Better. Faster. Stronger. Dominant in all three phases of the game, better coached, better disciplined, better team unity, etcetera, etcetera. Use your own superlative to describe the Hennessey Eagles football performance over their biggest rival, and it would most likely apply. The Chisholm Longhorns roster outnumbered the Eagles 2 to 1. That was the only statistical “advantage” that the Longhorns had on the Eagles on a night that saw the boys from Kingfisher County take down the ‘horns by a score of 63-0.
Hennessey outgained the Carrier/North Enid consolidation 532 to 226. Doubled their 1st Downs 26 to 13. Longhorns threw 1 Interception and lost 3 of their 4 Fumbles – Eagles, none and none. They punted 4 times – Eagles, zero. Longhorns Offense was 31% on 3rd Down (4 of 13) and 0 for 4 on 4th – Eagles were 73% (8 of 11) on 3rd and 67% (2 of 3) on 4th Down. And on the most important statistic in all of football, the Eagles scored 9 Touchdown (5 Rushing, 4 Passing) – Longhorns, zero (0,0).
Led, once again, by Freshman QB Titan Hix, who went 17 for 27 for 261 Yards, 0 Interceptions, and 4 Touchdowns Passing, with 16 Carries for 175 Yards and 1 TD Rushing, with longs of 53 Yards through the air and 52 Yards on the ground, the Eagles Offense set the tone early with Touchdowns on each of their first 4 possessions.
With 8 Catches for 138 Yards and 2 Touchdowns Receiving, Junior Wide-out Weston Smith had his biggest game since his breakout performance in the 2020 Playoffs. Weston pulled down a 52 Yard catch and run TD on the game’s 5th offensive play, added a 1 Yard jet sweep TD reception on the first play of the 2nd quarter, and missed out on his 3rd when he was caught from behind after a 53 Yard grab down the Eagles sideline that almost went for a 77 Yard TD.
Adding to the air assault were Seth Simunek’s 48 Yards which included a 38 Yard Touchdown grab in the 1st. Langston Smith added 41 Yards on 3 Catches, with Kevin Trillo getting 1 Catch for 4 Yards.
Sebastian Gonzalez had his best performance of 2022 with 39 Yards and 2 Touchdowns on the ground, 30 Yards and 1 TD Receiving, with 6 Tackles including 1 QB Sack on Defense, going a perfect 9 for 9 on special teams point after tries.
Zack Tillman was the Eagles second leading ball-carrier with 62 Yards and his first career Rushing Touchdown.
The biggest cheer from the sideline and from the Eagles faithful came when Senior Offensive Lineman Antonio Robles lined up at Running Back following a Seth Simunek 35 Yard Fumble return to the Chisholm 5. Two plays later “Big T” barreled in for the score, with his giant smile lighting up Longhorn Stadium brighter than the field’s LEDs, and the hug given to and received from Coach Hix said it all, as the Eagles victory celebration began in full force.
The Defense posted its first shutout of the season, led by Brandon Valles’ 13 Solos and 1 Forced Fumble. Zack Tillman and Cam Griffin added QB Sacks to go along with their 4 Tackles each. Mauricio Valles had 6 Tackles with 2 Assists and 1 Fumble Recovery, with Jakob Johns and Seth Simunek recovering 2 Fumbles as well.
District play continues on the road next week as the Hennessey Eagles (4-2, 2-1) travel to the Blackwell Maroons (1-5, 0-3) for a Fall Break Thursday night matchup in Blackwell. 7:00 pm Kickoff, Thursday, October 13th at Blackwell Stadium.
Scattershooting Notes:
- Weston Smith now has 1,086 Yards and 10 Touchdowns Receiving on his career. His 10 Receiving TDs tie him for 7th all time with Orlando Pina (2009-2011).
- Seth Simunek is now 2 TD Receptions shy of tying Barry Crosswhite (1984-1986) for 2nd all time at HHS.
- Eagles now have a 3-game win streak versus the Longhorns (2020-22). Chisholm had won the previous 5 games (2015-19).
- Hennessey’s 63 Points were the most scored in a single game since 2012 v. Pawnee Black Bears (64-3).
- The last time Hennessey had 9 TDs in a single game was in 2014 v. Newkirk Tigers (62-7).
- It has been 5 years since the Eagles have won 3 games in a row when they won 5 straight, including opening round of the 2017 playoffs. They can win their 3rd consecutive this next week v. Blackwell.
- In the entire 2004 Season, the Eagles scored a total of 9 Touchdowns. They scored 9 TDs Friday night at Chisholm. –EAGLEVOICE Photos by Kenda Copeland
