Comfort High opens the playoffs Thursday and draws a tough opponent right out of the gate – Tidehaven.
The Tigers and Bobcats face off Thursday in Seguin at Matadors Stadium, 7 p.m.
Tidehaven won their district and is undefeated this year at 10-0. They are ranked No. 2 in one 3A-DII poll, and Comfort coach Jay Rieken said they are as good as advertised.
“They’re that good,” he answered when asked if they were as good as their record indicates. “They are big and fast, they’re all of the above.”
The Tigers played for the 3A-DII state title in 2023 and lost to Gunter and have played for the Texas 7-on-7 State Tournament title in the last two years. They were runner up at the 7-on-7 tourney in 2024 but won it this past summer.
Comfort is coming off a 45-28 loss to Blanco, but Rieken said he liked how they played despite the score.
It was scoreless at the end of the first quarter and Comfort scored first in the game. Blanco answered with two touchdowns to close out the first half and took a 14-7 lead into the break.
The Panthers outscored the Bobcats in the second half, 31-14, but Rieken loved the effort his team gave.
“Our kids played good; they were very physical and really got after it,” he said. “We ran the ball well, we ran for 396 yards, but we gave them a couple of short fields.”
Comfort actually outgained Blanco in total yardage, 478-426. The Bobcats had 396 on the ground and added another 82 through the air, while Blanco finished with 426 yards in the game, with 423 on the ground and only 3 passing yards.
Rieken said the whole program did well to make the playoffs and closed out the regular season with a strong game against Blanco.
“The kids have done well this year, and coaches have done well this year,” Rieken said. “I don’t give them enough credit, especially the coaches for the time they spend up here.”
Comfort QB Omar Rivera finished with 182 rushing yards and Carter Pape added 144 yards on the ground, while Blanco QB Colten Kuebel rushed for 187 yards and Brodwick Siwecki tallied 166 yards on the ground.
Rieken said at this point of the season they aren’t going to reinvent the wheel on either side of the ball as they face a tough test Thursday in Seguin.
“We’re gonna stay with what we do, we might put a new wrinkle here and there,” he said. “We’re going to have to play a heck of a game to beat them, but if we play as hard as we did against Blanco, it’ll be a good game.”
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