Despite starting 0-4, Brock has sights set on a state title after rolling past Muleshoe

The Brock football team started the season 0-4. The Eagles have never lost four games in a season since the program began in 2013.

Brock did face some heavy hitters in Texarkana Pleasant Grove, Wichita Falls Hirschi, Wimberley and Gunter, but since then, at the onset of district play, the Eagles have been pretty much unstoppable.

That trend continued on Thursday night as Brock built a 37-point lead at the half then coasted to a 57-20 win over Muleshoe in a Class 3A Division 1 area-round game at the iconic Mustang Bowl.

“It wasn’t good, nobody likes losing,” said Brock coach Billy Mathis, whose team graduated 17 seniors from last season. “They understood that we were going against some good competition, but they also understood that there was a process and they never batted an eye.

“They came back and worked every day and we watched film and learned from it. It builds character, and no one likes to build character, but we learned from it and we’re battle tested.”

The Eagles were challenged in the middle of October by Whitesboro (39-35) and Paradise (18-13), but opened the playoffs with a 48-0 whitewashing of Iowa Park. Brock (8-4) will face either Tuscola Jim Ned (8-3) or Bushland (10-1) in the regional round next week.

Junior defensive back/wide receiver Carson Finney had an incredible night for the Eagles. Finney picked off three passes, including a tipped, juggling interception over the top of a Muleshoe receiver early in the second quarter.

“We knew that they were going to try to throw the ball deep because our d-line and linebackers are just so good,” said Finney, who also scored twice as a receiver on offense, blocked an extra point and had punt returns of 36 and 29 yards to set up scores. “It was a two on one and he just threw it up and the receiver tipped it, then I tipped it and he came and pushed me and I kept tipping it more and somehow I just came down with it.”

Muleshoe (8-4) kept the game close much of the first quarter. Finney’s first INT on the Mules opening drive led to a 25-yard scoring run by Brett Tutter to give Brock an early 8-0 lead.

The 8-point margin was cut to 2 seven seconds later when Muleshoe’s Judas Reyes returned the ensuing kickoff 92 yards for a TD to cut the lead to 8-6, after Finney blocked the PAT, with 8:43 left in the opening frame.

After Brock made it 15-6 on a 13-yard scoring run by Reid Watkins, Muleshoe quarterback Nathan Martens guided the Mules right down the field with an answer.

Martens, who completed 14 of 30 passes for 129 yards and two touchdowns on the night, hit Irvin Torres for 36 yards down to the Brock 21 yard line. Five plays later Martens found Reyes in the back of the end zone from 19 yards out. Reyes made a nice catch falling backwards to make the catch that cut the lead to 15-13 with 3:06 remaining in the first quarter.

But it was all Brock after that.

Finney had back to back touchdown receptions of 29 and 14 yards from Eagles’ quarterback Tyler Moody, the latter giving Brock a 29-13 lead with 10:18 left before halftime.

Tutter, who led Brock with 160 rushing yards on 14 carries, had the next two tallies on runs of 62 and 2 yards. The Eagles piled up 357 yards rushing on 42 attempts and had 515 yards of total offense.

“You have to give all the credit to the guys up front,” said Tutter in praise of his offensive line. “There’s Wyatt Albritton, Trace Roger, Brock Riker, Ethan Brooks and Adam Mueller and they are phenomenal.

“All of our success is based off of them. If they’re on point then we’re on point and we’re just going to kill it if our lines going and they kill it every game.”

Moody, who finished with 158 yards passing completing 13 of 19, capped the scoring in the first half with his third TD pass. Moody hit freshman wide out Colt Matlock on a 32-yard post to give the Eagles a 50-13 lead with 43 seconds left before the intermission.

Brock’s defense was nails holding Muleshoe to 115 yards of total offense including 20 rushes for minus-14 yards. The Eagles sacked Martens five times for 40 lost yards, two by junior defensive lineman Bryce Hunkapiller.

Watkins had 79 yards on 8 carries and Finney led the Eagles with 5 catches for 68 yards before reserves took over midway through the third quarter for Brock.

“It was difficult,” said Finney of Brock’s dismal start to the season. “We were trusting the process and we knew why we started 0-4. They were close games and really good teams, but we just came together as a team and are hoping to make history by starting 0-4 and going on to win a state championship.”

This story was originally published November 18, 2022 at 3:27 AM.