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Walt Clifton

BIG COUNTRY PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Walt Clifton, QB/LB, Sr., Goldthwaite -- Two weeks removed from a disappointing loss at Merkel, Clifton played a key role in Goldthwaite's eye-popping 75-42 district-opening win over Evant.

Clifton, who hit 10 of 18 passes for 240 yards and three scores, also rushed 10 times for 96 yards and two more touchdowns to help push the Eagles to 5-1 on the year.

Of course, two-way players are the norm at the Class A level and Clifton is no exception.

Manning one of Goldthwaite's linebacker spots, he notched four unassisted tackles, six assisted stops, two tackles for loss and a sack.

"He didn't have a real good game out there against Merkel," Goldthwaite coach Gary Profitt said. "So I think he was ready to get back on track and he had an outstanding game throwing the football and running it."

So did Goldthwaite as a whole, with 618 yards in total offense, including 378 on the ground.

"After the Merkel game I had to do better against the next team," said Clifton, who benefitted from a bye week before the Evant game. "I did a lot of extra work to make sure my passes were going where I wanted and that everyone was running the right routes."

The Eagles will face Chilton (3-3) and Valley Mills (0-6) next, before a crucial matchup at Bosqueville (5-1) on Halloween.

Big country top 10

Jarred Moylan, QB, Jr., Eastland -- Led an Eastland offensive explosion with 344 yards passing and six touchdowns in a 63-34 win over Hawley.

Moylan hit 28 of 44 passes with just one pick in a game that was nothing short of nutty.

A combined 77 points were scored by the break and all 97 points had been tallied by the end of the third quarter.

Eastland moved to 5-1 with the win in its district opener; Hawley dropped to 1-5.

Josh Arispe, SB/LB, Soph., Novice -- Rushed nine times for 230 yards and three scores in a 73-24 six-man win over Trent, but that's just the beginning.

Arispe also hit two of four passes for 58 yards and one score, he returned a fumble 50 yards for a touchdown, an interception 75 yards for a score and a kickoff 70 yards for another score. His final tally: 483 total yards and seven touchdowns, which are hefty totals, even in six-man.

Arispe, who now has 1,124 yards rushing on the year, also found the time -- and the energy -- to record five tackles against Trent.

Kenneth Turner, RB/C, Sr., Snyder -- I thought Will Clay graduated.

Actually, the former Snyder standout running back has received his diploma and has moved on to Sam Houston State. But the numbers Turner posted on Saturday bring Clay immediately to mind.

Helping Snyder to a 30-26 win over Graham, Turner produced 205 yards rushing on 20 carries, including touchdown runs of 35 and 56 yards.

Jacob Gonzales, QB, Sr., Clyde -- Rushed 12 times for 107 yards and two scores while hitting 12-of-18 passes for 194 yards and another touchdown in Clyde's 49-14 win over Merkel.

Gonzales has always run well, but has added a consistent passing element to his game, which is now drawing comparisons to Cisco's Josh Bridges (see below).

William Tafte, WR, SR., Eastland -- Was nearly unstoppable in Eastland's 63-34 win over Hawley, catching six passes for 148 yards and four touchdowns.

Two of Tafte's scores came during Eastland's 29-point second period, which saw the Mavericks rally from a 28-20 deficit to win the Big Country Game of the Week.

Glen Edington, RB/OLB, Sr., Coleman -- Helped the Bluecats move to 6-0 with 112 yards rushing in a 46-7 win over Dublin.

Edington, who added a 65-yard touchdown run, also caught one pass for 12 yards and tallied six tackles and two quarterback hurries from his linebacker spot.

The win sets the stage for this week's showdown with a surprisingly good team from Bangs (5-2), which has a piece of the district lead at 2-0.

Jonathon Williams, RB/DB, Soph., Goldthwaite -- Carried the football 14 times in a 75-42 district-opening win over Evant, producing 198 yards and four touchdowns.

Williams also caught four passes for 84 yards and another score for Goldthwaite, which scored on 11 of 11 possessions to improve to 5-1.

Robert Hare, RB, Sr., Albany -- Rushed only 12 times in Albany's 77-0 rout of Miles, but still produced 156 yards and five scores.

For those of you who haven't seen Hare play, this 210-pounder is an absolute load and a key element in Albany's 6-0 start.

Josh Bridges, QB/DB, Sr., Cisco -- Hit 13 of 15 passes for 244 yards and two scores in top-ranked Cisco's 37-0 win over Anson on Friday.

He also rushed five times for 33 yards to help the Loboes take their district opener and improve to 6-0 overall. The win sets up a showdown with Clyde (5-1, 1-0) on the road this week.

Jonathon Stiles, RB/LB, Sr., Jayton -- Came up huge in Jayton's 66-53 six-man win over Benjamin, rushing 29 times for 329 yards and six touchdowns.

Stiles also collected 12 tackles, an interception and a forced fumble to help the Jaybirds improve to 5-1.

honorable mention

Brad Picha, QB, Sr, Stephenville (254 yards passing, two touchdowns vs. Joshua); Tyler Rodriguez, WR/TB/DB, Jr., Haskell (150 all-purpose yards, two scores vs. Stamford); Jonathan Martinez, TB/LB, Sr., Haskell (seven tackles, five solos, one forced fumble, one pick vs. Stamford); Devin Rowland, DB/W, Jr., Bangs (six tackles, two interceptions, 30-yard reception vs. Comanche); Jarred Briley, C/LB, Soph., Novice (recorded 20 tackles vs. Trent); Jorge Ojeda, RB/DB, Sr., Eastland (12 tackles, one sack, one fumble recovery, 67 yards rushing, five PATs vs. Hawley); Braden Mikeska, WR/DB, Jr., Winters (three catches for 110 yards, two scores, five tackles vs. Cross Plains); Shade Roemisch, QB/FS, Soph., Snyder (six tackles, one deflected pass vs. Graham); Alex Hernandez, SE/LB, Jr., Snyder (three tackles, one for loss, one interception vs. Graham); Landon Liles, TE/FS, Soph., Clyde (14 tackles, two receptions for 68 yards vs. Merkel); Cory Pippen, WR/DB, Sr, Cisco (four catches, 118 yards, one score vs. Anson); Blake Galyean, WR, Sr., Eastland (13 catches, 133 yards, one score vs. Hawley); Caleb Harrison, QB/LB, Sr., Jayton (13 tackles, returned pick 65 yards for a score vs. Benjamin); Deshawn Johnson, RB, Soph, Bangs (141 yards rushing, three scores vs. Comanche); James Decker, E/NG, Sr., Jayton (10 tackles, 27-yard reception vs. Benjamin); Garrett Chapman, DT, Sr., Ballinger (12 tackles, one sack, one forced fumble, one interception); Eli Brown, LB, Sr., Albany (11 tackles, two tackles for loss, one forced fumble, one sack vs Miles); Trey Underwood, WR/LB, Sr., Albany (seven tackles, one sack, two fumble recoveries vs. Miles); Bradley Lee, QB/DB, Sr., Bangs (171 yards rushing, two scores vs. Comanche); Christian Myers, QB/FS, Sr., Haskell (138 yards rushing, two scores, 7.5 tackles vs. Stamford); A.J. Benton, OL/DL, Jr., Haskell (graded at 83 percent offensively, had eight tackles defensively vs. Stamford); Brad Mills, RB, Sr., Stephenville (155 yards rushing vs. Joshua).

-- Evan Ren

To be considered for Big Country Player of the Week, athletes must be nominated by their coaching staffs. Coaches are invited to submit nominations for all varsity sports to Evan Ren via e-mail at rene@reporternews.com, or via telephone at (325) 676-6711. Deadline for nominations is noon each Monday.

Big Country Player of the Week recognizes players outside the Abilene city limits who are within the newspaper's circulation area. Players from Abilene High, Cooper, Wylie and ACHS are not eligible.

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