The Cooldown: Week Five
Cover Photo via the Dallas Morning News/ Steve Hamm
The most populous bye week in the state is here. If the slate seems light this week, it is. More teams across the state of Texas have a bye week this week than any other week of the season. Teams across the metroplex are preparing for the stretch run of district play as the calendar flips to October next week. Just because a lot of teams are off this week doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of good matchups. We’ll preview some of those right after we recap some of the best games from the previous weekend.
The Colony beats Denton Ryan
We’ll start off with a Thursday night thriller! The Colony took down Denton Ryan 27-20 on the road for a much-needed win after a district-opening loss to Burleson Centennial. The Cougars and Raiders are both 2-1 in District 3-5A DI and The Colony will hold the tiebreaker at the end of the season if playoff seeding needs to be determined. Denton Ryan seized control of this game in the first half and appeared to be cruising to a win, up 20-7 at halftime. A second half shutout from the Cougar defense allowed The Colony’s offense just enough time to erase the 13-point halftime deficit and score the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter.
The Colony quarterback Carson Cox completed 12 of his 27 passes for 202 yards and two touchdowns, with a third touchdown coming on the ground. Kendrick McClodden led the rushing attack with 115 yards and a score. Chase Green caught three passes for 72 yards and two touchdowns to lead the receiving corps. Xavier Green and Carmelo Torres also went over 50 yards receiving on the night.
Denton Ryan quarterback TJ Hobbs completed 14 of his 25 passes for 135 yards and a touchdown. Nemo Warmate led the rushing attack with 43 yards on 21 carries as the Raiders struggled to get much going on the ground. Warmate also caught six passes for 47 yards and Braeden Mussett led the receivers with two receptions for 52 yards and a score. Denton Ryan will attempt to regroup and establish the run against Fort Worth South Hills next week, a team The Colony beat 48-7 in its district opener. The Cougars have another tough game next week at home against Aledo.
Flower Mound Marcus outlasts Hebron
Flower Mound Marcus started the season off 0-3 and none of that matters because the Marauders are 1-0 in District 6-6A. Wins in that district are not going to be easy to come by with so many playoff caliber teams. Marcus showed growth in this game, erasing a 27-7 halftime deficit to force overtime and ultimately pull off a 34-33 win.
Flower Mound Marcus quarterback Dane Parlin completed 16 of his 26 passes for 260 yards and two touchdowns, including the go-ahead touchdown pass in overtime. Karic Grennan was on the receiving end of that touchdown pass and Grennan led the receivers with nine receptions for 114 yards and the score. Rhett Garza caught the other touchdown pass from 30 yards out for his lone reception on the night. Brock Golwas carried the ball six times for 84 yards and a touchdown to lead the rushing attack. Despite turning the ball over five times and losing the turnover battle by four, Marcus’ defense stood tall when it mattered, and the offense found its rhythm at the best possible time.
Hebron quarterback Patrick Crayton Jr. completed 16 of his 24 passes for 246 yards and three touchdowns. Ayson Jones rushed for 91 yards and a score on 24 carries and Crayton Jr. chipped in a rushing touchdown as well. Sheldon Armour caught four passes for 63 yards while Jesse McElroy, Tyler Hoke and Drew Koster all caught touchdown passes. Crayton Jr. completed passes to nine different receivers in the game. Flower Mound Marcus will need to clean up the turnovers in a pivotal matchup with another playoff hopeful, Flower Mound, this weekend. Hebron will host a Plano East squad hoping to make the playoffs and will need to prevent any comeback attempt, assuming the Hawks jump out to another lead.
Frisco Lone Star takes down Frisco Wakeland
A back-and-forth affair between Frisco Lone Star and Frisco Wakeland ended with Lone Star on top of Wakeland 35-31. After Lone Star turned the ball over down three points with under two minutes left, Ranger defensive end Jaxon Lee forced a fumble a few plays later to give the Lone Star offense another opportunity to go win the game. Colin Blackstock hit Bryson Jones for the game-winning touchdown with just 24 seconds left in the game to give LSHS the win.
These two teams have made a habit of playing in one-score games over the last few weeks. Lone Star beat Frisco Reedy 35-32, Wakeland lost to Reedy 35-28, and now Lone Star beats Wakeland by four points.
Frisco Lone Star quarterback Colin Blackstock completed 19 of his 27 passes for 174 yards and a touchdown. His lone touchdown sealed the win as the Rangers offense scored its other four touchdowns on the ground. Davian Groce led the rushing attack with 85 yards and a touchdown, while Karece Hoyt chipped in 79 yards and a score on 15 carries. Blackstock added two more touchdowns on the ground. Ryder Mix led the receivers with three receptions for 60 yards and Bryson Jones added five receptions for 50 yards and the go-ahead touchdown.
Frisco Wakeland quarterback Brennan Myer completed 25 of his 37 passes for 365 yards and three touchdowns. Donovan Woolen was his primary target, finishing with eight receptions for 129 yards and two scores. Ryder Treadway also contributed in a big way, catching seven passes for 123 yards and a touchdown. The Wolverines struggled to get much going on the ground. Cooper Snyder carried the ball 16 times for 46 yards and a touchdown, but Wakeland averaged just 2.2 yards-per-carry.
Games to Watch
Thursday, September 28
Fort Worth Dunbar (2-2) @ Fort Worth Western Hills (2-2)
Dunbar’s district showdown with Western Hills will be televised for a second consecutive season on the CW33. Dunbar beat Western Hills 60-33 last season and both teams went on to make the playoffs. Both teams have identical 2-2 (1-0) records, though that will change on Thursday night. This game should have playoff implications as both teams are talented enough to make it to the postseason out of District 6-4A DI.
Friday, September 29
Flower Mound Marcus (1-3) @ Flower Mound (2-2)
The Mound Showdown is for more than city supremacy this year. Flower Mound Marcus started district play 1-0 while Flower Mound is 0-1. In addition to these two squads, Lewisville, Coppell, Hebron and Plano East are all battling for a playoff spot. The winner of this game will have a leg up on securing one of those spots. These seem to be two evenly matched teams, so this should be a great game.
Highland Park (3-1) @ Jesuit (3-2)
Highland Park doesn’t usually have a district loss before October and the Scots don’t want to make it two district losses this early in the season. Jesuit, on the other hand, is 2-1 in district play with a loss to Lake Highlands. The Rangers get Highland Park before taking on the last remaining undefeated team in District 7-6A in Richardson Berkner. Calling this a must win game for both teams might be taking a little too far, but this as must win as must win gets in September.
Colleyville Heritage (3-1) @ Grapevine (1-2)
The Battle of the Red Rail will likely decide the District 4-5A DII championship. Grapevine lost its first two games of the season by eight combined points before having its last non-district game canceled and then hammering Fort Worth North Side in its district opener. Colleyville Heritage has played in two close games, beating Ennis 10-7 and losing to Texas High 41-38. This rivalry usually produces a pretty good game and district title implications will only make it that much better.
Offense Player of the Week
My Offensive Player of the Week is Lewisville quarterback Ethan Terrell! Picking Terrell this week is as much about his performance in Lewisville’s 34-7 win over Flower Mound as it is about the career accomplishment he achieved last Friday night. With the win over Flower Mound, Terrell became Lewisville’s winningest quarterback in school history! He passed for 249 yards and four touchdowns in the win as well. Terrell still has half of his senior season plus the playoffs to continue to add to his win total.
Defensive Player of the Week
My Defensive Player of the Week is The Colony defensive lineman Connor Cordry! The Colony beat Denton Ryan 27-20 and Cordry lived in the Raiders backfield. Cordry finished with 14 tackles, five tackles-for-loss, two sacks and five QB hurries. He put pressure on TJ Hobbs all night and it was just enough to help the Cougars pull out a close win on the road in a key district game.
Cover Photo of Lewisville's Ethan Terrell, Jayden Hardy and JJ Gonzales courtesy of the Dallas Morning News and Special Contributor Steve Hamm.