‘HAPPY DAYS ARE HERE AGAIN’ | Might not go quite that far, but Gilmer won a district game, and back in the playoff hunt / Analysis by PHILLIP WILLIAMS

LONGVIEW – ‘Twas apropos to anticipate that, inasmuch as the tiff ‘tween the Gilmer Buckeyes and Spring Hill Panthers was to be performed on All Hallows’ Eve, it would occasion offbeat occurrences–including the winning coach reportedly becoming ill and having to depart the wargame at some point.

Gilmer Coach Alan Metzel should recover rapidly, however, buoyed by the fact that behind runner/receiver Tayveon Horne’s five touchdowns and two-point conversion romp, Gilmer stultified Spring Hill, 55-28, in a District 7-4A Division II Dustup at Panther Stadium on Friday night.

Although the triumph left the Buckeyes still saddled with an uncharacteriastically unaesthetic 3-6 overall mark, they clutched a berth in Playoff Paradise by becoming 2-2 in district disputations, heading into next Friday’s regular season finale at home against winless North Lamar. 

Meanwhile, Spring Hill (2-7, 1-3), by being vanquished, vanished from post-season contention.

As for Metzel, he was at home resting Saturday morning, said Gilmer ISD Superintendent Rick Albritton. 

The coach’s secretary, Lynn Gray, meantime texted ETBlitz.com that she and her husband had talked to him after the game and he was “fine.” She also said she had received a message from him this morning (Saturday).

Metzel had appeared in his usual good health when a representative of this website, who learned after the game of the coach’s situation, talked to him briefly as his team was taking the field for the tilt.

After the game, though, a representative of an area newspaper who covered the contest on the Gilmer side told ETBlitz.com that a security guard informed him Metzel had left early.

Besides Metzel’s spell, The Halloween Happening was bizarre in that it featured the following:

Nary a punt by either team, Spring Hill calling its first time out only 50 seconds into the game, the team’s combining for four touchdowns before the first quarter’s midway point-and that Gilmer scored more points in the first half than the Buckeyes had toted up in an entire game this season.

With Horne tooting his own trumpet quite adroitly–four of his tallies came before intermission–the visitors stockpiled a 42-21 lead at Twirling Time before the wild scoring spree by both squads slowed considerably in the final two quarters.

Among other major factors in the outcome besides Horne’s heroics were Gilmer quarterack Zade Taylor’s trio of TD passes–including one to Horne–and Taylor’s hoofing for another score.

Then there was the Buckeye defense, which has had a woeful season, improving immensely by immeshing three takeaways. That included purloining two passes and filching a fumble. 

This all combined to more than offset a command performance by Panther runner Coleman Stout, who thundered for three TDs, including two on long-distance romps. In fact, the game was chock full of big-yardage scores by both sides.

Spring Hill, which several times used subterfuge in which one gent appeared to be carrying the ball while another actually was, showed stupefying speed on offense. But the turnovers, an errant pitchout at one point in Gilmer territory that lost yardage, and the hosts’ vulnerable defense helped perish the Panthers.

After kicking off and holding SH on downs to start the evening, Gilmer’s offense drew a 5-yard penalty before busting a Big Bang on its first offensive play which counted. That was Horne’s 47-yard scream up the middle with 10:59 left in the first quarter.

Miguel Castaneda airlifted the first of his four successful PATs.

Spring Hill counter-attacked quickly on its next possession as quarterback Brody Proctor uncorked a 64-yard TD bomb to Cason Copeland with 9:03 remaining in the opening quadrant. Kicker Roc Williams rammed the first of his four successful PATs.

Gilmer, though, answered with Taylor’s short pass to Trace Haynes, who turned it into a 43-yard scoring sling with 8:19 left in the first. Castaneda popped the PAT.

Then Spring Hill intruded into Gilmer territory, only to suffer the first of its giveaways when Buckeye Gauge Trossbach returned an interception 25 yards to his team’s 36.

On the second play afterward, Taylor hot-footed 33 yards to Beulah Land and Gilmer went for two with Horne achieving that. Gilmer thus led 22-7 with 6:26 still left in quarter one.

In the second period, Horne hastened 18 yards for his second TD with 6:39 left to Music Time and Castaneda added the PAT, making it 29-7.

Next thing the Buckeyes knew, though, they had a temporary Panther revival on their hands.

Stout whistled 71 yards to tally with 6:25 to go in the period,and then 21 yards on a tackle-breaking, fourth-down play for another six-pointer with 2:56 remaining. Now it was suddenly 29-21.

Little did the Panthers realize, however, their foes were about to overwhelm them with a blitzkrieg of their own before the Band Break.

First, Horne hustled 32 yards to score with 2:21 left before Castaneda’s next PAT. Then the Buckeye back secured his fourth first-half TD by taking the snap from center and whooshing two yards with 55.1 seconds left.

A bad snap on the PAT try foiled Castaneda from attempting the kick.

The Buckeyes put extra mustard on their hot dogs with two more TDs in the third quarter. First was Taylor’s 8-yard heave to Horne with 8:45 left (followed by Castaneda’s PAT).

Later, on the quarter’s final play from scrimmage, Taylor rolled left from the Panther 1-yard line and appeared ready to run the ball when he abruptly flung a TD to Haynes. Castaneda, again victimized by a poor snap, failed on his PAT kick.

Down 55-21, the Panthers commendably kept battling and tallied on Stout’s 2-yard bop with 7:19 left.

The victory likely elated Gilmer fans, who have endured only their second losing regular season in at least 30 years while winning four state titles during that span.

And the Buckeye band, which under director Eric Gray won its own state championship in competition recently, probably started searching for the music sheets to strike up “Happy Days Are Here Again.”