2004 Cedar Park Timberwolf Football

Game-by-Game Narratives - 2004

Week Three: Killeen Ellison
Friday, September 17th

An efficient, complete-game 23-8 win over Killeen Ellison was a nice break from the opening losses. The very welcome win was a breath of fresh air, but folks weren’t going to kid themselves over it- the Eagles were at best a mediocre team.

Nevertheless, the victory was an important confidence-builder for the team. The total offensive production of 326 yards was one of the best numbers in the previous couple of seasons, and holding the Eagles to just eight points on 275 yards was the first in a long line of “bend-but-don’t-break” performances by the Cedar Park “Gang Green” defense. (Why “Gang Green”? Well, they just grew on you, and they made things decay and fall off- such as offensive production).

For the first time in a season and a half, the Cedar Park offense scored on both of its first possessions of the game: a 36-yard Wes Wagener field goal followed by a seven yard run by Rupert Edwards to cap off a long and impressive drive. The first extra point attempt of the night was blocked, but that would be the last missed PAT all season. Wagener’s kick following Edwards’ second TD run of the night with five minutes to go in the half would be the first in a record string of 38 consecutive successful extra point kicks.

The passing game only managed three completions, but the 83 yards it gained were impressive and critical. A beautiful 58-yarder from Korey Washington to Tim Emmons kept one critical drive alive.

The big-play holes were finally plugged as the coaching staff’s re-engineering of the defense began to show results. Although no one could have guessed this at the time, the Eagles’ Cedaz Gibbs’ four yard run for a score in the third quarter would be the last touchdown scored on Cedar Park for over a month.

With the victory, the Timberwolves had stopped the bleeding and set the bone. But who knew that this inauspicious win over a meager 4A team to make CP a very modest 1-2 on the year would be the first act in such a long-running hit show; the initial victory in a school-record string of eleven consecutive conquests?

Our players did. They firmly believed they could play with the best of teams. After the season, Korey Washington was asked at what point he and his teammates realized they were a great team. Looking off into the distance, he said softly, “We always knew.” He thought for a moment, then made eye contact and repeated himself forcefully, “We always knew.”

Most could tell the team had already been playing well enough in the opening losses to be able to beat a mediocre 4A team like Ellison, who’d come into the game 0-2. But the defensive showing was impressive, nonetheless. Hays had given up 21 to this same team just two weeks before, so the Gang Green defense was measurably improved from its opening performances.

And for the first time in three years, Cedar Park would enter district competition riding the momentum of a win.

Game Stats | No Drive Chart Available

NEXT - Week Four: Westwood
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