By Gabriel Pruett|PANews.com Published 12:12 am Friday, October 2, 2015
PORT NECHES — Brandon Faircloth admitted to something it is hard to imagine he has told many sports reporters in the past.
Last Friday night, Faircloth was relaxed and calm while watching two football teams play a game.
His Indians defeated Baytown Lee 45-10 the night before, so Faircloth was out scouting and soaking in the sights and sounds of Southeast Texas high school football.
“Defense went to Nederland versus Vidor and offense went to Goose Creek and Central,” Faircloth said. “I love watching other teams. It is stress-free. I love football. I am a football fan.
“It is a great feeling to know a decision I am going to make is not going to impact this game. I am relaxed. I really enjoy the game. Goose Creek and Central had a great game. We had already won, so it was a nice night to go watch football and have an extra day of rest.”
Starting the District 22-5A schedule 1-0 was certainly a lot better than the alternative for Faircloth and the Port Neches-Groves Indians.
Now, it is a new week and a new challenge. The Indians entertain the Goose Creek Memorial Patriots at 7 p.m. at The Reservation.
PN-G expects Goose Creek Memorial’s best game after the Patriots fell 35-21 to the Beaumont Central Jaguars to open district play. The Indians defeated the Baytown Lee Ganders, 45-10.
“We get everybody’s best game,” Faircloth said. “We will get their best. We have to make sure are at our best. We have to prepare the right way.”
Goose Creek brings in 22-5A’s lowest ranked offense that averages 293.5 yards per game, and the Patriots will face the district’s No. 1 ranked defense in PN-G. The Indians give up an average of 201 yards a game.
“They are talented on both offense and defense,” Faircloth said. “They have two quarterbacks who are both really good. They both bring something different to the table.”
Deandre Herman is the running quarterback. He has 168 yards rushing on 15 carries with three touchdowns. Herman has thrown for 120 yards and two scores and one interception.
Hunter Hamm is the pocket passer with 429 yards on 37-of-65 passing with four interceptions and one touchdown.
“They do have a great rushing attack,” Faircloth said of the Patriots. “Just like everyone else in our district, they have really good players and coaches. They are a solid team in our district.”
Running back Stephen Adams leads Goose Creek with 299 yards on the ground on 60 totes with three touchdowns.
One thing Faircloth has told his players this week is to forget what happened with his team and the Patriots in previous games.
“You can’t look at last week in our district,” Faircloth added. “Every week is a new week. I don’t put any stock in the week before. You never get the same team. Everyone seems to play better the following week. They will have a game plan when they come into The Reservation.”
Last week the Indians were a perfect example of taking what the defense gave them against Baytown Lee.
PN-G is known best for its talented passing attack under the careful watch of quarterback Adam Morse and pass catchers Jack Giblin and Caisen Sullivan.
So when the Ganders dropped three safeties back in coverage, the Indians decided to run the football.
PN-G rushed for 259 yards on 39 carries against Baytown Lee.
“Lee was giving us the run,” Faircloth said. “We try to be flexible enough to change. Kody (Cropper), Jace (Runnels) and our offensive line did a really good job and I am proud of them for making the adjustment on the fly.
“Our line, like almost every school’s line, is a work in progress. As you play the season, the line gets better. It was a good week for them after having a good week against Tyler Chapel Hill.”
There was only one, just one, problem Faircloth admitted he still held onto after the game against the Ganders.
“We still had a turnover,” Faircloth said. “It was only one but that is one more than I want to see.”
GCM—PN-G MATCHUP
Offense
• GCM: 293.5 yards per game (156.2 rushing, 137.2 passing); leaders Stephen Adams (senior RB, 299 yards on 60 carries and 3 touchdowns) and Myles Duke (senior WR, 247 yards on 17 receptions with 2 touchdowns)
• PN-G: 468.5 yards per game (202.5 rushing, 266 passing); leaders Adam Morse (senior QB, 1,064 yards on 80-of-119 passing with 12 touchdowns and 2 interceptions), Kody Cropper (senior RB, 422 yards on 61 carries with 3 touchdowns) and Jack Giblin (senior WR, 296 yards on 22 receptions with three touchdowns)
Defense
• GCM: 324.8 ypg allowed (237 rushing, 87.7 passing)
• PN-G: 201 ypg allowed (109.7 rushing, 91.2 passing)
Sound bytes
• GCM coach Bret Boyd: “PN-G is definitely a good football team. I have not seen a weakness in them. We are going to have to play a very mistake-free football game. That is really it. If you take away the run, they will throw it. If you take away the pass, they have shown they can run the ball. We started 0-2 last year and I would rather not do that again. We made some mistakes last week and [Beaumont] Central took advantage of them. This is a big ball game for us. If we are going to become a recognized program, this is the type of team we need to beat. I hope we show up ready to play. Anything can happen on a Friday night.”
• PN-G coach Brandon Faircloth: “It seems at PN-G there is always something going on each Friday night, so homecoming this week should not be a distraction. There are a lot of things that go on during the year. The pageantry of PN-G football is at every home game. The good thing about homecoming is it really doesn’t affect us at all on the football side of things. It is tough to win games in this district. You get one you have to be proud of it. Typically four to five wins will get you in the playoffs so everyone is fighting to get to that number. It is a tough district so you have to worry about yourself and make sure you are ready to play every game.”
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