THE BEST of the REST FROM WEEK ONE | Our second high school roundup, featuring G’water, Arp, Troup, West Rusk & Tatum, Beckville and Overton

Last season, his first as head coach of the Gladewater High School Bears, Jermaine Lewis and his team caught a few teams off-guard, going from just four wins in 2024 to 10 a year ago.

And in doing so, they made the UIL playoffs for the first time since 2021.

This year, they won’t be able to sneak up on anybody.

As it turned out, they didn’t sneak up on Daingerfield, either; they just beat ‘em.

Lewis’s Bears had a great running game going and Daingerfield just couldn’t slow it, and Gladewater won the season opener, 39-14, at Jack V. Murphy Stadium on Friday night.

The Bears (1-0) will be home this coming Friday, as well, hosting Pittsburg.

For Gladewater, Lucas Vasquez scored twice: midway through the first quarter on a 2-yard run that meant the first points of the game, combined with a two-point conversion by Caleb Balcorta (8-0 Gladewater), and then in the third quarter. Vasquez punched it in from 5 yards out and then Korbin Sergio hit the extra point.

In between, in the second quarter, Destin Sheridan scored on a 2-yard run that allowed them to lead 18-6 at halftime.

Vasquez made it 25-6 with his third-quarter score, and then in the fourth, Trey Watts scored for GHS on a 15-yard run. Quarterback Achilles Hess added the Bears’ final points of the night, a 7-yard run.

West Rusk 37, Tatum 34: A win at home at Eagle Stadium to open the season was the goal for coach Whitney Keeling and his Tatum Eagles, but West Rusk came in wanting to play spoiler – and the Raiders did it.

Daylan Williams was the heavy-hitter, a three-touchdown night, to go with 138 yards for the Raiders (1-0). Quarterback Trig Pratt went 10-of-16 for 190 yards and two touchdowns, both to Kam Brown (seven catches, 101 yards).

Pratt and Kemontrae McGregor also connected twice for 63 yards.

In the loss for Tatum, Alijah Williams played excellent defense, with seven tackles and an interception, but also returned a fumble 90 yards for a touchdown.

Tydric Moore ran for 104 yards in the loss.

Tatum (0-1) will play at Daingerfield this Thursday night, a 7 p.m. kickoff.

Troup 54, Diboll 21: Let’s head to Troup, and check on the second-ranked team in the state in Class 3A, Division II: that’d be coach Sam Wells and the Troup Tigers.

Turns out, they’re doing pretty darn well.

Quarterback Trevor Golightly didn’t go lightly at all: he walked tall and carried a big stick, completing all but two of his passes in the game. Golightly went 21-of-23 for 239 yards and threw three touchdown passes, and also ran for two touchdowns and 84 yards in this rout of Diboll.

Cameron Williams, James Pierce and Brett Wells each had a touchdown catch. Williams caught eight balls for 80 yards and a score. Pierce had five catches, one of them a TD, for 59 yards. And Wells is back doing special things. He had 107 yards rushing, then had three catches for 28 yards.

Desh Golightly had four catches for 67 yards and Jayden Minor had 48 yards rushing and scored.

On defense, A.J. Dewberry had a sack; Wells had five tackles, forced a fumble and had a fumble recovery; Mataes Lee had seven tackles; Pierce and Desh Golightly each had an interception; and Logan Chambers also recorded a fumble.

Troup (1-0) plays at Edgewood this coming Friday night.

Arp 43, Waskom 7: Tanner Hunt scored four touchdowns for coach Wes Schminkey’s Arp Tigers, who ran around, over and through the Waskom Wildcats in the season opener for both teams on Friday night.

Hunt finished with 162 yards and scored four times on just 14 carries. Teammate Noah Beck ran for 154 yards and also got into the end zone twice.

Tigers quarterback Ty Langley had an efficient night: 4-of-6 for 71 yards, and also ran for 41 yards as the Tigers went over the 300-yard rushing mark as a team in the game.

Four different receivers caught passes from Langley: Layton Shelburne had a catch for 27 yards; Jeremee Shepperd caught a pass for 20 yards; David Black had one for 15; and Grayson Spoon had a 9-yard catch.

Arp had 462 yards of total offense.

Defensively, Tripp Durrett had a sack for the Tigers and also recovered a fumble. Chrisden Ellis had 13 tackles. Spoon and Durrett each had a tackle for loss. Shelburne had three pass break-ups.

Arp (1-0) will host Garrison this coming Thursday night, a 7 p.m. kickoff.

Joaquin 43, Beckville 14: Not all the teams in the ETBlitz.com coverage area won this past weekend.

Beckville had a rough start to the season last year and bounced back. They may need to do it again, after this.

The formula for Joaquin was simple: senior running back Cooper Bragg and a TON of him. Bragg finished with four touchdown runs and also scored on a two point conversion.

Joaquin also got two touchdown runs from quarterback Trenton Runnels.

Beckville did lead briefly early in the game when Gabe Johnson caught an 8-yard touchdown pass from Reese Davis – Kenonte Jenks got the conversion and the Bearcatcs (1-0) had an 8-7 lead.

The Rams reeled off 29 straight points. Beckville didn’t score again until just over 5 ½ minutes in the fourth quarter. Braxdan Allred scored on a 43-yard pass play, with Wesdon Harris throwing the ball.

Defensively for Beckville, Levi Ross had 13 tackles. Timmy Wilcots had nine and a pass breakups.

Beckville (1-0) visits Frankston on Friday night at 7 p.m.

Overton 38, Harleton 2: Overton football has a very rich winning tradition.

Head coach Scotty Laymance has restored that tradition, and then some. The Mustangs are card-carrying members of the 10-win club, and then some, about every season.

And they laid the wood to Harleton this past Friday night.

Quarterback Brooks Davis was on fire: 22-of-31 for 341 yards and four touchdown passes; he did throw two interceptions.

Jacob Osburn was on the other end of eight of those passes, for 169 yards and two scores. Jackson Furlow had three catches for 64 yards and a score, and Justin Weir, a 9-yard catch, but for a touchdown. Eight different receivers caught passes from Davis.

The Mustangs (1-0) also ran for 104 yards as a team and scored twice. Gabe Miller led all ball-carries with 66 yards and a TD on eight carries. Weir had 29 yards rushing, and Carmelo Bryant had an 11-yard run for a score.

As a defensive unit, Overton had eight tackles for loss,

Brendon Spiecher led all Mustangs with 11 tackles. Kash Holleman had 11, and Bryden Gaytan had 10.

Wyatt Mosley and Colton Stineciper each had a sack; Carmelo Bryant had an interception; and Weir and Isaih Tilley, a freshman, each had a fumble recovery.Gaytan also had a caused fumble and a blocked kick.

Overton (1-0) will host Winona this coming Friday night.