In a battle between two prolific offenses, something had to give.
In the end, it was El Paso Eastwood that would survive with under a minute to go.
With Odessa High and Eastwood both tied at 49, it was Eastwood running back Nathanael Chavira’s go-ahead touchdown run of 33-yards with eight seconds remaining that ended up giving the Troopers the 56-49 victory nondistrict victory Friday at Ratliff Stadium.
“I had an offensive coordinator that was yelling at me to call a timeout so I think it all worked out,” Eastwood head coach Julio Lopez said of his team’s game-winning drive. “I really credit it to the coaching staff. We work on the two-minute drill every day in practice. I got to give credit to our staff. They did a great job of making adjustments at halftime and we came out better in the second half.”
Eastwood would improve to 2-1 while Odessa High fell to 1-1.
“They have a great squad,” Lopez said. “If you look at what they’ve done in the last couple of years, this is the type of game that they’ve played. You know when you come to Ratliff and play them, you’re going to have to outscore them. I’m proud of our defense. We got some stops. We didn’t play great all the time but Mikey Cota is dynamic and OHS has great receivers.”
Odessa High, which was coming off a 50-39 win against L.D. Bell last week on the road, picked up where it left off on offense.
The Bronchos’ offense put up 579 total yards while Eastwood had 637.
Odessa High quarterback Mikey Cota went 18-of-25 attempts for 324 passing yards and threw four touchdowns.
While wide receiver Santiago Medrano had seven receptions for 146 yards and two touchdowns.
OHS wide receiver Kobi Baldonado had seven receptions for 136 yards while running back Jorge Valdez had 12 rushes for 124 yards.
Eastwood quarterback Joseph Cox went 23-of-33 for 356 passing yards and a touchdown and one interception.
Wide receiver Favian Penaloza had 10 receptions for 169 yards while Jayden Martinez had 26 rushes for 216 yards and two touchdowns.
“I want our kids to keep their heads up,” Odessa High head coach Erik Hartman said. “We’ll get better.”
The Troopers’ offense began the game on a promising drive, moving inside the Odessa High 20.
However, Eastwood would cough up possession as Odessa High linebacker Dominic Taylor recovered the ball.
OHS made Eastwood pay as the Bronchos wasted no time in finding the end zone, scoring on their first possession on a seven-yard pass to Andrew Rodriguez and Joseluis Zubia’s extra point attempt was good, giving the hosts a 7-0 lead with 7:12 left in the first quarter.
The Troopers quickly drove down the field on their next drive, going 70 yards on five plays and scoring on a one-yard run by running back Jayden Martinez. Derek Messer’s PAT tied the game up with 6:06 remaining.
After forcing the Bronchos to punt, the Troopers’ offense continued to drive into OHS territory, scoring again on a 2-yard run by running back Nathanael Chavira to give the Troopers a 14-7 lead with 2:17 left.
A 38-yard pass completion to Odessa High wide receiver Aramis Rodriguez brought the Bronchos to the Eastwood 12.
A few plays later, Cota scored on an eight-yard run with nine seconds left and the game was tied 14-14 heading into the second quarter.
Another Eastwood fumble was recovered by the Bronchos early in the second quarter.
A 46-yard reception by Baldonado brought Odessa High to the Eastwood 11 yard line.
A few plays later, Cota hooked up with Baldonado, again, this time on a three-yard touchdown pass and Odessa High regained the lead at 21-14 with 8:34 left.
Eastwood responded with a 48-yard touchdown pass to Martinez to tie the game back up with 8:21 remaining.
An interception by the Bronchos late in the quarter gave them a final chance at the end zone before the half and OHS wouldn’t disappoint as Cota hooked up with Medrano for a 46-yard touchdown pass to give the Bronchos a 28-21 lead with just 13 seconds before the break.
Coming out of the locker room, Eastwood didn’t take long to respond, scoring on a quarterback keeper by Cox for a 3-yard run and tying things back up with 8:12 left in the third quarter.
OHS answered back with a 13-yard touchdown pass to Andrew Rodriguez to regain the lead 35-28 with 7:02 on the clock.
Consecutive touchdown runs by Chavira late in the quarter gave the Troopers a 42-35 lead heading into the fourth.
A turnover on downs by the Troopers gave the Bronchos possession on the Eastwood 46 with 8:27 left in regulation.
Cota completed an 11-yard touchdown pass to Medrano to help tie the game up at 42-42 with 7:44 left.
Eastwood jumped back in front on a 40-yard touchdown run by Jayden Martinez with 3:50 remaining.
Odessa High’s Baldonado’s 23-yard touchdown reception from Rodriguez tied the game up at 49 with 2:07 left.
It would be just enough time for Eastwood to get one more touchdown and avoid overtime.
Eastwood will next be at home against El Dorado at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 20.
The Bronchos will be back at home next week when they face Lubbock Monterey at 7 p.m. Sept. 19 at Ratliff Stadium.
