Area Round: Denton Guyer 48, Southlake Carroll 35

As we neared Allen’s Eagle Stadium last night, after fighting our way across the Metroplex in rush-hour traffic, a sense of impending doom came over me.

That premonition, which I dismissed uneasily at the time, proved to be prophetic as the Southlake Carroll Dragons fell hard before the powerful – and unstoppable – running attack of the Denton Guyer Wildcats, thus ending their season too soon, too soon.

In the end, it came down to defense, the part of the Dragons’ game that has caused consternation all season. Young, under-sized and lacking depth at virtually every position, the weakness of the Dragon defenders in confronting the run was exposed in rather spectacular fashion by Guyer’s triple-threat ground game.

Three Wildcats rushed for more than 100 yards. Superstar junior quarterback Shawn Robinson dominated the field, rushing for 263 yards on 23 carries and four touchdowns. Following in his cleat-steps were running backs Noah Cain – a freshman, dear God, what is he going to be when he grows up – who carried 19 times for 172 yards and a TD, and Myron Mason, who ran 14 for 104 and 2 TDs.

In all, Guyer piled up 609 total offensive yards, 2 more, if you’re counting, than Euless Trinity achieved earlier this year in its 37-35 defeat of the Dragons. Most of those yards, 547 of them, came on the ground as the overwhelmed Carroll defensive unit stood virtually helpless before TCU commit Robinson, Cain and Mason.

Robinson, however, was the star among stars, engineering slow, methodical drives that ate up the clock and kept Carroll’s hard-charging offense cooling its heels on the sideline, and staging spectacular runs through the dazed Dragon D-line when the need arose.

His value was never more apparent than in the closing minutes of the first half, when a 92-yard drive by the Wildcats, ending in a 13-yard TD run by Cain, extended the Guyer lead to 20-7 with 2:30 remaining.

On the next drive, the Dragons came roaring back, putting together a three-play drive that saw senior running back Shemar Coleman sprint 39 yards to the end zone and bring the score to 20-14.

The Dragons then recovered a pooch kickoff and launched another successful drive that featured a 29-yard TD pass from quarterback Mason Holmes to Kam Duhon in the end zone, handing the Dragons a narrow lead, 21-20, with less than a minute left in the half.

But just when the momentum began to shift Carroll’s way, Robinson stepped up and shut it down.

With the aplomb of a skilled efficiency expert, Robinson put together a 3-play drive that culminated in his 55-yard streak to the goal line. That reclaimed the lead for Guyer, 27-21. It never trailed again.

During the third quarter, with victory still in reach, the Dragons pulled within 6 again, after Holmes (15 of 22, 287 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT) hoisted a 50-yard pass to WR Zach Farrar (9 receptions, 215 yards, 2 TDs).

Once again, Robinson stood tall, sprinting 47 yards for his third TD of the night and extending Guyer’s lead to two scores, 41-28. Both teams would score again, but Robinson’s heroics on that drive was the stake that pierced the Dragon breast.

Head coach Hal Wasson summed it up to the Star-Telegram, “We didn’t control Robinson. We never controlled him.”

It’s ironic, perhaps, that the Dragon season ends only a  week after one of its most impressive achievements – knocking two-time state champion Cedar Hill out of the playoffs in thrilling, last-second fashion.

But it calls to mind another Dragon playoff defeat under similar circumstances. In 2009, the Dragons fell to Arlington Bowie in the third round of the playoffs after an emotional, heart-stopping 35-34 win against the Allen Eagles in Cowboys Stadium.

Like this year’s Dragons, the 2009 team was heavy in talent and carried lofty ambitions. Flush with pride and exhilaration at its gutsy goal line stand in defeating Allen in double overtime, it entered the Bowie game with full expectations of brushing aside the Volunteers as it continued its march to state.

Bowie had other ideas. Well-coached, disciplined and playing with fierce determination, the Vols dominated the game and embarrassed Carroll in SMU’s Ford Stadium before its stunned fans.

Denton Guyer came into last night’s game the clear underdog. Most experts predicted a comfortable Dragon win. But many of the Dragon faithful saw the Guyer game for what it was – a trap game full of treacherous cross-currents.

We all feared the Dragons might suffer an emotional letdown after the histrionics accompanying their Cedar Hill win. And there was the question of overconfidence against a team that, while displaying some inconsistency earlier in the season, had a potent offensive machine fully capable of exploiting Dragon defensive shortcomings.

One thing is clear. Guyer coaches studied game film. Their strategy of eating up the clock with a steady drumbeat of Robinson, Cain and Mason worked like a charm, with Guyer controlling time of possession by a 2-to-1 margin. On the other side the ball, they devised a defensive scheme that effectively bottled up the Carroll ground game.

Dragon offensive star Lil’ Jordan Humphrey was limited to 53 yards rushing, while his hard-charging sidekick, Shemar Coleman, was held to only 51. That forced Holmes to the air, where Carroll enjoyed most of its success.

In fact, exactly half of its 378 total yardage came on four scoring plays, a 71-yard pass to Farrar, a 39-yard run by Coleman, a 29-yard pass to Duhon and another 50-yard pass to Farrar.

Humphrey ends his Carroll career just short of an achievement never attained by anyone wearing a Dragon uniform – 1,000-yard seasons in both rushing and receiving. He ends this season with more than 1,200 yards rushing but a bit less than 900 yards receiving. Don’t worry, though, you’ll be seeing plenty of him on upcoming Saturday afternoons. His future in D-1 college ball is assured.

As for the rest of the Dragons, Holmes will be back next year, but many of his offensive weapons are moving on – Humphrey, Coleman, Farrar and Duhon all graduate, as does outstanding kicker Jake Oldroyd. RB Jack Johansson and kicker Kole Ramage, who enjoyed a perfect season of PATs, will return, however.

On defense, standout safety Obi Eboh is a senior, as is linebacker IV Seacat. But linebackers Robert Barnes and Will Quillen will be back, along with noseguard Ryan Miller.

 For me, last night’s result means I’ll be putting up Christmas decorations next Friday, instead of sitting in AT&T Stadium with the rest of the Dragon Nation watching Carroll face the San Angelo Central Bobcats.

That job now will be left to the Guyer Wildcats, and frankly, I can’t decide which wretched felines to root for.

I’ve hated the Bobcats since the days they humiliated my Big Spring Steers in the dusty, windswept West Texas stadiums of my youth. But the haughty Guyer is a hard program to support, particularly if you’re a Dragon fan. The Wildcats humbled Carroll twice in 2010, defeating it once during the regular season in Dragon Stadium and again in the playoffs. And they did so with arrogance and distain. A pox on them, then and now.

For Carroll fans, any season that ends in the second round of the playoffs is a letdown. But I’m very proud of these young Dragons, a special band of brothers who faced one of the most difficult road schedules of any Carroll team and did so with grace and much success. May their futures be full of promise and achievement.

Happy holidays everyone, and … Go Dragons!