The Burton Panthers showed their defensive resilience last week in their first game in two weeks.
They are not content with just one shutout, though. The Panthers are aiming for another one this week against a fierce rival.
Burton (6-0, 3-0 district) will put its undefeated record on the line at Somerville (4-2, 2-1 district) on Friday night after displaying defensive toughness in a win at Bartlett.
The Panthers defeated Bartlett 28-0 last week, spoiling Bartlett’s homecoming and stadium grand opening thanks to a never-break mentality on defense and explosive runs.
Two first-half turnovers guided Burton to a 14-0 halftime lead. Junior linebacker Lawrence Allen earned an interception on a tipped pass amid heavy pressure and lineman Houston Hodde scooped up a fumble recovery after junior linebacker Rueben Rodriguez sacked Bartlett quarterback Ryder Castro and forced the fumble.
Both turnovers came in Burton territory in two of Bartlett’s four drives that made it to Burton’s side of the field.
“With the turnovers, we had to realize we are doing good right now, so we’ve just got to keep this positive mindset,” Allen said after Friday’s game. “No negativity inside of the game because that throws the whole team off. It is really a whole chemistry thing.”
Burton coach Jason Hodde said after Friday’s game that his defense showcased determination and effort to earn its first shutout of the year, not including forfeit wins against Snook and McDade.
Further analysis of last week’s game showed a sound defensive effort, particularly coming off two straight bye weeks.
“We could have done some things better, but for the most part, I thought coming off of a two-week bye, I was pretty pleased with our defensive performance,” Hodde said.
Burton got another solid dual-threat performance from junior quarterback Kayden Patterson. He ran for two touchdowns in the first half, including a 60-yard scamper on Burton’s first offensive play after the Panthers forced a turnover on downs to end a quality Bartlett drive.
He totaled 101 yards on 15 carries on the ground while completing four of his eight passes for 93 yards, including a 47-yard pass over the middle to senior wide receiver Eli Simank on a drive that ended in the second of his three rushing touchdowns.
Junior running back Rueben Rodriguez carried Burton’s lead at 104 rushing yards on nine carries with a touchdown.
But the Burton offense stalled on several drives last week, something Hodde attributed to occasional sloppy play. However, he credited the Panthers for fighting through it and overcoming the bad plays to pick up big plays throughout the night.
“Whenever you do not play for two weeks, it is hard to simulate that game in practice,” Hodde said. “It is hard to simulate a full-fledged game. I think sometimes when you get a little fatigued and you get tired, sometimes you start getting a little sloppy here with penalties and fumbles and things like that.”
Burton will look to use its district-opening win to fuel a gameplan to get revenge on Somerville this week. The Yeguas broke Burton’s 17-game win streak in the head-to-head series last year with a 42-41 overtime win.
Hodde believes his team is hungry to win at Somerville this year given last year’s loss and the opportunity to take victory over the Yeguas on their homecoming night.
“They are competitive guys and a lot of our younger guys were there and felt that,” he said. “We were a play away from winning that game, so I think there is a little extra motivation to get out there and try to get a W.”
This year’s Somerville team is coming off a 50-33 loss to Iola for its most points allowed in a game.
The Yeguas have found a serviceable replacement to outgoing Ian Teague at quarterback in junior Andrew Espinoza. He is completing nearly 60 percent of his passes this year for 948 yards with 11 touchdowns and just three interceptions.
Senior running back Ja’Keith Daniels and sophomore wide receiver Jayden Young are his two favorite targets in the passing game. Young caught nine passes for 144 yards and two touchdowns last week while Daniels ran for 135 yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries against Iola.
Somerville’s defense got Christopher Deere back in full gear last week. He recorded 15 tackles in his first major game of the year.
Junior Martin Espinoza leads the Yeguas with 35 tackles this year.
Hodde credited Somerville coach Luke Klinger and his staff for their work with the Yeguas. He said a win over the Yeguas will not come easy with Somerville presenting solid size up front as well as quality skill players.
Somerville’s improvement in recent years, which includes last year’s district championship team, makes the Burton-Somerville better for both communities, Hodde said. But he also is focused on earning a win to bolster the Panthers’ district title chances.
“We just want to go in there and play good football and get a win,” he said.