WEEK ZERO
Texas high school football top performances

Dallas/Fort Worth:
On Thursday night, Division II 5A runner up Cedar Hill staved off a fourth quarter rally by defending 4A champ Denton Guyer to win their opener 38-28. Denvre Daniels 71 yard catch and run with 4:25 remaining sealed it. Junior WR Demarkus Lodge had a breakout game for the Longhorns with six catches for 146 yards. Rockwall’s junior Chris Warren and Naaman Forest’s Michael Nelson each rushed for over 300 yards as Naaman beat the Jackets 52-42 .

On Saturday, defending 5A Division I champ Allen beat Southlake Carroll in the feature game in DFW. Junior QB Kyler Murray passed for 464 yards and three scores, while rushing for 80 yards and two more TDs. Dallas Skyline opened up with a 33-30 win over The Woodlands in a neutral site game in Georgetown. Junior WR Carlos Strickland had 130 yards receiving with two touchdowns. Mesquite Horn beat McKinney Boyd 55-36 as QB Destri White accounted for 455 yards total offense and five scores. DeSoto crushed Arlington Martin 46-7 with QB Desmon White accounting for 299 yards of offense and 5 scores. Duncanville’s Jerimiah Drake threw for 435 yards and five scores as the Panthers ran up a 70-42 win over Colleyville Heritage. TCU bound Foster Sawyer completed 18/24 passes for 333 yards and five TD’s as All Saints beat Brownwood 70-27. Plano transfer Christian Hutzler threw for 332 yards and four scores as Trinity Christian Academy beat Decatur 49-13. Another transfer QB, Twayne Blackwell, accounted for 371 yards and 5 tds as Prestonwood beat Henderson 45-22. Kijana Amous scored five times as part of a 115 yard rushing night to lead Mansfield Legacy past McKinney 38-28. Junior RB Juwann Washington rushed for 242 yards and three scores, but Kennedale came up a point short in a 42-41 loss to Crowley. In a real QB friendly contest, Lucas Lovejoy beat Frisco Heritage 62-42. Lovejoy’s Bowman Sells threw for 411 yards and three touchdowns, while Malik Walker of Heritage put up 337 yards passing and 121 yards rushing.

Central Texas:
In the feature game in Central Texas, defending 4A Division II champ Cedar Park edged 5A semi finalist Austin Westlake 43-31. Senior QB Nate Grimm threw for three scores and rushed for three more as the Timberwolves ran the ball on 19/20 plays in their last two scoring drives. Grimm rushed for 128 yards and threw for 215. Converse Judson scored 18 points in the second quarter and held off Austin Lake Travis 25-19. Pflugerville Hendrickson shut out Leander Rouse 28-0 in another game involving 2012 playoff teams. Houston bound Bear Fennimore threw three touchdowns as Round Rock Westwood beat Austin High 42-13. Junior WR Justin Gamble caught 11 passes for 229 yards and two scores to lead Round Rock Stony Point past Harker Heights 47-31.

In San Antonio, Madison rallied from 17 down to edge Cibolo Steele 46-45. Cody Ennis last minute pass to Texas Tech commit Byron Daniels was the game winner. Ennis passed for 338 yards and rushed for 83, accounting for 7 tds’. Somerset beat Lanier 39-6 as Koy Detmer, Jr. completed 20/25 passes for 366 yards and five scores. San Antonio Warren scored twice on kickoff returns and four times on fourth down to beat San Antonio MacArthur 62-14. San Antonio Johnson beat Harlingen 35-23 as Hunter Rittiman threw for two scores and rushed for two more.

Houston:
In a big battle of Private schools, Kinkaid beat St. Pius X 36-14.  Junior QB JT Granato threw for 360 yards and 4 scores for Kinkaid. Defending state 5A champion Katy picked right up, smashing Klein 41-3 with Texas A&M commit Rodney Anderson rushing for 280 yards and three scores and catching a touchdown pass for another. Baytown Sterling edged Baytown Lee in a crosstown rivalry game, despite 236 yards rushing by Lee’s Leo Cedeno. Channelview beat Kingwood Park 42-31 as Devonte Holt-Lawson caught 6 passes for 179 yards and one score. Crosby beat Nederland 56-35 with Rice commit Austin Walter rushing for 288 yards and two tds on just 16 attempts. Pasadena spanked Spring Woods 33-3 as Uriel Hill hauled in five passes for 195 yards and three touchdowns. Sharpstown outlasted Sterling 48-39 with Cleveland Bailey rushing for 198 yards and three scores, while Sterling’s Demetrius Davis ran for 305 yards and 2 tds. West Columbia topped Brazosport 35-33 with RB Darius Bell rushing for 274 yards and 4 scores. Brazosport QB Emond Hobbs had 435 yards total offense along with four touchdowns.

East Texas:
Lufkin broke in a new QB in Trey Cumbie and he passed for 222 yards and three scores as the Pack downed Tyler John Tyler 52-28. Geovari McCollis passed for 359 yards and two scores in a losing cause for the Lions. Kade Clayton rushed for 279 yards on 22 attempts to lead Tyler Grace past San Augustine 46-33. Bishop Gorman pasted Beckville 48-9 with Tristan Saint throwing for 301 yards and 6 touchdowns. Tyler Lee beat Sulphur Springs 55-20 as soph QB Zach Hall completed 10/13 passes for 288 yards and four scores. Texas Tech commit Patrick Mahomes had 450 yards of total offense and four scores to lead Whitehouse past Hallsville 58-21. Gilmer’s defense held Atlanta to 115 yards, recorded six sacks and two turnovers in a 57-7 whipping. Buckeye QB Tanner Barr completed 17/20 pases for 261 yards and five touchdowns. Winona’s KeAaron Cobb accounted for six touchdowns (4 rushing/2 on kickoff returns) in a 46-26 win over Overton. In perhaps the most dramatic ending in the state, Gladewater’s super junior DT, Daylon Mack tackled a Daingerfield ball carrier in the end zone for a game winning (16-14) safety with just 18 seconds to play. Mack had two tackles for loss and also blocked a punt.

West Texas:
In a big shootout, San Angelo beat El Paso Franklin 71-55. Central’s Mickey Scott accounted for 465 yards of total offense with 7 touchdowns, while Franklin’s Cameron Candeleria was just a shade less with 446 yards of total O with six touchdowns. El Paso Andress WR Eddie Sinegal had 86 yards receiving and one scored in a 43-28 win over El Paso Hanks. Junior Jarrett Stidham started his first game at QB for Stephenville as the defending 3A champs gained revenge on Monterrey (Mexico) Tech 17-16. Stidham had 163 yards passing and 87 rushing for the Jackets. Jarek Black rushed for 214 yards and four touchdowns as Shallowater rocked Muleshoe 61-14. Canadian’s Ben Arbuckle opened up in impressive fashion, completing 19/23 passes for 337 yards and four scores as Canadian downed Amarillo River Road 48-21. Andrew’s Shane Dolgener and 291 yards total offense and five touchdowns in a 32-30 nail biter over San Angelo Lakeview. Defending 1A champ Stamford opened with a 40-13 win over the McCamey Badgers, as WR James Washington hauled in 10 passes for 113 yards and three scores.

Randy Rodgers