Granbury holds off a huge rally from Cleburne

Granbury 41, Cleburne 34

Granbury held a 32-point lead midway through the third quarter before a furious rally by Cleburne fell short. After recovering an onside kick late, the Pirates attempted to run out the clock but mismanaged the final seconds as Granbury turned the ball over on downs on their own 26-yard line with a second left. Cleburne had one final play to tie it, but Carson Gann’s pass was incomplete as the Pirates held on.

Key players: Granbury senior running back Ty Williams ran over, around and through the Cleburne defense in the first half with 128 rushing yards and three touchdowns. He finished with 141 yards as he was used sparingly in the second half. Cleburne junior receiver Jamari Bradley had seven catches for 239 yards and four touchdowns (three in the fourth quarter).

Key stat: On the way to building a 25-point halftime lead, Granbury recorded 19 first downs in the first half compared to Cleburne’s four as the Pirates dominated enough early on to hold off a comeback attempt by the Jackets. The Pirates racked up 361 first-half yards but only 100 yards in the second half.

Records: Cleburne 0-9, 0-6 9-5A; Granbury 5-4, 2-4.

This story was originally published November 3, 2017 at 11:19 PM with the headline "Granbury holds off a huge rally from Cleburne."