Texas football commits in action, Oct. 24-25

This week’s slate of Texas high school football games will have a Houston-area matchup with Texas Longhorn commits on opposite sidelines, as 2021 commits Jalen Milroe (Katy Tompkins) and Hayden Conner (Katy Taylor) will face off in Katy.

Elsewhere, 2020 commit Jaden Hullaby will lead his team against state-ranked Lancaster, and 2020 defensive back commit Xavion Alford’s state-ranked Shadow Creek team will play Richmond Foster, who they had not one but two 4th quarter comebacks against in the 2018 season.

By the end of this weekend, several commits will have punched their ticket to the postseason, others may have been eliminated from playoff contention, and a few might be in a position of having to win out to finish the season to reach the playoffs.

2020 defensive end commit Van Fillinger’s team has concluded its regular season and is the top seed in Utah’s Class 6A playoffs, but they will get a bye this week before beginning their run toward a second straight state title next week.

The Longhorns’ 2020 class lost a member this week when Manor defensive end Princely Umanmielen announced his de-commitment via his Twitter account on Wednesday. That reduces the #cloUT2020 class to 19 members.

Expect to see recaps of several blowout results in next week’s update. As always, the game times listed below are for each site’s local time zone.

———

2020 QB Hudson Card (Lake Travis) - injured, out this week
2021 TE Lake McRee (Lake Travis) - injured, out for season

Last week: Bye
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:30, at Del Valle
Notes: For those who have not read previous posts this season, Lake McRee has missed the entire 2019 season after tearing an ACL during the preseason, and Hudson Card suffered a toe injury two weeks ago in Lake Travis’s win over archrival Austin Westlake that is expected to sideline him for the rest of the regular season and perhaps a playoff game or two. The Cavaliers will likely be quarterbacked in his absence by junior Nate Yarnell, who has only 29 career pass attempts at the varsity level but has reportedly been offered by Houston and Tulsa.

Lake Travis is 6-1 overall and 5-0 in district, which currently ties them for 1st in District 25-6A with Buda Hays, who plays Westlake this week then Lake Travis on November 1. The Cavaliers have not yet clinched a playoff spot, as there is at least one scenario in which they could lose three straight and finish 5-3 in district and be left out of the playoffs due to tiebreakers. A win on Friday against Del Valle would clinch the program’s 16th straight postseason berth.

Del Valle is 3-3 in district and needs an upset win over Lake Travis to keep its playoff hopes alive. The Cardinals’ junior running back Tavierre Dunlap has already passed the 1,000 rushing yard mark this season and has scored 19 total TDs, and their receiving corps includes sophomore Caleb Burton, who holds a Texas offer. Burton is second on the team with 40 catches for 708 yards and 8 TDs through eight games.

2020 QB Ja’Quinden Jackson (Duncanville)

Last week: Completed 7 of 14 passes for 66 yards, and had 7 carries for 57 yards and one TD in a 39-7 win over Richardson Pearce.
This week: Thursday, October 24 at 7:00, at Dallas W.T. White
Notes: Duncanville hasn’t tended to put up eye-catching offensive numbers on the stat sheet but its defense has been utterly dominant and has carried it in games where its offensive performance wasn’t overwhelming. Last week, Richardson Pearce went on a series of extended drives in the first half that didn’t net any points but did keep Duncanville’s offense off the field for long stretches, and the Panthers led by a mere 14-0 score at halftime, courtesy of two TD runs by Central Arkansas RB commit Trysten Smith.

Duncanville only had four possessions in the second half but they resulted in three touchdowns and a field goal for 25 total points. Ja’Quinden Jackson scored the first of the Panthers’ three TDs in the 3rd quarter on a 29-yard run with 7:40 left. They led 39-0 after a field goal finished off their last drive of the game with 6:14 left in the 4th quarter. Pearce proceeded to run almost all of the remaining clock time on a 17-play drive that ended with a 6-yard TD pass with just 4 seconds left in regulation. It was the first touchdown Duncanville had allowed in over a month and the first scored by an in-state opponent against them this season.

Duncanville’s run game averaged almost ten yards per carry but Ja’Quinden Jackson completed half of his 14 pass attempts, and the Panthers were penalized 14 times for 138 yards. They are now 7-0 overall and alone in 1st place in District 8-6A. They should have no trouble moving to 8-0 tonight when they play W.T. White, a team that has lost its last two games 82-0 against teams Duncanville beat by a combined 83 points. Duncanville beat White 63-0 in 2018.

The Panthers remain the top-ranked team in Class 6A and the #4 team in the USA Today Super 25 Expert Rankings. To win a state championship they’ll likely have to beat three straight nationally-ranked foes during their playoff run, starting perhaps with #20 Southlake Carroll in the Region I final, then #12 Allen in the state semifinals, and either #7 Katy or #19 Galena Park North Shore in the championship.

2021 QB Jalen Milroe (Katy Tompkins)

Last week: Completed 12 of 22 passes for 203 yards, 2 TDs and 1 INT, and had 7 carries for 41 yards and lost a fumble in a 29-16 win over Katy Morton Ranch.
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:30, at Katy Taylor
Notes: Tompkins played far from a perfect game but it got a crucial district win over Morton Ranch last week. The Falcons scored two offensive touchdowns in the game’s first six minutes and none in the final three and a half quarters of play. Two Milroe scoring passes to Anthony Munoz were sandwiched around a safety, and Tompkins led 16-0 with 6:21 left in the 1st quarter.

Morton Ranch returned a blocked punt for a TD early in the 2nd quarter, then added a field goal just over four minutes later to make the score 16-10, and that score carried over into the start of the 3rd quarter. Tompkins got all its second half points on special teams, as it added a pair of field goals and a punt return TD to extend its lead to 29-10 with 7:37 left in the 4th quarter. Morton Ranch cut the deficit to 29-16 three minutes later but never scored again.

Milroe accounted for 244 total yards but had his first two-turnover game of the season, throwing an interception and losing a fumble. The win moved Tompkins to 7-1 overall and 3-1 in district play, and the team retains the #22 ranking in Class 6A this week. The Falcons will clinch a playoff spot with a win in either of their final two games.

On Friday Milroe will face fellow Texas commit and former Pop Warner league teammate Hayden Conner and his Katy Taylor Mustangs. Taylor is 3-1 in district and should reach the playoffs even with losses to Tompkins and Katy to finish the season, but a win in either of those games guarantees a postseason berth. Tompkins beat Taylor 27-24 when the teams played in 2018.

2020 RB Ty Jordan (West Mesquite)

Last week: Had 14 carries for 137 yards and 1 TD, and caught 8 passes for 75 yards in a 56-34 loss to McKinney North
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:00, at Mesquite Poteet
Notes: West Mesquite fell to 1-6 for the season with its 56-34 loss last week to McKinney North. Ty Jordan gained 212 yards from scrimmage on 22 touches, and the two teams spent the middle two quarters exchanging scores, but the difference in the game ultimately came down to the 1st and 4th quarters.

West Mesquite scored first on a field goal and took a 3-0 lead, but McKinney North scored the game’s next 16 points. From then until the end of the 3rd quarter, West Mesquite answered each McKinney North score with one of their own, but after going into halftime trailing 22-13, the Wranglers never got closer than 8 points. North led 43-34 going into the 4th quarter, and scored 13 unanswered points in the final frame to pull away.

West Mesquite is now 1-2 in district and will play district co-leader Mesquite Poteet on Friday night. A loss would not end their playoff hopes though, as games remain against Sherman and Texarkana Texas, who are a combined 1-6 in district. Wins over both to close the season would give the Wranglers a 3-7 overall record but their 3-3 district mark would get them into the postseason as the 4th-best team out of District 7-5A Division I.

West Mesquite has lost six straight games to Poteet, including a 41-19 defeat in 2018.

2020 RB Bijan Robinson (Salpointe Catholic - Tucson, Arizona)

Last week: Had 12 carries for 263 yards and 4 TDs, and caught 2 passes for 49 yards in a 35-0 win over Canyon del Oro.
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:00, at Tucson Catalina Foothills
Notes: Salpointe Catholic had a close enough game last Friday that Bijan Robinson actually played extensively into the 3rd quarter, a rare occurrence this season. According to the Arizona Daily Star’s recap, previously unbeaten Canyon del Oro made a concerted effort to keep the ball out of his hands by keeping Salpointe Catholic’s offense off the field. CDO ran over twice as many plays as Salpointe Catholic, and though their ball-control strategy limited Robinson’s opportunities in the first half, it resulted in no points. Salpointe aided in their opponent’s strategy of keeping the ball away from the best running back in the nation by throwing two interceptions in the first half, and the Lancers led only 14-0 at the break.

In the 3rd quarter, Robinson ran for 165 of his 263 yards in the game and scored on TD runs of 69 and 80 yards, and Salpointe Catholic led 28-0 going into the 4th quarter. On the 12 occasions that the Lancers handed the ball to Robinson, he averaged nearly 22 yards per carry. On the 12 plays in which they attempted passes, four throws were caught by their team (two by Robinson) and three were intercepted by the defense.

The 35-0 win represented the Lancers’ smallest point total of the season by 19 points, and it was their second-smallest margin of victory behind their 68-34 win over Desert Edge on September 6. On Friday they will play their penultimate game of the regular season against 3-5 Catalina Foothills.

Robinson has 1,736 rushing yards and 31 TDs through Salpointe Catholic’s first seven games. Compared with his stats in the first seven games of the 2018 season, he has over 400 more rushing yards on 27 fewer carries, and he’s four rushing TDs away from matching his 2018 season total. With a maximum of five games remaining in his senior season, Robinson is 14 rushing TDs away from tying the state career record (110), and he’s just six scores away from tying the career record for total TDs scored (112). If he can lead his team to the championship game of the Open Division playoff and average 202 rushing yards per game from now until the end of the season (he is averaging 248 yards/game so far in 2019), he will break the state’s career rushing yardage record for all conferences.

Salpointe Catholic is 7-0 for the season and remains the #1 team in Conference 4A (out of 47 teams) and the #2 team in the Open Division ratings. The Lancers will play Catalina Foothills on Friday night, a team that is rated #25 in 4A and has an overall record of 3-5 this season. Salpointe Catholic beat Catalina Foothills 42-14 in 2018.

2021 WR Quaydarius Davis (Dallas Skyline)

Last week: Caught 6 passes for 71 yards and one TD in a 29-9 win over Richardson.
This week: Thursday, October 24 at 7:00, vs. Dallas Molina
Notes: In last week’s district matchup with Richardson, Skyline started off the game about as badly as it could have. Skyline was set to receive the opening kickoff, but Richardson instead attempted an onside kick and recovered the ball, then scored on a short TD pass six plays later to take a 7-0 lead. Skyline went three-and-out on its first drive, then had its punt blocked out the back of the end zone for a safety, giving Richardson a 9-0 lead less than four minutes into the game.

After receiving the free kick following the safety, Richardson took possession at midfield and three plays later had a 1st-and-goal at the 3-yard line, but just when it looked like the Eagles would take a 16-0 lead, QB Luke Mulvey was hit and fumbled the ball on a designed QB run, and Skyline senior LB Brandon Stegall scooped up the ball and ran 90 yards for a momentum-changing TD. Skyline’s defense forced a three-and-out on Richardson’s next possession, and after receiving the punt and starting a drive at their own 19-yard line, the Raiders needed only two long passes to reach the end zone and take a 13-9 lead with 3:49 left in the 1st quarter after they had trailed 9-0 less than five minutes earlier.

For the rest of the game, Skyline’s defense buckled down and forced Richardson into 3 punts, 3 turnovers on downs, an interception, and a lost fumble. The Raiders added 16 points to their total in the second half and led 29-9 in the final minute of the 3rd quarter. Quaydarius Davis shook off a slump that had seen him make just 4 catches for a gain of 2 yards over Skyline’s past two games, as he caught 6 passes and scored on a 37-yard reception in the 3rd quarter.

With the win Skyline moved its overall record to 4-3 and is over .500 for the first time this season. The Raiders’ 3-1 district record puts them in a tie for 2nd place in District 8-6A with Richardson Pearce, who they will face in their regular season finale in two weeks. Tonight they get to play the district’s last-place team, Molina, which is 1-6 this season, has been outscored by 32 points per game, and got its only win against a 2-5 team from Class 4A Division I. Skyline beat Molina 62-0 last season and has won the last five meetings between the schools (most of which were over 10 years ago) by a combined score of 274-0.

2020 WR Quentin Johnston (Temple)

Last week: Caught 4 passes for 85 yards in a 64-38 win over Killeen Ellison
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:30, vs Waco
Notes: Temple put the game out of reach early against Ellison last week, scoring the game’s first 35 points and taking a 43-8 lead by halftime. Ellison’s offense woke up in the second half and cut the deficit to 50-30 by the end of the 3rd quarter, but the game’s outcome was never in doubt.

Five different Temple players scored touchdowns, and the Wildcats gained 544 total yards on the night, 368 of them coming on the ground. Temple is now 6-1 overall and 5-0 in district play, putting it alone in first place in District 12-6A. A win on Friday night against Waco should clinch the Wildcats a playoff berth for a seventh straight season. Waco is winless this season and has won just one game in two seasons under head coach Kwame Cavil, the former Texas Longhorn wide receiver and also a former assistant coach at Temple.

The Wildcats will be in the 6A Division II bracket when the playoffs begin, and next week’s game against Waco Midway could decide both the district’s champion, and which losing team has to face defending state champion and fourth-ranked Longview in the first round.

2020 WR Troy Omeire (Fort Bend Austin)

Last week: Caught 6 passes for 85 yards and 2 TDs, and had one carry for a 6-yard TD in a 44-21 win over Fort Bend Clements.
This week: Thursday, October 24 at 6:30, at Fort Bend Kempner
Notes: Troy Omeire staked Fort Bend Austin to a 13-0 lead last week against Clements when the game was just over four minutes old. He caught a 22-yard TD pass from sophomore QB Braeden Abboud one minute into the game, then added a 6-yard TD run with 7:40 left in the 1st quarter. Abboud added two TD runs in the 2nd quarter to extend Austin’s lead to 27-7 with 6:48 left in the first half, and Austin would lead 34-14 at halftime. Abboud and Omeire connected on a 4-yard TD pass with 8:40 left in the 3rd quarter, and Austin would lead 44-14 for almost half of the 4th quarter before Clements scored a final TD with 6:20 left in regulation.

Austin is now 2-5 overall and 2-2 in district play. To reach the playoffs the Bulldogs need to beat Kempner tonight and win at least one of their final two games against Bush and Elkins. Kempner is 3-4 overall this season, with its three wins coming against teams with a combined record of 4-17. Austin beat Kempner 49-42 a season ago and has won five of the last seven meetings between the schools

2021 OL Hayden Conner (Katy Taylor)

Last week: Team lost to Katy Mayde Creek 14-10.
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:30, vs. Katy Tompkins
Notes: Taylor lost a defensive struggle to Mayde Creek last week in what was likely a battle for third place in District 19-6A. Taylor made a 26-yard field goal with one minute left in the 2nd quarter, and that kick represented the game’s only three points in the first three quarters. After a Mayde Creek TD in the 4th quarter made the score 7-3, Taylor re-claimed the lead with 6:21 left in regulation on a short TD run that put the Mustangs ahead 10-7. But Mayde Creek scored the game-winning TD with 1:27 left in the game.

The two teams combined to complete 20 of 48 pass attempts, and Taylor gained a mere 56 rushing yards on 33 carries. The loss dropped Taylor to 5-3 for the season and gave them their first district loss. As stated earlier, Hayden Conner will face fellow Longhorn commit Jalen Milroe on Friday night. Tompkins beat Taylor 27-24 in 2018, but Taylor won the teams’ first four matchups.

2020 OL Jaylen Garth (Port Neches-Groves) - injured, out for season

Last week: Team beat Dayton 51-14.
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:30, at Santa Fe

2020 OL Andrej Karic (Southlake Carroll)

Last week: Team beat Keller Fossil Ridge 62-7.
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:00, vs. Keller Central
Notes: Carroll scored touchdowns on its first seven possessions and led 48-0 with 6:48 left in the 2nd quarter, and the Dragons coasted in the second half while giving their reserves two quarters’ worth of playing time.

They are now 7-0 for the season and ranked #6 in Class 6A and #20 nationally in the USA Today Super 25. Friday night’s opponent is Keller Central, which is 6-1 and has a good shot of at least tying the program’s record for wins in a season (8). Central’s six wins this season came by a combined margin of 38 points, while its one loss was by 39 points to 17th-ranked Denton Guyer. Carroll beat Central 49-14 in 2018.

2020 OL Jake Majors (Prosper)
Last week: Team beat McKinney Boyd 29-3.
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:00, at Plano West
Notes: Coming off its first loss of the season, the Proper Eagles didn’t get of to a rousing start last week against McKinney Boyd, as their four possessions of the first half resulted in two field goals, a lost fumble, and a punt on a 4th-and-6 from Boyd’s 41-yard line. Prosper’s defense, though, limited Boyd to just three first downs in the half, and they went into halftime with a 6-3 lead.

But in the second half, the Eagles scored points on four of their first five possessions, beginning with an 11-play drive that gave them a 13-3 lead with 7:41 left in the 3rd quarter. After recovering an onside kick, they got as close as the Boyd 4-yard line before settling for a field goal to make the score 16-3 with 5:42 left in the quarter. And after Boyd finally got to possess the ball for the first time in the half, they fumbled it away deep in their own territory three plays later to set up Jackson Berry’s second TD pass to Tyler Bailey, which extended the lead to 23-3. Boyd never advanced the ball beyond their own 31 yard line in the entire second half, and Prosper limited the Broncos to 60 total yards on the night.

The win gave the Eagles a 6-1 overall record and a 3-1 mark in district play, putting them in a three-way tie (with Dallas Jesuit, who they lost to last week, and Plano, who they play in two weeks) for second place in District 9-6A. A win on Friday night against winless Plano West would clinch Prosper a playoff spot for a fifth straight season, and for the 16th time in 18 seasons, a stretch of time that began in 2002 with Prosper losing in the first round of the Class 2A Division II playoffs! Prosper beat Plano West 55-7 last season.

2020 OL Logan Parr (San Antonio O’Connor)

Last week: Team beat San Antonio Marshall 37-19.
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:30, at San Antonio Clark
Notes: O’Connor bounced back from suffering its first district loss in nearly four years to handily beat Marshall last week. The Panthers scored 21 points in the 1st quarter, returned a blocked PAT for two points following Marshall’s only score of the first half, and went into halftime with a 30-6 lead.

O’Connor is 5-2 overall with a 5-1 district record in the ten-team District 28-6A. They should clinch a playoff spot with a win on Friday night against 1-6 Clark, whose only win this season was a 29-27 victory four weeks ago over the Marshall team O’Connor dominated last week. O’Connor has won nine straight games against Clark, with the last eight all coming by margins of at least 21 points.

2020 DT Vernon Broughton (Cypress Ridge)

Last week: Team beat Houston Northbrook 45-0.
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:00, at Houston Memorial
Notes: Broughton’s Cypress Ridge Rams ran roughshod over a hapless Northbrook team that will undoubtedly be the weakest team they face in 2019. The Rams scored 42 of their points in the first half, and their defense limited Northbrook to -4 total yards.

With the win they are 5-2 overall and 3-2 in district play, which puts them in a tie with this week’s opponent, Memorial, for fourth place in District 17-6A. A win on Friday will be crucial to the Rams’ playoff chances, as they will wrap up the regular season with games against Cy-Fair and Cypress Falls (combined record: 13-1). A loss to Memorial would give Cypress Ridge three district losses and could put them into a similar situation to their fate in the 2018 season, in which they finished 7-3 but were left out of the playoffs due to a head-to-head tiebreaker. The Rams beat Memorial 27-10 a year ago.

2020 DE Van Fillinger (Corner Canyon - Draper, Utah)

Last week: Credited with 4 tackles and 2 QB hurries in a 59-28 win over American Fork.
This week: first round playoff bye
Notes: Corner Canyon emphatically finished off an undefeated regular season run last week with a 31-point win over a solid American Fork team. The Chargers got off to a fast start, scoring 21 unanswered points in the 1st quarter and leading by as much as 38-7 late in the 2nd quarter before a late American Fork score cut the deficit to 38-14 before halftime.

American Fork never got closer than that, as Corner Canyon scored two TDs in the early minutes of the 3rd quarter to go ahead 52-14. The Chargers allowed 471 total yards but their offense gained 606 yards of its own.

The team averaged just under 45 points per game in the regular season, despite playing a schedule that included several of Utah’s highest-rated teams. Senior QB Cole Hagen accounted for over 3,200 total yards and 37 TDs. Junior running back Austin Bell, who recently received his first offer from Utah State, gained 1,258 yards from scrimmage and scored 20 TDs on 135 touches. Van Fillinger will go into the playoffs with 63 total tackles (3rd on the team), 20 tackles for loss (1st on the team), and 9.5 sacks (2nd on the team).

Corner Canyon had the top RPI rating out of the 27 teams in Class 6A at the conclusion of the regular season and got the top seed in the “all comers” 6A playoff bracket. Corner Canyon has wins this season against the teams seeded #2, #3, #4, #7, and #9. The top five teams all get a first round bye, so Corner Canyon will have its first bye week since it began its season back on August 15. The Chargers will open the playoffs at home in the second round on November 1 or 2 against either #16 Kaysville Davis or #17 Saratoga Springs Westlake, the latter of which they beat 48-7 three weeks ago.

If Corner Canyon reaches the 6A state championship game on November 22, it’s possible that all four of their playoff games will be against teams they previously faced this season. The highest-seeded team on their side of the bracket and a team they could face in the semifinal round is #4 Skyridge, who they dominated 56-22 two weeks ago.

In addition to being the top-rated team in Utah, Corner Canyon made its debut in the USA Today Super 25 this week, coming in at #24. After winning Utah’s Class 5A state championship a year ago and going into the playoffs on a 22-game winning streak, the Corner Canyon Chargers will likely be a heavy favorite to take home this season’s 6A championship hardware in four weeks.

2020 LB Prince Dorbah (Highland Park)

Last week: Team beat Dallas Samuell 56-6.
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:30, vs. Dallas Sunset
Notes: Highland Park scored TDs on six of its first seven possessions and got a pick-six on defense in an easy 56-6 win over Samuell. The Scots are 6-1 overall and have outscored their first four district opponents 260-12.

Their starters will likely not play a snap in the second half of Friday night’s game against Dallas Sunset. Sunset is winless in 2019, has won 27 games total in the past 20 years, and has posted just 10 wins since the start of the 2006 season. To give an idea of the stark contrast between these two programs, consider that Highland Park has scored 397 points in its seven games this season, while Sunset has scored 417 points since the start of the 2012 season. Highland Park beat Sunset 72-0 last season.

Highland Park is ranked #4 in Class 5A Division I and after its inevitable thrashing of Sunset on Friday night it will finish the season with games against 5-2 Mansfield Timberview and 7th-ranked Lancaster.

2021 LB Derrick Harris (New Caney)

Last week: Credited with 8 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, and 2 sacks in a 41-0 win over Kingwood Park.
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:00, vs. Houston Austin
Notes: New Caney continued its dominating regular season run with a 41-0 shutout win over Kingwood Park last week. It would take an upset to prevent the Eagles from being 9-0 when they go into their Week 11 showdown with cross-town rival Porter in two weeks in what should be a battle for the championship of District 9-5A Division I.

Friday night’s opponent will be Houston Austin, which is 2-5 overall and whose only district win came against a terrible Houston Wisdom team that has scored just 3 points all season. A win over Austin would clinch New Caney a postseason berth for a program-record fifth straight season. New Caney beat Austin 35-21 last season.

2020 DB Xavion Alford (Alvin Shadow Creek)

Last week: Team beat Friendswood 51-6.
This week: Thursday, October 24 at 7:00, at Richmond Foster
Notes: The Shadow Creek Sharks, the #2 team in Class 5A Division I, made quick work of Friendswood last week, leading 20-0 at the end of the 1st quarter and taking a 41-0 lead into the 4th quarter. The Sharks outgained the Mustangs - who came into the game unbeaten and had only allowed one opponent to score more than 17 points - 500-181, and did not allow an offensive touchdown. Friendswood scored its only points on a fumble return TD with 6:11 left in regulation.

The 7-0 Sharks are tied for the lead in District 10-5A Division I with Fort Bend Hightower, who they will face next week. Tonight they will travel to play Richmond Foster, which is 5-2 overall and was state-ranked as recently as two weeks ago. Shadow Creek edged Foster 35-34 in the regular season in 2018, then the teams had a re-match in the Region III final of the 5A Division I playoffs, which Shadow Creek won 25-21. Shadow Creek trailed entering the 4th quarter of both games before rallying to win.

2020 DB Kitan Crawford (Tyler John Tyler)

Last week: Bye
This week: Thursday, October 24 at 7:00, at McKinney North
Notes: Coming out of their bye week and with three games remaining in the regular season, the John Tyler Lions are 3-4 overall and 3-0 in district play. Two of their final three opponents are also undefeated in district, and they will play one tonight when they travel to face 7-1 McKinney North. The Lions have played much better since going 0-4 against a tough group of non-district opponents, but McKinney North might have the best offense they will face all season.

North has scored 56.5 points per game through its first eight games, though the Bulldogs have given up their share as well, with opponents averaging 39 points. They’ve won games by scores of 44-42, 68-65, 56-34 (twice), and 62-41. Senior QB Dillon Markiewicz leads the Dallas area with 2,779 yards passing, and he has thrown for 32 TDs against just 1 interception. Senior RB Emanuel Fincher has 1,368 yards from scrimmage and 17 total TDs. Junior receiver J.J. Henry has caught 53 passes for 1,022 yards and 12 TDs. And senior tight end Brandon Frazier, an Arkansas commit, has 26 catches for 581 yards.

So Kitan Crawford and the rest of the Lions defense will have its hands full, to say the least. John Tyler won last year’s matchup with McKinney North 28-25.

2020 DB Joshua Eaton (Aldine MacArthur)

Last week: Caught 1 pass for 7 yards in a 49-6 loss to Spring Westfield.
This week: Thursday, October 24 at 7:00, vs. Aldine Nimitz
Notes: MacArthur was blown out last week by the #11 team in Class 6A, Spring Westfield. The Generals trailed 42-0 going into the 4th quarter and scored their only points of the game on a TD pass with 2:15 left in regulation.

They are now 3-4 overall and 2-2 in district. Tonight they will play a Nimitz team that has lost five straight games after beginning the season with a pair of wins by a total margin of six points. A loss to Nimitz would make MacArthur’s path to the playoffs a difficult one.

The MacArthur Generals have lost four straight games and ten of their last eleven against Nimitz, whose mascot is the Cougars and regrettably not the Admirals. Nimitz won the teams’ 2018 matchup 42-37.

2020 DB Ethan Pouncey (Winter Park, Florida) - injured, out for season

Last week: Team beat Orlando Colonial 70-14.
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:00, at Orlando Timber Creek
Notes: In Pouncey’s absence, Winter Park has a 6-3 overall record and a spotless 4-0 district record, tying it with Timber Creek. The Wildcats will face Timber Creek on Friday night for what will be the championship of District 3-8A.

2020 DB Jerrin Thompson (Lufkin)

Last week: Team beat Tomball 55-22.
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:30, vs. Magnolia West
Notes: Lufkin is the #5 team in Class 5A Division I and has won six straight games since opening this season with a three-point loss to Class 6A’s #4 team, Longview. On Friday the Panthers will face Magnolia West, which is also unbeaten in district and comes into the game with four straight wins. Lufkin beat Magnolia West 31-7 in 2018, and will clinch a playoff spot if they get a win in this week’s rematch.

2021 ATH Billy Bowman (Denton Ryan)
2021 ATH Ja’Tavion Sanders (Denton Ryan)

Last week: Bowman caught 2 passes for 103 yards and a TD in a 63-6 win over Carrollton Creekview.
This week: Thursday, October 24 at 7:00, vs. Carrollton R.L. Turner
Notes: Denton Ryan went on what has by now become its customary first half blitzkrieg last week against Creekview, taking a 42-6 lead at halftime. The Raiders reportedly ran only 18 offensive plays in that first half, but those plays resulted in four touchdowns, and their defense also scored twice off turnovers in the 1st quarter.

The Raiders are 7-0 and ranked #3 in Class 5A Division I, and they are tied with Birdville for first place in District 4-5A Division I. Expect to see a score similar to that of the win over Creekview tonight when Ryan faces R.L. Turner, a team that has not won a game since September of 2017 and which has been outscored 405-14 in seven games this season.

2021 ATH Juan Davis (Everman)

Last week: Completed 2 of 3 passes for 43 yards and one TD, and had 15 carries for 127 yards and 2 TDs in a 43-27 win over Burleson.
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:00, at Cleburne
Notes: Everman beat Burleson last week to keep its playoff hopes alive. The win impvoed the Bulldogs’ record to 2-5 overall and 2-3 in district. They finish the regular season with three teams closer to the bottom than the top of the standings in District 5-5A Division II, and if they manage to sweep those final three that should ensure them a playoff spot.

But first things first, and that first thing is a game at Cleburne on Friday night. Cleburne is also 2-3 in district and will be fighting to stave off its own elimination from playoff consideration. Everman beat Cleburne 35-21 last season.

2020 ATH Jaden Hullaby (Mansfield Timberview)

Last week: Completed 1 of pass attempts for a 20-yard TD, had 1 carry for 83 yards, and caught 2 passes for 79 yards and 2 TDs in a 84-0 win over Dallas Sunset.
This week: Friday, October 25 at 7:30, vs. Lancaster
Notes: The final score tells you pretty much all you need to know about last week’s Timberview win over Sunset. Timberview’s defense forced five turnovers and Sunset finished with -17 total yards. Three different Timberview players had a run of at least 80 yards, and according to the Dallas Morning News box score, the Wolves averaged 63.4 yards per carry on 5 rushes. The score was 63-0 at halftime.

Things won’t come so easily for the Wolves on Friday night when they host Class 5A Division I’s #7 team, Lancaster. Lancaster is 6-1 and has only lost to Class 6A’s top-ranked team, Duncanville. The Tigers have not allowed a point in over a month and have outscored their first four district opponents 270-0. District 6-5A Division I is basically Highland Park, Lancaster, Timberview, and the five dwarves this season. Lancaster beat Timberview 49-14 last year.