Everman holds on as big first-half lead evaporates against upstart Burleson

The Everman football team was looking to maintain its position on top of the District 5-5A Division 2 standings while Burleson was just trying to stay in the race for a playoff spot.

The Bulldogs built a 22-point lead at the half, but five second-half turnovers forced Everman to hold on for dear life. Everman escaped with a 28-26 win as Burleson couldn’t convert a two-point conversion pass with 56 seconds left in the game on Thursday night at Burleson ISD Stadium.

“That’s football,” said Everman coach Michael Boone. “If you make mistakes then it’s going to cost you. If you do make mistakes then can you play through them and do what you have to do to get the ultimate goal which is get a win.”

Everman (6-1 overall, 4-0 district) did and remained unbeaten in district play while Burleson (1-6, 1-3) will likely have to win out, including a game in two weeks against Ennis, to reach the playoffs.

“When you win big it’s great, but when you when tight games or games where you’ve had a lot of adversity then you learn more and I think that we learned a lot,” said Boone.

Everman scored on four of its five full possessions in the first half to take a 28-6 lead at intermission.

Burleson lost the ball on downs on its own end of the field twice on its first three possessions. The Elks did score on their second possession to cut the lead to 7-6 when J.T. Kitna threw a dart over the middle hitting Fabian Bosquez who out raced the Everman secondary for a 66-yard TD.

The Elks first possession ended at the Burleson 42,, following an incomplete pass on fourth down, and Everman wasted little time.

Bulldogs’ quarterback Jarion Basped hit receiver Kayden Brooks for 15 yards down to the 23. Three plays later Brooks took an inside reverse 18 yards for the score to give Everman a 7-0 lead with 7:31 left in the first quarter.

Following the Elks score, Errick Mills took the third snap on the ensuing series and rumbled 29 yards down to the Burleson 6. Three plays later Mills darted in from the 2 for a 14-6 lead at the 4:03 mark of the first quarter.

The Elks went for it again on fourth down from their own 45 on their next possession and another incomplete pass turned the ball over to Everman.

Basped scrambled for 20 yards down to the Burleson 22 and two plays later Mills ran it in from the 6 for a 21-6 lead. Mills led Everman with 72 yards rushing on 14 carries.

The one time that Everman was likely to score, the Bulldogs didn’t. Nolan Oliver recovered a fumble by the Elks at the Burleson 11, but an unsportsmanlike penalty pushed the ball back to the 26. The Bulldogs lost the ball on downs themselves at the Burleson 22 as the Elks dodge a bullet.

Everman ended the scoring in the first half when Basped found a wide open Isaiah McMillan for a 53-yard TD. The play made the score 28-6 with 6:27 left in the first half.

“That was actually our first time running that play, not even in practice,” said Basped, who threw for 112 yards completing 6 of 15 passes and added 65 rushing yards on 6 carries. “The corner came down and Isaiah got wide open so I just let it out there and he made a play.

“We started off really good, leading 28-6 at halftime, but things kind of went downhill after that. We came out with a win and that’s all that matters.”

But as good as the first half was for the Bulldogs, the second half was just as bad.

Everman fumbled the opening kickoff of the second half and Burleson’s Kyndall Cassidy recovered it at the Bulldogs’ 27. A facemask penalty moved it to the 14 where Jabari Smith ran it in to cut the lead to 28-12.

The Elks cut it to 28-20 after Jaden Balina-Ayers picked off an Everman pass at the Bulldogs 40. It took nine plays, but Burleson was able to score when Kitna hit Bosquez again, this time from 10 yards out.

Kitna completed 25 of 36 passes for 283 yards. Bosquez was on the receiving end of 11 of the tosses for 156 yards.

Another interception by Burleson’s Michael Bonilla in the end zone thwarted Everman’s next drive. But the Bulldogs’ defense was able to force a punt.

Jess Ackerman’s fumble recovery for the Elks at the Burleson 23 gave the Elks some hope with 7:25 left in the game, but Everman took the ball away on downs at its own 24 with 4:04 left.

Burleson took it right back on the next play when Marcellus Jones fell on a loose ball at the Everman 31. The Elks capitalized this time when Smith ran it in from five yards out with 56 ticks remaining.

Smith led all rushers with 85 yards on 20 carries.

Kitna’s two-point conversion toss to Mason Ferguson was complete, but Ferguson had to step out of the back of the end zone to make the catch.

“We played a team that was really determined,” said Boone of Burleson. “They just came off of their first district win and everybody that’s ahead of them they still have to play so they have a lot to play for. We have to give their kids credit because they came out and played hard and we knew that they would play hard.”