DeMarco Roberts rushed for 266 yards and three touchdowns and he returned a fourth-quarter kickoff 88 yards for another TD that gave Aledo the lead for good in the Bearcats’ 52-48 over Lucas Lovejoy in the 5A Division II Region II Final Friday in Globe Life Park in Arlington.
Caden Anderson also returned a blocked punt 50 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter as Aledo rallied from behind by outscoring Lovejoy 24-10 in the fourth quarter.
Aledo (11-1), the two-time defending state champs, is headed to the state semifinals for the eighth straight season and will play Wichita Falls Rider (11-2), which beat Lubbock-Cooper 21-13 on Friday. The teams will meet in the state semifinals for the second time in three years at 7 p.m. Friday at UNT’s Apogee Stadium in Denton.
Roberts has been on a roll since the start of the playoffs. In four playoff games, the senior running back has rushed for 865 yards and 13 touchdowns.
Roberts got Aledo rolling early in the game. He scored on a 20-yard run to give the Bearcats an early 7-0 lead. After Lovejoy kicked a field goal to cut the lead to 7-3, senior receiver JoJo Earle took a wide receiver screen 50 yards to a touchdown to make it 14-3.
However, Lovejoy outscored Aledo 28-7 over the remainder of the first half to take a 31-21 lead.
After Lovejoy took a 17-14 lead, Roberts had a 37-yard TD run to make it 21-17. However, Lovejoy’s quick strike offense scored twice in the final 3:44 of the first half to take the 10-point lead at half.
Aledo’s defense found ways to make stops in the second half, forcing Lovejoy into three second half punts, while the Bearcats did not punt in the second half.
Defensive tackle Oliver Crow made two huge plays in the fourth quarter. Crow was the player who blocked the punt that Caden Anderson returned for the touchdown. Then, on Lovejoy’s next possession, Crow sacked Lovejoy quarterback RW Rucker to force the Leopards to kick a field goal. Right after Lovejoy kicked the field goal to take a 41-38 lead, Roberts returned the kickoff 88 yards for the TD that gave Aledo the lead for good.
With the kick return, Roberts had 354 all purpose yards in the game.
The Bearcats scored the first five times they touched the ball in the second half, then ran out the clock on their six possession.
Scoring Summary:
First Quarter:
A – DeMarco Roberts 20 run (Clay Murador kick) 7-0
L – Trent Rucker 24-yard field goal 7-3
A – Jo Jo Earle 50 pass from Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi (Clay Murador kick) 14-3
L –Luke Mayfield 15 pass from RW Rucker (Trent Rucker kick) 14-10
Second Quarter:
L – Reid Westervelt 21 pass from RW Rucker (Trent Rucker kick) 17-14
A – Roberts 37 run. (Clay Murador kick) 21-17
L – Luke Mayfield 19 pass from RW Rucker (Trent Rucker kick) 24-21
L – Trent Rucker 2 pass from RW Rucker (Trent Rucker kick) 31-21
Third Quarter:
A – Earle 5 run (Clay Murador kick) 31-28
L – RW Rucker 1 run (Trent Rucker kick) 38-28
Fourth Quarter:
A – Clay Murador 43-yard field goal. 38-31
A – Caden Anderson returns blocked punt 50 yards for a TD (Clay Murador kick) 38-38
L – Trent Rucker 42-yard field goal. 41-38
A – Roberts 88-yard kick return (Clay Murador kick) 45-41
A – Roberts 29 run Clay Murador kick) 52-41
L – Reid Westervelt 39 pass from RW Rucker (Trent Rucker kick) 52-48
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