Zebras hold off Pottsboro rally to go back-to-back

Tremayne Gullatte rushed for five touchdowns and Dane Jentsch dominated on both sides of the ball to lead Grandview to a 42-35 win over Pottsboro and its second straight 3A, Division I state championship.

The Zebras held a two-touchdown lead for much of the second half but didn’t clinch the win until Pottsboro’s last-ditch onside kick went out of bounds with 2:21 left after Braden Plyler’s 19-yard run had trimmed Grandview’s lead to 42-35.

Gullatte didn’t get to play in last year’s title game after tearing his ACL in the 2018 semifinals.  

“That hurt last year, not being able to help my team last year,” he said. “But I got right when it and this year was a blessing. We came back. I never expected that I’d score five touchdowns.”

Jentsch, the Zebras’ quarterback and safety, rushed for 152 yards and a score, passed for 218 yards and made two key plays on defense, stuffing Plyler on a fourth-and-goal early in the third quarter, then intercepted him later in the quarter. Jentsch earned offensive and defensive MVP honors on the field, but he passed the offensive award off to Gullatte.

“Five touchdowns in your first state championship game…that’s an MVP performance,” he said.

Grandview coach Ryan Ebner credited Jentsch with making key plays when his team had to have them.

“It seems like all of these guys, including Dane, always find a way to make plays when they need to,” Ebner said.

The goal line stand proved pivotal to both teams. Pottsboro had drawn within 28-21 on Plyler’s 29-yard pass to Zac Talley, and after stopping the Zebras on a fourth down attempt near midfield, the Cardinals appeared poised to tie the game with first-and-goal inside the five. Grandview answered each time, and Jentsch’s stop of Plyler came after the Zebras had been flagged for offsides on the previous fourth-down play.

“We wanted to be aggressive,” Ebner said. “When you get into your stance and your feet are in the end zone, there’s only one way to go and that’s forward. We did a great job of attacking and executing and I was extremely proud of the effort at that moment.”

Pottsboro coach Matt Poe agreed, admitting that perhaps he should have called a different play rather than five consecutive runs.

“Hindsight being 20/20, of course I’d like to have that play over,” he said. “But we couldn’t get a half a yard on three tries. All credit to Grandview. We just couldn’t get it in there.”

Following the stand, Jentsch wasted no time putting his team back in control. From his own three-yard line, he connected with Austin Boyd for 47 yards, then gained another 40 yards on a keeper to set up Gullatte’s six-yard run.

Plyler kept Pottsboro in the game with three touchdown passes while navigating pressure from the Zebras’ defense. He connected with Titus Lyons, Jasek Hooker and Zac Talley for scores, and his late touchdown run gave the Cardinals a final chance.

“We didn’t quit,” Poe said. “We kept trying until the very end. I’m very proud of our guys.”

- Jay Plotkin

VIDEO RECAP

BOX SCORE

Pottsboro         7          14        0          14 - 35

Grandview        7          21        7          7 - 42

Scoring

1st quarter

Pottsboro- Cy Shope 1 run (Jacob McDonald kick)

Grandview-Tremayne Gullatte 4 run (Nathaniel Baker kick)

2nd quarter

Grandview-Gullatte 1 run (Baker kick)

Grandview-Gullatte 7 run (Baker kick)

Pottsboro-Jasek Hooper 15 pass from Braden Plyler (McDonald kick)

Grandview-Dane Jentsch 5 run (Baker kick)

Pottsboro-Zac Talley 29 pass from Plyler (McDonald kick)

3rd quarter

Grandview-Gullatte 6 run (Baker kick)

4th quarter

Pottsboro-Titus Lyons 53 pass from Plyler (McDonald kick)

Grandview-Gullatte 20 run (Baker kick)

Pottsboro-Plyler 19 run (McDonald kick)

Team Stats        PHS      GHS

First Downs       23        17

Rushes-Yards    40-130  38-237

Passing Yards    254      218

Passing 19-25-1 12-17-0

Fum-Lost          3-1       0-0

Pen-Yards         0-0       7-40

Punts-Avg         2-25.5  2-31.5

Individual Leaders

Pottsboro

Rushing: Cy Shope 20-79, TD; Braden Plyler 18-56

Passing: Plyler 19-25-1-254, 3 TDs

Receiving: Titus Lyons 8-133, TD; Jasek Hooper 4-55, TD; Zac Talley 1-29, TD; Ezra Fritts 3-9; Shope 2-14

Grandview

Rushing: Dane Jentsch 14-152, TD; Tremayne Gullatte 19-95, 5 TDs

Passing: Jentsch 12-17-0-218

Receiving: Austin Boyd 4-105; Luke Ferguson 5-68; Jacob Patterson 3-45