Richland was quietly winning games until last week, when it flattened North Crowley 52-0. The Rebels blocked a punt, had 24 points in the first quarter and gained 457 yards.

That kind of performance will get attention.

But before that, the Rebels ・who had one of the area's best teams a year ago and figured to have one again ・had been tough to figure out. They struggled against Granbury in their opener. They rolled past Irving. They were wiped out by Birdville. Two weeks ago, they barely got past Keller Central.

Then the blowout of North Crowley.

"There's the Birdville game. There's last week. We're somewhere in between there," coach Gene Weir said with a quick laugh.

Aren't most teams?

Yes. And Richland, like most teams, has had to work around its share of injuries. Except that for the Rebels, most of them are on the offensive line. Two starters were lost in the first game, and a third went out in the Birdville game, along with a backup for one of the original starters. One player, guard David Lee, went to tackle in the Birdville game and then went to center later because of another injury. He played three positions in one game.

"We're had kind of a turnstile with the offensive line," Weir said. "We're getting closer. One is making it back this week. The other will be back in a week or two. It's just that every Monday, we start with a new group. Offensive lines have to work as units, and we just have not gotten to a comfortable level yet of knowing everybody else. But, out of all that, we're still won four games, and we're very proud of our kids fighting through adversity."

A thumb injury to quarterback Tyler Cotton also had the Rebels on edge. He missed half the game against Keller Central, leaving backup Tyler Barke to finish. (Barke's 30-yard touchdown run helped wrap up a 26-21 victory).

But thanks to an emphasis on the running game, the Rebels have not had to ask as much of Cotton this year. His numbers are less spectacular than they were in 8, but he's completing 60 percent and has thrown only two interceptions in 100 passes. And now he's in charge of a more versatile offense. The Rebels have rushed for more than 200 yards in each of the past two games, getting help from new running back Walker Burns (the JV quarterback) and sophomore burner Isaac Usemi.

They're getting their chance in part because of injury. How'd you guess?

"That's going to make us better down the road when we can run," Weir said. "In the past, people would not honor us in the running game. They play seven or eight guys back in the secondary. It'll be like 7-on-7 except we'll be playing with four or five against seven. We feel like now people have to honor our running game."