FOOTBALL: Shallowater's on a roll at right time

Shallowater is “where Texas pride runs deep,” or so says the town’s motto. And the 2,000 or so residents of Shallowater, which is just northwest of Lubbock, take pride in their athletic programs.

The school’s boys and girls basketball teams won state championships in 2004, and it’s also been successful in baseball, softball and cross country, to name a few other sports. But the football program hasn’t been a source of much pride, at least until this fall.

Shallowater’s 40-7 win against Dalhart three weeks ago was its first postseason victory on the football field since 2003, when the team advanced to the state semifinals for the second year in a row. Now the Mustangs (11-2), who face Monahans (11-2) in a Class 3A Division II quarterfinal at 7:30 p.m. Friday in Midland, are one win away from returning to that point.

“Everybody’s excited around here. It’s just electric in the air,” Shallowater quarterback Brandon Hall said. “It’s good for our community and good for our high school. A lot of high school kids don’t know what to think about it since we haven’t had a team since then go and do that.”

Shallowater’s students aren’t the only ones caught off guard by the football team’s playoff run. The Mustangs finished third in District 1-3A at 2-2, giving up 40-plus points in losses against Lubbock Cooper and Lubbock Estacado.

Now those teams are at home — Monahans eliminated Estacado in the second round — while Shallowater is still playing. Third-year head coach Kyle Maxfield said the team played its most complete game of the season in the first-round win against Dalhart, and it continues to get stronger.

“It just seems like our kids were hungry to get that first playoff win,” Maxfield said. “Once we got that, we just kind of got rolling.”

A defense led by Chuy Garcia, Kade Willis, Mitchell Cuevas and John Striednig, who all have more than 100 tackles this season, has returned to its early-season form. The Mustangs held six of their nondistrict opponents to 20 points or fewer, and in the last two rounds they held offensive juggernauts from Greenwood and Snyder to fewer than 30 points.

Monahans coach Mickey Owens said the Mustangs have speed all over their defense and are especially strong up front with nose guard Jesus Islas and defensive tackles Striednig and Derek Washington. They’ve combined for 27 of Shallowater’s 52 sacks this season, and Striednig leads the team with 14.

“He’s just got a motor that won’t stop,” Maxfield said.

So does running back Koley King, who has rushed for 1,700 yards and 17 touchdowns this season while averaging 9.1 yards per carry. King has been especially good during the last two games, rushing for more than 200 yards in each.

“Awesome. Unbelievable,” Shallowater receiver Tobias Sultan said of King. “It doesn’t seem like a defense has an answer for him. That has a lot to do with the line, too, and good reads by Brandon.”

Hall and Jarek Black also are dangerous rushers for Shallowater, having combined for 1,809 yards and 34 touchdowns on the ground. Hall also has passed for 1,301 yards and 12 touchdowns, and Sultan is his leading receiver with 539 yards and five scores.

Owens is just as concerned with the Mustangs’ momentum as he is with their talent on offense and defense. 

“The scary thing is they’re hot right now,” Owens said. “They came out of their district third and all of a sudden they’re on fire. Those are the teams that scare you, because they’re doing the right things at the right time.”

Hall said the Mustangs, who started the season 7-0, knew all along they had the potential to make a long playoff run. The losses to Cooper and Estacado were merely bumps in the road, and Hall said they made the players more motivated to prove themselves.

They’ve proven their worth to the people of Shallowater, and given them a reason to feel proud again, and hope to keep doing so for at least another week.

“It’s pretty much indescribable. It’s like the best feeling,” Sultan said. “You feel like a celebrity in town. Everybody wants to talk to you and you’ve got kids coming up to you. It’s pretty awesome.

“The town’s really supportive. If I’m ever down and don’t want to play or something, I just think of the town and it makes me keep going.”

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