Trinity (Euless) beat its first 11 opponents of the season by an average of 40 points. By halftime of those games, the Trojans were already up by an average of 25 points. That leads to the obvious question:
What will happen when Euless Trinity, the top-ranked team in MaxPreps' Xcellent 25 national rankings presented by the Army National Guard, finally gets tested?
On Saturday night, Trinity passed the test. But barely.
Trinity (12-0) got a mighty scare from
Allen (10-2) in a Class 5A Division I second-round game at Cowboys Stadium. In front of a crowd of about 40,000 fans, Trinity held on for a 37-35 win with help from a player everyone expected to play a huge role – quarterback/receiver
Brandon Carter – and a player hardly anyone even knew about – kicker
Tyler Orwig.
Carter, a senior who has committed to Oklahoma, threw a pair of touchdown passes, returned a kickoff 67 yards to set up another touchdown and converted a third-and-15 with a 17-yard quarterback draw that sealed the game. But Orwig, who had only made one field goal all season, was also a difference-maker.
Orwig nailed field goals of 47, 41 and 39 yards to help Trinity win its 25th straight game and advance to a matchup against Arlington Martin (10-2) in a regional semifinal.
"I was working all season to do this," Orwig said. "I was waiting for this moment."
Click here to view MaxPreps' Texas football playoff brackets.DENTON GUYER KNOCKS OFF CEDAR HILLGuyer (Denton) (10-2) avenged an early-season overtime loss to Cedar Hill (8-4) by winning when it really counted. Guyer never trailed and won 48-35 with the help of big plays. The biggest came on the final play of the first half, when
Cameron Hunter returned a kickoff for a touchdown that gave Guyer a 28-14 lead.
LOVEJOY STUNS UNDEFEATED CELINALovejoy (Lucas) didn't just beat Celina in the second round of the 3A Division I playoffs, it shut out the Bobcats. Celina (11-1) had averaged 52 points per game, but although it marched into Lovejoy territory repeatedly, it always came away empty. Lovejoy (11-1) won despite playing without three starters, including its starting quarterback, who were kicked off the team for violation of team and school rules.
TOP PERFORMER* Jake Howeth, Highland Park: The senior quarterback, who also plays some at running back, threw for three touchdowns, ran for two more and had 259 total yards in a 49-14 win over Hillcrest.
LOOKING AHEAD*
Coppell is 12-0 and appears headed for a regional final showdown with Euless Trinity, but first Coppell must take care of
Midland (11-1) on Saturday. And Coppell will have to do it on the road after losing a coin flip to decide the game's site. That means a six-hour drive from the Dallas area to Grande Communications Stadium in Midland.
*
Ryan (Denton) and
Midway (Waco), a pair of 12-0 teams, battle in a 4A Division I regional semifinal. Ryan's defense has been suffocating this season and allows only 10.5 points per game. Midway, led by first-year head coach Terry Gambill, has outscored its opponents by nearly 30 points per game. Gambill was formerly the defensive coordinator at powerhouse Allen.
NEWS AND VIEWSSkyline middle linebacker
Anthony Wallace, one of the most prized prospects in the country, orally committed to Oregon over the weekend. Skyline coach Reginald Samples confirmed to to The Dallas Morning News that Wallace (6-2, 220) had chosen Oregon over scholarship offers from schools such as USC, Oklahoma and Ohio State. Wallace made 115 tackles in the regular season. (
Video of Wallace)… Another prized recruit, Boise State commit
Jay Ajayi, might be the best running back in the state. The senior could also lead Frisco Liberty to a 4A Division II state title. Ajayi rushed for 292 yards and four touchdowns on Friday as Liberty improved to 12-0 with a 37-7 victory over South Oak Cliff. Liberty is expected to face Highland Park (12-0) in a regional final in two weeks. … The
DeSoto football team's nemesis the last two years was Skyline, which knocked it out in the second round of the playoffs each season. But last week, DeSoto turned things around in a big way. DeSoto (10-2) dominated on offense and defense as it blasted Skyline, 38-0.
"It's not quite like winning the Super Bowl," DeSoto receiver Sam Ajala said. "But it's close."
Matt Wixon is the high school sports columnist for The Dallas Morning News. He can be reached at mwixon@dallasnews.com or on Twitter @mattwixon.
