QB Hix injured during Hennessey loss to OCS

In the short-term, Hennessey can’t help but think what might have been. Long-term, the Eagles are hoping to not be left with the same sentiment from the 2022 season.

Hennessey opened District 2A-1 play last Friday with a 35-15 loss at Oklahoma Christian School. However, the Eagles are hoping they didn’t lose more than a game.

Starting quarterback Titan Hix left the game with a knee injury in the third quarter and didn’t return. The Eagles went from a 15-14 lead at halftime to a being outscored 21-0 in the final two quarters.

Hix was still waiting to hear the extent of his injury on Monday.

“It doesn’t appear to be quite as serious as they first thought, but we are waiting on an MRI and possibly an X-ray,” said Paul Hix, Titan’s father and the Eagles’ head coach.

With the younger Hix in the game, the Eagles were able to go toe-to-toe with the Saints. He threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to Seth Simunek to give the Eagles a 7-0 lead less than halfway through the first quarter. The Saints answered with two straight scores.

One was a 1-yard TD run by Garret Wilson in the first and the other a 66-yard scamper by Henry Rothwell midway through the second quarter. The Eagles struck back just before halftime as Sebastian Gonzalez hit Langston Smith with a 38yard touchdown pass with 18 seconds remaining.

Hix then ran in the twopoint conversion for a 15-14 lead.

That scoring play was a halfback pass that took advantage of the versatiity of Gonzalez.

Little did the Eagles know, they’d rely on his arm more in the second half by necessity.

Hix the freshman was injured early in the third. At that point, Hix had thrown for 221 yards and run for 18.

Gonzalez, last year’s starter at QB, stepped in. He was 6 of 14 for 24 yards in the second half and was picked off twice.

Meanwhile, the Eagles had no answer for Oklahoma Christian’s rushing attack.

The Saints ran 31 times for 403 yards, an average of 13.0 per carry.

Brandon Orme had two second-half TD runs and Rothwell another.

Orme finished with 216 yards on 21 carries.

Rothwell needed just eight carries to garner 187 yards.

That helped offset Hennessey’s passing attack of 283 yards.

Westom Smith caught 12 passes for 71 yards. Simunek’s five receptions covered 85 yards.

Jessin Hardin led the defense with 10 tackles. Mauricio Valles added seven.

The loss dropped Hennessey to 2-2 overall and 0-1 in the district.

They host Perry (2-2, 1-0) for homecoming this Friday. The Maroons are coming off a 69-0 victory over Blackwell.