No. 6 Brenham takes first loss at Waco University

WACO — No. 6 Brenham went to Waco ISD Stadium on Friday in search of a Halloween treat.

Instead, the Cubs wound up with a season-changing scare.

A 42-14 loss at the hands of Waco University ended Brenham’s perfect season and dashed the Cubs’ hopes of a District 10-5A-II championship.

Brenham (8-1, 3-1 district) allowed its highest point total of the season as it struggled to stop big passing plays throughout the night. University (6-3, 4-0 district) threw for 354 yards and four touchdowns, including two passing scores in each half.

“We had some chances early on contested balls,” said Brenham head coach Danny Youngs. “That first one up the middle, we were in cover three, we just did not make a play and they did; you got to give it to them.”

University senior wide receiver London Smith made most of the Trojans’ big-play opportunities. He caught 10 passes for 166 yards and three TDs.

Smith evaded the Brenham defense for University’s first passing score. After Trojan running back Darrius Thomas ran the ball for the game’s first touchdown, Smith earned a 10-yard TD reception to give University a 14-0 lead with two minutes left in the first quarter.

Trojan senior tight end Justin Neal powered his way to a 20-yard reception earlier in the drive by muscling his way nearly 15 yards after the catch through a Cub tackle attempt.

Smith later eluded the Brenham defense in a one-on-one situation down the left sideline for a 24-yard TD reception in the second quarter.

Brenham’s defense forced two punts at the end of the first half, however, Youngs said his team got into too big of a hole early while the Trojans “rode the momentum.”

With 4:26 left in the third quarter, Smith continued University’s surge with a 60-yard touchdown grab on a deep toss over the middle against two Brenham defenders in coverage.

His touchdown was University's second passing touchdown of the quarter after senior wide receiver Jimare Thomas outran Brenham’s secondary down the sideline just over three minutes earlier.

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Thomas put Waco University ahead 28-0, but Brenham answered his third-quarter score with a touchdown reception from senior wide receiver Chris Guidry. He trotted more than 25 yards after the catch for a 45-yard TD after coming back to the ball and then using his speed to escape multiple University defenders.

Guidry passed 1,000 receiving yards for the year after his 13-catch, 192-yard performance. He also threw a 17-yard touchdown to sophomore receiver Nate Rau in the fourth quarter to cap an eight-play drive right after Smith’s third-quarter score for University.

“Like Chris will tell you, it is a team game, and you know they come out here to win,” Youngs said. “All of that other stuff will take care of itself, but we are really proud of Chris.”

Brenham’s offense struggled prior to Guidry’s receiving and passing touchdowns, particularly in the first half. The Cubs turned the ball over on downs twice in the 24 minutes and gained just 97 yards.

“We got to do a better job and that is on me,” Youngs said. “We got to execute when it matters the most and we will learn from this.”

Guidry caught 11 of his 13 receptions in the second half. Senior quarterback Xyran Upshaw completed 15 of his 25 second-half passes and 209 yards after only completing three of seven attempts in the first.

Rau’s touchdown reception was his second catch of the night. He earned 46 total receiving yards. Sophomore running back CJ Glover caught two passes for 39 yards.

“We did what we had to do and had to take advantage of what they were giving us,” Youngs said. “They were doing a good job against the run game. You had to look at your athletes to try and get the ball spread around.”

Glover ran for 42 yards on 16 carries. Upshaw amassed 45 yards on 15 touches while senior wide receiver Cartelle Brown collected three yards on three attempts.

Youngs believes his team will respond well next week when Brenham returns home for the final game of the regular season against Belton on Friday, Nov. 7, at Cub Stadium. Brenham and Belton will battle for the second playoff seed out of District 10-5A-II.

“They got to put this behind them,” Youngs said. “It is going to hurt for a while, but you got to get over it and move on. We got to get ready for Belton next week.”