KC-MONTERREY TECH LIVE UPDATES! | Real-time updates from R.E. St. John, CLICK HERE

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is a real-time notes package by ETBlitz.com editor / publisher Mitch Lucas, an ongoing live blog from Kilgore College’s 2024 season opening football game at home against Monterrey Tech (Mexico) University on Saturday, August 24. See a wrap-up story following the game, and more.

Hey, guys… this is Mitch. It’s 6:40 p.m. Central time now. The teams have left the field and Kilgore College’s band is out there briefly. I’ll be back just before kickoff, when the teams come back out.

• OK, I’m back early. It’s 6:56. Both teams have returned to the field, announcer Mark Fried called for “gentlemen to remove their hats,” and the Kilgore College band played both the Mexican and U.S. National Anthems. Classy and respectful, great job.
• Captains for KC for the game are quarterback Tyler Webb of Waco, defensive lineman Wilburn Smallwood of Lufkin, and wide receiver Melvin Polk of Weatherford. And Monterrey will receive the ball first.
• Man, it’s so hot here, you can fry an egg on TOP of an egg out on this R.E. St. John turf.
• First tackle of the season for KC belongs to Troup native Kevin Pierce, No. 31 on your KC Rangers’ roster.
• Monterrey is known as “The Wild Rams,” and they begin possession at their own 34-yard-line. An incomplete pass on the first play, by QB Fernando Sarabia Rodriquez, and on the second play, too.
• KC linebacker Josh Williams was the player doing the Mack truck impression — he just about flattened Rodriguez on the third-down play, a third straight incomplete pass. A punt followed.

• Gary Maddox of Euless got the first carry of the season for KC, for about 3 yards from his own 35-yard-line. He fumbled at the end, out of bounds. Tyler Webb’s first pass of the year, downfield to Decoldest Crawford was incomplete.
• Crawford makes the third-down catch, but it’s fourth down and about five, right at the Rangers’ 41. They’re going for it. It’s an incomplete pass, but Webb drew the Rams offside with a hard count. KC will have a new set of downs.
• Pretty good crowd here, considering the heat and that it’s a non-conference game, and it’s not the traditional game against Tyler to open the season.
• By the way, if you’re wondering, yes, the Kilgore College Rangerettes are here, and will perform at halftime. And yes — ETBlitz cameras will be rolling.
• It’s third and 5, just across midfield, and Polk made a catch, but he’s 3 yards short of the first down.
• KC is going for it again, on fourth and 2, at the Monterrey 45. They’ve got the first time out of the game, with 11:18 left in the first quarter.
• Back from the time out, and KC has elected to punt. Anthony Monsivais of Longview boots it, back to the 15, and Monterrey’s returner muffs it! He recovers his own fumble, though, right at the 15. He’s living right, I guess.
• A wild, deep incomplete pass along the sidelines was the second-down play, and was almost picked off by Jaylenn Webb of KC.

• Another third-down pass falls incomplete — it was almost intercepted, as well — and Monterrey punts, this time no return. KC takes over at the Rams’ 37, not a good punt. We’ve got 10:11 left in the first quarter.
• Tyler Webb completes a pass quickly to running back Luke McMullen (of Jefferson), and McMullen picks up a quick 13 yards, to the 24. Webb gets the Rangers to the line quickly, and hands off to Samuel Mbake, of Kennesaw, GA, but Mbake loses a yard.
• Webb vaults a pass to Polk along the sidelines, but Webb was rushed, and put too much on it — the momentum took Polk out of bounds, and we’re in third and 10.
• Just that quickly, we’re in fourth down, at Monterrey’s 19-yard-line. So we’ll see our first KC field goal attempt of the year, a 36-yard attempt by former Kilgore High School standout Adan Reyes. He hits it, and the Rangers have their first lead of the year, 3-0, with 7:26 left in the first quarter.
• Good return by Alajandro Cruz Parra for Monterrey, all the way to his own 37. And then he’s PLASTERED there by KC’s Dorien Friend, a defensive back from Spring, who was NOT Parra’s friend on that play. Ouch.
• Finally, the Rams got a completion: Rodriguez to Alejandro Elizondo Gonzalez, a gain of 23 all the way to KC’s 20-yard-line.
• On the very next play, a TOUCHDOWN. A screen pass to Mauro Cavallari Moran, a 20-yard touchdown pass with 4:29 left in the first quarter. The kick, out of the hold of Homero Montano Palacios, was by Leonardo Guajardo Villarreal, and good. That gives Monterrey the 7-3 lead. Man, the crowd is a little more quiet, guys.

• Well, we just had a touchdown, a big play, happen, but it’s coming back partially. Webb just connected for an apparent 66-yard touchdown, but receiver Mbake, who caught the deep ball at Monterrey’s 32 and outran everyone for the 66-yard play, shook his finger at the defensive backs that were chasing him. He scored, but officials flagged the taunt and brought the ball back to the 20.
• On top of that, Webb connected with Maddox for the apparent third-down conversion, but KC was flagged for holding, and moved into a third-down and 18.
• Webb’s screen pass went incomplete, and now the Rangers are sending Reyes out for a 44-yard field goal.
• Reyes hits it! KC gets within one, 7-6, with 2:24 left in the first quarter.
• Remember earlier when I said Friend plastered Parra on the kick return? He just finished the job. Some heavy-hitting going on out here tonight.
• Moran on another huge reception, this one all the way down to KC’s 35 after the defender went for the big hit and missed, and Moran got free for the big play.
• An incomplete pass, though, on the next play, and Monterrey is in second and 10 with a time out with 46 seconds left in the first quarter, at 7:40 Central time here at the R.E.S.T. It’s an officials’ time out. Probably from the heat.
• The official — the HEAD REFEREE on this crew — just called for the clock operator to run the clock even though it was an incomplete pass on the previous play! Figure that one out.
• The first “HOLY — um, HECK” play of the season. KC defensive back Jaylen Webb just leapt and intercepted a pass that was for SURE gone for a touchdown, a one-handed INT at his own 13-yard-line. If Webb doesn’t make that catch, it’s a touchdown. Instead, the Rangers get the ball at their own 13. WOW. Just wow.
• On offense now, first play is a long incompletion, and second play is run for no gain by QB Tyler Webb that finishes the first quarter. Monterrey leads by one, 7-6.
• Second quarter starts with a KC deep-ball incompletion and a punt that sails out of bounds. Neither good for the Rangers. Monterrey will take over at the Rangers’ 31 — YECCH.
• That was like taking a spoonful of Castor Oil. If you’re under 40, ask an old person.
• Two downs later, and Monterrey Tech has a second down at the KC 19. This is trouble, guys.
• A catch for minimal yards by Miguel Angel Lozano Ortiz leaves Monterrey with a fourth down at KC’s 15. And they send out Villarreal, who misses a 33-yarder, and leaves us at 7-6. Not just a chip shot, but surprising that he missed it.
• The KC offensive line of Austin Yeager, Marcus Smith, La’Rayvion Wright, ZaMaryon Bryan and Etueni Ropati did a fantastic job on a bootleg play, with Webb rolling to his right and finding Polk on a huge pass play downfield to keep a drive going into Monterrey territory.
• Mbake catches another touchdown, this one from 38 yards out, and AGAIN it’s called back! This one is nullified due to an ineligible man downfield penalty. KC could have at least 12 more points on the scoreboard. Instead, it’s second and 18 at the Monterrey 46-yard-line right now.
• Make that third and 18. Just had an incomplete pass.
• Dang it. Yeah, I just actually wrote, “Dang it.”
• Make that double-dang it. Webb is sacked by defensive lineman Marco Antonio Antillon Chico, and we’re in fourth-and-San Antonio with 9:08 left in the second quarter. Chico is down, and the trainers are attending to him.
• Monterrey converts a third-and-long with Daniel Santos Guerra near midfield, then loses an attempted exchange between the QB, Rodriguez, and a running back. Rodriguez falls on it, though, and the Rams keep the football at their own 41.
• A quick second-down pass leaves them with third and 4 near midfield, and then another quick pass, this one to Lozano Ortiz, allows them to convert for a first down with about 6 1/2 minutes left in the half. The Rams are still up, 7-6, by the way.
• The Rangers didn’t really know what to expect from Monterrey coming in — none of us did — and they’re showing us a lot here. This is a program that dates back to 1975 and has 17 Mexican national championships in its history. They’ve had a lot of success.
• They’ve got a first down at KC’s 34-yard-line — make that another one, at KC’s 16 — with under 5 1/2 minutes left in the half.

• KC edge rusher Christian Thomas, of Port Arthur, just rushed Rodriguez into a bad throw, leaving the rams with a third and 10, with 4:57 left in the half. They’re still at KC’s 16.
• The Rams can’t convert, and are left with a fourth and 6 at KC’s13. They elect to go for the first down instead of kicking the field goal, and are awarded with a pass interference penalty on KC defensive back Justin Calahan, of Jonesboro, LA., who looked like he just had good coverage. Instead, it’s a Monterrey first down at the KC 2-yard-line.
• Calahan gets his revenge two plays later, cutting the legs out from under a receiver and causing the Rams to lose 3 yards. They’ve now got fourth down at the Rangers’ 5, with 2:45 left in the half.
• Again, Monterrey goes for it. They do complete a pass — short of the goal line, and the receiver is wrapped up quickly by KC defender Marcus Moultrie of Killeen, right at the line of scrimmage. KC BALL.
• Well, heck. That was the good news. The bad news: on the very next play, KC can’t get out of its own end zone. Monterrey forces a safety, and now leads 9-6, with 2:31 left in the half. And of course, KC has to kick off to the Rams, as well.
• DANG IT.
• DANG IT, DANG IT, DANG IT.
• Monterrey with the ball at midfield. And then after a pass, and a roughing the passer penalty on KC, a huge play, the Rams have the ball at KC’s 23. Man, oh man, a huge play with two minutes left in the half.
• Two passes downfield both fall incomplete, and with 1:49 left in the half, the Rams are set for a third down at KC’s 23. It falls incomplete, as well, as the ball was thrown into double coverage, and a fourth down is coming.
• The kick, from KC’s 23, is blocked by KC’s Darmel Hollins, Jr., of Killeen, and recovered by the Rangers at their own 39. If KC ever needed a break, that was the spot.
• They take over with 1:39 left, and Webb immediately throws a bomb down the sidelines, but no one can get to it. It’s at least 6 yards by the nearest receiver. Second down coming up.
• Polk makes a catch out in the flat, but loses a couple of yards. Third down next.
• It’s incomplete, as well, to Crawford. Fourth down, from KC’s 37, and 42 seconds left. Thought for a second the Rangers were going for it. Now they’re lined up to punt, and they do. It’s a good one. There’s no return, but there is a scuffle.
• Well, the answer to “how far will we get before there’s at least a bit of a fight?” is 33 seconds left in the half. Officials throw a flag, and we get the old “offsetting penalties” speech from the ref. Monterrey also gets a block-in-the back flag. But they allow the clock to run out.
• And it’s HALFTIME.
• KC trails, 9-7, and if everything goes as planned, we’ll have a special video later, right here on ETBlitz.com. I can’t spoil it right now. I’m sorry!
• There’s 3:29 and counting left on the halftime clock. The Rangerettes and the KC band (and twirlers) have performed, and we’re about ready to return to the field.
• KC gets the ball to begin the second half, and Devontae Mozee takes it the ENTIRE LENGTH OF THE FIELD, from the 1-yard-line, a 99-yard TOUCHDOWN for the Rangers! There’s a flag down after the play (of course), but this time, the touchdown actually counts. There is an unsportsmanlike penalty on KC, but it was after the play.
• Reyes looks to have hit the extra point, but ANOTHER flag is thrown. We are living in Flag City tonight.
• They throw a flag for illegal substitution on KC, and Reyes has to kick it again. He does, it’s good, and KC takes the odd lead of 13-9 with 14:47 left in the third quarter. Just 13 seconds into the second half, and it’s 8:53 p.m.

• No idea why, but Monterrey has changed quarterbacks, and KC’s defense forces a punt on the first Rams’ possession of the second half. KC has the ball in its own territory.
• The Rangers are in third-and-long, third and 10, and just can’t convert. They’re near midfield, though, after a good, tough carry but Marshall’s own Dominique Williams, and they line up to go for it on fourth down at their own 41.
• It’s not a trick. They do snap the ball, and Webb’s pass is incomplete. Monterrey gets the ball at KC’s 41. Hmm.
• The new Monterrey QB is Victor Hugo Palacios Martinez.
• One heck of a catch by Wilfredo Valdez, down to KC’s 6, for a first-and-goal.
• On the ensuing play, Martinez fumbles the ball, recovers his own fumble, and picks up 2 yards.
• Nothing doing, though, on the second down play, as the Rangers’ defense stops the run. It’s third-and-goal at the 4.
• And on the third down, it’s Christian Thomas again, this time with a sack, and a loss of 6 yards, back to the 10.
• Another field goal attempt, this one for 27 yards, and another miss. The score remains 13-9 KC, with 7:56 left in the third quarter.
• Technical difficulties and I’m back. I’m sorry y’all. WiFi is a fun thing, isn’t it?
• Score is still 13-9. We’ve got 11:34 left in the game.
• KC looking to add points to their lead. They’re at Monterrey’s 1-yard-line, and Webb rolls to his right, bobbles the ball and tries to extend it over the pylon. (That’s the styrofoam-y-looking orange thing, for those of you who don’t know what a pylon is.) He fails to score, but they’ll get another shot.
• They get in on that shot, and it’s 20-9 KC, after the extra point by Reyes, with 10:37 left in the game.
• Monterrey QB Martinez, scrambling for yards, ducked out of bounds on the KC sidelines just before getting steamrolled by KC’s Anthony Rose.
• KC now has 12 penalties, I was just informed, including two that caused touchdowns to be called back, and one that caused a 65-yard run to be nullified. Mmm. Yuck.
• It’s a season opener, I mean… those things happen. They’re not a beauty contest, for sure.
• During all that, just now, Jaylen Webb, KC’s Webb on the defensive side of the football, just got his second interception of the night. Remember him from earlier, he of the one-handed interception. The Rangers have 7:59 left in this game. One more score would likely put it away. They’re at their own 30-yard-line.
• Running back Luke McMullen for KC, out of nearby Jacksonville, who caught a pass earlier, reminds me of a phrase a friend of mine was fond of saying: “he’s not fast; he’s sudden.” McMullen can really move.
• Webb (the QB) hits Mozee, the kick return for touchdown hero, for a big gain, down to Monterrey’s 33-yard-line, and that and a McMullen run will take us under the 6-minute mark.
• OK, and then Mozee adds another big play to his resume for the night: a 33-yard touchdown catch from Webb. Man, it’s a good night to be named “Webb,” too. Reyes hits the point after. There’s 5:13 left, and it’s 27-9 KC. That might — MIGHT — be enough to put Monterrey away.
• We’ll see. Monterrey on its third QB of the night: Homero Montano Palacios. He hands off once, no yards. He drops back, and it’s caught, moves the sticks for a first down to Tech’s own 37.
• Does it seem like to anyone but me that I’ve written “37” a lot tonight?
• 3:39 and ticking on Monterrey Tech.
• Palacios scrambles for a first, but that clock is tick-tick-ticking, 2 1/2 minutes now.
• It’s still 27-9 KC, and Monterrey is at midfield.
• A draw won’t score you many points when you’re down by 18. Two minutes left on the clock, same score, obviously. This is the new mandated two-minute time-out that college football is implementing, similar to the NFL’s two-minute warning.
• Wonder why they call it a two-minute “warning,” anyway?
• Monterrey going for it on fourth and 1, doesn’t get it, and an official 25-30 yards behind the play throws.. a flag.
• AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
• Kase Mumphrey, a KC defensive back from Crandall grabs the ball along the sidelines, and closes the “kase,” wrapping this game up, giving the Rangers the ball back with 1:10 left.
• KC took a deep shot, no dice, and then ran the remainder of the clock off, sealing the win in the season opener. It wasn’t pretty, but hey, it is a win over a good Monterrey Tech team, the first ever international opponent for the Kilgore College Rangers. The final score, from R.E. St. John Memorial Stadium: KC 27, Monterrey Tech 9, and we’ll have a game story — and hopefully more! — coming up. Thanks for reading!!