Live Updates: Permian vs. Arlington Martin

FINAL -- ARLINGTON MARTIN 25, PERMIAN 15

4TH QUARTER

End of game -- Alex Mills sacks Pipes to end it.

-- 0:20 -- Pipes hits Josh Tarin for a 28-yard pass down the middle.

-- 1:23 -- After three plays only net Arlington Martin 2 yards, the Warriors snap the ball out of the end zone to avoid taking a blocked punt for a Permian touchdown.

-- 3:01 -- But rolling left, Pipes tries to hit a receiver in the end zone, and the ball gets picked off by Ryan Pollard, who brings it out to the 1.

-- 3:17 -- Needing a first down on fourth-and-inches, Morris slams over for two yards and another first down.

-- 4:06 -- Facing third-and-1, Morris picks up 3 yards and a first down.

-- 4:21 -- Pipes comes through with a 6-yard completion to Tommey Morris on third down.

-- 5:32 -- After Pipes hits Alfonso Zubiate for 20 yards to the Permian 41, Alex Mills and Daniel Henry sack Pipes for a 7-yard loss on first down.

-- 6:12 -- On third-and-2, Pipes hits Talon Smith for 7 and a first down.

-- 7:19 -- Letting the clock wind, Russell Bellomy punts it away on fourth down, and the ball flies out of bounds at the Permian 6, where the Panthers will take over.

-- 8:06 -- A run by Danzel Williams picks up 8 yards to set up fourth down.

-- 8:43 -- Facing second-and-15, Brennan Welch blitzes off the right side and sacks Russell Bellomy for a 10-yard loss to set up third-and-25.

-- 9:54 -- Arlington Martin hits a miraculous play. Throwing deep for Isaac Carrasco, Permian corner Thomas Munoz knocks the ball away and takes Carrasco to the ground, but the ball floats up in the air, and Carrasco makes the catch lying on the ground for a 36-yard gain to the Panthers' 29.

-- 10:26 -- After Craig Wesson smothers the Warriors kickoff return at the 12, Danzel Williams breaks free on the second play of the drive for 19 yards and a first down.

-- 11:24 -- A play later, Steven Pipes stands in the pocket while a Warriors rusher bears down, stands up and delivers a 38-yard strike to Eli Torres for the quick Panthers touchdown.

-- 11:52 -- On the first play of the fourth quarter, DeAnthony Fay carries across midfield for a 12-yard run and a first down.

3RD QUARTER

End of quarter -- Permian's defense forces a three-and-out, and Arlington Martin punts it away.

-- 1:42 -- Cameron Williams sacks Pipes for a 9-yard loss on second down, and after a 9-yard screen to DeAnthony Fay can't pick up the yardage, Permian punts it away.

-- 3:18 -- Fielding the Warriors' kickoff at the 1, Brennan Welch returns his way up the right sideline to the 48 before the kicker knocks him out of bounds.

-- 3:26 -- Running play-action to the right, Arlington Martin quarterback Russell Bellomy hits a wide-open Desmond Randle for a 10-yard touchdown pass to push the Warriors out to a three-score lead.

-- 4:40 -- Facing a third-and-6 at the Permian 31, the Warriors throw a swing pass into the flat that the Panthers snuff out, but Permian is flagged for a late hit and a first-down penalty.

-- 6:22 -- Russell Bellomy sneaks it over for three yards and an Arlington Martin first down.

-- 7:01 -- Facing a third-and-8 at the Permian 45, Russell Bellomy takes a quarterback keeprer up the middle for 7 yards to set up a fourth-and-inches. at the Permian 38.

-- 8:36 -- Three straight downs and a false start force Permian into a fourth-and-13 at the 38, and Steven Pipes pass falls incomplete.

-- 9:50 -- On the Panthers' first play from scrimmage, DeAnthony Fay breaks free on the left side for a 24-yard gain to the Arlington Martin 34.

-- 10:17 -- Trying to set up a screen to Danzel Williams, Russell Bellomy keeps dropping back, but a bull rush by Brennan Welch and Jesse Baeza sack Bellomy for a 16-yard loss and force the Warriors to punt.

-- 10:50 -- With Arlington Martin taking over at its own 39 to start the second half, Russell Bellomy tries to hit Isaac Carrasco on a quick pass to the outside, but Colby Pyron cuts off Carrasco's running lanes and drops him for a 5-yard loss to set up third-and-13.

HALFTIME -- ARLINGTON MARTIN 18, PERMIAN 7

2ND QUARTER

End of half -- Arlington Martin's Jaden Oberkrom drills a 25-yard field goal to end the first half.

-- 1:20 -- Needing a stop on third-and-10, the Panthers can't stop a stretch play to Danzel Williams, who speeds his way around the right side for 34 yards and a first down at the Permian 15.

-- 1:40 -- Snapping the ball out to Wesley Hawthorne for 12 yarsd, Arlington Martin picks up a first down just across midfield.

-- 2:42 -- Tommey Morris bursts through the middle for 7 yards and the Panthers' first score of the game to cap a 12-play, 80-yard drive by Permian.

-- 3:01 -- Carrying the ball on an option to the left on third-and-2 at the Warriors 10, Pipes picks up 3 yards and a first down.

-- 4:35 -- Pipes carries the ball over the left side, breaks a tackle and picks up 13 yards to the Arlington Martin 18.

-- 5:02 -- On second-and-8, Pipes hits Alfonso Zubiate on a crossing route for 10 more yards and a first down at the Arlington Martin 31.

-- 6:00 -- Facing third-and-10 at the Permian 38, Pipes drops back and drills a throw to Tarin over the middle again for 19 yards and a first down.

-- 7:23 -- On the second play of the drive, Pipes hits Josh Tarin in the flat for a 16-yard gain to the Permian 38.

-- 8:24 -- Rolling the dice on fourth-and-goal at the Permian 6, Arlington Martin coach Bob Wager calls a fake field goal. Permian blankets the primary receiver in the flat, but Wesley Hawthorne slips free over the middle and catches a 6-yard touchdown pass from Bellomy to give the Warriors a two-score lead.

-- 11:02 -- Russell Bellomy scrambles for 9 yards and a first-and-goal at the Permian 6.

-- 11:48 -- A miscommunication -- Permian's wide receiver didn't look for the ball -- ends in an interception that Steven Caldwell returns 50 yards to the Panthers' 19.

1ST QUARTER

End of quarter -- Another carry by Fay picks up a yard to get the game to the second quarter.

-- 0:23 -- Running Permian's power to perfection, DeAnthony Fay takes a handoff over the right side and rumbles for 11 yards and a first down across midfield.

-- 1:42 -- Facing a third-and-five, Bellomy tries to swing the ball into the flat to Williams, who makes the catch, but Brennan Welch makes an incredible play to dive, trip up Williams for a 1-yard loss and end the drive while fighting off a block.

-- 2:45 -- On the first play of the drive, Russell Bellomy keeps it on a zone-read for 14 yards and a first down.

-- 3:10 -- After the drive stalls at the Arlington Martin 21, Taylor Martin pushes a 38-yard kick wide right, and Arlington Martin takes over.

-- 5:31 -- On the very next play, Pipes finds Eli Torres deep down the right sideline to the Warriors 22 for a 33-yard gain.

-- 5:51 -- Facing a third-and-one, Tommey Morris bangs over for a first down at the Permian 45.

-- 7:07 -- Arlington Martin draws first blood. After an offsides penalty wipes out a Permian stuff on second-and-goal -- the Panthers' third penalty of the drive -- Danzel Williams takes it over the left side for a 2-yard touchdown run, then scores on the two-point conversion.

-- 8:10 -- Facing third-and-three, Arlington Martin tries to pass to pick up the first down, and Permian is flagged for pass interference.

-- 9:36 -- After Permian is flagged for an offsides penalty, Danzel Williams hits the right side and bursts through for a 36-yard gain to the Warriors' 46 before Thomas Munoz saves a touchdown with a diving tackle.

-- 9:53 -- Trying to hit quick passes in the face of a blistering Arlington Martin pass rush, Pipes tries to swing it out into the flat to Eli Torres, but Torres doesn't look fast enough, and Colby Pyron pins the Warriors at their own 5 with a 42-yard punt.

-- 10:54 -- On his first carry of the game, Tommey Morris busts free for 15 yards and a first down at the Permian 47.

-- 11:12 -- Taking his first snap on third-and-6, starting quarterback Steven Pipes hits Alfonso Zubiate for 8 yards and a first down.

-- 11:54 -- Looks like Permian has come up with a wrinkle for Arlington Martin. On the first play from scrimmage, safety Brennan Welch takes a direct snap out of the Panther formation and runs for four yards.

COIN TOSS

Permian has won the toss and elected to receive.

PREGAME

Every once in a while, even we have to make a few adjustments on the fly.

And after a couple of morning hiccups driving through Abilene, the OA's Permian beat team of photographer Kevin Buehler and your friendly neighborhood sportswriter are parked in the press box at Shotwell to get ready for this afternoon's Class 5A Division I area playoff between Permian and Arlington Martin.

Permian (8-3) has won six straight, including last week's 10-7 victory over El Paso El Dorado, and Arlington Martin (7-4) crushed Haltom 50-6 last week.

Three Quick Slants...

1. When we woke up at the Whitten Inn here in Abilene -- Kevin and I covered the Monahans loss to Graham in Sweetwater last night -- it was cloudy, overcast and looked like a nice, cool day. But in the hour we spent eating our pregame meal, the sun has come out and blanketed the field in sunlight. Should be a nice Texas fall afternoon for this one.

2. Like last week, Permian junior running back Greg George is in uniform and warming up, although he didn't play a down last week against El Paso El Dorado. Nursing a hairline fracture in his leg, George has been a day-to-day proposition ever since the Amarillo Tascosa game.

3. In a development that's a little bit different, Arlington Martin is still in shorts and Under Armour with about a half-hour left to go in warmups. Guess the Warriors aren't going to get into pads until they absolutely have to.

Kevin and Joel's Meal of the Week: Lytle's Land and Cattle

For my money, there is one meal that fits any occasion.

Football, birthday, holiday, random breakfast on a Sunday morning, it works. Steak is my favorite meal, especially done so well that I can leave the A-1 in its proper place. On the shelf.

But Kevin and Joel's Meal of the Week hasn't had a good, solid steak meal in a while, so I was absolutely excited to check out Lytle's Land and Cattle in Abilene. For those of you wondering why we left Joe Allen's off of the poll, there's one simple reason. If we have already reviewed a place, we can't hit it again, and Joe Allen's is the restaurant that started the Meal of the Week in the first place, way back at the beginning of the 2008 season.

As usual, though, the fans took care of us.

You voted. We ate. And you voted to send us to Joe Allen's sister restaurant, Lytle's Land and Cattle, a place that has free wireless Internet. Didn't need it this time, but it's a pretty nice little perk in the event of the need to do some work. Like after the game, or during halftime.

Under the OA's budget, though, the steak at Lytle's Land and Cattle is a little out of the price range we're looking for. So I compromised. Rather than opt for the big, juicy slab of meat I desperately wanted, I headed for the tenderloin medallions, medium-well, with a garden salad and cowboy potatoes au gratin.

Kevin, on the other hand, went for a barbecue burger, complete with fries.

To talk about the food at Lytle's, though, the discussion has to start with the bread. Our waitress, Breanna -- Bre, for short -- brought out a nice little loaf of hot, right out of the oven bread, soft and complete with a tasty butter that made it perfect. Gotta be honest here, and after all the talk about watching my waistline last night in Sweetwater, I caved in and devoured an entire second helping of bread.

As for the garden salad, Lytle's garlic vinaigrette is a tasty sauce, but the salad was missing something specific. Like vegetables other than lettuce. One tomato, one black olive. Other than that, it was all lettuce and croutons, but that's just me. I like my salad a little varied.

Now, I wasn't sure about the cowboy potatoes au gratin at first. To be perfectly honest, I was ready to go for the baked potato. But on the recommendation of Bre -- who loves those cowboy potatoes -- I decided to go out on a limb.

Bre knows what she's talking about. Lightly spiced with pepper, the potatoes are mashed together, with little chunks of potato, mixed with cheese and topped with more cheese and bacon. Tasted like a perfectly blended baked potato -- the elusive kind that's almost impossible to do with a fork -- complete with all the fixin's. Rumor has it that the cowboy potatoes even taste good for breakfast, and I gotta be honest, that sounds like a great way to start the day.

And I loved the steak medallions. Cooked medium well -- I don't like to eat anything that can still moo -- the steak had a spicy, tasty rub on the outside, and the portion was the right size for lunch. Not too big, nothing to make me sleepy, but enough to get me through the game. Or the first half. Sometimes I can get a little hungry.

As for Kevin's burger, the kitchen originally didn't put the barbecue sauce on the burger, but Bre corrected that mistake quickly. And although the burger was just a tad too well-cooked for Kevin's liking -- To me, it looked like a perfectly grilled option -- the barbecue sauce was incredible. Tangy, tasty, so good that you wonder if a rack of ribs at Lytle's would taste a little bit like heaven. And the fries were also solid fare, a variety that had a little bit of seasoning and plenty of taste.

One more thing. Lytle's makes a mean sweet tea. True, spectacular Southern sweet tea is the perfect fit for almost any meal, and I polished off two glasses without even blinking.

Kevin's Dessert of the Week

As usual, OA photographer and dessert aficionado Kevin Buehler was hoping for an apple-based dessert option. But Lytle's couldn't help him out there, so we both opted for the cheesecake. Kevin went for the New York version, taking both chocolate and strawberries as the topping.

For my part, I opted for the Key Lime Margarita Cheesecake. Once again, on Bre's recommendation, because I was a little unsure. Like I've written before, the purpose of the Meal of the Week is to step outside the lines sometimes. And Bre had already given me the right advice once, so I trusted her.

She wasn't wrong. Tart, tasty, with just enough whipped cream to balance out the incredible taste of the cheesecake, Lytle's exotic option filled the same role as a margarita. A little bit of relaxation, a little bit of vacation, without the buzz that follows.

And Bre, who told us she personally topped off our desserts, made sure Kevin was happy even without his precious apples and cinnamon. Kevin's cheesecake came drenched in strawberries and chocolate, prompting a single one-word response from the OA's dessert expert.

"Perfect," Kevin said.

Final Analysis

Gotta say, I think almost like Lytle's better than Joe Allen's.

Especially with the great, personable service -- Not only was Bre right on time with every request, she came up with a few extras -- and exceptional specialty items, like the cowboy potatoes.

Not sure where the car will turn the next time I come to Abilene.

But Lytle's is at the top of the list.