Brock Taylor ran for 270 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Madisonville Mustangs to a 26-14 win over Rudder on Thursday at Merrill Green Stadium.

That didn't stop the Mustang coaches from putting Taylor in his place.

"We teased him before the game and said last year Chris Whaley had 420 yards and seven touchdowns [against Rudder]," Madisonville coach Greg Morgan said, with a smile. "We said see if you can do that. He had a heck of a game."

At the most important points of the game, Taylor made the end zone his place. If the Mustangs can get a home victory over the Navasota Rattlers next Friday, their place will be in the playoffs. Madisonville (5-4, 3-2) has won three straight games in District 24-3A to remain in contention.

"On man, that guy can roll," Bryan coach C.M. Pier said of Taylor. "But he got loose because we didn't play our responsibility."

Rudder's season ended Thursday with bursts of good defensive play. The Rangers' third fumble recovery, by sophomore Mouliq Hamilton at the Mustangs' 29-yard line, gave Rudder a chance to claim a fourth-quarter lead.

On a fourth-down play, Tre Hammond rolled right and lofted a high pass into the gusting north wind and into triple coverage. Mike Jones jumped and got his hands on the pass but could not make the reception near the end zone, turning the ball over to Madisonville with 4 minutes, 55 seconds left in the game.

"Our defense rose up about five weeks ago, and they've had a very steady performance along the way," Pier said. "We were not able to get them help offensively. When you play teams the caliber we play, you've got to cash in. You're not just talking about a physical thing. You've talking about an emotional thing. When you play programs like Madisonville with long years in the playoffs, that stuff rises up on you."

Three plays after Rudder turned the ball over on downs, Taylor impressed. The former state track silver medalist in the 100 meters ran upfield and then moved sharply to the left sideline. Once that move was made, no Ranger player had a chance to overtake him on a 69-yard touchdown run.

"You never know when he's going to break it," Morgan said. "He's not a big, physical power runner by any stretch of the imagination, but one some of those long runs we were fortunate. We were just trying to burn some clock and get field position."

Interceptions by Madisonville's Adrian Smith and Howard Harris locked up the win. Rudder, in its second season of existence, finished 2-7 with a 0-6 mark in 24-3A.

"Most of the credit goes to Rudder for sticking to us," said Morgan of the game remaining close. "At the same time, we're not doing what we need to do. I thought in the Cameron win we took over in the fourth quarter, and tonight we took a step backward."

Penalties and fumbles hurt. The Mustangs were hit with 102 penalty yards and lost three of six fumbles.

Tre Hammond helped the Rangers keep it close, converting on a fake punt and then catching a blocked punt in the backfield and advancing it for a first down.

Taylor, who had 153 rushing yards by halftime, broke a 7-7 tie with a 58-yard scoring run. The senior back took a pitch to his left, hesitated a yard downfield and then shot to the left sideline. Hammond was the only defender with a chance to reach him. Taylor altered the angle and sprinted into the end zone with 7:03 left in the half.

Taylor's next touchdown had a similar look, but less real estate to cover. After short punt into a stiff north wind, the Mustangs moved 42 yards in five plays. Taylor's 25-yard run on a toss to his right converted one first down. Two plays after that, he followed a kick-out block and angled left across the Rudder goal line.

Taylor had runs of 20 and 24 yards on his first two carries of the game, but Howard Harris set up Dasmine Whaley's 1-yard plunge by running for 32 yards on a fourth-and-four play.

The Rangers moved 40 yards in five plays to tie the game at 7-7 with 7:49 left in the second period. Kyle Danford, who missed most of the second half after reinjuring his foot, completed passes to Charlie Bush and Hammond on the drive. Hammond, whose reception netted 23 yards to help the Rangers overcome a penalty, moved to quarterback for the final two plays of the drive. After being pounded down for a loss by Madisonville's Adrian Smith and James Turner, Hammond ran the same play and sliced between the defense to score.

"At times we moved the ball pretty well but there wasn't consistency," Pier said. "We're going to watch this film, sit down and set our goals for the offseason and we're going to get after it, trying to push this thing forward."