On Friday night, the Industrial Cobras played their last home game of the season in the Snake Pit against the Brazos Cougars, losing 35-27. The Cougars (8-2) won the game and secured the third seed in the playoffs, and the Cobras (3-7) took the fourth seed.
“I thought we fought hard,” Cobra Head Football Coach Matthew Luddeke said. “It was a tough, physical, back and forth game; but our kids played hard and gave us a chance to win a game.”
The game began with a coin toss, which Brazos won, electing to receive. The Brazos offense moved the ball down the field, but ultimately ended up punting the ball on the fourth down. The punt was blocked by the Cobras, who started their offensive play in Cougar territory. From there, it was back and forth between the two teams.
“I think we did a really good job on running the ball,” senior wide receiver Kason Dyson said. “We kept a good attitude throughout the game for sure.”
The Cobra offense moved the ball for a total of 301 yards, and was led by Wyatt Kurtz, Easton Larew, Joey Smith, and quarterback Cooper Francis. Francis went nine for 20, throwing 105 yards, including an exciting 35-yard-pass play to Smith.
“I thought we controlled the line of scrimmage with our offensive line,” Luddeke said. “Our kids ran hard and moved the ball well.”
The Cobra defense, led by Jayden Kemp, Garrett Kolodziejcyk, and Ryan Riddle, also held their own against the Cougars according to senior defensive tackle, Jeremiah Herrera.
“I think the defense did really well putting pressure on the quarterback whenever he was passing,” Herrera said.
Looking forward to the playoffs, the Cobras are hoping to give it everything they’ve got, and to work more as a unit, rather than individuals.
“In the playoffs, anything can happen, but the big thing I told our kids is that you want to play your best game every playoff game because when you finish a game, it’s a whole lot easier to live with it when you can say ‘I did everything I could,’ rather than ‘I left something on the field,’ so I just one come to play their best,” Luddeke said.
The Cobras (3-7) will band together to play the Blanco Panthers (8-2) in Luling for round one of the playoffs Friday. Kickoff is at 7.
