Johnson, Central overpower Belton as Tigers fall 52-29

SAN ANGELO — Belton left plenty of points on the board last week when it dropped its first game of the season despite outgaining its opponent. The Tigers fixed that issue a week later, crossing the goal line each time they reached the red zone, but the story of their non-district finale instead belonged largely to the other team’s offense. Zeyvion Johnson rushed for 353 yards on 31 carries and totaled five touchdowns, and Gavin Johnson hauled in a pair of TD grabs from Micah Smith — including one on a 29-yarder as time expired in the first half — to lead San Angelo Central to a 52-29 victory over Belton on a clear night at San Angelo Stadium. The Bobcats (3-2) scored on their first eight possessions, seven of them ending with touchdowns, while outgaining the Tigers 566-381. They didn’t let Belton (3-2) any closer than 15 points after halftime while delivering the Tigers their second straight loss heading into next week’s open date. “You have to give them 100 percent credit. They went to their identity. They wanted to be more physical than us. They out-executed us in their schemes and we did not play to our standard, and they exposed that and we never regained it back,” said Belton head coach Josh Mann, whose team got touchdown connections of 18 and 47 yards from Will Shepard to Gavin Ross to account for its second-half scoring. “That’s a credit to their coaching staff and their team, and we, as coaches, did not do a good job of making the adjustments for our kids to be successful tonight.” Zeyvion Johnson rumbled in from 16 yards out to cap a 63-yard scoring drive that was extended on a roughing the passer penalty on a third-and-13 on Central’s first possession of the second half. It pushed the lead to 38-17 and though Belton responded on its next drive, it took the Bobcats less than a minute to match when Zeyvion Johnson sprinted 70 yards to the house to push the margin to 45-23, where it stood entering the final stanza. Zeyvion Johnson averaged 11.4 yards per carry and scored on runs of 2, 16, 70 and 4 yards. He also hauled in an 11-yard TD catch from Smith in the first half. Central’s first-half barrage included a 29-yard touchdown strike from Smith to Gavin Johnson as time expired in the second quarter after the Bobcats covered 75 yards in just 55 seconds to take the momentum with them into the locker room. After trading a touchdown and field goal with Central in the opening 13-plus minutes, the Tigers fell back 24-10 as Zeyvion Johnson took control in the second quarter, but Belton pulled within 24-17 late in the half when Shepard took a quarterback sneak 2 yards over the goal line on fourth down to cap a nine-play drive. The Bobcats needed only six plays to answer, however, with Smith’s 29-yard loft to Gavin Johnson as time expired at the break. Gavin Johnson also hauled in a 32-yard touchdown reception from Smith to put Central on the board barely 3 minutes into the game. “If we could’ve held them there, I felt like we could’ve kept staying in the game and maybe make it a lot closer. Unfortunately we just made a couple mistakes on that play and it cost us,” Mann said. “We had some young guys in some spots tonight and it was a learning opportunity for them, and that’s what these non-district games do for you. We haven’t had an easy breath yet, and just one step off in a game like this and you go from a seven-point game to now they’re up 14 and they get the ball back (after halftime), which was the worst nightmare.” Azian Wilkinson had a 41-yard kickoff return to set up the Tigers’ first score, which came when Brody Lee covered 8 yards on a pitch left to knot the tally at 7-all midway through the opening frame. Lee and Nash Jordan split ball-carrying duties for Belton, which played without senior running back Javid Planz for the second time in three weeks. Morgan Pascoe drilled a 44-yard field goal that made for a 10-10 tie early in the second period. Shepard finished 18-of-23 for 206 yards and two TDs, which each found Ross, who had a team-best nine catches for 126 yards. Oakley Torres had a second-half interception on a tipped pass for Belton.

THE OFFICIAL SITE OF
Belton High School Athletics

JOHNSON, CENTRAL OVERPOWER BELTON AS TIGERS FALL 52-29

JON BROOKS

Temple Daily Telegram | 9/28/2026