Stamford, Munday and East Bernard win Texas football titles Thursday

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Senior quarterback Hagen Hutchinson scored the decisive tie-breaking touchdown on a 9-yard run with 32 seconds remaining, sending the Stamford Bulldogs to a 35-28 victory over the Mart Panthers in the Class 1A Division I state championship game Thursday.

Hutchinson's performance headlined the most competitive of three contests on the first day of the three-day Texas University Interscholastic League State Football Championships at Cowboys Stadium. Three more state final games are set for Friday and another three on Saturday, with the classification size increasing each day.

The state title for Stamford (14-1) was its fifth and first since 1959. Stamford reached the title game last season, but was beaten by Mason, 62-40.

Hutchinson, the son of Stamford head coach Wayne Hutchinson, starred on both sides of the ball. Offensively, he rushed 23 times for 132 yards and two touchdowns and completed 22 of 30 passes for 248 yards and two more scores.

From his safety position on defense, Hutchinson led the team with 15 solo tackles, a sack and an interception of a desperation pass by Mart (12-3) in the final seconds to clinch the title.

Sophomore quarterback De'Nerian Thomas staked Mart to a 28-21 lead with a 1-yard scoring run in the final minute of the third quarter. Thomas threw for 224 yards and one touchdown and rushed for 89 yards to lead the Panthers.

Stamford tied the score at 28 in the first minute of the fourth quarter on a touchdown run of 8 yards by senior Isaiah Llewellyn.

Munday 42, Tenaha 14

In a rematch of the 2011 Class 1A Division II state title game, the Moguls outscored Tenaha 28-0 in the second half of Thursday's opener.

Munday (15-0) returned 17 seniors from the team that last lost to Tenaha, 51-28, in the 2011 state final.

LJ Collier, voted the game's outstanding defender, returned an interception 35 yards for a touchdown to extend Munday's lead to 28-14 in the third quarter.

The game's outstanding offensive player, Munday quarterback Dee Paul, shook off a wrist injury and rushed for 264 yards, including three long-distance touchdowns.

Tenaha (10-5) was led by Chavis Gregory with 116 yards and a touchdown. After graduating most of last year's key starters, the Tigers rallied from a 2-4 record to reach the final riding an eight-game winning streak. Tenaha went to halftime in the final with the score tied at 14.

East Bernard 56, Mildred (Corsicana) 14

The Brahmas bulled their way to a 35-0 lead with a dominant running attack and coasted over the Eagles to the Class 2A Division II state title in Thursday's nightcap.

Three ballcarriers for East Bernard (15-0) rushed for more than 100 yards, led by quarterback Ty Slanina, a TCU commit, with 167 yards and four touchdowns on only seven carries. Cedric Perkins had 139 yards and two touchdowns and Joc Richardson rushed for 106 yards.

Quarterback Nic Shimonek, an Iowa pledge, threw for 162 yards and both touchdowns for Mildred (13-2), but was under heavy pressure and sacked six times.

East Bernard defeated the classification's 2011 state champion, Refugio, 54-23, in the third round of the playoffs.