Jesuit Dallas Game Notes
Jesuit Off to Best Start Since 2015: Key second half plays and four forced turnovers pushed Jesuit Dallas past previously unbeaten Choctaw (Okla.), 36-29, on Sept. 10. The Rangers wrap non-district play with a 2-1 record, marking the first time since 2015 that Jesuit enters league play with two wins.
Senior Brady Kinzer recovered two fumbles and forced one as senior Austin Graham and junior Grant Peters also forced fumbles. Junior defensive lineman Jameson Kemp provided one of the most exciting plays of the season with an interception in the third quarter with the score tied. Senior Robert Fitzgerald led the team with eight tackles, followed by Peters and senior Walker Houdek, who secured seven tackles each.
Senior Gage Roy completed 22-of-31 passes for 248 yards and two touchdowns, while senior Hunter Krepp led the team with six receptions for 129 yards and a touchdown. Senior Ford Butler caught two touchdown passes, closing the contest with 115 yards on six catches, and junior Jake Musso picked up a passing touchdown with a 30-yard, go-ahead strike to Butler in the third quarter. Fitzgerald became the first Ranger with a 100-yard rushing game this season, finishing the game with 107 yards on nine carries and two touchdowns.
Keeping the Laundry Off the Field: After three games, The Rangers are averaging nearly 50 fewer penalty yards per game than their opponents. Jesuit currently averages six penalties for 47.3 yards per game, compared to 11 penalties for 91 yards for opponents. The Rangers committed seven penalties against Choctaw on Sept. 10, while the Yellow Jackets racked up a season-high 15 penalties for 126 yards.
Focusing on the Ball: Jesuit Dallas has out-possessed opponents in each of its first three games of the season. The Rangers dominated possession in the season-opener against Flower Mound Marcus, holding the ball for 30 minutes compared to 18 minutes for the Marauders. Against Choctaw, the Rangers won the time of possession battle, 24:28-23:32.
Fourth-Down Warriors: The Rangers are 6-for-9 in fourth down conversion attempts this season, and have held opponents to a 2-for-6 clip on fourth downs. Flower Mound Marcus did not attempt a fourth down against Jesuit, Rockwall went 1-for-2, and Choctaw failed on three of four attempts to reach the line to gain.
Up Next: Jesuit will welcome Lake Highlands to Postell Stadium for a massive District 7-6A battle on Friday, Oct. 1. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Scouting the Mustangs
Mustangs Fall to Broncos: Carter Whitefield rushed for a career-high 155 yards and a touchdown to help Boyd improve to 3-0 for the first time in the 16-year history of the program Thursday at McKinney ISD Stadium. Whitefield rushed for 104 yards on 14 carries in the first half, including a 1-yard touchdown run with 14 seconds left in the second quarter to give Boyd a 13-0 halftime lead. It was the first time in Whitefield's career he rushed for over 100 yards. Peyton Shaw added seven receptions for 105 yards and two touchdowns for Boyd, catching a 22-yard scoring strike from Ryan Shackleton on the first play of the fourth quarter to give a 23-0 lead. Shackleton passed for 215 yards. Boyd linebacker Ethan Weslocki had three tackles for a loss, including a sack, while Brett Burton and Jack Karl had an interception apiece. Boyd kicker Caleb Sempebwa was 3 for 3 on field-goal attempts -- converting from 26, 25 and 20 yards -- while Tre Collins blocked a Pearce field-goal attempt. John Gesin came off the bench to go 9 for 11 on pass attempts for 118 yards for Pearce (0-3), including a 56-yard touchdown strike to Caden Varner with 10:46 remaining.
Returning Offensive Threat Putting Up Strong Numbers: Oliver Crawford was one of two juniors to earn all-district first team honors last year, and has started his senior season by racking up 157 yards on 19 receptions. Although he has not yet found the end zone, Crawford averages 8.26 yards per catch and just over 50 yards per game. Pearce's second all-district first team pick, Jack Livingstone, transfered to Lovejoy (5A) during the summer.
Additional Team Notes: JJ Pearce is currently on a five-game losing streak dating back to Nov. 25, 2020, when the Mustangs upended Nimitz, 59-24 at Eagle-Mustang Stadium...Pearce is 9-14 at home over the last five seasons, including an 0-2 record this year (3-3 in 2020)...aiming for their fifth consecutive playoff appearance this year (1-4 in playoffs since 2017, with the lone win coming in 2017, 27-21, against Naaman Forest ).
District Rival Report
Lake Highlands 52, Berkner 0: Noelle Whitehead rushed for 111 yards and three touchdowns as Lake Highlands (4-0, 1-0) shut out Richardson Berkner (0-4, 0-1) in a District 7-6A game played at Wildcat-Ram Stadium. Caden Dotson passed for 99 yards, including a four-yard touchdown toss to Shamar Donaldson. Deonte Dean added a five-yard touchdown run for the Lake Highlands' offense.Lake Highlands scored five touchdowns in just over seven minutes in the second quarter. Scoring runs of 3, 12 and 34 yards by Noelle Whitehead, a 12-yard return of a blocked punt by Ladavion Osborn and a 43-yard interception return by Drew Dubuclet put Lake Highlands ahead 42-0 at halftime. The Lake Highlands defense dominated the game, forcing four turnovers, blocking a punt, and scoring two touchdowns. They held Berkner to 92 total yards, including a minus 10 yards rushing, and did not allow the Berkner offense past midfield until the final minute of the third quarter.
Nimitz 51, Carrollton Creekview 21: Irving Nimitz tailback J'den Hall rushed for a game-high 136 yards and three touchdowns on Thursday night, as Irving Nimitz picked up its first win of the season with a solid 51-21 victory over Carrollton Creekview in non-district play at Standridge Stadium. Irving Nimitz (1-2 overall) played a near perfect first half, scoring on all five of its possessions while also adding a 75-yard fumble return for a score by Isaiah Gipson to race to a 44-7 halftime lead. Overall, Nimitz put up 322 of its 438 yards in total offense in that opening half, which included rushing touchdowns from Eric Williams and Pedro Maldonado. Maldonado had 158 total yards and two scores for Nimitz, while Williams had 10 rushes for 97 yards. Carrollton Creekview (1-2 overall) showed some early fight, getting a 3-yard scoring run by Garrett Palacio to cut the Nimitz lead to 16-7. However, Creekview got no closer the rest of the way. Palacio finished with 187 total yards, with 157 of those coming in the air, with Jaylon Verdell and Trevion Harper each posting second half touchdown runs.
North Garland 57, Berkner 51 (OT): North Garland's defense stopped Richardson Berkner on a fake field goal on the first possession of overtime, then Godspower Nwawuihe ran it in from the one on a quarterback sneak to give North Garland (3-0) the 57-51 overtime win over Richardson Berkner (0-3) Thursday night at Wildcat-Ram Stadium. Down 44-29 at the end of the third quarter, North Garland scored on consecutive drives to condense Richardson Berkner's lead to one with 7:39 left on the clock. Richardson Berkner answered with a Thomas Landry touchdown pass to Jamary Williams with 5:50 remaining to take a 51-43 lead. On the next possession, North Garland went 72 yards on 14 plays to score on a four-yard touchdown run by Nwawuihe. With 36 seconds left, Nwawuihe punched in the two-point conversion and forced the game into overtime. Nwawuihe had a monster game for North Garland with 223 passing yards, four passing touchdowns, 170 rushing yards, and four rushing touchdowns. He threw two touchdowns to Isaiah DeLeon, one to De'Aundre Johnson, and one to De'Corais Taylor while Jaden Davis tallied 87 rush yards. Richardson Berkner was lead by Jamary Williams, 117 total yards and two receiving touchdowns, Thomas Landry, 199 passing yards and three touchdowns, and Omarion Barnes, 151 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
Richardson 46, South Garland 28: Blaine Ritter passed for 147 yards and three touchdowns to lead Richardson (1-2) past South Garland (0-3) at Eagle-Mustang Stadium. Ritter completed scoring tosses of 64 yards to Ricky Anderson, 17 yards to Donovan Ford and 37 yards to Marcus Grant. Kaden Anderson rushed 18 times for 117 yards for Richardson, including scoring runs of six and eight yards. Tyreon Key led the South Garland offense. He rushed for 121 yards and two touchdowns and passed for 73 yards and one score. Jacob Grim caught touchdown passes of 56 and 5 yards.
Trophy Club Byron Nelson 50, MacArthur 13: Jacob Wilson passed for 277 yards and six touchdowns as Trophy Club Byron Nelson (3-0) defeated Irving McArthur (1-2) at Joy & Ralph Ellis Stadium. Byron Nelson scored double digits in each quarter to take the win. The rushing attack was led by running backs Aaron Darden and Michael Giordano who combined for just under 200 yards and three touchdowns before the entire backfield was relieved late in the third quarter. Wide receiver Gavin McCurley hauled in five catches for 123 yards and a touchdown while Pierce Dahlin impacted multiple aspects of the game, converting two field goal attempts as well as hauling in an interception.
The Last Time They Met...Jesuit scored on its first offensive play and never looked back, securing a 55-34 win over Pearce in the district opener for both squads at Postell Stadium. The Rangers erupted for a 21-0 lead in the first and averaged over three minutes per drive with their final three drives of the game in a convincing performance, dominating from start to finish en route to securing their second straight win. The Ranger rushing attack combined for 292 yards and six touchdowns on the night, led by senior Jake Taylor, who racked up three touchdowns and 100 yards rushing on 19 attempts. Senior Charlie Clements scored two touchdowns, including an outstanding 75-yard breakaway scamper in the third quarter, and finished the contest with a team-high 125 yards on eight carries. Junior Robert Fitzgerald added his fifth touchdown of the year to cap the line of Jesuit's scoring rushers. Senior Sam Morales tacked on 32 yards to help push the pace of the game in the fourth quarter, averaging 3.6 yards per carry. Fitzgerald also contributed heavily on the defensive side, recording a team-high 11 tackles and tipping a pass that led to an interception by senior Jack Judson. The senior linebacker racked up seven tackles ,a sack and two tackles for loss. Senior Cooper Manning and junior Landon Usry recorded their first interceptions of the season, while senior Pierce Jackson picked up eight tackles.
The Last Time at Eagle-Mustang...Senior Parker Towns raced into the end zone for a game-winning, 21-yard touchdown run with 11 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to push Jesuit Dallas past J.J. Pearce, 38-31, on Sept. 21, 2017 at Eagle-Mustang Stadium. The Rangers continue to exhibit a flair for the dramatic after scoring the go-ahead touchdown within the final two minutes of regulation for the second consecutive week. Sophomore EJ Smith excelled in the backfield for the Rangers (3-4, 3-1), rushing for 155 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Along with 93 yards and three touchdowns on the ground, Towns completed 19-of-25 passes for 205 yards, tacking on a career-best 93 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. Senior Fletcher Rosenbleeth added 11 receptions for 116 yards and sophomore Christian Allocco closed the bout with a career-high 10 tackles.
