By Chris Moore
Published 7:41 pm Thursday, November 8, 2018
PORT NECHES — As Port Neches-Groves Indians’ head coach Brandon Faircloth broke the huddle after Thursday’s practice, it was clear his team had one mission heading into the Bum Phillips Bowl against the Nederland Bulldogs.
| Nederland (9-0, 6-0) at PNG (6-3, 5-1) • Bum Phillips Bowl (12-5A-II football); 7:30 p.m. Friday, The Reservation; KLVI-AM 560/KCOL-FM 92.5 |
“We’re going to break the huddle the same way we are going to break the huddle after the game (Friday),” he said to his team. “One. Two. Three. District Champs.”
If the Indians (6-3, 5-1 in District 12-5A Division II) win, PNG will earn a share of the district title and the No. 1 seed in the playoffs. The Bulldogs (9-0, 6-0 in 12-5A-II) have already clinched a share of the district title and will win it outright with a victory Friday.
“We’ve had a great energy this week,” Faircloth said. “We’re looking forward to it. We’ll both be in the playoffs next week, but this week is Mid-County Madness. That’s all we’re focused on.”
The Indians had to overcome early injuries to quarterback Roschon Johnson, running back Gavin Deslatte and offensive tackle offensive tackle Jaylen Garth along with having to forfeit a win over Crosby.
“Our guys have been able to bounce back,” Faircloth said. “It’s a testament to them and our coaches. They just know how to focus and keep the main thing the main thing. They’ve done a great job. Every team has adversity. I tell them every day how they inspire me with how much they’ve had to overcome.”
Senior linebacker David Minter said this game is something that children dream about being a part of.
“This game has always been the big one,” he said. “This is the one that everyone wants to be in. It always gets real heated this time of year. I’ve been growing up, seeing each grade progress through and seeing how each person handles it. I just want to be a person that handles it with honor, pride and tradition so that little kids can look up to us and see what they are supposed to be.”
Johnson said he tries not to get too caught up in the pageantry around the game.
“There’s a lot of hype around (the game),” he said. “Inside the practices and meetings, it’s not anything extra. Just taking it a game at a time. That’s how you have to treat. If you make it too big, it’ll affect you.”
While Johnson prepares for Nederland the same way he has for any other opponent he has faced this year, the Texas commit said stepping on the field is a different story.
“The atmosphere is always going to affect the feeling of a game,” he said. “Coming out here, there is going to be a lot of fans on both sides. It will affect it a lot.”
Last year’s game ended with Nederland successfully executing a two-point conversion to give the Bulldogs a 36-35 win and hand the Indians their only loss on the season.
Johnson said he mainly wants to focus on this year, but admits thoughts creep in his mind.
“It’s always natural to have revenge in the back of your head,” he said.
Johnson and the PNG offense will have their work cut out for them going up against the district’s top-ranked defense in the Bulldogs. PNG brings in the second-ranked offense. Johnson is the district’s fourth leading rusher and could go over 1,000 yards on the season with 35 yards Friday. Johnson has 33 total touchdowns and 2,618 total yards, completing 69 percent of his passes.
This will be Johnson’s final Mid-County Madness and he said he wants to make it special.
“It’s a great game,” Johnson said. “Not many people get to play in these types of games. With this being my last year, I just want to make it memorable.”
The winner between Fort Bend Willowridge and Houston Sterling will play whoever loses the Bum Phillips Bowl.
This year, both the No. 1 and No. 2 seed will host a playoff game at their home field, which means, regardless of the outcome, Nederland and Port Neches-Groves will host a game in the first round of the playoffs.
