College Park Football Opens 13-6A With Win Over Grand Oaks

SHENANDOAH, TX — The Grand Oaks football team stayed within striking distance of the defending District 13-6A champions, but College Park surged in the second half to begin its title defense on the right foot.

The Cavaliers scored 28 points in the second-half to beat the Grizzlies 35-21 in both teams’ district opener Friday at Woodforest Bank Stadium.

“We had to make adjustments to [Grand Oaks’] three-man front,” College Park head coach Lonnie Madison said. “Our coaches did that and relayed it to the kids. They did a great job, scored 28 points in the second half and came out with a win.”

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College Park senior quarterback Ty Buckmon had a hand in all five of the Cavaliers’ touchdowns, throwing three and rushing for two. He completed 6 of 8 passes for 123 yards and two touchdowns in the second half, and had a pair of quarterback sneaks for short touchdowns to put the game away in the fourth quarter.

It was the passing attack that helped the Cavaliers (5-1, 1-0) grab the lead after entering halftime tied at 7.

After a 9-yard punt from Grand Oaks (5-1, 0-1) led to excellent field position at the Grizzlies’ 26-yard line, Buckmon capped off the short drive with a 5-yard touchdown throw to Conner Dunphy on a rollout to the left.

Grand Oaks quickly tied the game again with an 89-yard drive in under four minutes, capped by a 2-yard touchdown run from junior Brandon High, his second rushing score of the game, with 3:48 left in the third quarter. High rushed for 130 yards on 22 carries.

The Cavaliers took the lead for good 40 seconds later when Buckmon found senior tight end Cody Mladenka over the middle for a 41-yard touchdown. Mladenka caught the ball over the defender near the 15-yard line and bounced off a tackle before taking it into the end zone for his second long touchdown reception of the game. Buckmon completed 3 of 4 passes for 74 yards on the drive and finished the game with 241 yards on 12-of-17 passing. Mladenka had three catches for 140 yards.

After forcing another three-and-out, College Park extended the lead to 28-14 on a 3-yard quarterback sneak from Buckmon with 11:28 left in the game.

A 34-yard touchdown pass from Grand Oaks quarterback Jacob Smith to senior Sean Zver running a wheel route out of the backfield brought the Grizzlies to within 28-21. Grand Oaks then forced a punt to earn a chance to tie the game starting at its own 9-yard line with 5:15 left.

College Park junior defensive back Meritt Martinez intercepted Smith on third down, though, and Buckmon capped a short drive with another touchdown plunge to put the game away with just over a minute left.

“I’m really proud of Meritt,” Madison said. “When you play a team like Grand Oaks, it takes a lot of eye discipline for all the different things they do. Early in the game, we had some issues with eye discipline. He stepped up at the end … to finish off the game.”

Grand Oaks is seeking its first playoff appearance after just missing out last year via a tiebreaker in its inaugural season. It’s a goal Grizzlies head coach Mike Jackson believes is within his team’s grasp, even after a hard-fought loss in which Grand Oaks outgained College Park 423-249. Smith rushed for 65 yards on 10 carries, and threw for 157 yards on 8-of-17 passing with a pair of costly interceptions. Zver had 3 catches for 105 yards and added 52 rushing yards on 12 carries.

“It’s hard. They’re a good football team, and they’re defending district champions for a reason,” Jackson said. “We feel like we’re coming. We’ve just got to keep tapping on that rock, and eventually it’ll crack. We’re right on schedule.”

Big pass plays helped each team to a first-quarter touchdown.

After Grand Oaks missed a 39-yard field goal late in the quarter, Buckmon found tight end Cody Mladenka up the seam on the second play of the drive. Mladenka got into wide open space in the middle of the field and outran the defense for an 87-yard touchdown to give the Cavaliers a 7-0 lead with 4:42 left in the first.

It didn’t take long for Grand Oaks to answer as the Grizzlies went 66 yards on seven plays in just over three minutes. Smith hit a wide-open Sean Zver on a wheel route out of the backfield for a 44-yard gain to the College Park 12-yard line. Running back Brandon High punched it in two plays later for a 5-yard touchdown run to tie the game.

Grand Oaks held the ball for nine of the final 10 minutes of the half — broken up by a College Park three-and-out following an interception from Cavaliers’ defensive back Lamond Payne — but the Grizzlies couldn’t put points on the board.

Grand Oaks marched to the College Park 40 with under two minutes left, but the Cavaliers stood tall with a 12-yard sack of Smith on the last play of the half.

Grand Oaks will be back in Woodforest Bank Stadium next week to play Conroe at 7 p.m. Thursday. College Park will host Willis at 7 p.m. Friday at Moorhead Stadium.