Longhorns Beat Rankin to Complete a Three-peat

ARLINGTON — Stryker Reed rushed for 160 yards and four touchdowns, and Gordon is the three-peat Class 1A Division I state champions. Gordon rolled past Rankin, 69-22, Wednesday at AT&T Stadium.

But this title added a little more meaning for the community and completed what could be considered a comeback story. In May, an EF-1 tornado struck the Palo Pinto County town located one hour west of Fort Worth. It caused damage to the school’s athletics facilities, including the football field.

Gordon ended the game under the six-man mercy rule after building a 47-point lead in the third quarter. Reed’s final touchdown run punctuated the finish. The Longhorns scored on five of their first six possessions and turned early stops into quick-strike points. Senior Brayden Walters’ interception set up another score.

Gordon coach Mike Reed said the run to a third straight title felt bigger than any one adjective, built on a journey that started when many of his seniors were in fifth grade. “Sometimes no words are the best words,” Reed said, adding he wasn’t ready “for it to end.”

The Longhorns’ first touchdown came on their opening possession after Rankin turned it over on downs.

Gordon’s defense and field position swung the first quarter. With Rankin backed up, Walters intercepted a pass intended for Logan White. Gordon quickly cashed in as Walters scored moments later to make it 24-0.

Rankin narrowed the lead to 24-8 on Matthew Ramos’ 20-yard touchdown run with 2:03 left in the first. A Gage Lopez pass to Isaac Armendariz moved the Red Devils into scoring range, setting up the score.

Gordon responded immediately. Ry Reed scored on a 60-yard touchdown run late in the first quarter. Gordon averaged 21.2 yards per rush and scored six rushing touchdowns on only 10 rushing attempts.

Rankin kept competing into the second quarter. Ramos ripped off a 55-yard run to the Gordon 5-yard line. The Red Devils cut the lead to 40-16 on Ramos’ 1-yard touchdown run.

But Gordon’s pace only accelerated. Reed broke loose for a 68-yard touchdown run. He later finished another drive after Evan Jackson’s pass to Evan Jackson (No. 11) down to the 4-yard line set up first-and-goal. Gordon led 55-16 at halftime following Reed’s touchdown run.

Gordon’s passing game was small in volume but explosive. Noah Kostiha completed 3-of-4 passes for 86 yards and three touchdowns, while Stryker Reed went 2-for-2 for 53 yards. Asher Salinas caught two passes for 47 yards and a touchdown. Ry Reed added a 42-yard receiving touchdown.

Rankin’s best surge came right out of halftime when Jairo Cruz recovered an onside kick and Isaac Armendariz scored to make it 55-22. Any hopes of extending the game faded quickly. Gordon recovered the next onside attempt, then hit another quick touchdown as Ry Reed scored through the air. Gordon’s final dagger came after a fourth-down stop. Reed triggered the mercy-rule finish with a touchdown run.

Afterward, Reed tied the team’s on-field execution to the Gordon community’s resilience following last spring’s devastating storm. “When devastation happens, (it) gives people an excuse to not finish a task or to quit because it’s too hard,” Reed said. “Resilient, hard work, show up, you can say those words, but then this group of kids in this community have put those words into action.”

Walters said the town’s support mattered. “It really just meant everything,” he said. “It just showed that our whole community… they all have our back.”

During the postgame celebration, the message was to enjoy the moment, then move on. Stryker Reed framed it as a film ending: “The credits are rolling and it’s time for a new movie,” with basketball practice coming next.