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JOE DODD: 2026 GILMER BUCKEYES FOOTBALL • GAME INFORMATION & NOTES Gilmer Buckeyes (2-1) at Sulphur Springs Wildcats (1-2)

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Friday, Sept. 18, 2026 • 7:00 p.m. • Gerald Prim Stadium • Sulphur Springs, Texas

GAME HEADER / TEAM INFORMATION

GILMER BUCKEYES SULPHUR SPRINGS WILDCATS
Class 4A Division II • District 8-4A DII Class 4A Division I • District 7-4A DI
2026: Season Record 2-1 2026: Season Record 1-2
2025: 4-7 2025: 10-2 • 5-1 district
Head Coach: Alan Metzel • 7th season Head Coach: Brandon Faircloth • 5th season
At School: 66-20 (.767) At School: 36-14 (.720)
Career: 66-20 (.767) Career: 137-66 (.675)
Enrollment: 735 Enrollment: 1,290
PigskinPrep.com: No. 10 • Rating 163.45 PigskinPrep.com: No. 13 • Rating 160.53

PigskinPrep.com Pick: Pick’em.  Jerry’s Score Prediction: Gilmer 28, Sulphur Springs 27.

GAME SITE

  • Gerald Prim Stadium in Sulphur Springs has a listed seating capacity of 6,000.
  • Gilmer has played two games at Gerald Prim Stadium, both in the playoffs: a 63-14 win over Caddo Mills on Nov. 24, 2017, and a 27-17 loss to Sunnyvale on Nov. 21, 2024.
  • Gilmer is 1-1 at Gerald Prim Stadium and has outscored its opponents there 80-41.
  • The 2024 area-round loss to Sunnyvale ended Gilmer’s 17-season streak (2007-2023) of advancing at least three rounds in the playoffs.
  • Friday will be Gilmer’s first regular-season varsity game at Gerald Prim Stadium.

2026 RESULTS TO DATE

Gilmer — 2-1

Date Opponent Result
Aug. 27 at Longview Pine Tree L, 40-52
Sept. 4 at Tyler Chapel Hill W, 54-31
Sept. 11 Kilgore W, 64-50

Sulphur Springs — 1-2

Date Opponent Result
Aug. 27 at Mount Pleasant L, 14-38
Sept. 4 Pleasant Grove L, 27-34
Sept. 11 at Whitehouse W, 47-32

MAIN STORYLINES

  • First varsity meeting in 47 years: Gilmer and Sulphur Springs have not met since the Wildcats won 7-6 in 1979. Friday will be the 18th game in a series that began in 1929.
  • 47 miles / 47 years: Jeff Traylor Stadium and Gerald Prim Stadium are just over 47 driving miles apart, while the varsity teams have not met in 47 years.
  • Sulphur Springs opened against Class 5A Division II Mount Pleasant, lost 34-27 to Pleasant Grove and defeated Whitehouse 47-32 last week.
  • Both offenses have increased their production each week. Sulphur Springs has increased its scoring from 14 points against Mount Pleasant to 27 against Pleasant Grove and 47 against Whitehouse, while its total offense has climbed from 303 yards to 384 to 434 and its rushing yardage from 158 to 251 to 313. Gilmer has followed the same pattern, increasing its scoring from 40 points against Pine Tree to 54 against Chapel Hill and 64 against Kilgore. The Buckeyes’ total offense has increased from 401 yards to 433 to 583, while their rushing production has climbed from 282 to 376 to 411.
  • Friday is Game 4 of Gilmer’s five-game nondistrict schedule. The Buckeyes have faced Pine Tree, Chapel Hill and Kilgore, with Sulphur Springs and Sunnyvale remaining before District 8-4A Division II play.
  • Sulphur Springs dropped from Class 5A Division II to Class 4A Division I in 2022, the same season Brandon Faircloth became head coach. The Wildcats reported 1,290 students for the current UIL alignment, placing them near the upper end of Class 4A.

SULPHUR SPRINGS PLAYERS TO WATCH

  • RB Dobson Martin, Sr. (5-8, 175) — 50 carries for 444 yards and six rushing touchdowns; averages 8.9 yards per carry and 148.0 rushing yards per game. He also has four receptions for 50 yards and a touchdown.
  • QB Deuce Timmons, Sr. (6-2, 180) — 36-of-57 passing for 399 yards, three touchdowns and one interception; 43 carries for 248 yards and four rushing touchdowns. Martin and Timmons have combined for 692 rushing yards and all 10 Sulphur Springs rushing touchdowns.
  • WR/FS Jaxon Virgel, Jr. (6-4, 195) — leads Sulphur Springs with 13 receptions for 114 yards through three games. In 2025 he caught 29 passes for 531 yards and eight touchdowns.
  • TE Quintavious Harris, Sr. (6-2, 205) — five receptions for 68 yards and two touchdowns; also leads Sulphur Springs with two sacks.
  • LB Zayne Pryor, So. (6-0, 195 in the preseason DCTF listing) — leads Sulphur Springs at 11.7 tackles per game, or 35 tackles through three games.
  • DE/TE Jackson Medlock, Jr. (6-2, 235) — two-way junior listed among Sulphur Springs’ top juniors entering the season and part of a defense that returned only two starters.

GILMER PLAYERS TO WATCH

  • QB Zade Taylor, Sr. (5-6, 170) — 21-of-39 passing for 348 yards and two touchdowns; 29 carries for 366 yards and six rushing touchdowns. He averages 12.6 yards per rushing attempt and has a 60-yard run.
  • RB/LB Tayveon Horne, Jr. (6-0, 185) — team-leading 61 carries for 389 yards and seven rushing touchdowns; five kickoff returns for 147 yards and a touchdown. His 536 all-purpose yards lead Gilmer.
  • WR/S Kipton Neighbors, Jr. (6-2; 200) — 13 carries for 131 yards and a touchdown, eight catches for 121 yards, three kickoff returns for 35 yards and four punts for 139 yards. He has 287 all-purpose yards.
  • WR/S Kaden Canady, Fr. (5-7, 150) — team-high 10 receptions for 205 yards and two touchdowns, six carries for 31 yards, 64 punt-return yards and 49 kickoff-return yards. He has 349 all-purpose yards.
  • MLB/FB Austin Blakeley, Jr. (5-10, 180) — leads Gilmer with 26 combined tackles and has one tackle for loss. He also returned an interception 62 yards for a touchdown against Chapel Hill.
  • FB/DL Ryan Blume, Jr. (5-11, 205) — 18 combined tackles, two tackles for loss and three quarterback hits through three games.
  • DL Aaden Borelly-Brown, Jr. (6-2, 290) — 16 combined tackles, four tackles for loss, a nine-yard sack, one quarterback hit and a forced fumble through three games. He transferred from Royse City, where he recorded 18 tackles, seven tackles for loss, five sacks and seven quarterback pressures last season.

SULPHUR SPRINGS SEASON NOTES

  • Sulphur Springs returned 15 lettermen, six offensive starters and two defensive starters from its 10-2 team in 2025.
  • Sulphur Springs reported an enrollment of 1,290 for the current UIL alignment, placing the Wildcats near the upper end of Class 4A and just below the Class 5A cutoff.
  • The Wildcats are averaging 373.7 yards of total offense and 240.7 rushing yards per game through three games.
  • Sulphur Springs has rushed 98 times for 722 yards — 7.4 yards per attempt — and 10 touchdowns.
  • Martin and Timmons have combined for 692 rushing yards and all 10 of the Wildcats’ rushing touchdowns.
  • The Wildcats’ defense was heavily rebuilt after graduation, with only two defensive starters returning.
  • Sulphur Springs was No. 8 in Dave Campbell’s Texas Football’s preseason Class 4A Division I rankings.

 

GILMER SEASON NOTES

  • Gilmer is 2-1 after a 52-40 loss to Pine Tree and consecutive victories over Chapel Hill, 54-31, and Kilgore, 64-50. The Buckeyes have scored 158 points and allowed 133.
  • Gilmer is averaging 52.7 points per game, the fifth-highest scoring average in Class 4A Division II according to PigskinPrep.com. The Buckeyes are averaging 472.3 total yards per game.
  • Gilmer has run 169 offensive plays: 130 rushing attempts (76.9%) and 39 pass attempts (23.1%).
  • Gilmer averages 356.3 rushing yards per game (75.4% of its total offense) and 116.0 passing yards per game (24.6%).
  • Gilmer’s offense is averaging 8.38 yards per play and 8.22 yards per rushing attempt.
  • Gilmer has two receiving touchdowns, both by Kaden Canady. Five different players have rushing touchdowns: Tayveon Horne, Zade Taylor, Kipton Neighbors, Carlos Brooks and Ismael Camara.
  • Gilmer’s offense has committed five turnovers — four interceptions and one lost fumble.
  • Gilmer’s defense has forced seven turnovers — two interceptions and five fumble recoveries — giving the Buckeyes a plus-2 turnover margin.
  • Gilmer’s defense is allowing 227.0 rushing yards and 215.3 passing yards per game, 442.3 total yards per game and 8.24 yards per play.
  • Gilmer’s defense has recorded two sacks through three games.
  • Gilmer’s opponents are 13-of-25 on third down (52.0%) and 4-of-7 on fourth down (57.1%).
  • Gilmer is 14-of-21 on third down (66.7%) and 1-of-3 on fourth down (33.3%).
  • Gilmer has produced 38 offensive explosive plays under the current definition of a run of 10+ yards or a completed pass of 20+ yards. Opponents have 32.
  • Against Chapel Hill, Tayveon Horne (139), Carlos Brooks (119) and Zade Taylor (101) gave Gilmer three 100-yard rushers in the same game for the first time since Jeremy Jackson, Stump Godfrey and Marlon Granville did it against Mexia in the 2008 playoffs.
  • Gilmer has held the ball for 74:24 through three games, compared with 69:36 for its opponents.

PREVIOUS MEETING / SERIES HISTORY / ALL-TIME SCORES

  • Sulphur Springs leads the series 9-6-2 through 17 meetings, but Gilmer leads the aggregate scoring 247-243.
  • First meeting: Gilmer 7, Sulphur Springs 0 in 1929. Last meeting: Sulphur Springs 7, Gilmer 6 in 1979.
  • Gilmer’s longest winning streak in the series is five games (1969-73). Sulphur Springs’ longest is four consecutive meetings (1950, 1954, 1955, 1968).
  • Largest Gilmer win: 49-0 in 1969. Largest Sulphur Springs win: 41-6 in 1950.
  • The teams tied 0-0 in 1977. Sulphur Springs went 5-0-1 from 1974-79.
  • The 1978 and 1979 games were Sulphur Springs victories by a combined three points.

All 17 previous meetings

Year Result Year Result
1929 Gilmer 7-0 1931 Tie 13-13
1950 SS 41-6 1954 SS 28-0
1955 SS 13-7 1968 SS 28-6
1969 Gilmer 49-0 1970 Gilmer 12-6
1971 Gilmer 29-7 1972 Gilmer 41-21
1973 Gilmer 45-12 1974 SS 28-6
1975 SS 21-13 1976 SS 9-0
1977 Tie 0-0 1978 SS 9-7
1979 SS 7-6

 

SULPHUR SPRINGS HISTORICAL NOTES

  • Sulphur Springs dropped from Class 5A Division II to Class 4A Division I in 2022, the same season Brandon Faircloth became head coach.
  • The Wildcats went 0-10 in 2021, their final season in Class 5A Division II. Under Faircloth they went 7-4 in 2022, 8-3 in 2023, 10-3 in 2024 and 10-2 in 2025.
  • Faircloth is 36-14 at Sulphur Springs through three games of 2026 and 137-66 in his head-coaching career.
  • Sulphur Springs won its state championship in 2008, finishing 14-2 and defeating Dayton 69-49 in the Class 4A Division II championship game at the Alamodome.
  • The program has 34 playoff appearances.

GILMER HISTORICAL NOTES

  • Gilmer began playing football in 1914 and has never had a winless season.
  • Gilmer is 762-410-39 all-time entering the Sulphur Springs game.
  • The Sulphur Springs game will be the 1,212th game in Gilmer football history.
  • Gilmer’s 762 all-time victories is tied for 11th most in Texas high school football history, according to PigskinPrep.com.
  • Gilmer’s 1,211 games played is tied for 12th most in Texas high school football history, according to PigskinPrep.com.
  • Gilmer’s 39 district championships are tied for the 10th most in Texas high school football history, according to PigskinPrep.com.
  • Gilmer’s 28 seasons with 10 or more wins are tied for the 11th most in Texas high school football history, according to PigskinPrep.com.
  • Gilmer has recorded 15 undefeated regular seasons, tied for the seventh most in Texas high school football history, according to PigskinPrep.com.
  • The Buckeyes have won four state championships — 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2023 — and have appeared in nine state championship games.
  • Gilmer’s nine state championship-game appearances are the second most in Class 4A and tied for the 17th most among all classifications in Texas high school football history, according to the UIL.
  • From 2003 through 2023, Gilmer either won the state championship or lost in the playoffs to the eventual state champion 14 times.
  • Gilmer has reached the playoffs in 25 consecutive seasons entering 2026.
  • Since 2000, Gilmer is 293-64 overall and 220-43 in regular-season games.
  • Since 2000, Gilmer is 251-16 when scoring at least 30 points.
  • Gilmer has lost only 19 games since 1980 when scoring at least 30 points, with the Pine Tree opener becoming the latest such loss.
  • Gilmer enters the Sulphur Springs game with a 105-game scoring streak. The last shutout loss was 14-0 to Pleasant Grove in 2018.

NEXT GAME

  • Gilmer — vs. Sunnyvale, Friday, Sept. 25. Concludes Gilmer’s five-game non-district schedule.
  • Sulphur Springs — vs. Kaufman, Friday, Sept. 25. Sulphur Springs begins district play.

2026 Gilmer Buckeyes Season Book Through 3 Games

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