Liberty Hill, Lampasas football players win Texas player of the week honors
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Two Central Texas high school football players were selected as Built Ford Tough Texas High School Football Players of the Week, the Ford Motor Company announced Friday.
For Class 5A, Liberty Hill junior running back Noah Long won the honor after his monster Week 3 game against Georgetown. Long led the Panthers to a 49-35 win with an eye-popping 343 rushing yards and five touchdowns on 26 carries to give Georgetown its first loss of the year.
So far this year, Long has rushed for 632 yards and eight touchdowns on 62 carries. He's averaging 210.7 rushing yards per game.
"He's worked extremely hard since last January to get where he is right now," Liberty Hill head coach Kent Walker said. "His work ethic is impressive. He sets his goals and he's going to find a way to reach those goals."
The Panthers made it to the Class 5A-Division 2 state championship game last season and Long rushed for 2,008 yards as a sophomore. Liberty Hill takes on Rouse in a nondistrict game Friday.
MORE THAN THE SCORE: Stay up to date on sports stories like these, and sign up for our More than the Score sports newsletter at kxan.com/newsletters
For Class 4A, Lampasas quarterback David Flores took home top honors for the week. Flores began the season as a backup, but you wouldn't know it after how he played against East View on Sept. 9.
Flores broke the school record for passing yards in a game after throwing for 436 yards and tied the school record with seven touchdown passes against the Patriots. He finished the game completing 26 of 36 passes averaging 13.8 yards per completion.
Former Lampasas standout Ace Whitehead, who now plays baseball for the Texas Longhorns, set the passing records for the Badgers in 2019.
"He was ready during a playoff game last season when Dylan [Sanchez] went down," said Lampasas head coach Troy Rogers. "So, it's not surprising he has picked up right where he left off. He is getting better every week and there is a reason he is part of our Leadership Council."
Lampasas (2-1) takes on Connally (0-3) on Friday.
You can nominate your favorite high school athlete for the Built Ford Tough Texas High School Football Player of the Week by going to the award's website and filling out the form.