A 40-13 run in the final two quarters gave St. Mary's the edge over Concordia High School (Round Rock) Friday night.
The Rams took the win 81-54 at home on Memorial Field.
A back and fourth first half, had the score knotted at 41 headed into the third quarter. St. Mary’s head coach Rick credits his team's maturity in overcoming the adversity and never giving up.
"That means a lot, the maturity and the leadership these kids have," he said. "They respond, and we can coach them on the run. When we started this program we were teaching PE kids how to play the game. Now we're coaching football players."
Led by Tyler Zimmerhanzel, the Rams took the lead in the second half and never looked back. Cobia said Zimmerhanzel has worked to improve his skills and abilities.
“He has been such a tremendous surprise, and we're so proud of him," Cobia said. "He really put in a lot of work."
After multiple blocked extra point attempts, the Rams looked to Zimmerhanzel to complete a two-point conversion, which began the run for St. Mary's.
Cobia said a few players were held back in the first half, which gave them fresh legs in the second half.
"That helped us a lot," he said.
Fatigue and cramping up hindered the Rams, however they were able to fight through the pain.
"That made the difference. It caused a separation. (Concordia) too, was gassed," he said. "I think in the second half we had a couple of players that had fresh legs and were able to create problems."
The Rams gave up a touchdown in the each of the final quarters, and responded with scores of their own to seal the victory.
"We're going to give up big plays ... that's what six-man football does. High-scoring is not unusual," Cobia said. "We just had to persevere through the cramps, create some separation and then we just took off. I was really proud of them."
The Rams move to 2-0 on the season, and return home next week to face Faith Academy.
