Dripping Springs football holds off Johnson in wild shootout

DRIPPING SPRINGS — Dripping Springs football’s offense is ready for district play.

In their final nondistrict tuneup, the Tigers clicked on all cylinders offensively as they held off Johnson 49-34 in a Hays County rival game Friday at Tiger Stadium.

Maddox Maher threw for 280 yards and four touchdowns, Jack Tyndall ran for 123 yards and two scores and Cooper Reid hauled in five catches for 87 yards and three TDs to lead a Dripping Springs offense that never punted.

The Tigers (3-1) overcame 358 yards of rushing by Johnson (3-1), with Jaguars running back Kael Hatnot finishing with 155 yards and three scores and Zach Isaak adding 107 yards and two touchdowns.

STAFF PICKS: Predicting Austin area’s top Week 4 games

The teams combined for more than 900 yards of offense.

Hatnot’s 8-yard touchdown run on the game’s opening possession gave the Jaguars their lone lead at 6-0 following a missed extra point and kicked off a wild first half, in which the teams combined for 55 points and more than 580 yards.

Clive Wahl’s 4-yard scoring run and Maher’s 5-yard TD pass to Reid put the Tigers ahead 14-6 going into the second quarter, which would see five touchdowns.

Johnson rushing TDs from Isaak (15 yards) and Hatnot (12 yards) sandwiched a 4-yard scoring jaunt by Tyndall, with Maher’s 77-yard touchdown pass to Merrik Bloomgren giving Dripping Springs a 28-20 advantage.

With less than 10 seconds before the break, Maher hit Reid for an 8-yard TD.

Dripping Springs took just three plays and 58 seconds to score in the second half as Jack Tyndall sprinted 21 yards into the end zone.

Dripping Springs defensive lineman Clive Wahl (94) and tight end Jakob Rivas (88) celebrate a touchdown in the first quarter of the game between the Dripping Springs Tigers and the Buda Johnson Jaguars at Dripping Springs, Sept. 20, 2024.

SCORES LIST:…