Going into the team’s first playoff matchup with the Arlington Longhorns, West Texas Warbirds head coach Tate Smith wanted to see his team put up a dominant performance.
Both teams had already faced off before, with West Texas coming away with a dominant 68-21 victory back on June 19
It didn’t take long for the Warbirds to make an impact in their second showdown with the Longhorns, putting up a 70-6 final score Saturday at the Ector County Coliseum.
The victory set up a championship showdown between the Warbirds and the Amarillo Venom at 7 p.m. July 24 at the Ector County Coliseum. West Texas defeated Amarillo twice this season.
“It’s always good when you accomplish a goal for the week and that was getting a win,” Warbirds head coach Tate Smith said. “I thought it was a great overall team performance, I thought we played lights out on all three phases of the game.”
West Texas got off to a fast start by scoring on the first play of scrimmage as quarterback Daniel Smith connected with Jordan Gandy from 30 yards out to take an early lead.
It was a sign of things to come as the Warbirds surged to a 28-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Smith ended the night completing 11 of 21 pass attempts for 224 yards with seven touchdowns and one interception.
The quarterback also found Aaron Dilworth on multiple occasions to keep the spark going for the West Texas offense as the contest went on.
Dilworth hauled in four passes for 98 yards and two scores and provided some highlight reel plays with a pair of one-handed grabs.
“Daniel just threw a really good ball, so it was easy to do,” Dilworth said.
The West Texas defense also had a strong showing, limiting Arlington quarterbacks Vernon Sharpe, Jr. and Chris Ware to 134 yards combined through the air.
Warbirds defensive lineman Deveon Ball made his presence known early with a 25-yard interception return of a Sharpe pass in the first quarter to set up a score.
Ball, who usually plays defensive end, said he used to play safety so he knew he needed to make an impact when he dropped back into coverage.
“I had to make a play for my team and it worked out just fine,” Ball said.
As West Texas prepares for its first championship game, Smith believes his team needs to stay levelheaded to accomplish its goal of winning a title in its inaugural season.
“Coach [Julian] Reese does a great job down there in Amarillo,” Tate Smith said. “We know each other very, very well and I anticipate a big game. The first game was knocking the rust off for both teams and the second game was a traditional arena-style game.”
Linebacker Harley Davis wants the Warbirds to take the same approach they have taken all season to the title game.
Every contest is a clean start with a new task to focus on.
“Just come out, practice good for four days and Saturday we’re going have the same results,” Davis said. “As long as we communicate, we’re not going to be beat.”
>>Follow Chris Amaya on Twitter at @OA_CAmaya
West Texas Warbirds 70, Arlington Longhorns 6
Arlington………………. 0 6 0 0 — 6
West Texas…………. 28 21 14 7 — 70
SCORING SUMMARY
First Quarter
West Texas: Jordan Gandy 30 pass from Daniel Smith (Justin Lehr kick).
West Texas: Isaiah Robinson 5 run (Justin Lehr kick).
West Texas: Jordan Gandy 33 pass from Daniel Smith (Justin Lehr kick).
West Texas: Carlos Thompson, Jr. 22 pass from Daniel Smith (Justin Lehr kick).
Second Quarter
West Texas: Jordan Gandy 13 pass from Daniel Smith (Justin Lehr kick).
West Texas: Aaron Dilworth 13 pass from Daniel Smith (Justin Lehr kick).
Arlington: Denzel Winston 35 pass from Vernon Sharpe, Jr. (kick failed).
West Texas: Jordan Gandy 48 interception return (Justin Lehr kick).
Third Quarter
West Texas: Carlos Thompson, Jr. 5 fumble return (Justin Lehr kick).
West Texas: Aaron Dilworth 16 pass from Daniel Smith (Justin Lehr kick).
Fourth Quarter
West Texas: Aaron Dilworth 45 pass from Daniel Smith (Justin Lehr kick).
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TEAM STATISTICS
Arlington West Texas
First Downs…………………….. 6…………………. 5
Total Yards…………………. 166……………… 271
Rushes-Yards………….. 12-32…………… 11-47
Passing……………………… 134……………… 224
Comp-Att-Int…………. 12-32-4……….. 11-21-1
Fumbles-Lost………………. 2-2………………. 2-1
Penalties-Yards……….. 10-25…………. 11-100
———
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing
Arlington: Vernon Sharpe, Jr. 7-22, Leslie Stone 3-13, Dy’lan Jones 1-2, Delenzia Turner-Green 1-2, Chris Ware 1-(-7).
West Texas: Daniel Smith 6-22, Isaiah Robinson 3-22, Deveon Ball 2-3.
Passing
Arlington: Vernon Sharpe, Jr. 7-17-2—94, Chris Ware 5-15-1—40.
West Texas: Daniel Smith 11-21-1—224.
Receiving
Arlington: Denzel Winston 2-51, Juan Reese 5-38, Vernon Sharpe, Jr. 2-20, Terrance Compton 1-19, Delenzia Turner-Green 1-6.
West Texas: Aaron Dilworth 4-98, Jordan Gandy 3-76, Carlos Thompson, Jr. 2-34, Darien Townsend 1-14, Isaiah Robinson 1-2.
Interceptions
Arlington: Nick Jones 1-0.
West Texas: Jordan Gandy 2-48-1, Harley Davis 1-39, Deveon Ball 1-25.
