Wildcats top Farmers on Senior Night

Plano ended the 2015 season on a high this past Friday night, defeating the Lewisville Farmers 37-17 on Senior Night at Kimbrough Stadium.

Senior running back Brandon Stephens led the way for the Wildcats in his final high school game, rushing for 212 yards and three touchdowns against a beleaguered Farmer defense. The win was Plano’s first since Sept. 25 and gave the Wildcats a finishing overall record of 4-6, with a 2-6 mark in district play.

Lewisville opened the stronger of the two teams at a damp Kimbrough Stadium, with senior quarterback Aubreion Bobb quickly leading the Farmers into Wildcat territory. The first offensive possession for Lewisville came up empty after senior kicker Matt McDonald missed on a 43-yard field goal attempt.

Plano’s first offensive series set the tone for what would follow in the game, as Stephens was the recipient of two passes and also broke loose for a 30-yard run. Stephens polished the drive off by taking a direct snap from under center and running in for a one-yard touchdown, giving Plano a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter.

The Farmers responded by turning to junior wide receiver Tyrell Shavers for several big plays on offense. After reaching the Plano 39 yard line, Lewisville converted a fourth-and-one to open the second quarter by completing a long pass to Shavers as he streaked down the far sideline.

Shavers provided the scoring touch for the Farmers only a few plays later by catching a 10-yard touchdown pass from Bobb on a slant route. The score tied the game at seven apiece with just under 11 minutes remaining in the first half.

It was more of the same from the Wildcats on their second possession of the night as Stephens again guided Plano downfield. Part of Stephens’s responsibilities on this drive included throwing a pass, as he connected with senior quarterback Matt Keys on a 25-yard trick-play to set up a 35-yard field goal by junior kicker Blake Mazza.

Plano’s lead was unable to last until halftime, as Bobb and the Farmer offense made a calculated drive in the final minutes of the half. Rushing for 29 yards in the offensive series, Bobb’s efforts were rewarded with points as McDonald made a 46-yard field goal to tie the game at 10.

The score remained deadlocked at 10 at halftime following an additional unsuccessful possession for each offense prior to the break.

The third quarter began with a dominating drive by the Wildcat offense, both in terms of the time the drive took and its effectiveness.The 11-play sequence saw Stephens carry the ball 10 times en route to his second rushing touchdown of the night, which came from three yards out.

The drive’s most critical play came courtesy of Keys. The senior ran for six yards on a fourth-and-two play to keep the Plano possession alive. Stephens’ touchdown was his 14th of the season and gave Plano a 17-10 advantage with 6:15 left in the third quarter.

Bobb made his first mistake of the night on the ensuing Lewisville possession, with junior defensive back Aaron Ragas intercepting a lofted pass and returning it to the Lewisville 37 yard line. Plano converted the turnover into points before the end of the third quarter as Keys ran in for the score from four yards out to make it 24-10 Wildcats with seconds left in the third period.

A pair of lengthy passes from Bobb to senior running back Dontae McGee jump-started a potential comeback for the Farmers, although it required some magic from Bobb to cut the deficit to seven. Faced with a third-and-15 from the Plano 15, Bobb spectacularly danced around and evaded seven Plano defenders en route to the end zone, capping a 10-play drive.

The score cut the Plano lead to 24-17 with 7:30 left in the game, with the Wildcat offense in a position to waste some valuable clock time. And waste the clock they did, as the trio of Stephens, Keys and senior running back Lopaka Yoro combined on a series of running plays to force the Farmers into using their remaining two timeouts.

It was Stephens who put the nail in the coffin with regard to the outcome of the game, as he scored his third touchdown of the night on a 30-yard rush. The score pushed the Plano lead to 30-17 after a missed extra point with 3:27 left in the contest.

There were still some fireworks left in the season for the Plano offense, though. They came courtesy of a most unlikely source. After regaining possession following a Lewisville three-and-out, freshman running back Kyron Cumby scored his first varsity touchdown on a bruising 31-yard run through the heart of the Farmer defense.

This exclamation point capped both the game and season for Plano, who finished seventh in the final District 6-6A standings ahead of Plano West and Flower Mound.