The Cooldown: Week Two
Cover Photo via the Dallas Morning News/ Smiley N. Pool
One of the best parts of the non-district portion of the season is the marquee matchups it brings, and the second week of the season certainly didn’t disappoint. A few high-profile matchups came down to the last few possessions. Let’s get into how those games played out and who came out on top.
Aledo outlasts Denton Guyer
A slow start didn’t keep these two teams from lighting up the scoreboard. Aledo travelled to Denton and beat the Guyer Wildcats 48-45 after both teams failed to score a point in the opening quarter. If there was any doubt that Aledo would be a team to beat in 5A DI, that doubt was erased on Friday night. These Bearcats look the part of a state title squad, just like so many Aledo teams over the last decade.
It all starts with quarterback Hauss Hejny, who got it done through the air and on the ground, passing for 252 yards and a score and rushing for 135 yards. Raycine Guillory carried the ball 29 times for 137 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Bearcats rushing attack. Hawk Patrick-Daniels caught three passes for 93 yards and a touchdown to lead the receivers. Aledo’s offense is about as efficient as they come, and that offense is going to carry the Bearcats through this season.
Logan McLaughlin impressed in his second showing as Denton Guyer’s starting quarterback, completing 20 of his 27 passes for 314 yards and five touchdowns. Corbin Glasco caught 10 passes for 146 yards and two touchdowns and Josiah Martin caught seven passes for 128 yards and two scores. Those two combined with McLaughlin to produce the majority of Denton Guyer’s offense. Ahmed Yussuf carried the ball 10 times for 44 yards and Sterling Schneider rushed for 38 yards and a touchdown to make up the Guyer ground attack. It looks like Denton Guyer is going to be fine offensively post Jackson Arnold, who threw his first collegiate touchdown pass last Saturday, by the way. There is room for improvement for both of these teams, and plenty of time to do so.
Jesuit beats Rockwall
Imagine the final score of the Denton Guyer-Aledo game if each team had also scored in the first quarter. That’s what the Jesuit-Rockwall game looked like as the Rangers beat the Yellow Jackets 60-59. Rockwall put up 640 yards of total offense and Jesuit finished with 540 yards, pushing the total yards for the game well north of 1,100.
Jesuit quarterback Charlie Peters completed 37 of his 48 passes for 379 yards and six touchdowns. On top of those numbers, Jaeger Krauss attempted one pass and it went 79 yards for a touchdown. In all, five different Jesuit receivers caught a touchdown pass, and that includes Krauss, who caught three passes for 52 yards and one score. Quentin Williams led the way with eight receptions for 157 yards and two touchdowns, followed by Cooper Cutler, who caught nine passes for 123 yards and a score. Zane Williams was responsible for two touchdown receptions, as well as a touchdown on the ground, and Blake Bodnar also caught a touchdown pass.
Rockwall quarterback Landyn Locke completed 19 of his 28 passes for 406 yards and four touchdowns while Mason Marshall completed six of his 12 passes for 56 yards and a score. Triston Gooch was the main beneficiary at receiver, catching 11 passes for 275 yards and two touchdowns. Matthew Young added seven receptions for 88 yards and three touchdowns. Ashton Emory led the way on the ground with 58 yards and a score on 12 carries. Parker Williams also gained 58 yards on the ground and scored a touchdown on nine carries.
Jesuit got a much-needed bounce back win after opening the season with a loss to Hebron. Rockwall will have to figure some things out defensively before facing a good Prosper team this weekend.
Highland Park defeats Lewisville
Highland Park rarely loses at home, and the Scots defended home turf with a 21-18 win over a good Lewisville team last week. The Scots scored all three touchdowns in the first half and relied on the defense to pitch a fourth quarter shutout to preserve the win.
Highland Park quarterback Warren Peck completed 14 of his 24 passes for 172 yards and a touchdown. His favorite target was Steel Tobin, who caught five passes for 126 yards. Wilson Axely added six receptions for 27 yards and Charles Schneider caught two passes for 15 yards and a score. Peck added 53 yards and a touchdown on the ground and Keller Holmes led the rushing attack with 85 yards and a score on five carries.
Lewisville quarterback Ethan Terrell finished with nearly identical numbers compared to Peck. Terrell completed 11 of his 21 passes for 161 yards and a touchdown. Jaydan Hardy led the receivers with four receptions for 61 yards and a score, while JJ Gonzales added three receptions for 48 yards. Viron Ellison led the rushing attack with 117 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries. This was a good showing for both teams in a game that probably could have gone either way. Neither of these teams will face an opponent as tough or talented the rest of the regular season.
Thursday, September 7
Frisco Reedy (2-0) @ Frisco Lone Star (1-1)
District play kicks off this weekend in District 6-5A DI, and it starts with a bang. Frisco Reedy beat Frisco Lone Star in an early season matchup last year, and the Lions look to go back-to-back against the Rangers with a win on Thursday night. Lone Star bounced back from an opening week loss to Texas High with a big win over Burleson last week, while Reedy cruised past Azle and Denison in non-district play. That should be a close game and could have playoff implications come November.
Sachse (0-2) @ Lakeview Centennial (2-0)
Sachse got off to an 0-2 start and needs a win as district play begins in District 9-6A this week. The Mustangs played two tough teams in Coppell and Prosper, both on the road. Lakeview Centennial notched two wins against Frisco Memorial and Dallas Skyline. The real test comes this weekend as we see which team is more prepared for district play.
Flower Mound Marcus (0-2) @ Trinity (0-2)
One of these two teams will emerge from non-district play with a win. The other will have to hope the first win of the season comes early in district play. I give both teams credit, neither scheduled an easy game in non-district. Flower Mound Marcus was routed by Highland Park and Southlake Carroll while Trinity lost one-score games to Prosper and Rockwall Heath. This should be a competitive game with both teams needing a win.
Friday, September 8
Denton Guyer (1-1) @ Lancaster (1-1)
Lancaster opened the season with a win over Dallas Skyline but fell to South Oak Cliff by three touchdowns last weekend. Denton Guyer’s loss to Aledo is outlined above. The Wildcats are playing down a classification for the second week in a row, and I am interested to see how competitive Lancaster looks against Denton Guyer. This could be a measuring stick game of sorts for Lancaster.
North Crowley (2-0) @ Lovejoy (2-0)
North Crowley has absolutely dominated in two games against outmatched opponents so far this year. After a stellar year last season, that should be more of the expectation around NCHS. Lovejoy beat College Station and Argyle with relative ease for a more impressive start to the season. This weekend, we get to find out what Lovejoy is made of and how good North Crowley really is. This should be a great game between two teams loaded with talent.
Arlington Martin (0-2) @ Allen (0-2)
An 0-2 start was not how either of these teams pictured the season starting. Arlington Martin has struggled to score in its two games, while Allen’s defense has struggled thus far. A win would go a long for either team, but both need a good performance in this game. Martin needs to focus on finding something offensively, while Allen should hope to hold Martin to two scores or less.
Prosper (2-0) @ Rockwall (1-1)
Let’s see how Rockwall bounces back after that thrilling contest against Jesuit. This game might feature a lot of offense. In four combined games, Prosper’s 42 points scored against Trinity in week one was the lowest offensive output. The highest, ironically, was Rockwall’s 59-point outburst in a loss to Jesuit last week. Keep an eye on this game and hold a thought for the scoreboard operator. It’s guaranteed to be a long night for that guy.
Saturday, September 9
DeSoto (1-0) @ South Oak Cliff (1-1)
Yes! We have a Saturday night banger alert. DeSoto took week two off after hammering Allen to open the season. Unfortunately, the Eagles couldn’t find an opponent for week two. South Oak Cliff won’t back down from that smoke, though. The Golden Bears beat Lancaster last week and now take on the other defending 6A champion after a showdown with Duncanville in week one. Once again for South Oak Cliff, this isn’t exactly a level playing field. At the same time, I bet South Oak Cliff gives DeSoto more of a fight than Allen did. I’m excited to see how this one plays out.
Offensive Player of the Week
My Offensive Player of the Week is Lovejoy quarterback Alexander Franklin! Lovejoy beat Argyle 42-14 and Franklin completed 23 of his 34 passes for 348 yards and four touchdowns, plus one rushing touchdown, in the win! Most of that damage was done in the first half as Lovejoy jumped out to a 35-0 lead by halftime. Maybe Argyle isn’t quite as good as it usually is, or maybe Franklin and Lovejoy were just that dominate on Friday night. Either way, Franklin will need another big performance if Lovejoy is to beat North Crowley this weekend.
Defensive Player of the Week
My Defensive Player of the Week is Highland Park linebacker Jack Morse! Highland Park held Lewisville to 18 points in a three-point win due in large part to the relentless pressure Morse provided! Morse finished with eight tackles, a tackle-for-loss, two sacks, a fumble recovery and a QB pressure in the win. That all helped Highland Park pitch a fourth quarter shutout for a home win over a talented Lewisville squad.
Cover Photo of Highland Park RB Wilson Axely courtesy of the Dallas Morning News and Staff Photographer Smiley N. Pool.