Broncos brace for pass-happy Cavaliers

[KFDM COOP]

Broncos brace for pass-happy Cavaliers

By Dave Rogers

 

Published December 13, 2007

His father is the only man alive – or dead — to be a member of five straight Super Bowl teams and the winning quarterback for Cal in the game that ended in “The Play†when the kick returners lateraled their way through the Stanford band.

The guy he replaced quarterbacked Kansas to the No. 1 national ranking this year, if only for a while, and his understudy is the son of former University of Texas quarterback Robert Brewer.

But what concerns Dayton coach Jerry Stewart and his Bronco players is the right arm of Lake Travis junior Garrett Gilbert.

“He can chunk it now,†Stewart said this week as his Broncos prepared to face Lake Travis in a Class 4A Division II state semifinal game Friday night at 7:30 p.m. at Texas A&M’s Kyle Field.

“He’s got a whip, and I’d do the same thing if I had him,†the coach said of the Cavaliers’ pass-happy offense. “I’d see if he could get 40 touchdowns, too.â€

Gilbert, a 6-foot-4, 190-pounder who seems destined to follow 2005 Lake Travis grad Todd Reesing and his dad, Gale Gilbert, to a major college scholarship, has passed for 3,985 yards and 45 touchdowns for the 13-1 Cavaliers, a team riding a 12-game win streak to College Station.

The Cavaliers have averaged 37 points per game for the season and 46 points per game in the playoffs, including last week’s 57-43 shootout win over Beeville Jones.

Gilbert threw seven touchdown passes in that one, just missing the state record of eight set by Barbers Hill’s Jabo Leonard in 1971 and matched by Lee’s Drew Tate in a 62-7 win over Sterling in 2001.

The favorite target for Gilbert, whose biggest early recruiting suitors are Texas Tech and Nebraska, is 5-10, 165-pound senior Jason Bird. The son of offensive coordinator Jerry Bird has 125 catches for 1,521 yards and 17 scores.

“It’s like a video game,†is how the younger Bird described a Lake Travis offense that averages 408 yards per game.

The Cavaliers average 121 yards per game rushing, with Chris Aydam leading the way with 866 yards and 12 TDs on the ground.

Coach Jeff Dicus has rolled up a 42-15 record in five seasons at the well-to-do neighborhood in northwest Austin, taking over after the school was 1-19 the previous two years. The Cavaliers went 11-1 when Reesing was a senior two falls ago.

Gale Gilbert, the quarterback’s dad, has a Wikipedia page that sounds a little like something out of Forrest Gump.

He was on a California team that lost the Little League World Series championship game to Taiwan in 1974, and after his college days at Berkeley had an 11-year NFL career as a backup QB.

He had just four career starts, but was a member of four straight Super Bowl teams for Buffalo and appeared in mopup duty for the San Diego Chargers in Super Bowl XXIX, the game in which San Francisco QB Steve Young “got the monkey off his back.â€

None of this will make one whit of difference in Friday’s football game, of course.

All Stewart and his players can work toward is trying to see a lot of the son of another famous dad. Ryan Erxleben, the Lake Travis punter, is the son of former UT and New Orleans Saints kicker Russell Erxleben.

“We won’t change anything we do,†Stewart said when asked his plans to defend against Garrett Gilbert. “We’ll line up and see what he’s got.

“What we can’t do is let him think it’s a 7-on-7 deal.â€

[PURPLE 4EVER]

Another good article by Dave Rogers...

Tomorrow is the big day!!

GO BRONCOS!

[AtascocitaLobo]

My nerves have not been this shot since right before the Texas City game.  I guess in a quarter or two we will get the general idea if we can handle their offense and if our offense can score rampantly.  Time will tell...

[liltex]

Hey lobo chill,what makes you think any differant than the usual Bronco game,outside two miscues last week.I believe Dayton has not even ever been behind @ halftime since game #4 this year, 5 shutouts,hold great teams lumberton-png-crosby to [ 1 ] touchdown each-skunk livingston-lead waller 21-0 at halftime.My pick Broncos 50-19

[rkhufu7]

Lake Travis' defense looks to be the difference maker in this game by shutting down Dayton's offense!

[Wes57]

Lake Travis has not seen a secondary like Daytons. Their in for a good ol donkey stompin, or should I say a Bronco stompin. Dayton will run away with this game and win state next week.

[Wes57]

I'd like to retract my previous statements. I'm listening to the game and this QB is unbelievable. Dayton so far has no answer for him. Got to make some kind of drastic change in the 2nd half.

[WHFAN]

Lake Travis has not seen a secondary like Daytons. Their in for a good ol donkey stompin, or should I say a Bronco stompin. Dayton will run away with this game and win state next week.

I think they have alot better after tonight

[AtascocitaLobo]

My nerves have not been this shot since right before the Texas City game.  I guess in a quarter or two we will get the general idea if we can handle their offense and if our offense can score rampantly.  Time will tell...

After their first 2 drives I knew we were in trouble.  That QB of theirs has so much accuracy and so many weapons at his disposal it was just a little too much for our Defense to handle.  I would love to play Lake Travis again in pre district next year.  Well now I am pulling for Lake Travis to beat Highland Park but time will tell.