The Rangers (5-3, 3-2) scored less than a minute into the game on a 38-yard pass from sophomore quarterback EJ Ezar to junior wide receiver Keithron Lee, but the Indians (0-8, 0-5) ended Rudder’s next two drives with interceptions, one of them leading to an easy touchdown.
Trace Owen’s interception set up Cleveland at the Rudder 11-yard line, and quarterback Devonte Robertson scored on a 6-yard run three plays later. An incomplete pass on the two-point conversion attempt preserved Rudder’s lead.
Robertson led Cleveland in rushing with 63 yards on 30 carries and had 64 passing yards on 5-of-15 passing as Rudder held the Indians to 122 yards of total offense.
“We just told them to keep fighting,” Rudder head coach Eric Ezar said. “Cleveland had a coaching change, so we didn’t know really what to expect offensively. They kind of ran some different stuff from what they’ve shown on film. In the second half, we made some adjustments. The wind was blowing. The passes were going all over the place, but we settled down and got it together.”
Lee later showed off his electricity with the ball when he changed speed, juked to avoid defenders and darted into the end zone on a 62-yard touchdown run on the first play of the second quarter. Senior wide receiver RJ Rubio extended Rudder’s lead on a 19-yard TD run over the front right pylon for his first touchdown as a Ranger.
“[EJ Ezar] battled back, threw three touchdown passes, two in the second half, so I was really proud of him,” Eric Ezar said. “The wind was kind of crazy tonight, because it’s kind of swirling a little bit, so I think he figured out the wind or it died down. I’m not exactly sure, but we were able to get it going.”
Cleveland opened the second half with a long drive, eating up much of the third-quarter clock, but Rudder’s defense led by Tre McLenton and Desmond Murphy clamped down to get the ball back. The Rangers responded with a six-play drive capped by a 2-yard TD run by EJ Ezar around the left end.
Rudder then had a pair of sacks toward the end of the third quarter to force a Cleveland punt, and the Rangers scored on the first play of the fourth quarter as junior Marcus Diles caught a 46-yard TD pass from EJ Ezar.
EJ Ezar and Lee connected one more time on a 14-yard TD pass with just over seven minutes left. EJ Ezar finished with 184 yards on 10-of-14 passing, throwing three TDs and two interceptions. Lee caught three passes for 67 yards and had three carries for 83 yards.
Rudder has two games left in the regular season, needing one win over either Huntsville or A&M Consolidated to have a chance for the program’s first playoff berth. First up is No. 4 Consol, which beat Montgomery Lake Creek 66-26 on Friday. The Rangers will face the Tigers at 7:30 p.m. next Friday at Tigerland Stadium.
“I told the kids that somewhere tomorrow there will be a huge upset in college football,” Eric Ezar said. “Somewhere on Sunday, there w... Click here to read full article
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