The Cooldown: Week Five
Cover Photo via the Dallas Morning News/ John F. Rhodes
The halfway point of the season seemingly always arrives quicker than anticipated, but most metroplex area teams are now halfway through the regular season schedule. This is the point of the season when we start to get an idea for how the playoff field might take shape. That’s especially important in 6A as we’re able to get an idea as to which teams might go to the DI bracket and which might go DII. Let’s take a look at what went down in week five and preview the best games in week six.
Rockwall defeats Rockwall Heath in the I-30 Classic
Rockwall and Rockwall Heath appear to be the class of District 10-6A. Once again, the I-30 Classic will likely serve as a de-facto district title game. Rockwall took down Rockwall Heath 56-21 in a game that was never really close. The Yellow Jackets scored 21 points in the first quarter and 22 points in the second quarter, while the Rockwall defense held Rockwall Heath to just a touchdown in the first half.
Lake Bennett stole the show for Rockwall. Bennett completed 10 of his 17 passing attempts for 184 yards and two touchdowns, rushed for 91 yards and four touchdowns and caught a 42-yard touchdown pass from Mason Marshall! Ashten Emory rushed for 55 yards and also scored a touchdown on the ground. Kai Helton was the leading receiver with three receptions for 75 yards. Quintero Jones caught a 71-yard touchdown pass and Jacob Rhodes caught a touchdown pass as well.
Rockwall Heath quarterback Caleb Hoover completed 16 of his 27 passing attempts for 219 yards and three touchdowns. The Hawks were unable to get much going on the ground. Brittan Snider carried the ball 24 times for 73 yards and Malachi Tuesno gained 36 yards on nine attempts. Peyton Wingfield had a nice night, leading the Rockwall Heath receiving corps with five receptions for 140 yards and two touchdowns. Corbin Lamay also caught a short touchdown pass in the loss.
Rockwall Heath may be 0-1 in district play, but the toughest game on the district schedule is out of the way. The same may be true for Rockwall. The Yellow Jackets are now in control for a District 10-6A Championship with Rockwall Heath out of the way.
DeSoto takes down Waxahachie
Waxahachie experienced a fast start to the season with big wins over Ennis and Cedar Hill. The Indians were 4-0 and won every game by at least 30 points. DeSoto is still DeSoto U though. The Eagles erased any doubt that Waxahachie might be punching in the same weight class with a 42-24 win. The game was never really close as DeSoto took a 21-3 lead to halftime.
DeSoto quarterback Darius Bailey completed 14 of his 23 attempts for 230 yards and two touchdowns. Bailey also rushed for 56 yards and two scores for four total touchdowns on the night. Jaden Trawick led the Eagles in rushing with 72 yards and a touchdown and Tre Wisner added 55 yards and a score. Dahlyn Jones was the leading receiver for DeSoto with five receptions for 118 yards and a score. Jaxson Davis added two receptions for 37 yards and a touchdown.
Waxahachie struggled to get anything going through the air. Roderick Hartsfield Jr. passed for 92 yards and completed less than 50% of his passes. Hartsfield Jr. did score two touchdowns on the ground and Iverson Young scored the other touchdown on the ground for Waxahachie. Ramon McKinney Jr. led Waxahachie in rushing with 78 yards and Jayden Becks added 42 yards on the ground.
Waxahachie has another tough matchup this weekend against Duncanville, but don’t sleep on the Indians. Waxahachie could finish 8-2 and in third place in District 11-6A. The other lesson to be learned here is that DeSoto is not to be slept on either. The Eagles showed they are a serious contender with a dominate win after a grueling non-district schedule.
Frisco Wakeland beats Frisco Lone Star
Frisco Wakeland had never beaten Frisco Lone Star until last Friday night. The Wolverines didn’t just barely get by either. Frisco Wakeland took down Frisco Lone Star 38-10 in dominating fashion. The Wolverines defense forced four turnovers to help put the game out of reach and the offense racked up 376 yards of offense to make it hard for the Rangers to keep pace.
Frisco Wakeland quarterback Brennan Myer completed 21 of his 28 passes for 277 yards and three touchdowns. Tripp Riordan was Myer’s favorite target, catching eight passes for 101 yards and a score. Hayden O’Neal caught four passes for 94 yards and a score and Cooper Snyder also caught a touchdown pass. Snyder carried the ball 31 times for 110 yards and a touchdown to lead Frisco Wakeland in rushing, and Colby Perkes also added a score on the ground.
Frisco Lone Star quarterback Bennett Fryman passed for 133 yards and a touchdown and also led the Rangers in rushing with 53 yards. Jaylon Braxton caught seven passes for 112 yards and the lone Ranger touchdown on the night. Fryman and Braxton accounted for the majority of the yards gained by the Frisco Lone Star offense.
Games to Watch
Thursday 9/29
Wylie (3-1) @ Lakeview Centennial (3-2)
Wylie is 2-0 in District 9-6A play while Lakeview Centennial is 2-1 with a loss to Garland. Those three teams and Wylie East (2-0) are currently at the top of the district standings. This game has playoff seeding implications, automatically making it a game to watch. I think these teams are evenly matched, so this game should be fairly close.
Frisco Lone Star (2-2) @ Frisco Liberty (0-5)
I am interested to see how Frisco Lone Star responds after a tough loss to Frisco Wakeland. The Rangers haven’t been tested like this by other Frisco schools in district play in a long time. Frisco Lone Star needs a win to stay in the playoff hunt after an 0-2 start to district play. Frisco Liberty is 0-3 in District 6-5A DI play and would nearly be eliminated from the playoffs with a loss.
Friday 9/30
Denton Braswell (2-3) @ McKinney (4-1)
Denton Braswell has lost to Allen and Prosper Rock Hill in district play. McKinney is 2-0 in district play. Denton Braswell needs a win to keep its playoff hopes alive while McKinney needs a win to remain competitive with Allen, Denton Guyer and Prosper. Those three teams figure to make the playoffs. If that happens, that leaves just one spot up for grabs. That makes this game that much more important.
Flower Mound (0-4) @ Flower Mound Marcus (2-2)
The Mound Showdown is always a game to watch. Flower Mound desperately needs to get on track, and what better game to get the first win of the season? The Jags lost to Lewisville 28-21 in the district opener last weekend. Flower Mound Marcus outlasted Hebron 23-21 for a win in its district opener. There might be a lot of close games in District 6-6A this year. The teams that make the playoffs will be the ones that are able to win those close games.
Plano (2-2) @ Plano West (1-3)
Plano started district play off with a win over Plano East. Plano West lost to Coppell 46-35 to open District 6-6A play. If Plano West is going to make a run at the playoffs, it starts this weekend against Plano. This is a must win game as these teams are evenly matched and Plano is already a game up on Plano West in the district standings.
Fort Worth OD Wyatt (4-0) @ Fort Worth Arlington Heights (4-0)
OD Wyatt is 4-0 and all four wins have been in relatively close games. Three of the wins came by single digits. The Chaparrals beat Joshua 21-6 for their lone win of the season by double digits. Arlington Heights also faced Joshua and won 49-31. Grapevine and Colleyville Heritage will occupy two of the four playoff spots in District 4-5A DII, so this game is crucial as the winner will improve to 2-0 in district play and have a good shot at making the playoffs.
Grapevine (3-1) @ Colleyville Heritage (3-1)
Let’s keep it in District 4-5A DII with a game that could serve as a de-facto district championship game. Both teams are 1-0 in district play with blowout wins over Fort Worth schools. Colleyville Heritage appears to be getting QB Weston Smith back for this game. Smith hasn’t played a full game since the season opening win over Irving Nimitz. If Smith is back, that should make Colleyville Heritage the considerable favorite to win this one.
Rockwall (4-1) @ Mesquite Horn (4-1)
Rockwall could all but clinch a district championship with a win over Mesquite Horn this weekend. On the other hand, Mesquite Horn could put itself in the driver seat for the district championship with a win. I might be getting ahead of myself as both teams are only 1-0 in district play, but these two teams and Rockwall Heath appear to be the best three teams in District 10-6A. I wouldn’t sleep on Forney either. This should be a good game with playoff seeding on the line.
Offensive Player of the Week
My Offensive Player of the Week is Plano quarterback Drew Forkner! Plano took down Plano East 33-22 behind Forkner’s big night! The senior quarterback completed 16 of his 33 passes for 241 yards and two touchdowns and added 71 yards and two scores on 14 carries on the ground! Plano improved to 2-2 (1-0) on the season and has a road trip to Plano West this weekend.
Defensive Player of the Week
My Defensive Player of the Week is Keller safety Ryan Ventura! Keller defeated Keller Central 49-28 and Ventura did a little bit of everything to help put the game out of reach. Ventura finished with 13 tackles and two tackles-for-loss to go with an interception returned 78 yards for a touchdown and a blocked field goal returned 76 yards for a score. Ventura also added a pass breakup and two knockdowns to help power the Indians past the Chargers.
College Player of the Week
I am introducing a new segment into the Cooldown to help our audience keep up with former stars from around the metroplex. Our first College Player of the Week is Utah quarterback Ja’Quinden Jackson! The former Duncanville star QB transferred to Utah after signing with Texas. Jackson is buried on the Utah depth chart at QB behind starter Cam Rising. The Utes have had some injuries at running back, so Jackson has been switched to running back for the time being. He scored a touchdown and gained 27 yards on eight carries last week in his first game as a running back. Jackson’s willingness to do whatever it takes to help his team win helped Utah in a 34-13 win over Arizona State!
Cover Photo of Rockwall quarterback Lake Bennett courtesy of the Dallas Morning News and Special Contributor John F. Rhodes.