Photo by Luke Zayas/@lukezayas_photography
BELTON — It was the day after the 27-point loss to Hardin-Simmons that Larry Harmon learned he would need to find a new starting middle linebacker.
Layden Roque, who tallied 31 tackles through UMHB’s first five games, including seven the previous afternoon in Abilene, had made a difficult decision. The sophomore was stepping away from football to focus more heavily on his academics and future in nursing, even in the midst of a breakout season on the field.
“He decided that he had to give something up; it was either going to be nursing or football,” Harmon said Monday. “And he chose his career and nursing, so you can’t blame a young man for that. He came in that Sunday after Hardin-Simmons and we talked for a long time. He had to make the decision that was best for him and his future, and I believe he did that. But that left a hole for us to try to fill.”
Fortunately for Harmon and the defensive coaching staff, filling that void proved almost seamless. The answer to who would start at middle linebacker against Texas Wesleyan had been part of the main defensive rotation since the start of 2024, but Gavin Brzezinski wasn’t a linebacker by trade.
“It was pretty immediate after I was done talking with Roque who the person was that I needed to visit with,” Harmon continued, referencing Brzezinski, a junior safety. “I’m sure he was nervous. I’m sure there was some fear, and he’s never played the position before. But Gavin looked me right in the eyes and it took him about two seconds to say, ‘Yeah, Coach, I’ll do it. It’s what’s best for the team, right?’ I said, ‘Yes, I believe it is. Let’s go out Tuesday to see how it goes and we’ll decide after that.’
It didn’t take long for Brzezinski to prove that his move to the second level of the defense was indeed the right one. Despite unfamiliarity at the position, a solid week of practice was followed by several impactful plays in UMHB’s 28-19 win over TXWES, none bigger than his 100-yard pick-six in the third quarter. He added six total tackles, including a two-yard tackle for loss, and had a role in three tackles in the Rams’ first two drives alone. Brzezinski’s presence in the middle of the Crusader defense emerged as one of the prime positives from UMHB’s final non-conference test, and first home win since beating Bethel (TN) on Sept. 6.
“He’s such an instinctive kid that it makes up for so many other things,” Harmon said. “You couldn’t tell that it was the first time he’s ever played linebacker in his life.”
But while the position may be new, part of Harmon’s confidence in the Cedar Park native being the right one to step in after Roque’s departure stemmed from seeing him handle certain schemes as a safety last season, including in his six-tackle performance at UW-Whitewater.
“He was playing weak safety at the time,” Harmon noted, “and we had a scheme where he just had to read run or pass and be able to come down and play the weak “B gap”. He’s always been a tough kid. He loves contact.”
The willingness to step into a new position mid-season says something, too. Maybe something that goes deeper than the simple fact that Brzezinski showed he has the makings of being a top-notch linebacker. From an Xs and Os perspective, not missing a beat with your third-leading tackler suddenly no longer on the field is a best-case scenario for a team that needs every break it can get in the quest for a playoff bid. But the exchange with Brzezinski that Harmon shared, as the junior asked if the position switch was indeed what would be best for the team, offers a glimpse at the sort of mentality The Cru—players and coaches alike—are aiming to take with four games left in the regular season, starting with Saturday’s duel against Howard Payne at Crusader Stadium.
Brzezinski wasn’t alone in stepping into a new role on Saturday. Receiver Quinci Jones had four catches for 44 yards in his Crusader debut, and freshman defensive back Denim Collins tallied the second and third tackles of his college career, while also intercepting TXWES quarterback Cole Francis late in the fourth quarter. JJ Davis, who had spent most of the season at safety, shifted to cornerback, where he posted nine solo tackles. Ty Legg, a sophomore safety, had five solo tackles in the most significant action of his college career to this point. And those are just a few of the rotational and position changes that were seen Saturday.
Harmon was asked on Monday about the adjustments in personnel, and while he didn’t specify reasons for each change, he offered a lengthy perspective on what prompted some portion of the changes in the week between the loss at HSU and Saturday’s win on homecoming.
“We had a bunch of people in different spots and people being asked to play [on Saturday],” Harmon said. “When you come back from playing your rival and you’re not very competitive, you’ve got to think about things. What really hit me was, everything we love about this place, every coach on my staff who wants to be here, is here because of how special this place is. All the little benefits you get; the facilities, the equipment, the type of kids you’re going to get to work with. All of those things are really special to us. And then our kids are coming here because of the recognition you get, the opportunity you’re going to have to play for championships, and those things.
“But with all of those things that are really great, there’s also some stuff that’s not much fun. The expectations, the pressure, the hard work, the extra things you need to do to be a part of this place that aren’t fun sometimes, and you’ve got to embrace those.
“That was a big deal on Tuesday with the team. There were some guys that we didn’t feel like were willing to do that, so we had to make some moves, and we’re going to continue to do that. We had a real heart-to-heart and that’s the direction I want to see our team go.
“Sometimes it takes some adversity for you to have your eyes opened up that maybe you weren’t getting that done as the leader. I think we’re on the right track, but we’ve got a long ways to go.”
Saturday’s first half was noticeably improved from the previous five first halves of the season. Through two quarters, the offense found the end zone three times, twice with Asa Osbourn on the ground and once through the air on Kirkland Michaux’s fourth touchdown pass of the season. The defense stifled TXWES’ passing-focused offense at the same time, producing a 21-3 halftime lead. It marked the first time UMHB led at the half in six games this fall, and came in front of a crowd of 3,524 in The Cru’s first home game since Sept. 20.
“It was really nice to see our team start fast and play hard,” Harmon said. “We played a really good first half against a very good team. Then we lost it coming out of halftime, so we’ve got to learn how to finish. But I don’t think there was any question that a big reason why we started the way we started was just being back home and in front of our crowd. Our fans have been an incredible support.”
The start was A+. The finish? Not so much. Texas Wesleyan controlled the clock, yardage, and outscored UMHB, 16-7, in the second half, leaving The Cru pleased with a solid non-conference win, but unsatisfied heading back into conference play. As Harmon said multiple times on Monday, “finishing” the game will be a major emphasis point during the week leading up to hosting HPU.
“Last year, Texas Wesleyan was the No. 1 offense in NAIA football,” Harmon said. “They’ve got unbelievable receivers, and their quarterback is really talented. They had 325 yards against a Division I school they played earlier in the year. So we knew they could move the ball. Defensively, I think we just got tired. We had 104 gradable snaps on defense, and the majority of those came in the second half.
“Offensively, there was a little letdown in the locker room, just thinking, ‘We’ve got this thing in a good place, our defense is playing really well.’ And I think another part of it is we’ve coached caution, making sure we’re not turning the ball over. So instead of taking the risk and throwing it where it needed to go, we handed it off into a loaded box. That all falls on me. I’ve got to get that fixed, because we had plenty of opportunities to execute in the second half like we did in the first half, and we just didn’t. Changing that is a major objective for this week.”
How does Harmon aim to improve that? It comes down to giving both sides of the ball more opportunities to run through unfamiliar and newly-implemented schemes in practice, which hopefully will limit the chances of miscues when those plays and schemes are utilized on Saturday.
“We had a chance to win the game late with a 4th & inches, and I called ‘Waco’,” Harmon recalled, referring to a “hurry-up” short-yardage scheme. “I wanted to go fast. But we get up there and hully-gully around, and then get stopped because of not being familiar with doing it.
“We also gave up a touchdown with a pressure package that I didn’t make sure got worked against a certain formation. They snuck a tight end out on us. It’s easy to look at kids and say they’re not doing this or that, but then you realize, ‘How many times did we practice that?’ And the answer was once or none. That falls on me, not on our kids. So that’s something that we’ve got to get fixed, and I intend on getting that done.”
UMHB and HPU enter Saturday’s clash tied for second place in the ASC standings, both at 1-1 in conference action and 3-3 overall. After struggling through a 2-8 season in 2024, the Yellow Jackets have come into this fall with a new fire under first-year head coach Cody Gipson. Just two weeks ago, they snapped a 10-game ASC losing skid, beating ETBU, 36-18, as the offense finished with a season-high in scoring, 20 first downs, and 384 yards of total offense.
While the run game highlighted the afternoon, freshman quarterback Bryce Still had quite a debut in his first collegiate start, completing 10-of-15 passes for 181 yards, including a 65-yard touchdown strike to Ellis Myers on HPU’s first drive. HPU has used four different QBs through six games this season—Houston transfer Andon Mata, Stephen F. Austin transfer Kahliq Paulette, junior Glendon Casas-Willis, and Still—and each brings a slightly different skill set to the Yellow Jacket offense. That said, the expectation is that Still will make his second career start coming out of HPU’s bye week, considering the poise he showed two weeks ago.
“He did a really great job against East Texas Baptist,” Harmon noted of Still, when asked about the challenge of having to prepare to possibly face multiple quarterbacks. “He controlled the game and delivered the ball. As a head coach, I would think it’d be pretty difficult not to keep him in that same spot with how effective he was, and use the talents of the other kids in certain game situations.”
UMHB kicks off from Crusader Stadium at 1 p.m. CT on Saturday, facing HPU in Belton for just the second time in Harmon’s tenure as head coach. The Cru is a perfect 13-0 all-time against the Yellow Jackets at home.
