Athen’s Bruce Field on Friday, November 24, 2023 –
The Timpson Bears have moved on in the 2023 Texas UIL Football Playoffs after defeating the Honey Grove Warriors by a 68-7 score. Honey Grove did not score until the final seconds of the contest.
With 8:46 minutes left in the first period Timpson quarterback Terry Bussey hit receiver Colton Carroll who scored the first touchdown from 35 yards out. Tyler Lane kicked the extra point which gave THS an early 7-0 advantage. Four minutes later Bussey intercepted a Warriors pass and returned it for another score which gave Timpson a 14-0 lead with 4:50 left in the first period. Moments later Bear Devin Tutt recovered a Warrior’s fumble and the Bears wasted no time scoring. Bussey hit junior runningback JJ Garner for a 17-yard touchdown reception. Another lane extra point gave THS a 21-0 advantage with 4:03 still left in the first stanza. Garner recovered a HGHS fumble on the next possession and Bussey scored on a 5-yard touchdown run which gave Timpson a 27-0 lead at the 3:48 mark of the first quarter.
The second quarter saw Bussey and Garner each score twice and balloon Timpson’s lead to 54-0 by the halftime intermission. Timpson scored with 10:08 left in the third quarter when Bussey hit Garner for a 14-yard touchdown and Lane kicked an extra point to boost the THS lead to 61-0. Timpson’s final score came when Garner bolted free on a 79-yard scoring run with 3:35 left in the third period and another extra point kick gave Timpson a 68-0 lead.
The Warriors scored in the waning seconds of the final period Rhylan Morris hit Dre Patt for a touchdown reception with just 4 seconds remaining in the contest and Gio Jaramillo added the extra point kick. The Warriors season ended with them holding a 10-5-1 season record.
The Bears are 13-0 and they will face the Garrison Bulldogs in a rematch, at 7 p.m. on Friday, December 1, 2023 at SFA's Homer Bryce Stadium in the State Quarterfinals at 7 p.m. Timpson will be the home team. The Bulldogs were the Bears District 11 2A-1 opponents and they hold a 12-1 season record. The two teams played on November 3 in a game which decided this year’s District 11 champion and the playoff seeding. The Bears took a 35-26 home win. The GHS Bulldogs defeated the Cooper Bulldogs 47-20 to reach the playoff with Timpson.
