Sunray hosts Boys Ranch in a critical district matchup
If we told you before the season that we'd be covering a week eight matchup between the Sunray Bobcats and the Boys Ranch Roughriders, you might have given us a quizzical look. That's because no one could've predicted these two teams posting such a turnaround this year.
No one, except maybe the two of them as they set to face off at 7 p.m. Friday at Sunray High School.
Sunray finished last year just 4-7 overall, relying heavily on a youthful group to get the job done. The Bobcats enter game at 5-1 with their lone loss coming to undefeated Stratford.
Needless to say, Sunray is feeling pretty good about how things have gone thus far.
“I think there’s a good vibe in the locker room," Sunray coach Wesley Boatmun said. "They’re certainly playing with a lot more confidence than they’ve had in some time so it’s a good vibe.”
You'd think that Boys Ranch would be feeling the same way.
Last year, the Roughriders won a game for the first time since 2016, but still finished the year with just two wins. Now, they're 4-2 overall and have one of the top running backs in the Panhandle. They're coming off a loss to a talented Vega team, but again, you'd still think they'd be feeling good about where they're at.
You'd think that, but Boys Ranch has raised the internal expectations.
"Coming out to practice today there was some disappointment because we’re 0-1 in district," Boys Ranch coach Aaron Wampler said. "We talked about changing the culture and that’s clearly starting to happen. We’re very pleased with how we started the year and we’re glad to have won a few, but there’s kind of a new expectation around the locker room.”
By now you've heard that Sunray has a pretty good passing attack. If you consider the second most passing yards in the state pretty good.
Sophomore quarterback Armando Lujan has been a revelation. He's already 142-of-233 passing for 1,957 yards, 23 touchdowns and just five interceptions on the year. Those are outstanding numbers for a 10th grader, but it helps having a receiver like Damian Barragan (37 catches, 552 yards, seven TDs) and the rest of the Bobcat pass-catchers.
Make no mistake, though, Sunray is nowhere near a two-man team.
“Much of Armando's improvement in numbers this year has correlated with how much better we’ve been able to protect him," Boatmun said. "He has a year in the system, but so do those other kids. As each member improves, every member improves. We’re excited for Armando and some of the press he’s been able to get this year, but we try to tell our guys that when people are talking about him, they’re talking about us.”
Entering the year, Rowdy Barnes was a selection to the AGN preseason Super Team. When he's played this year, he's been as good as expected, but he's missed three games and has been limited in two others due to an injury.
In his place, Isaiah Brown has stepped up as a dual threat quarterback and talented defender. Brown is third in the Panhandle in rushing with 941 yards to go with nine touchdowns on the ground. Add in 592 passing yards and four touchdowns, and Brown has been a revelation as well.
With Barnes getting healthy, the Roughriders are in good position.
“The fact that we’ve won a few without Rowdy and that Isaiah has been able to pick up that slack says a lot about Isaiah," Wampler said. "Rowdy is getting closer and closer to full strength and hopefully he can be good enough to get reps at running back this week, but that’s a day-to-day thing. Even Rowdy being out, he’s still brought that quiet leadership and been a big part of what our team has been able to do.”
Boys Ranch hasn't had a winning year since 2008. Sunray has seen the Roughriders at their lowest and knows how much better they've been this year. The Bobcats aren't thinking about the past or present Boys Ranch team. They're just doing what they always do.
“I look at them like I look at any other game," Boatmun said. "It’s the most important week of the season this week because it’s the week that we’re in. We look at what they like to do, how we can take that away and how can we make them do something they aren’t as comfortable doing. That’s how we look at each week.”
Sunray hasn't finished with a winning record since 2015 with the 6-6 record of 2020 being the only non-losing season. With a win this week, the Bobcats can guarantee a winning record in the regular season. The Roughriders are looking to prevent them from reaching that mark, but they're just trying to focus on what they can control.
"I think our biggest thing is going to be getting our offense going," Wampler said. "When we’ve done that this year and established the run game, we’ve been successful. When we’ve struggled to do that, it’s been a long night and put a lot of stress on our defense. ... We’ve played pretty well defensively all year but we have to get the ball rolling offensively to help the defense out a little bit.”
BOYS RANCH AT SUNRAY
District 1-2A Div. II Football
When: 7 p.m. Friday
Where: Sunray High School, Sunray
Records: Boys Ranch 4-2, 0-1, Sunray, 5-1, 0-0
Coverage: Follow @Hpisani91 on Twitter for live updates, plus post game video, stories and photos to appear on amarillo.com.
This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Sunray hosts Boys Ranch in a critical district matchup
