffed out Steele’s first scoring threat of the game, as Chris McLeod met Brown in the hole, causing a fumble inside Seguin’s 10-yard line that was recovered by fellow linebacker Nick Kolbe.

Seguin then advanced the ball past midfield on good throws from Gerlich, but the junior’s third attempt of the night sailed on him, ending up right in the chest of the Knights’ Taurean Anderson, who promptly returned the ball 70 yards for the game’s first score.

After a missed field goal on the Matadors’ next possession, Anderson struck again with his second pick, setting up a 20-yard touchdown from Brown that signaled the beginning of the end for Seguin.

“Our defense played well in the first half and our offense left them out to dry a couple of times,” Carson said. “(Steele’s) scored a lot of points and gotten a lot of yards against everybody they’ve played, but not finishing a couple of drives and giving them an easy touchdown — those kinds of things add up against a team as talented as they are.”

The Knights proved that they can also pass the ball with precision, as quarterback Nick Sergent found receiver Blake Gardner for a couple of long scores in the second quarter.

Steele also added a pair of Jeremy Sanchez field goals in the second period, taking a 34-0 lead into the locker room and spoiling any hopes that the Matadors had of posting a huge upset on Senior Night. Simply put, there didn’t appear to be any chinks in the Knights’ armor.

“It’s a real challenge to play someone like that,” Carson said. “Their offensive line is even more physical than they appear on film and they have speed and can throw the ball enough to back you off. And then they have a height advantage at the corner — etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.”

Ricky Reeves took over at quarterback in the second half for a banged-up Gerlich and finished the contest 13-25 for 72 yards and one interception.

During the game, Seguin also lost starting center Chase Ramos to what appeared to be a knee injury in the first quarter, although backup Joel Rosas played well in Ramos’ absence.

The Matadors’ best offensive weapon Friday night was sophomore running back Dequan Hedspeth, who provided the most excitement on a couple of well-executed screen passes.

Not only was Hedspeth Seguin’s leading receiver with four catches for 62 yards, but he also added 33 rushing yards to lead his team on the ground as well.

“We’re really pleased with his effort and his work ethic has really improved and that’s been what’s allowed him to get better,” Carson said of Hedspeth. “And getting a lot of coaching from Jay Kolbe and some of the guys has helped him along this year.”

The Knights capped the game’s scoring with two touchdowns in the third quarter, as Brown sprinted 39 yards on his final carry of the night before fullback Ryne McDaniel added a 19-yard jaunt to give Steele its margin of victory.

Brown had 141 yards and two scores on just 10 carries against the Matadors, while Sergent was 7-14 through the air for 160 yards and two touchdown tosses — both to Gardner.

The Knights had 418 yards of total offense in the game, while also finding a way defensively to limit the effectiveness of receiver Dustin Read. Read had just two catches or five yards on the evening, with Thomas Cockrum hauling in a total of 43 yards on three receptions to lead all Seguin wideouts.

Jared Curnel caught three passes for 27 yards, while Joseph Fonseca made two late catches — one which converted a fourth-down attempt — that were good for a total of 14 yards.

Senior Shalom Chamniss made a three-yard grab in the fourth quarter and also added a seven-yard run for Seguin.

The challenge for the Matadors will now be to finish the season with the same intensity that Seguin fans saw earlier in the year. Carson said that shouldn’t be a problem, seeing as his team is gearing up to face a team that he considers among the school’s biggest rivals.

“It’s pretty easy to smile and work hard when things are going good,” the coach said. “But when they’re not, that’s when your honor and your courage take over.”

“I told the kids that as far as I’m concerned, San Marcos is our biggest rivalry. This is the championship of (Highway) 123 and we get to play in a fabulous place at Bobcat Stadium.”

Friday’s contest — the final one of the Matadors’ 2009 season — is slated to begin at 7:30 p.m. in San Marcos against a Rattler team (2-6, 1-5) fresh off of a 49-24 loss to Boerne Champion.

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