Rangers Run Past Lakeview Centennial: The Ranger rushing contingent dominated Friday's University Interscholastic League (UIL) Bi-District game, rushing for 342 yards and five combined touchdowns as Jesuit earned a convincing, 45-14 win over Lakeview Centennial at Postell Stadium.

Junior Jake Taylor led the charge with 153 yards on 21 carries, scoring three touchdowns to move his season total to eight on the year. With his performance on Friday, Taylor has crossed the 1,000-yard plateau and has 1,083 yards this season. Senior EJ Smith returned from injury to score two touchdowns, rushing the ball 13 times for 136 yards. Smith averaged 10.5 yards per carry while Taylor added 7.3 yards per rush as part of a Jesuit running back corps that combined to average 6.8 yards per rush and ran the ball 50 times.

Jesuit's defense limited Lakeview Centennial junior Camar Wheaton to 95 yards on 21 carries and no touchdowns. Wheaton entered the game ranked 13th in the Metroplex with 1,038 yards and 15 touchdowns but was taken out of the game due to a determined Ranger defensive unit.

Senior Austin Wood led the team with seven tackles, including two tackles for loss and a sack, while sophomore Robert Fitzgerald, senior Jack Barton and fellow fourth year Tommy Roy racked up six tackles each. Junior Parker Brown launched a career-long, 44-yard field goal late in the first quarter to compliment the Jesuit performance. The Jesuit defense held the Patriots to a 1-for-11 clip on third downs and only allowed Lakeview Centennial to secure 11 first downs during the game compared to the 21 recorded by Jesuit.

Smith Returns to Form: Senior all-purpose back EJ Smith returned from injury last Friday to score three touchdowns against Lakeview Centennial. The electric senior, ranked as the No. 2 all-purpose back in the nation according to Rivals and the No. 15 recruit in Texas, has averaged 87.1 rushing and 45.0 receiving yards in the seven complete games that he has played this season. 

Defense Coming Through on Third Down: Over the last five weeks, Jesuit's defense has held opponents to a 29-percent clip (17-of-59) on third-down conversions. On Friday against Lakeview Centennial, Jesuit held the Patriots to only one third-down conversion. The third-down ability paid dividends as Jesuit emerged from Friday's game with a possession advantage for the first time since Oct. 25 against Plano.

Red Zone Excellence: Jesuit has excelled in the red zone during the home stretch of the 2019 campaign, finishing the regular season by scoring in 20-of-22 visits to the opponent's red zone since the win over Prosper on Oct. 11. That streak continued on Friday as Jesuit went 4-for-4 in the red zone against Lakeview Centennial. 

Keeping the Laundry Off the Field: Over Jesuit's last four games, opponents have committed 40 penalties while the Rangers have only committed 21 infractions. Overall this season, Jesuit has given opponents 39 yards per game in penalties during that stretch, but opponents have given Jesuit over 70 yards per game in penalty yardage.

Up Next: The winner of Friday's game will advance to the UIL Region 2-6A Quarterfinal round against either Vandegrift or Klein Collins. Vandegrift enters the game unbeaten with an 11-0 record, but Klein Collins holds a scoring average (32.6) five points higher than the Vipers (28.8).

LONGVIEW QUICK FACTS

• Longview defeated Temple, 41-10 in the Region 2-6A Bi-District Championship. The Lobos were led by quarterback Haynes King, who threw for 220 yards and four touchdowns while rushing for a touchdown. Kaden Meredith scored a 67-yard touchdown, finishing the day with 248 yards while averaging 10.8 yards per carry. Malik Cannon and Tyshawn Taylor led the defense with 12 and 10 tackles, respectively.

• A highly-ranked team in the state and the nation, Longview enters the second round of the playoffs with hopes of a return trip to the state championship. The Lobos are ranked No. 4 in the state according to Dave Campbell's Football and are also ranked nationally by MaxPreps and USA Today, earning a No. 23 ranking in the MaxPreps XCellent 25 and No. 9 in the USA Today South Regional Rankings

• The Lobos have dominated opponents defensively throughout the year, particularly in the second quarter. Heading into Friday's game, Longview has outscored opponents, 14.5-1.8 in the second quarter. The Lobo defense has secured three shutouts throughout the season, turning in clean sheets against Marshall, John Tyler and North Mesquite.

• Senior quarterback Haynes King, son of Longview head coach John King is a four-star recruit ranked as the No. 6 overall recruit in the Class of 2020 in Texas. King is the No. 2-ranked dual-threat quarterback in the nation, according to 247Sports, and the No. 50 recruit in the nation for the Class of 2020. A consensus All-American, King enters tonight's game with 7,792 passing yards and 87 passing touchdowns during his three-year career. Last season, King completed 42 touchdown passes and averaged 242 passing yards per game. Senior defensive end Sawyer Goram-Welch is another three-star recruit and will play at Oklahoma State next season.

• Longview head coach John King and the Lobos won their first state championship since 1937 last season, punctuating an unbeaten season with a 35-34 win over Beaumont West Brook on Dec. 22 at AT&T Stadium. Longview won its last two games en route to the title by a combined three points, including a 45-42 win over Tascosa in the state semifinal. The Lobos have a 69-41-1 record in the playoffs heading into Friday night's contest.

RANGER RIVAL REPORT

Recaps Courtesy of the Dallas Morning News

Allen 55, Sachse 20: Quarterback Raylen Sharpe accounted for 257 total yards and five touchdowns in two quarters and change to help Allen build a 45-3 lead on its way to a rout in a Class 6A Division I bi-district playoff Friday at Eagle Stadium. Sharpe, a SMU commit, accounted for 187 total yards and four touchdowns in the first half and capped his night with an eight-yard touchdown run with 10:40 left in the third quarter. Allen (11-0) - ranked No. 3 in The Dallas Morning News' Class 6A area poll and the Associated Press' 6A state poll - won in the bi-district round for the 12th consecutive season and advances the area round to face Rockwall. Sachse (8-3) - ranked No. 18 in The News' poll - had a six-game winning streak snapped and suffered its worse playoff defeat since a 51-10 setback to Skyline in a 2013 Class 5A Division I area playoff. Sharpe connected with Blaine Green on a 33-yard touchdown pass on Allen's second play from scrimmage to open the scoring. Sharpe used a quarterback draw for a 48-yard touchdown run to extend Allen's lead to 17-0 with 6:25 left in the first quarter. Sharpe had a four-yard touchdown run on the first play of the second quarter, set up by Matthew Norman forcing a Sachse punt of minus-17 yards, giving Allen the ball at the Sachse 19-yard line. Sharpe's big first half included a 14-yard touchdown pass to Blaine Green to give Allen a 38-3 lead with 3:20 left in the first half, capping a 90-yard drive. Bryson Green had seven receptions for 100 yards for Allen, his first 100-yard game of this season. Sachse was held to 63 total yards in the first half as Allen's Lane Lewis had three tackles for losses. Matthew Tousant had a first-quarter interception for Allen that led to a field goal. Michael Onwuzurike had a forced fumble that Caulin Prince returned 33 yards to set up a 16-yard touchdown run by Sam Hunter to give Allen a 31-0 lead. Allen finished with 11 tackles for losses with Elijah Fisher adding a fumble recovery. Sachse quarterback Parker Wells came of the bench and accounted for 116 total yards with a nine-yard touchdown run in the third quarter and an 18-yard touchdown pass to Matthew Herrera with 11 seconds remaining. Sachse defensive lineman Anthony Anyanwu, a Baylor commit, had a fumble recovery and a sack.

McKinney 13, Naaman Forest 10: Seth Cox's 24 yard field goal as time expired lifted McKinney to a 13-10 victory over Garland Naaman Forest in a 6A Division II Region II playoff game. Taking over at the Naaman Forest 48 yard line with 2:54 left in the game, quarterback Sampson Nazarko was injured on a first down run and Cox came off the bench to replace him. Facing a fourth and ten from the 30 yard line, Cox sprinted to his left and found Isaiah Wallace at the eleven for a nineteen yard gain and a first down. After three running plays, Cox booted the ball through the uprights for the win. Defenses for both teams dominated in a game without an offensive touchdown. McKinney (7-4) got on the scoreboard first when Datron Brooks returned an interception 22 yards for a touchdown late in the second quarter. On their first possession in the second half McKinney extended their lead to 10-0 on a short Cox field goal. On the ensuing kickoff, Naaman Forest's Tristan Johnson returned the kick to McKinney's 48 yard line. Buoyed by the good field position, Naaman Forest (4-7) drove deep into McKinney's territory until they were forced to settle for a field goal. After stopping McKinney on their next possession, Malachi Burrell blocked Cox's punt and teammate Nick Abengowe scooped up the ball and ran into the end zone, tying the game at 10-10 with 58 seconds left in the third quarter. Strong efforts from Naaman Forest defenders Devean Deal and Durim Negron helped keep the McKinney offense out of the end zone. McKinney linemen Mitchell Tyler and Jonathan Jones were dominant, holding their opponent to only 14 rushing yards.

Prosper 24, Wylie 0: Prosper quarterback Jackson Berry threw for 250 yards and three touchdowns in his team's 24-0 bi-district win over Wylie. Prosper will play Mesquite in the next round of the playoffs. Berry found Tyler Bailey on a 45-yard strike late in the first quarter to open scoring. The two connected again in the second quarter for a 20-yard touchdown. Hayden Metcalf, Berry's favorite target with six catches for 120 yards, had the longest touchdown of the night on a 60-yard run midway through the third. Prosper's JT Lane led rushing for his team with 52 yards on 17 carries. Wylie quarterback Marcus McElroy led his team's rushing efforts with 56 yards on 20 tries.