Permian beats back Tascosa's upset effort to qualify for playoffs

Time and time again, the Permian defense held.

Put in bad positions, the Panthers kept shutting down Amarillo Tascosa.

Long enough for Panthers quarterbacks Steven Pipes and Landry Serrano to lead Permian into the playoffs with a 21-13 escape over Amarillo Tascosa on Friday night.

Taking a complicated set of situations into account, Permian has clinched a berth in the Class 5A Division I playoffs by knocking off the Rebels.

And the Panthers (6-3, 6-2 District 2-5A) can thank a defense that held Amarillo Tascosa quarterback Dalton Brooks to just 2 rushing yards.

“We knew we had to stop them on every play,” Permian safety Brennan Welch said. “It was up to us.”

Amarillo Tascosa (4-5, 3-5) nearly put the game away with a blitzing defense that held the Panthers to just 66 total yards in the first half.

Midway through the first quarter, Alejandro Magallanes recovered a Permian fumble at the Panthers’ 14. Two plays later, Brooks scored on a 1-yard naked bootleg to give the Rebels a 7-0 lead.

Two series later, Will Smith intercepted a Pipes pass and returned it 55 yards to the Permian 18.

But the Permian defense kept forcing the issue. Needing a stop on third-and-7, Panthers defensive end Jesse Baeza sacked Brooks for a 13-yard loss to force a fourth down the Rebels couldn’t convert.

“We had to read our keys and make sure we played fast,” Permian outside linebacker Ruben Johnson said. “But it gave us more momentum, made us play faster and harder.”

Taking the ball to start the second half, Brooks tried to snap a pass out into the flat, but Panthers cornerback Thomas Munoz leaped into the air for an interception to kill the drive.

And that’s when the offense woke up.

Facing a second-and-29 at the Amarillo Tascosa 46 after a bad snap over his head, Pipes hit DeAnthony Fay for a 20-yard screen, then found Tommey Morris for 13 yards and a first down.

Two plays later, Morris banged his way in from 4 yards out to tie the score 7-7.

Brooks responded with a 1-yard touchdown run to give the Rebels a 13-7 lead, and Pipes was forced to leave the game after taking a shot to the head.

Desperately needing a first down on third-and-8, Serrano, the backup, lofted his first pass of the season to the right side.

“I wasn’t really warmed up,” Serrano said. “Trying to throw a 10-yard in, the receiver slipped, but we got fortunate.”

Two Tascosa defenders bounced off of each other, Felix Neboh came back, made the catch and broke free for a 53-yard touchdown to put Permian ahead 14-13.

Pipes, who led the Panthers with 60 rushing yards, came back. Running behind an offensive line that paved the way for 287 total yards in the second half, Pipes punched in a 14-yard score with 5:47 left in the game.

“Kudos to the offensive line,” Pipes said. “I’m not the fastest guy in the world. But I got some pretty good blocking, and Tommey (Morris) sealed a guy to get me in the end zone.”

Brooks tried to mount a comeback. Facing a third-and-seven at the Rebels’ 49, Ruben Johnson and Haesten Wood sacked Brooks for a 7-yard loss, and Amarillo Tascosa was forced to punt it away with 3:08 left.

Facing third-and-2, Morris broke away for a 30-yard gain that set up a Pipes quick-kick that pinned the Rebels at their own 7 with 21.3 seconds left.

“That’s got to be the best punt of my life,” Pipes said.

And it came at exactly the right time.

>> Permian 21, Amarillo Tascosa 13 

Amarillo Tascosa          0    7    6    0     — 13

Permian                         0    0  14    7     — 21

Second Quarter

Amarillo Tascosa — Dalton Brooks 1 run (Brett Conway kick), 7:20. Drive: 2 plays, 14 yards, 0:25. Key plays: Casey Burkhardt 13 run on first play of drive.

Third Quarter

Permian — Tommey Morris 4 run (Taylor Martin kick), Drive: 7 plays, 53 yards, 2:56. Key plays: Steven Pipes 20 pass to DeAnthony Fay on second-and-29 at the Amarillo Tascosa 46.

Amarillo Tascosa — Dalton Brooks 1 run (kick failed), 3:16. Drive: 10 plays, 68 yards, 3:52. Key plays: Quinton Travis 18 pass from Dalton Brooks on third-and-6 at the Permian 46.

Permian — Felix Neboh 53 pass from Landry Serrano (Taylor Martin kick), 21.1. Drive: 6 plays, 68 yards, 2:49. Key plays: Tommey Morris 4 run on third-and-2 at the Permian 40.

Fourth Quarter

Permian — Steven Pipes 14 run (Taylor Martin kick), 5:47. Drive: 8 plays, 72 yards, 2:19. Key plays: Felix Neboh 26 pass from Steven Pipes on third-and-8 at the Permian 40.

———

TEAM STATISTICS

                    Amarillo Tascosa           Permian

First downs........................... 8                    15

Total yards....................... 184                  347

Rushes-yards............... 32-73             37-145

Passing............................ 111                  202

Comp-Att-Int.............. 13-26-1           12-23-1

Sacked-Yards Lost.......... 4-26                 2-17

Punt Returns..................... 1-3                 2-10

Kickoff Returns................ 2-28                 3-22

Punts-Avg..................... 7-41.6              7-33.6

Fumbles-Lost.................... 1-0                   3-2

Penalties-Yards.............. 4-25                 3-15

———

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING

Amarillo Tascosa

Casey Burkhardt 11-40, Will Smith 2-17, Junior Doerue 2-14, Dalton Brooks 17-2.

Permian

Steven Pipes 18-60, Tommey Morris 3-38, DeAnthony Fay 8-31, Eli Torres 2-19, Greg George 5-16.

PASSING

Amarillo Tascosa

Dalton Brooks 13-26-1-111.

Permian

Steven Pipes 11-22-1-149, Landry Serrano 1-1-0-53.

RECEIVING

Amarillo Tascosa

Quinton Travis 3-36, Toby Dennis 3-30, Casey Burkhardt 3-21, Will Smith 1-16, Junior Doerue 3-8.

Permian

Felix Neboh 2-79, Tommey Morris 3-41, Eli Torres 2-35, Talon Smith 3-30, DeAnthony Fay 1-20, Josh Tarin 1-(-3).

INTERCEPTIONS

Amarillo Tascosa

Will Smith 1-55.

Permian

Thomas Munoz 1-0.

>> DISTRICT 2-5A PLAYOFFSCENARIO

Clinched: Odessa High, Amarillo High,Permian.

Permian wins, Odessa High wins: Lee qualifies.

Permian wins, Lee wins: Lee qualifies.

Midland High wins, Odessa High wins: Midland High qualifies.

Midland High wins, Lee wins: Midland High qualifies.

Bottom line: A Midland High victory eliminates Lee.

Source: District 2-5A tiebreaker book on ectorcountyisd.org.