Carthage runs away from Brock, eliminates Eagles in consecutive seasons

In a battle of two perennial powerhouse programs, both unbeaten, the Brock Eagles fell to the defending champion Carthage Bulldogs 49-21 in the Class 4A Division II state semifinals Friday at Memorial Stadium.

Carthage (15-0) won the coin toss and chose to put its high-powered offense on the field to start the game. It did not take long to understand why the Bulldogs wanted to do so. On just the third snap of its opening series, Texas A&M signee KJ Edwards raced 83 yards for a touchdown that left Brock with a quick 7-0 deficit.

Brock (14-1) managed to deadlock the game at 7-7 on a 4-yard TD pass from Holt Frazier to Davis Lee with 1:49 left in the opening period, capping an 11-play, 56-yard drive that consumed 4:55 off the clock.

Frazier kept the march going with a 12-yard completion to Colt Matlock on fourth-and-5 from the Carthage 31-yard line.

The game unraveled for Brock in the second period, as Carthage took control.

A 32-yard TD pass from Jett Surratt to Junior Henderson on the first play of the second stanza gave Carthage a 14-7 lead, one it never relinquished.

A pair of Brock turnovers on consecutive possessions led to a pair of Carthage touchdowns.

Surratt connected with Colorado signee Carson Crawford on a 3-yard aerial TD, on a fourth-and-goal, that capped a 12-play, 80-yard drive consuming almost five minutes off the clock. The score was set up by a Tylin Williams end zone interception off a tipped pass.

A Trey Gant pick with 1:21 remaining before halftime at the Brock 34 led to an 18-yard TD pass from Surratt to Henderson, leaving Brock with a 28-7 deficit at intermission.

Carthage put the game out of reach coming out of the break. A 42-yard Jace Harris TD run and a 4-yard Benny Smith rushing score increased the margin to 42-7. The latter six-pointer came after Harris came up with the team’s third interception of the contest, this one at the Brock 23-yard line.

Brock committed five turnovers — three interceptions and a pair of fumbles. While the two fumbles did not lead to Carthage points, the first one came on the team’s opening drive in the game, losing the ball at the Carthage 6-yard line on a running attempt in which the ball rolled out of the end zone for a touchback.

Brock head coach Billy Mathis said the turnovers were “the biggest difference in the game.”

“You can’t give a great team like Carthage extra opportunities,” Mathis said. “We just had one of those nights where the ball does not bounce your way.”

“Give credit to Carthage,” he added. “They took advantage of our mistakes.”

Brock finally got back on the board, after Carthage tallied 35 unanswered points, on a Jack Farhat 21-yard TD scamper just under six minutes before the end of the third quarter. Matlock opened the series with a 45-yard kickoff return to the Bulldogs 45. Farhat then ripped off a 24-yard run before scoring on the next play.

Edwards would answer for the Bulldogs, scoring on an 11-yard TD burst.

Frazier’s 2-yard TD keeper midway through the final period rounded out the scoring.

“I am extremely proud of this team,” Mathis said. “They hung in there. Did not quit. The guys put in a lot of hard work during the season as well as the summer and offseason. We had a great season.”

For the second straight year, Brock fell to Carthage in the state semifinal; the Eagles lost 45-17 a year ago.

“To be the best you have to beat the best,” Mathis said. “We accept that. We will come back and get after it again next season.”

Frazier finished with 143 passing yards, completing 16 of 24 passes, with three interceptions.

Running back Levi Dean had a team-leading 101 rushing yards on 14 carries. Dean saw an increased workload as standout Bryer McDonald suffered an ankle injury in last week’s 35-14 regional final win over Midland Greenwood.

“Bryer wanted to give it a go,” said Mathis. “But just could not do so on that ankle.”

McDonald, a junior, had rushed for 1,479 yards and 28 TDs on the season.

Matlock, a UTEP signee, had a team-high seven catches for 79 yards in the loss.

Mathis was 54-12 at Brock entering this state semifinal matchup. The Eagles were state runners-up in 2021 and 2022, then state semifinalists in 2023 while in 3A Division I before moving up to 4A Division II last season, where it fell to Carthage in the state semifinal.

Brock won its lone state title in 2015. Making the postseason for the 11th time, Brock was seeking its fifth state title game appearance since the program began in 2014, and has won 11 or more games each season. It did play a freelance schedule in 2012 and 2013 before officially beginning gridiron play.

Carthage, which won its 30th consecutive game, was led by Edwards, who finished with 187 rushing yards on 13 carries, with most of his damage coming in the first half; the Aggie signee’s lone carry in the second half was his 11-yard TD run. He also chipped in with two catches for 45 yards.

Jett Surratt, son of the head coach Scott Surratt, had 188 passing yards, completing 13 of 23 passes without an interception, and the three TDs. Jett became the program’s all-time leader in passing TDs earlier this season in a 61-56 win over Athens.

Henderson, a Mississippi State signee, had 63 receiving yards on four grabs and a pair of scores.

Top-ranked Carthage will play for its second straight state title, and 11th championship overall, against West Orange-Stark (12-3) at 3 p.m. Friday at AT&T Stadium.

This story was originally published December 13, 2025 at 12:55 AM.