Eagles get their groove back in 1st win
Rusk defeats Gladewater 42-29
LELAND ACKER
A few personnel changes and a week to tweak on strategy was all the Rusk Eagles needed to bounce back from an 0-2 start to defeat the Gladewater Bears 42-29 Friday at Jack V. Murphy Stadium in Gladewater.

J.J. Session l 22) breaks open for extra yardage after making a reception during Rusk's 42-29 win over the Gladewater Bears Friday. Session had four receptions for 36 yards. Sophomore quarterback Michael Katon completed nine of 19 passes for 106 yards. PHOTO: LYNN LITTLEJOHN

The Eagles promoted Michael Katon from JV to starting varsity quarterback, allowing Demarcus Skinner and Jared Colville to focus on their duties as defensive backs.

Furthermore, the Eagles began to utilize the "I-formation" offense more, with Quinn Anthony playing full back and Horrace Lewis and Skinner taking turns at tailback.

Eagle Head Coach Wayne Mahaffey said the changes worked well for Rusk.

"It took a little pressure off of (Skinner and Colville)," he said. "The team got excited in practice and that carried over into the game."

Coach Mahaffey said by moving Katon to varsity, Colville and Skinner were able to focus more, as were several other players.

LELAND ACKER

"We have had such poor execution because we have not had a lot of focus," he said. "Once we got that, we executed a little better."

Coach Mahaffey added that Katon played well for a sophomore starting his first varsity game. Katon went 9-19 for 106 yards and rushed for one touchdown.

Skinner opened the scoring for the Eagles with a 78-yard touchdown scamper with 8:04 left in the first quarter. Ricky Rojo (who went six for six in PATs) tacked on the extra point and Rusk had their first lead of the season 7-0.

Gladewater (1-2) responded three minutes later when quarterback Devvyn Eddington completed a 50-yard touchdown pass to Julian Griffin.

The Eagles penetrated the backfield tipping the PAT and Rusk maintained a one-point lead.

Big plays were the only way Gladewater could score in the first half, with their second touchdown coming in the second quarter on an 85-yard pass from Eddington to Griffin.

Meanwhile, Rusk had racked up two touchdowns on a twoyard run by Katon and a seven yard pass from Katon to Bobby McDuff.

Skinner was a man out for redemption after throwing two interceptions last week. He bought back his respect by intercepting two passes in the second half, returning one for a 29 yard touchdown with 1:34 left to play, putting the game on ice for the Eagles.

He also broke open for a 43- yard touchdown run to open the third quarter.

Lewis had a breakout night, leading the rushing with nine carries for 148 yards and an 81-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.

All four of Rusk's receivers contributed to the win, with J.J. Session snagging four passes out of the air for 36 yards.

Cody Daniel had one reception for 32 yards. He also had a long reception for a touchdown that was called back on a penalty. McDuff had two catches for 19 yards and Chance Cleaver had two catches for 19 yards.

The Rusk Eagles have a bye week this Friday to make some final adjustments before facing Palestine on Sept. 28. Coach Mahaffey said the team still has work to do.

"There are lots of areas that need improvement," Coach Mahaffey said. "We still have things to do to get better. If we continue to improve, we have the chance to be decent."

Coach Mahaffey said despite the fact Palestine is 1-2, he expects a tough game from the Wildcats.

"Palestine is always good," he said. "They have numbersmore kids. They are very athletic and well coached. But we like playing good teams, they get us better prepared for district."

Rusk (1-2) will play Palestine (1-2) at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 28 at Palestine's Wildcat Stadium.

Game Stats

SCORING BY QUARTER
Rusk 7 14 14 7 -- 42
Gladewtr 6 8 6 9 -- 29

SCORING SUMMARY

First Quarter Rusk - Demarcus Skinner 78 yd run (Ricky Rojo kick) 8:04 Gladewater- Devvyn Eddington 51 yd pass to Julian Griffin (kick fail) 4:52

Second Quarter Rusk - Michael Katon 2 yd run (Rojo kick) 7:03 Gladewater - Eddington 85 yd pass to Griffin (Eddington pass to Bryan Daniels for conversion) 5:56 Rusk - Katon 7 yd pass to Bobby McDuff (Rojo kick) :10

Third Quarter Rusk - Skinner 43 yd run (Rojo kick) 11:42 Gladewater - Eddington 5 yd run (kick failed) 8:41 Rusk - Horrace Lewis 81 yd run (Rojo kick) 8:22

Fourth Quarter Gladewater - Eddington 10 yd run (conversion failed) 7:01 Gladewater - Alex Vasquez 43 yd field goal 3:27 Rusk - Skinner 29 yd interception return (Rojo kick) 1:34

	Rusk	Gladewater
First downs	9	12
Rushes/yds	34-289	41-224
Passing yds	106	169
C/A/I	9-19-0	5-21-2
Fumbles/lost	0-0	1-0
Punts/avg	5-28.2	4-33
Penalties/yds	10-70	5-35

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING - Rusk: Lewis 9-148, Skinner 14-134, Marcell Johnson 3-18, Quinn Anthony 1-1, Chance Cleaver 1- (-5), Katon 6- (-7).Gladewater: Eddington 19-82, Edwin Harris 9-47, Terrance Leach 1-39, Cameron Price 5-33, Cardarian Lewis 4-11, Zavean Miller 2-2. PASSING - Rusk: Katon 9-19-0 106; Gladewater: Eddington 5-21-2 169. RECEIVING - Rusk: J. J. Session 4-36, Cody Daniel 1-32, Bobby McDuff 2-19, Cleaver 2-19. Gladewater: Griffin 5-169. INTERCEPTIONS - Rusk: Skinner 2.