This weekend in the Metroplex was truly one for the record books. State records fell in Fort Worth as Southwest defeated Arlington Heights 66-21 and QB Wesley Harris broke the state record by throwing for nine touchdowns in the game. Nine TD's, that is one better than Denton Ryan's Scotty Young, Birdville's Josh Dorman, and several other players going back to Turkey Valley's Kirk Saul were ever able to do. Harris' favorite target, Robbie Rhodes, wrote his name in the record book with 390 yards receiving and eight touchdown receptions, besting the state record in both categories. This all comes just a couple of weeks after Wichita Falls QB Dylan Sheffield set the state record for passing yards in a game with 683 and seven touchdowns against Denton High. Throw in the history being made by Aledo's Jonathan Gray and they guys at Texas Football magazine are going to be very busy updating their records section during the off-season.
300 for the Fedora
Another milestone was reached on Friday night as Highland Park Coach Randy Allen notched his 300th coaching victory. The Scots defeated Richardson Pearce 41-27 to improve to 7-0 on the year. Coach Allen has been on the Highland Park sideline for 148 of his 300 wins including the 4A D1 State Championship in 2005. I was at Rose Stadium in Tyler that day. Calling the game for the Texas State Network as a quarterback named Matthew Stafford led the Scots to a 59-0 win over Marshall. I first met Coach Allen years earlier, however, when he was coaching at Abilene Cooper. I have always respected Coach Allen and I am very appreciative of the time and attention he gives to me whenever we do a Highland Park game on TXA 21. He is a true gentleman and I congratulate him on becoming the 11th coach in Texas high school football to earn 300 wins. Good Job Coach!
11-5A Action
This week our game of the week was in Mesquite as the Horn Jaguars hosted state ranked Longview in 11-5A. The Lobos outlasted the Jags 38-30 but I came away impressed with both teams. Longview looks like a team that can make a long playoff run with offensive weapons like QB Bivins Caraway, WR Eric Hawkins and RB Tory White. Hawkins in particular was sensational with 4 catches for 149 yards and two touchdowns. If the Lobos can learn to shut down the opponents passing game, watch out. Horn put up a great fight and has weapons of their own including Sophomore QB Destri White and TE/WR Vincent Hobbs, but their best playmaker is Oklahoma commit Devante Harris. Harris is a defensive back but hardly ever leave the field, playing wide receiver and returning kicks as well. Harris is blessed with blazing speed and the ability to make players miss in the open field. He also shut down Hawkins when he was covering him. All of Hawkins' big plays came when Harris was not covering the Arkansas bound receiver. Horn may be 2-5, but considering their losses have been close games against Coppell, Hebron, Denton Guyer, Stephenville and Longview, I would not count them out as being a threat to make some noise in the post-season.
The Big Three
Another team out of 11-5A is among my top three teams in the area. The DeSoto Eagles. The Eagles demolished Tyler Lee this week 66 to 13 and posted 623 yards of offense in the process. I have Allen, DeSoto, and Skyline clearly above the pack in the Metroplex right now. In fact, I would take take those three teams and give you every other team in the state of Texas and say that I have just as good a shot as you at predicting a state champion. I am that confident one of those three teams will be hoisting a trophy at Cowboys Stadium at the end of the year.
Undefeated Showdown
Speaking of Allen, the #1 ranked team in the state will be on TXA 21 this week facing unbeaten Flower Mound Marcus. The winner of this game will be the last undefeated team standing in District 8-5A, one of the toughest districts in the state. Allen has a load of D1 talent including QB Alec Morris who has thrown for almost 2,000 yards with 25 TD's and only one INT. Marcus counters with a running game that includes tailback Harvey Giddens who is approaching 1,200 yards rushing and has 18 touchdowns on the ground.
Other big games this week include:
Cedar Hill (5-2, 4-0) at Mansfield (7-0, 4-0) in 5-5A
Sachse (6-1, 3-1) at McKinney Boyd (5-2, 3-1) in 10-5A
Frisco (6-1, 4-0) vs. Frisco Centennial (7-0, 4-0) in 9-4A (Pizza Hut Park)
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Making Sense of the Metroplex
This is my blog that appears at http://www.texasfootball.com/
Thursday night I called the battle for the "Mayor's Cup" in the HEBISD. L.D. Bell was trying to snap a 13 game losing streak to the Trinity Trojans and for a half it looked like they were actually going to pull it off. Bell's Blue Raiders led 11-6 at the break courtesy of some outstanding first half defense including two interceptions. But the half-time break - all 2 hours and 30 minutes of it thanks to a lightning delay - was just what the Trojans needed to wake up. Running back Joel Kimpela and the Trojans offensive line demolished the Bell defense in the second half as Trinity scored 35 points in the second half on their way to a 41-11 victory. Kimpela finished with 25 carries for 300 yards and 3 touchdowns. Trinity Coach Steve Lineweaver is now 12-0 against the Blue Raiders but first year Bell Coach Mark Smith has Bell improving and I don't think it will be too long before the skid comes to an end.
During the delay I had the chance to watch some of the Denton Guyer vs. Coppell game from the Collins Athletic Complex in Denton. It was the first time I had seen Guyer sophomore quarterback Jerrod Heard and I was not disappointed. Heard displayed a strong arm and good running skills in leading the Wildcats to a 31-7 rout of a state ranked team.
With the Coppell loss, there are two undefeated teams in the very tough 7-5A. Southlake Carroll and Keller Central. Carroll's Dragons had to hold on for the second straight week, however, as they narrowly escaped being the Keller Indians biggest homecoming win ever. Carroll got by the game Indians by a 26-21 margin after leading 26-0 in the first half. In the names to remember category, this game featured two of the best junior qb's in the state in Carroll's Kenny Hill and Keller's Davis Webb. Both will be among the more highly recruited signal callers in the state next year.
So Who's the Best?
We have turned the corner on the halfway point in the regular season and while we know that North Texas is stocked with some of the best 5A football teams in the state, do we really know which one stands above the rest? Many would argue that it's the Allen Eagles and so far they have done everything to back up those claims. The Eagles have beaten all foes convincingly this year including Lewisville on Friday night 45-13. If not Allen, then maybe DeSoto. The Eagles have also killed the competition by lopsided scores all year. Maybe Skyline deserves consideration having dominated opponents with a roster filled with D-1 talent. Carroll and Trinity are perfect on the year, but have struggled to win at times. I think I would have to give the nod to Allen at this point, but the fun thing is the season is a long way from being over and in the end, the best will be decided on the field.
A Historic Night
For once I write about a state record and it does not involve Aledo running back Jonathan Gray. Wichita Falls quarterback Dylan Sheffield set a state record with 683 passing yards against Denton in Wichita Falls on Friday night. Sheffield needed all the yards and his 7 touchdown passes to engineer a 53-49 win over the Broncos. Sheffield's mark eclipses that of Mac Morse who passed for 634 yards for Richardson Pearce in 2009. A huge night and a big win for the Coyotes so a hearty congratulations going out to Sheffield even though his record will put my alma mater, good ol' Denton High, in the record books in a dubious way.
Now about Jonathan Gray...of course no blog on North Texas would be complete without mention of Gray and his 347 yard 7 touchdown performance against Springtown. Gray once again made the most of minimal work as he only had 16 carries in the game but scored on runs on 42, 31, 8, 14, 69, and 8 yards. Gray now has over 1300 yards rushing and 24 touchdowns on the year. As Nicole Richie's dad used to say, "OUTRAGEOUS!"
Game Balls
Some of the other tremendous performances this week:
Skyline QB Devante Kincade: 15-17 332 4TD in only one half of play as the Raiders beat Richardson 62-7.
Russell Hansbrough ran for 194 yards and scored 5 td's as Arlington Bowie routed Sam Houston 49-0.
Highland Park gunslinger Brady Burgin tossed 5 td passes and racked up 353 passing yards as the Scots defeated Wylie East 58-30. Guess it was a good weekend for current and former HP QB's, right Matthew Stafford?
Our TXA 21 crew will see Highland Park this week as they travel to Wylie to face the Pirates in District 10-4A play. Other huge district matchups include:
Denton Ryan at WF Rider (4-4A) Thursday
Duncanville at Mansfield (5-5A)
LD Bell at Irving MacArthur (6-5A)
Denton Guyer at Keller Central (7-5A)
North Mesquite at DeSoto (11-5A)
Lot's more good ones out there..tis the season.
Thursday night I called the battle for the "Mayor's Cup" in the HEBISD. L.D. Bell was trying to snap a 13 game losing streak to the Trinity Trojans and for a half it looked like they were actually going to pull it off. Bell's Blue Raiders led 11-6 at the break courtesy of some outstanding first half defense including two interceptions. But the half-time break - all 2 hours and 30 minutes of it thanks to a lightning delay - was just what the Trojans needed to wake up. Running back Joel Kimpela and the Trojans offensive line demolished the Bell defense in the second half as Trinity scored 35 points in the second half on their way to a 41-11 victory. Kimpela finished with 25 carries for 300 yards and 3 touchdowns. Trinity Coach Steve Lineweaver is now 12-0 against the Blue Raiders but first year Bell Coach Mark Smith has Bell improving and I don't think it will be too long before the skid comes to an end.
During the delay I had the chance to watch some of the Denton Guyer vs. Coppell game from the Collins Athletic Complex in Denton. It was the first time I had seen Guyer sophomore quarterback Jerrod Heard and I was not disappointed. Heard displayed a strong arm and good running skills in leading the Wildcats to a 31-7 rout of a state ranked team.
With the Coppell loss, there are two undefeated teams in the very tough 7-5A. Southlake Carroll and Keller Central. Carroll's Dragons had to hold on for the second straight week, however, as they narrowly escaped being the Keller Indians biggest homecoming win ever. Carroll got by the game Indians by a 26-21 margin after leading 26-0 in the first half. In the names to remember category, this game featured two of the best junior qb's in the state in Carroll's Kenny Hill and Keller's Davis Webb. Both will be among the more highly recruited signal callers in the state next year.
So Who's the Best?
We have turned the corner on the halfway point in the regular season and while we know that North Texas is stocked with some of the best 5A football teams in the state, do we really know which one stands above the rest? Many would argue that it's the Allen Eagles and so far they have done everything to back up those claims. The Eagles have beaten all foes convincingly this year including Lewisville on Friday night 45-13. If not Allen, then maybe DeSoto. The Eagles have also killed the competition by lopsided scores all year. Maybe Skyline deserves consideration having dominated opponents with a roster filled with D-1 talent. Carroll and Trinity are perfect on the year, but have struggled to win at times. I think I would have to give the nod to Allen at this point, but the fun thing is the season is a long way from being over and in the end, the best will be decided on the field.
A Historic Night
For once I write about a state record and it does not involve Aledo running back Jonathan Gray. Wichita Falls quarterback Dylan Sheffield set a state record with 683 passing yards against Denton in Wichita Falls on Friday night. Sheffield needed all the yards and his 7 touchdown passes to engineer a 53-49 win over the Broncos. Sheffield's mark eclipses that of Mac Morse who passed for 634 yards for Richardson Pearce in 2009. A huge night and a big win for the Coyotes so a hearty congratulations going out to Sheffield even though his record will put my alma mater, good ol' Denton High, in the record books in a dubious way.
Now about Jonathan Gray...of course no blog on North Texas would be complete without mention of Gray and his 347 yard 7 touchdown performance against Springtown. Gray once again made the most of minimal work as he only had 16 carries in the game but scored on runs on 42, 31, 8, 14, 69, and 8 yards. Gray now has over 1300 yards rushing and 24 touchdowns on the year. As Nicole Richie's dad used to say, "OUTRAGEOUS!"
Game Balls
Some of the other tremendous performances this week:
Skyline QB Devante Kincade: 15-17 332 4TD in only one half of play as the Raiders beat Richardson 62-7.
Russell Hansbrough ran for 194 yards and scored 5 td's as Arlington Bowie routed Sam Houston 49-0.
Highland Park gunslinger Brady Burgin tossed 5 td passes and racked up 353 passing yards as the Scots defeated Wylie East 58-30. Guess it was a good weekend for current and former HP QB's, right Matthew Stafford?
Our TXA 21 crew will see Highland Park this week as they travel to Wylie to face the Pirates in District 10-4A play. Other huge district matchups include:
Denton Ryan at WF Rider (4-4A) Thursday
Duncanville at Mansfield (5-5A)
LD Bell at Irving MacArthur (6-5A)
Denton Guyer at Keller Central (7-5A)
North Mesquite at DeSoto (11-5A)
Lot's more good ones out there..tis the season.
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