Klein Collins makes playoffs for 13th year in a row with convincing win over Klein Oak

Klein Collins hasn't missed out on the Texas high school football playoffs since 2013.

And the Tigers aren't going to start now.

Klein Collins secured its 13th consecutive postseason appearance with a 56-28 victory against Klein Oak on Thursday night at Klein Memorial Stadium in a game with straightforward win-or-go-home stakes.

The Tigers (6-4, 5-3) had lost three straight entering the final week of the regular season, including an ugly 50-point loss against district champion Klein last week. But they responded with their season on the line and were nearly unstoppable with their offensive run game against a Klein Oak team that had rattled off four consecutive wins. Klein Collins rushed for a season-high 407 yards and averaged a shade over 9 yards per attempt.

"Our kids were able to rise to the occasion, but not just tonight," said Klein Collins coach Adrian Mitchell, who took over the program in 2018. "They rose to the occasion Saturday by showing back up after arguably the worst Klein Collins football game in the history of the school. But they showed back up Saturday morning, right? And that's big. They showed up every day this week in practice, and then they showed up tonight."

Following last week's District 15-6A games, Klein, Tomball and Magnolia had already wrapped up three of the four playoff spots. That left the finale between Klein Collins and Klein Oak as a winner-take-all showdown. The Tigers made the most of the opportunity and will now get a chance to play another week. Klein Collins will take on Cypress Lakes (7-2, 5-1 in District 16-6A) in the bi-district round of the Class 6A Division I playoffs. The Spartans have won five consecutive games entering Friday's regular-season finale against Jersey Village and will be making their second consecutive playoff appearance.

"This is amazing," said senior quarterback Brylon Jefferson, who rushed for 134 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries, including a 60-yarder on the first play from scrimmage. "Maybe three weeks ago, we might not have thought we were going to keep playing, but now we're here. So we're ready. We're coming, and we're ready."

Klein Oak (5-5, 5-3) was without the services of four-star junior running back Micah Rhodes, a Texas commit who had rushed for 1,043 yards. But the Panthers' struggles on defense were the primary culprit to their downfall. They entered the night second in the district at 236.5 yards allowed per game, but by the time the dust settled on the first half, Klein Collins had already racked up 303 rushing yards and 398 total en route to a commanding 42-20 lead.

Explosive plays were detrimental to Klein Oak's defensive efforts. Klein Collins had six rushing plays of 20-plus yards in the first half as Jefferson, Kobe Harmon and Da'Marcus Jones led the charge. Tyce Hudson also surpassed 1,000 all-purpose yards for the season with 95 receiving yards and a touchdown on two catches. Klein Oak finished with 228 yards in the first half and moved the ball well offensively, but the Panthers were unable to keep pace.

"If the O-line is the reason we got the first 15 yards, the receivers are the reason we get the 50-yard burst, the big, long touchdowns," said Mitchell, proudly showing off the white "DAWGS" lettering across the front of his navy blue shirt, meant to pay homage to the Klein Collins offensive line. "When those guys are blocking downfield, we're making it our mission for the DBs or whoever we're blocking to be so fighting mad by the end of the game that they want to throw a punch and they're going to get kicked out. We want to have that type of relentless effort throughout the game, and that's the mindset, and that's the mantra that our guys took into that game."

After surrendering 736 yards against Klein last week - including 536 passing with eight touchdowns from quarterback Carter Lattelle - the Klein Collins defense was motivated to make amends. The Tigers gave up some big plays in the first half, but the unit was lights-out following the intermission as the team extended its lead. Klein Collins surrendered just 15 yards in the third quarter and kept the Panthers off the scoreboard completely. Jayden Guillory had two interceptions in key situations for the Tigers, bringing his team-high season total to four.

On the offensive side, Harmon finished with 112 rushing yards and a touchdown on 12 carries, and Da'Marcus Jones rattled off a team-high 136 yards with three touchdowns on just nine attempts. Jones' 31-yard touchdown run with 8:24 remaining in the game was the cherry on top for what was a dominant night on the ground.

After three consecutive losses, the Tigers found themselves in a dire situation. But Mitchell said his team never lost belief in their quest for the postseason, and Jefferson echoed those sentiments. Now, after Klein Collins' most critical win of the season, he and his teammates will get a chance to see where the next matchup takes them.

"The season has been a roller coaster," Jefferson said. But I think we're coached well enough to persevere and get through whatever we need to get through to get to the next game."