LA MARQUE — Just two weeks into the season, La Marque’s message is clear — the Cougars are out for revenge this season.
After suffering a beat down at the hands of archrival Ball High last season, the Cougars pounded the Tornadoes, 26-0, on Friday night at Etheredge Stadium.
It was the second straight shutout for La Marque, with both wins avenging losses from last season. Sophomore running back Tim Wright, who scored a pair of touchdowns against Ball, said La Marque still has plenty of work to do to make up for last year’s 3-6 record.
“It’s revenge this whole year for us,” Wright said. “We are out to show that last year was a fluke. We’re back, and we can’t be touched.”
La Marque (2-0) certainly showed what it is capable of, especially in the second half. After scoring just six points in the first 24 minutes, the Cougars scored on their first three drives of the second half to put the game away.
La Marque head coach Darrell Jordan said it was all about adjustments at halftime.
“They were doing some different stuff on defense that we weren’t expecting in that first half,” Jordan said. “So we went in and made some adjustments at halftime. Once we did that, we were fine.”
The Cougars’ lone first half touchdown came on a 42-yard run by Wright on their first possession of the game. The extra point was blocked, giving La Marque a 6-0 lead.
Aside from that big play, Ball’s defense was strong in the first half. It allowed just 144 yards and five first downs.
However, the Tors offense never could get going. It managed just 120 yards in the game and seven first downs. Quarterback Rodney Artmore also threw three interceptions — two picks by Darian Batiste and one by Destin Sarpy.
La Marque’s defensive performance was especially impressive since starting defensive tackle Elijah Pleasant was knocked out of the game on the second play.
“Our defense is setting the tone for us,” Wright said. “We want to start the game on defense, because those guys really get us going.”
Ball coach David Suggs, making his debut with the Tors, said the lack of a consistent offensive threat resulted in the defense wearing down in the second half.
“I was real pleased with what our defense did in the first half,” Suggs said. “I wanted to get going offensively to keep our defense off the field, but they were out there for so long, that it really hurt them later in the game.”
La Marque’s second half offensive explosive was mostly the result of its ground game. Wright (89 yards) and L’Reco Williams (81 yards) led an 83-yard run capped off by a 1-yard run by quarterback Emanuell Williams.
Wright scored his second touchdown of the night on a 7-yard run on the Cougars’ next possession, and Emanuell Williams scored again on a 3-yard run early in the fourth quarter to seal the victory.
Emanuell Williams finished the night 9-for-18 passing for 193 yards and added 49 yards on the ground. Wright led the Cougars with 81 yards receiving, while Brian Allen added 64 through the air.
Jordan received the game ball after the victory and said the importance of the win was obvious just looking up at the La Marque crowd.
“This was big for our football team and big for the community,” Jordan said. “You only have to turn around and see everyone up in the stands to know how much this meant to everyone in La Marque.”
Ball (0-1) returns to Galveston on Friday for the first time since Hurricane Ike struck the island. The Tors play host to Beaumont Central.
“We are going to keep our heads up high, and we won’t be negative after this game,” Suggs said. “We’ve got some things to work on, and those showed up tonight. But we are going to get it together and continue to improve.”
La Marque is off next week before it travels to Galena Park North Shore on Sept. 18. Jordan said the Cougars won’t settle for starting the season 2-0.
“We aren’t satisfied with this,” Jordan said. “We can’t be. These wins are all building toward the second season (district play). That’s when they become really important.”
