Published Nov. 27, 1961
NINE-YARD GAIN – San Benito halfback Jim Helms (21), with ball, picks up nine yards on this first half carry Friday night in the San Benito-Port Lavaca bi-district class AAA football game. Port Lavaca players around Helms are Donald Leigh (83), Tom McGrath (20), and Eddie Owens (52). San Benito won the game, 15-12. (Staff photo)
Victory Sends Hounds Into Quarter-Final Round
San Benito News
Port Lavaca — Down 12-0 going into the last half, San Benito’s Greyhounds scored two third quarter touchdowns, counted three extra points and fought off a Port Lavaca drive to their 15 in the final minute to take a 15-12 class AAA bi-district football playoff victory here Friday night.
DARTING HALFBACK Jim Helms rambled for both the Hounds’ touchdowns, one on a pass from quarterback Don Uptegraph, the other on a 76-yard run from scrimmage.
The victory sends San Benito into the class AAA quarter finals against Del Rio’s Wildcats at 8 p.m. Saturday in Del Rio.
Del Rio whipped San Antonio Lee, 30-18, Saturday night in another bi-district game. Del Rio owns a 10-1 season record.
San Benito found itself behind for the first time the second game this year when Harlingen held a brief 6-0 lead over the Greyhounds.
The victory stretched San Benito’s season record to 11-0, keeping Coach Jake Helms’ crew the only undefeated, untied class AAA team in the state.
Fierce line play marked action throughout with the Sandcrabs dominating the first half, but with the Hounds coming back with just enough to win in the last two periods.
San Benito’s passing was at its best of the season as the Hounds picked up 114 yards on five completions.
THE LOSS eliminated Port Lavaca, a state finalist last year, from the class AAA playoffs. The Sandcrabs closed their season with a 6-4 record. San Benito’s victory broke a five-game Sandcrab winning streak.
The Hounds, meanwhile, stretched their overall winning skein to 16 games, 11 this year and the last five a year ago.
San Benito ended with 31 total yards more than Port Lavaca, but most of that yardage came in last half. At intermission, the Sandcrabs led 120-91 in rushing yardage while each team had gained 40 yards in the air.
San Benito couldn’t move with the opening kickoff after winning the coin toss and Eddie McKaughan punted the one and only time if the night for the Hounds.
Taking the kick on their own 35-yard line, the Crabs promptly marched the 65 yards in 13 plays to take the lead.
BIG GAINER of the drive was a 34-yard off-tackle slant by halfback Gabriel Calzada on the Crabs second offensive try. His dash carried to San Benito’s 30-yard line.
From that point, Port Lavaca had pull out first downs on two successive fourth down situations.
Facing fourth and needing a yard at the 21, fullback Donald Leigh bulled his way for five yards and a first down on the Hounds 16.
Leigh was the busiest ball carrier on the field Friday night, carrying 19 times for 57 yards.
After three ground plays moved the ball to the eight-yard line, Leigh again got the call on fourth down with two yards needed for a first down.
This time he got exactly the yardage needed as officials had to check the distance for a full minute before granting the Crabs their first and goal-to-go at the San Benito six.
Halfback Tom McGrath picked up three to the three and then Leigh got one more to the two. On the next play, Leigh swept the left side and crossed the goal untouched with 4:10 left in the first quarter.
A RUNNING TRY for two extra points fell short and the Crabs were in command by 6-0.
After fullback Jim Lewis gained 18 yards on two carries as San Benito began to move with the kickoff, the Hounds again bogged down and McKaughan dropped down to punt for the second time of the night from the Port Lavaca 43-yard line.
He bobbled the snap, though, and ran back to the 42-yard line before stepping out of bounds.
A personal foul against San Benito moved the ball down to the Hounds 43 where the Crabs had a first and 10. Before they could get off a play, though, the Crabs lost those same 15 yards on a personal foul of their own.
They couldn’t move the ball and Port Lavaca’s Sid Baker punted dead on the Hound 14-yard line.
From there the Greyhounds punched the ball back to the Crab 3-yard line before losing it on downs. The big play of the drive was a 31-yard pass completion from McKaughan to halfback Robert Cortez which carried from San Benito’s 17 to the 48. The pass came on the first play of the second quarter.
McKaughan followed that heave with a nine-yard completion to Helms to the Crab 43 and Lewis picked up a first down on the Port Lavaca 40 after an incompletion.
HELMS WENT for a plus and minus three on two carries and another pass went awry, however, to bring up fourth and 10 at the 40.
Electing to go for the yardage, McKaughan picked up seven yards to the Crab 33 to lose the ball there on downs.
From there Port Lavaca drove the 67 yards to score in 15 plays.
Yardage was coming in short chunks for the Crabs as once again Port Lavaca had to come through on a fourth down play deep in San Benito’s end of the field.
After picking up a first down on San Benito’s 16, three running tries netted nine yards to bring up fourth and one at the Hound seven. Leigh again came through, though, this time with a three-yard pickup to the four.
Then on first down Sid Baker crashed over with 3:22 left before intermission. Again the running try for extra points failed, and Port Lavaca remained in its seemingly safe 12-0 lead.
Taking the ensuing kickoff at their own 39-yard line, the Hounds marched all the way back to the Crab five-yard line before a fumble killed the drive with only a minute left in the half.
From the 39, Helms picked up 21 yards out to Port Lavaca’s 40. Then two plays later the junior All –State candidate gained another 25 yards down to the Crab 19.
ON FIRST DOWN from there, Helms gained two and Cortez added four on a line smash. Then on third down Helms blasted his way to the Crab five-yard line, but the ball got away from him there and Leigh was there to recover for the Crabs.
Port Lavaca quarterback Robert Henslee ducked into the line twice to kill the remaining minute before intermission.
San Benito was a different team in the second half. The Hounds scored the first time they got the ball to pull back within striking distance of the bulky Sandcrabs.
Port Lavaca received the second half kickoff and had to punt after having picked up one first down. The kick went to San Benito’s 24-yard line.
TWO LINE bucks by Lewis and Helms netted six yards out to the 30 to bring up third and needing six.
Quarterback Don Uptegraph loosened up his throwing arm, though, and fired two strikes in a row to put the Hounds on the scoreboard.
From the 30, he hit Cortez in the left flat at the 42. Cortez eluded two defenders at that point and raced down the left sideline to the Crab 26 for a first down there after a 4-yard gainer.
On first down, Uptegraph called the same play to the right side with Helms the target this time. Helms snared the ball at the 15-yard line and snaked down the right sideline to cross the goal with 7:33 remaining in the third quarter.
McKaughan came on to tack on the extra point and pull the Hounds up to a 12-7 deficit.
Port Lavaca wasn’t through for the night, though, Cortez pounced on a Crab fumble and San Benito took over at the 34.
The Hounds couldn’t stand the prosperity, though, and after one rushing play gained four yards, fumbled right back to the Crabs.
McKAUGHAN, heading wide to the right side on a keeper, left the ball slip away from him at the 31 and Tom McGrath covered there for Port Lavaca.
The Hound defense was equal to the occasion, though, and took over on their 24 after four Crab attempts netted only seven yards.
THAT DEFENSIVE stand seemed to give Helms the fire he needed to go all the way.
On the first down from the 24, he slanted off the left side, was almost downed three times by Crab defenders near the line of scrimmage, but each time managed to keep his feet.
He cut back up the middle at the 30 and raced the 76 yards to the goal without a Sandcrab near him when he scored.
Helms’ dash came with 43 seconds left in the third quarter.
On the extra point play, Helms went wide to the left side and just crossed the double stripe for two points and a 15-12 San Benito advantage.
San Benito edged out a penetration early in the fourth quarter after Marlin Mabry turned in a fine punt return to the Port Lavaca 34-yard line.
Lewis gained 11 yards on two carries to the 23 for a first down there.
Cortez gained four yards on two carries to the 19, but then Helms was thrown for a seven yard loss and an incompletion gave the ball back to the Crabs at their 26.
From there, Port Lavaca began a march that carried all the way to San Benito 15 in the waning moments.
Big play of the drive was 21-yard pass from Henslee to end Gene Bordosky down to San Benito’s 49-yard line.
With a first down on San Benito’s 24 with little more than two minutes remaining, the Crabs ran out of gas.
THREE RUNNING tries gained eight yards to the 16. The whole center of the San Benito defensive line smothered Baker for only a yard gain to the 15 where the Hounds took over with 1:13 left to play.
McKaughan called three quarterback sneaks to kill the clock and send the Hounds into the quarter finals.
Helms Again Leads Hounds In Statistics
Halfback Jim Helms again paced the San Benito Greyhounds in statistics in their 15-12 bi-district victory Friday night over Port Lavaca.
Helms rolled up 134 yards on the ground in 13 carries, better than a 10 yard – per- carry average. Helms’ final rushing total from the night was more than twice the amount for any other back in Friday night’s game.
Helms was also the game’s leading scorer, accounting for 14 of two touchdowns for 12 points and added another two on a running extra point play.
Eddie McKaughan scored San Benito’s other point when he kicked true on the conversion try after the Greyhounds’ first touchdown.
Fullback Jim Lewis was San Benito’s best rusher with 34 yards on six carries. Halfback Robert Cortez picked up eight yards on three trips while McKaughan gained six yards on six carries.
Port Lavaca’s Donald Leigh was the busiest ball toter of the night, picking up 57 yards on 19 carries.
On the passing side for the Hounds, quarterback Don Uptegraph was the lead thrower, completing two passes for 70 yards one for a touchdown. One was to Cortez for 44 yards and the other to Helms for 26 yards and six points.
McKaughan completed three for 44 yards. Two of his completions were to Cortez for 35 yards and the third to Helms for nine yards.
San Benito kicked only one time in the game. On that one try, McKaughan got off a 35-yarder.
San Benito fumbled three times and lost two of them to the Sandcrabs.
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