The Cooldown- Week Eight
We have reached the sweet part of the season. District play is kicking off for 5A and 6A teams while the smaller schools are in the stretch run of the season with the playoff picture taking shape over the next few weeks. Let’s recap a few games and look ahead to this weekend’s slate of games!
Cedar Hill outlasts Aledo
Cedar Hill was involved in one of the higher profile cancelations two weeks ago when the Longhorns matchup with Allen was canceled due to COVID-19 concerns in the Eagles program. Cedar Hill responded by scheduling one of the best 5A teams in the state on the road for the following weekend.
Aledo battled but the Bearcats just couldn’t stop Cedar Hill quarterback Kaidon Salter. There’s no shame in that! Salter passed for 241 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for an additional 128 yards to lead the Longhorns in both categories.
Aledo just doesn’t have the depth that Cedar Hill has. That comes with being a 5A DII school. I still expect the Bearcats to go on another deep playoff run this season. This was a really impressive win for Cedar Hill. The Longhorns will likely head to the 6A DII playoffs and should be one of the favorites to win the state championship. Behind Salter, anything is possible.
Skyline rallies to beat Keller
Things were not looking good for Skyline after a 70-yard touchdown pass from Keller quarterback Hayden Anderson to Adam Campbell on the first play of the third quarter put the Indians up 25-6 over the Raiders. Then Skyline turned to Jaylon Robinson at quarterback and everything changed. Skyline would outscore Keller 28-7 the rest of the way to take home its first win of the season with the 34-32 victory. Robinson completed nine of his 12 passes for 165 yards and three touchdowns. All three touchdown passes landed in the hands of USC commit Quaydarius Davis, who finished with 123 yards receiving. Qualon Farrar finished with 119 yards and a score on the ground and now this Skyline offense appears to have some life.
Keller doesn’t have the stingiest defense around, but the Skyline offense looked really good with Robinson at quarterback. The sophomore was able to lead a 19-point second half come-from-behind win. This was a good win for Skyline, and I’ll be keeping my eyes on this offense moving forward.
Player of the Week
My player of the week is Frisco Liberty quarterback Keldric Luster. The sophomore finished with 319 yards passing and two touchdowns and rushed for another 266 yards and five touchdowns. That’s almost 600 yards of total offense and seven total touchdowns! For a sophomore! Star receiver Evan Stewart helped out his young quarterback, catching both touchdowns passes and finishing with 127 receiving yards. Liberty needed every bit of that outburst as they had to hold on against Frisco Memorial for a 58-51 win.
Team of the Week
My team of the week is the Highland Park Scots. Highland Park travelled to Rockwall to take on a Yellow Jacket team that was fresh off a big win against Southlake Carroll. Highland Park beat Coppell the week before in its season opener. I figured this would be a good game, but I thought Rockwall would pull out a close one. I was wrong. Scot quarterback Brayden Schager passed for 313 yards and six total touchdowns in a 46-18 dismantling of Rockwall. If there were any doubts about Schager or this Highland Park squad, there aren’t anymore. This team is dangerous and should contend for a title once again.
Games to Watch
Thursday, October 22
L.D. Bell @ Trinity
This game might not be a great one, but Trinity will be looking to extend its decades-long win streak against rival L.D. Bell. Trinity is coming off a blowout win over Boswell and L.D. Bell is still searching for its first win this season. For the first time ever it will be played at Globe Life Park in order to accommodate a bigger crowd.
Eaton @ Keller Fossil Ridge
Eaton has lost two straight and is looking to get back on track against Keller Fossil Ridge. The Eagles lost a close game to a good Braswell squad last weekend while Fossil Ridge picked up its first win of the season over Little Elm. I have Eaton in this one, but I am interested to see how Fossil Ridge performs in this game.
Garland @ Sachse
Garland is 3-0 and fresh off a close win against Naaman Forest. Sachse is 1-1 with a blowout win over North Garland. Both teams have big wins over North Garland this season. This could be a good game and a win would go a long way for either squad.
Friday, October 23
Flower Mound Marcus @ Flower Mound
It’s the Mound Showdown! Flower Mound is coming off a tough loss to Mansfield Timberview but still has a 2-1 record. Marcus beat Keller Central 49-10 in its last game and is 3-0. I think Marcus has too much offensive firepower for Flower Mound to keep up, but I will have my eyes on this game!
Keller Central @ Keller
Central won its season opener over Sam Houston but lost its next two games against Brewer and Marcus. Keller lost its season opener against Denton Braswell in overtime before a big win over North Mesquite. The Indians blew a lead against Skyline last weekend. Both teams limp into district play at 1-2 on the season. Keller has lost two games by three total points. I think Keller wins this rivalry matchup fairly easily over a Central team that is still trying to figure some things out.
Arlington Bowie @ Arlington Lamar
Arlington Bowie is 3-0 and has looked good so far this season. The Volunteers pulled out a 28-14 win over South Grand Prairie last weekend. Lamar is 1-2 but has lost to two good teams. Trinity defeated Lamar by a touchdown and Lewisville hung 51 points on the Vikings in a 10-point win for the Farmers. This game should tell us more about Lamar and what the rest of the season might look like for the Vikings.
Arlington Martin @ South Grand Prairie
Arlington Martin has responded nicely following an opening loss against Denton Ryan. The Warriors defeated Arlington handily last weekend to improve to 3-1 on the season. South Grand Prairie pulled out two close wins to start the season before falling to Arlington Bowie last weekend. This should be a good game, but I have Martin pulling away in the second half of this one.
Rockwall Heath @ Rockwall
Rockwall Heath knows how to put up points. A 38-0 win over McKinney Boyd was the lowest scoring outing for Heath so far this season. Heath is 3-1 with the loss coming against Southlake Carroll. Rockwall defeated Southlake Carroll but is coming off a loss against Highland Park. The Yellow Jackets are 3-1 as well and this game should decide the district champion. These are two really good teams and look like the best teams in their district. This is my game of the week in the DFW area.