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| MESQUITE - Longview's football team was into making copies on Friday, mainly duplicates of interceptions. The Lobos would need all of them.
Longview picked off North Mesquite quarterback Derek Wooten five times, the last an interception by Sherman Rosborough with 1:38 remaining to clinch a 35-28 Lobo victory before 4,000 spectators. The interceptions helped Longview (4-2, 1-0) get an early jump on District 12-5A play. Wooten had thrown three interceptions all season coming into Friday, but Longview's Cody Morrow got two picks and linebacker Antajuan Guinn returned an interception 33 yards on the first play of the second half for a touchdown. "We sort of anticipated what he (Wooten) would throw and the secondary played good," Morrow said. "We studied what he would do through the week." Longview built a 27-7 lead, which included third-quarter touchdown passes of 31 and 34 yards from D'Marcus Miles to Travrus Brown sandwiched by a Morrow interception. But that lead didn't hold as North Mesquite (4-2, 0-1) rallied, starting with a 47-yard touchdown pass from Wooten to Shay Bovie with 4:25 remaining in the third quarter. Wooten also had a 1-yard touchdown run with 9:35 remaining, but the catalyst of North Mesquite's rally was running back Chris Spratt. Replacing starter LaRon Elmer, who had an ankle injury, Spratt rushed for 124 yards in the second half, including touchdown runs of 7 and 38 yards His second with 4:58 remaining gave North Mesquite a 28-27 lead. But Miles calmly and quickly marched Longview 72 yards on its next drive, and took care of business himself with a 32-yard touchdown run with 3:01 remaining. Miles accounted for 190 total yards of offense and four touchdowns. "The last touchdown run was planned. Their defense was keying on Mark Johnson," Miles said. "At the beginning of the last drive, I just told the o-line to hold up and so the backs can do what we do." Longview's red-zone offense had trouble taking advantage of the presents its defense gave them in the first half. Morrow intercepted a Wooten pass at the North Mesquite 24-yard line with 5:54 left in the first quarter, but Longview's ensuing drive stalled and a 34-yard field-goal attempt by Zach Decker was wide right. Decker also missed an extra point after Brown's second touchdown. Longview got the ball at the North Mesquite 16-yard line with 3:01 left in the first quarter when Lobo linebacker Ricardo Buchanan forced a fumble by Daymond Patterson, recovered by Jon Writt. Three plays later, however, Moon was stripped of the ball and North Mesquite defensive lineman Robert Bass recovered the fumble. Longview finally broke through after an interception by Chris Lacy with 9:29 left in the first half at the North Mesquite 46-yard line. Miles took care on the ensuing drive himself with a 38-yard option run to set up a 2-yard option run for a touchdown with 8:03 left in the first half, giving Longview a 7-0 halftime lead. Miles finished with 63 yards rushing, second on the team to 72 for Moon. Longview's defense was stellar in the first half, holding North Mesquite to 59 total yards and two first downs with three tackles for losses, including a sack by Phillip Rudd. "It was just too sloppy early for us," North Mesquite coach Steve Bragg said. "Wooten had a rough game, and I think their pass rush had something to do with that." Elmer rushed for 95 yards before his injury, while Wooten had 93 yards passing and 77 yards rushing. Longview plays Tyler Lee next Friday at Trinity Mother Frances Rose Stadium in Tyler. |