STORY BY: CHACE MURPHY
KILLEEN –The Bryan Vikings struggled in the second half to do anything right on offense or defense.
In the end, the Vikings needed a defensive stop on the last play of the game at their own 1-yard-line to hang on to beat Killeen Shoemaker 21-19 Friday night at Leo Buckley Stadium.
The dramatic ending was a microcosm of Bryan’s experiences at Buckley. The Vikings (4-1, 2-0) last played Shoemaker in Killeen in 2008, winning in overtime 42-41.
The Grey Wolves’ second half performance was spurred by a lively homecoming crowd that fell silent as running back Johnny Jefferson was stopped at the one-yard line on the game’s final play.
Jefferson finished the game with 182 yards on 23 carries with three touchdowns. He added 71 yards passing to account for 253 of the Grey Wolves’ 377 yards on offense.
For Bryan, quarterback Chris Johnson led the way with 154 all-purpose yards. Johnson was the rushing leader with 96 yards and had all the Vikings’ 58 passing yards.
Bryan raced to a 21-0 lead in the 2nd quarter as Johnson found Kevin Jefferson for two touchdown passes. Jefferson added another on the ground.
Shoemaker (0-5, 0-2) closed the gap to 21-6 after Johnny Jefferson ran in from two yards. The extra point was no good.
Although Bryan received the second half kick, the game’s momentum swung in favor of Shoemaker when linebacker Jordan Salinas stopped Chris Johnson on fourth down deep in Grey Wolves territory.
Shoemaker drove the length of the field in only six plays as Johnny Jefferson scored his second touchdown. The two-point conversion failed, putting the game at 21-12.
The Grey Wolves’ defense held firm, forcing the Vikings’ offense off the field in short order. Shoemaker scored again with 9:41 left in the game as Jefferson added his third touchdown. Tim Davis added the extra point and Bryan’s lead was 21-19.
The game’s final drive saw the Grey Wolves taking a Viking punt and swiftly moving into Bryan territory.
With Jefferson at quarterback, the Grey Wolves’ only mistake was to call their final timeout because of personnel problems. The mistake would ultimately prove fatal.
After a six-yard gain on first-and-goal, Shoemaker lined up in the wildcat formation with Jefferson at quarterback.
The junior running back took the snap and was immediately stuffed by the Vikings’ Granger DeWitt. With no timeouts left, the Grey Wolves did not have enough time to stop the clock and the game ended.
Bryan faces A&M Consolidated at Kyle Field next Friday. Kickoff is at 7:30, with the pregame starting at 7:01 on KZNE, Sports Radio 1150, The Zone.
Score by Quarters 1 2 3 4 Final
Bryan 7 14 0 0 21
Shoemaker 0 6 6 7 19
1st Quarter
Bryan, 5:28 Kevin Jefferson 33 yd TD pass from Chris Johnson (Chris N. Johnson kick), 7-0
2nd Quarter
Bryan, 8:42 Jefferson 16 yd TD run (Johnson kick), 14-0
Bryan, 2:41 Jefferson 15 yd TD pass from Johnson (Johnson kick), 21-0
Shoe, 0:09 Johnny Jefferson 2 yd TD run (PAT failed), 21-6
3rd Quarter
Shoe, 2:45 J. Jefferson 2 yd TD run (2 pt conv failed), 21-12
4th Quarter
Shoe, 9:41 J. Jefferson 3 yd TD run (Tim Davis kick), 21-19