Todd Dodge, the coaching legend who led the Carroll
Dragons to five straight state championship games between 2002-2006, winning
four and compiling a stunning 79-1 record, is coming home Friday. Sort of.
Dodge, the brand-new coach of the Austin Westlake Chaparrals,
will be welcomed with cheers and probably a standing ovation when he appears on
the opposing sideline.
Then the cheers will fade, and it’ll be time for the
admiring Dragons to dismantle the Chaps and send Dodge back to Austin with a
stinging rebuke on his debut as Westlake coach.
At least that’s the way Dragon fans would like to
script the game. Dodge, who knows the Dragons’ offensive and defensive schemes
better than any other foe they’ve faced, would like to write things differently.
We’ll see. Regardless, it’s likely to be a wonderful
show, the perfect way to start a new season of Texas high school football and a
new era for Southlake Carroll.
As a result of last winter’s UIL realignment, the Dragons’
new district, 7-6A, could very well be the state’s toughest. Some have even
referred to it as the “little SEC.” It includes, believe it or not, both the
Euless Trinity Trojans, who the Dragons have faced in three legendary playoff
games since 2006, and the Coppell Cowboys, their blood enemies for more than four
decades.
District 7-6A also includes Colleyville Heritage, a
perennial playoff team that has never defeated the Dragons, and L.D. Bell,
another playoff regular who greatly covets, and probably deserves, more respect
that it receives.
Unlike the last few years, the Dragons are not the
favorites to win district. That designation goes to the Trojans, who have won
59 consecutive district games and eight straight titles. In the statewide AP
poll, Trinity ranks 5, followed by Carroll at 6. It’s going to be that kind of
year.
The two teams’ playoff battles have resulted in one
win and two defeats for the Dragons, but they all have been epic,
back-and-forth struggles with the outcome uncertain until the final minutes. Moving
such games inside district play will not change the dynamics, but it could
interfere with the mutual admiration the Trojans and Dragons have shared over
the years.
District rivalries can be intense and the
animosities generated long-running. Take Coppell, for instance. It and Southlake have been bitter district rivals off
and on for many years, from the days the two schools fielded small 3A programs
to recent years when they have battled in the top category. The hated Cowboys
are one of only three teams to whip the Dragons on their home field
since Dragon Stadium was built in 2001. Make no mistake, there is bad blood between these two.
Which brings us back to Westlake. The last time the
Dragons and Chaparrals faced each other was in the 2006 state championship game
in the Alamodome. Southlake, coached by Dodge and led on the field by his son,
Riley, whipped Westlake handily, 43-29.
Friday night looks to be no different. Westlake has
a new coach – a legend, yes, but one still finding his sea legs at a new school
– a squad depleted of returning starters and a sophomore quarterback playing in
his first varsity game.
The Dragons, on the other hand, have returning
quarterback Ryan Agnew, who rolled up 4,500 yards in total offense last season,
including 1,250 on the ground. He ran for 20 touchdowns and threw for another
31. The Star Telegram reports the
senior powerhouse already has six D-I offers, and he could garner more if he
has the kind of season the Dragons need him to have. He is the key.
Missing from last year’s potent offensive attack are
experienced receivers. WR Parker Fentriss, sidelined by injury most of last
season, likely will be Agnew’s chief target. In addition, defensive back Tariq
Gordon could be pulled into double duty as a part-time receiver. Kevin
Lonnquist of the Star-Telegram
reports that head coach Hal Wasson compares Gordon to two-way phenom Sabian
Holmes, a hero of the Dragons’ last state championship team.
The Dragon running game will be in the hands of
juniors Lil’ Jordan Humphrey, who ain’t little at all, and Grant McFarlin, who
is. Humphrey’s height – he grew 3 inches
over the summer, have led some armchair observers (ahem) to observe he might
serve time in the receiving corps. But he also added muscle in the off-season
so he is primed to exceed the 600 yards rushing he compiled last year.
The defense returns five starters, including
standout tackle King Newton. The Star-Telegram’s
Lonnquist says Wasson is pleased with the progress of senior inside linebackers
Clark Parr and Joel McClellan. At safety, Andy Chelf rolled up 100 tackles last
year and leads the secondary.
Meanwhile, an offensive line low on experience remains
a question mark. In the superheated competition the Dragons will face both in pre-district
and district play, its progress will determine early Dragon success and its
ultimate fate in what undoubtedly will be the state’s showcase district race.
Meanwhile, there’s a lot at stake in tomorrow’s
contest for the two head coaches.
Dodge now
works in the district where his father-in-law was head coach and athletic director
for many years. In fact, the Chaps’ stadium is named after him. The pressure is
on Dodge to prove his phenomenal run in Southlake wasn’t a fluke. He would love
to silence his critics who point out that he enjoyed a mediocre coaching career
in the years before and after his Carroll tenure. A victory over his former
team would be a good start on that redemptive road.
Wasson, on the other hand, has enjoyed great success
in Southlake, compiling an envious 79-15 record as he enters his eighth season
here and winning a state championship in 2011. But he doesn’t enjoy the immense
popularity of his predecessor, with parents or with his players. A stumble against
his former boss, for whom he coached before moving to Keller Fossil Ridge in
2004, and a rugged start in the new district could start the clock ticking
against him, rightly or wrongly.
Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m. The game is a sellout.
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