HOLLAND – In a battle of two ranked squads, the Granger Lions football team overcame an early 14-point deficit and eventually rallied to take the lead on the road against Holland High School, but fell 24-21 to the Hornets Friday evening.
Facing a 14-0 deficit late in the first quarter, the Lions drove deep downfield into Holland territory and were threatening to score. A scary moment happened when Lions sophomore running back Caleb Hobratsch was tackled by a swarm of Hornets defenders and suffered a serious leg injury. Following a delay in the game to get Hobratsch proper medical attention, the Lions rallied to the aid of their teammate as Granger got on the board with a two-yard touchdown run by senior running back Isaac Lizardo to get within 14-7 at the end of the first quarter.
“The biggest thing I take away from this is the fight these kids continue to have,” Granger head coach Stephen Brosch said after the game. “They didn’t give up. They kept swinging punch after punch and wouldn’t go away. There is a lot to learn with the miscues, but I’m just super proud of the fight after something terrible like that happened with Caleb.”
Hobratsch had burst onto the scene with scored six touchdowns and over 200 rushing-yards in just his first two games on varsity.
Following another key defensive stop by the Lions’ defense, the offense continued to come to life in the second quarter as Granger again drove into Holland territory behind senior quarterback Chase Edwards. The Lions capped off the drive when Edwards connected for a five-yard touchdown pass to senior running back Jayven Diaz as Granger tied this game up 14-14 midway through the second quarter, a score that held into halftime.
These two physical teams, Granger ranked No. 8 in 2A-2 and Holland No. 16 in 2A-1, continued to go blow-for-blow in the third quarter, but the Hornets took a 17-14 lead on a 30-yard field goal made with 10:02 left in the fourth quarter.
With time winding down in regulation, Granger needed its offense to step up and they did just that as Edwards, Diaz and Lizardo helped the Lions march downfield. With just 59 seconds remaining, Edwards scored on a quarterback sneak to give the Lions their first lead of the game.
Unfortunately, Holland got a big kickoff return and was able to complete a pass down inside the 5-yard line with just 16 seconds remaining and the Hornets scored with just 12 seconds left on a quarterback sneak up the middle to take the lead for good.
Up next, Brosch is going to have his Lions (2-1) ready to host Goldthwaite High School at 7 p.m. next Friday for Military/First Responder Night.
“It’s just the next man up mentality,” Brosch said. “Just the grit that they showed right there was phenomenal. It’s just fixing the things that we self-inflict on ourselves.”
