The regular season nears its concluding weekend, putting Conference titles and likely playoff matches under the spotlight. Here is a snapshot of five highly ranked Dallas-Ft. Worth area teams compiled from Week 9:
Southlake Carroll Dragons
The day of the week does not seem to matter to the Southlake Carroll Dragons (8-0), as they ventured 25 miles South along TX 121 to the Fort Worth V.R. Eaton Eagles (7-2) for a rare Thursday evening conference game. The Dragons left little room for doubt of their hold on the Number 1 spot in recent polls, grounding the Eagles by a 47-24 final score.
Carrroll’s defense played consistently well against a consistent Eaton attack. They registered 3 Tackles for Loss, 6 pressure rushes, one sack on the Eagle QB, three pass deflections, and a single interception. Maintaining a season of excellence, the Dragons have now yielded just over 14 points per game.
Friday evening October 29 brings a home Dragon Field conference game with Fort Worth Timber Creek, whose Falcons are 3-5 on the year, an even 2-2 in the district. Regular season play will wrap up with another Thursday affair, a November 4 visit to Keller, where waiting for the Dragons will be the Keller Fossil Ridge Panthers.
While careful to avoid speculation ahead of these games, Head Coach Riley Dodge and his charges appear well set for a postseason fight for the Ninth Division 6A-1 State title banner.
Duncanville Panthers
The Duncanville Panthers have their sights on the State title as well, with their rankings at fourth. Their most recent victory was a district engagement against Cedar Hill, returning home with an impressive 58-7 roundup over the Longhorns. It lifted the Panthers overall to 6-1, an unblemished 5-0 in its district while dropping the ‘Horns to 4-4 on the Season, 3-2 in the conference.
Entering this game Cedar Hill was renowned for its rushing offense. However, it had not carried the ball against the immovable Panthers defense, which held the Longhorns, remarkably, to Minus 4 yards on the ground. It was also the first football game contested in Globe Life Field, customarily the home venue of Texas Rangers baseball.
Sponsors REV Entertainment announced that schedules are in place to bring more gridiron action to the Globe, at both high school and collegiate levels. Next in line for the Panthers is a short hop over to Mansfield, for an October 29 meeting with the 4-4 Tigers.
Denton Guyer’s Wildcats
Denton Guyer’s Wildcats rebounded from their 38-31 setback at the hands of District rival Allen’s Eagles a week earlier. The Wildcats’ ability to hold the #5 State ranking was driven by its 35-10 road conquest of the Boyd Broncos (6-2, 2-2) 40 miles East along the Sam Rayburn Tollway.
It brings the Wildcats to 8-1 on the year, 4- 1 in its District. This came against a Boyd unit that had averaged 27 points along with 300 yards of total offense per game. Guyer draws the curtain on its 2021 regular season as a Thursday, Oct 28 host to the 5-3 Little Elm Lobos. It then awaits its selection and placement in the opening round of the playoffs.
Lucas Lovejoy Leopards
Northbound along Texas Rte 75 about 30 miles from Dallas is the proud home of the Division 5-A2 Region II Lucas Lovejoy Leopards. Their 2021 season continued with a 38-15 home turf victory against unbeaten Frisco Raccoons.
It marked a reversal from their previous meeting when Frisco eliminated Lovejoy in a 2020 playoff meeting. This win moved the Leopards’ current season record to 8-0, 6-0 in district competition. It also left Frisco standing at 7-1 overall, 5-1 in their district.
The Leopards’ prolific offense has generated 52.5 points per game; its defense has limited opponents to fewer than 11 yards, compelling reasons warranting their 7th spot in State polls. Next in line is a Thursday visit to the 1-7 Lebanon Trail Blazers, in Frisco.
Allen’s Eagles
The Allen’s Eagles’ Oct 15 takedown of Denton Guyer is noted above. The flock continued its high flying victories with a 35-14 home field conference win over the now 3-5 McKinney Lions. In bringing its 2021 season record to 7-1, 4-0 in its district, the Division 6-A Region 1 Eagles were led by the passing arm of Mike Hawkins, 194 yards netting 3 TD strikes without an interception.
They also relied heavily on the power running from Devyn T. Turner with 210 yards on 24 carries and two TDs. Each is an underclassman, lending optimism for continued success in the coming years. For the moment Allen holds onto #10 in Lone Star rankings, and will next take to the road on October 29 to match skills with the Prosper Eagles, who are currently seeing 5-3 on the season.
