Aledo surges from behind to defeat Denton Ryan, extend historic district win streak

Aledo, defending a historic 122-game district win streak, was down 27-14 at the half against state-ranked Denton Ryan .

The Bearcats flipped a switch, storming from behind and scoring 34 unanswered points. Aledo continued to secure a statement 42-27 victory over Denton Ryan to extend the streak in a District 3-5A D2 high school football game on Oct. 4 at Tim Buchanan Stadium.

“We just knew we needed to go and make the adjustments and not give those big plays up, “ Aledo head coach Robby Jones said. “And that’s what we talked about at halftime.”

With the streak on the line and a sizable deficit, the pressure was on for Aledo to perform. When it mattered most, the players delivered big plays and takeaways. One of those players was linebacker Owen Henderson, who had an interception near the end of the third quarter to fuel Aledo’s surge.

“At halftime, I went into the locker room and grabbed all my guys and said, ‘We’re about to find out what we’re made of,’” Henderson said. “We came out with intensity, and man, we played crazy in that second half. It was unlike us to give up big plays like that, but we fought back, and that shows how much resilience we do have.”

In the first quarter, Ryan (4-1, 2-1 District 3-5A D1) needed one yard facing fourth down. Uzziah Warmate, listed as a defensive lineman, was put in with a size package to barrel through for one yard; he broke free for a 53-yard touchdown with Aledo’s secondary playing up.

After a red zone interception from Gavin Beard, Aledo defensive back Alex Patton and defensive end Carson Dempsey made up for it by forcing a safety. The Bearcats (5-1, 4-0) got the ball back and marched down to the red zone but settled with a 36-yard field goal from kicker Cole Crawford.

Ryan’s offense, with a slim 6-5 lead, took advantage of an opportunity with a 39-yard touchdown from Quin Henigan to running back Tre’Vaughn Reynolds, who split the defense and found a lane.

The Bearcats, with a red zone opportunity, could not respond, settling for a 33-yard field goal to cut the lead midway through the second quarter.

While Aledo’s offense stalled, Ryan’s couldn’t be hotter. Wide receiver Braeden Musset let the charge. First, he received a pass in the backfield and turned to throw, connecting with Lorenzo Hill for a 58-yard score.

To extend Ryan’s lead to 28-7 with 2:47 remaining in the half, Musset was wide open and recorded a 59-yard score on a deep ball. The Bearcats’ defensive breakdowns kept allowing home run plays.

Special teams semi-salvaged a poor first half of play. Cornerback Adrian Fuller caught a kick at the goal line and ran 100 yards to the end zone, receiving multiple blocks. The PAT was no good, with Ryan’s pressure being too much to handle.

The momentum continued to the second half, and Aledo kept its foot on the gas.

“Never give up,” Henderson said. “No matter how much we’re down, we can always come back and win it.”

Aledo’s offense finally managed to convert on a red zone chance; Beard connected with wide receiver Kaydon Finley on a slant for an 11-yard score to make it a one-possession game. Finley, a junior wide receiver with offers from Baylor, Georgia, Oklahoma, TCU, Texas, Texas A&M and more.

After a strong series from the Aledo defensive line that forced a punt, running back Ray Guillory set up the Bearcats with a 41-yard rush. He capped the drive with a six-yard rushing touchdown to give Aledo a slim 28-27 lead.

With Ryan’s offense taking over, the Bearcat defense stood tall again. On fourth-and-short, linebacker Chase Wilburn recovered a fumble in Ryan territory.

“A great job by coach (Brad) McCone and the defensive staff on making the adjustments to stop what they were having success with in the first half,” Jones said. “That’s one of the things that we take pride in is being able to go in at the half and making adjustments and then coming out in the second half and executing them.”

Guillory notched the go-ahead score in wildcat formation, rushing three yards to the end zone to give Aledo a 35-27 lead.

The Bearcats looked like a completely different team in the second half, with consistent offense and impact plays on defense. Henderson’s interception set up another big offensive play. Beard, facing pressure, made a shovel pass to Guillory, who raced 29 yards for a touchdown.

“I’ve seen Gavin do it a couple of times before, so it’s not the first time we’ve seen it,” Jones said. “ ... It’s a little improvisation, and it’s good to see. I’m just glad he got it to one of our guys and not theirs.”

Guillory finished with 157 yards and three touchdowns on 24 carries. An interception from Kamron Hall sealed the deal.

“We learned that it’s going to be a tough football game when you play a Denton Ryan,” Jones said. “We fully expect to play them again in possibly a fourth-round matchup in the playoffs, so we’re looking to be able to learn things from tonight’s game and be able to go in and have a good game plan against them if we meet them again.”

Aledo will look to extend its historic streak to 124 games in a road contest against Granbury on Oct. 11. Denton Ryan, on the same day, will face Richland in a home game.

Get TX Politics in your inbox.