Game Day: Southlake Carroll 52, Rockwall 38

Three minutes into last night’s game between Southlake Carroll and Rockwall, I wondered if I should consult a calendar to see if Halloween had slipped up on all of us because what was happening on the field below was truly frightening.

The bad news is that it wasn’t ghosts and goblins creating the havoc in the opening moments of the contest but a complete breakdown in Dragon special teams. In the blink of an eye, Carroll trailed the Yellow Jackets 10-0 before their offense could even touch the ball.

The spectacle before a sold-out Dragon Stadium began on the Jackets’ first play from scrimmage after the opening kickoff. Quarterback Jacob Clarke handed off to speedster RB Lo’yer Bailey, who then darted untouched 77 yards for a touchdown. Bailey rushed for 204 on 18 carries for the night, but he was only the second-best runner of the contest. More on that later.

As I shifted uneasily in my greenback, things got worse. Carroll fumbled the ensuing kickoff, and a fired-up Rockwall squad – who battled rush hour traffic to snatch an upset at Dragon Stadium – promptly marched to inside the Dragon 5.

That’s when order began to return to the universe. Carroll’s defensive line dug in and, thanks in part to a key procedural call, the Jackets were forced to settle for a field goal.

The next Carroll possession was key, and the Dragons didn’t disappoint, looking brisk and workmanlike in setting up star RB T.J. McDaniel’s 48-yard touchdown run.

It was the beginning of a record-breaking night for McDaniel, who became the only Carroll running back in history to rush for more than 200 yards in two consecutive games. Last week, he rushed for 223 yards in the losing effort against Arlington Martin, and last night he ran for 219 yards and two TDs.

Once unleashed, the Dragon offense couldn’t be controlled. It scored touchdowns on all six of its first-half possessions. Although the Jackets’ Clark (21-31, 256) kept Rockwall within striking distance for most of the game, the Dragons never trailed after jumping to a 21-17 lead in the 1^st quarter.

Carroll quarterback Will Bowers followed his desultory performance against Martin last week with a breakout effort against the worthy Yellow Jackets. He completed 10 of 14 throws for 166 yards and 4 TDs, while rushing for 141 yards and another TD.

After the game, a beaming head coach Hal Wasson congratulated his quarterback for taking a major step forward. He said the Dragon game plan all along called for Bowers to run and throw long, two things he did sparingly in the Dragon’s first two outings.

“He really showed something tonight,” Wasson told radio interviewers. “I’m proud of him.”

Last night revealed a Bowers unleashed. His 61-yard pass to RB Cade Bell, who snagged 3 catches for 101 yards, sent the Dragons ahead for good. And when the reeling Jackets fumbled on the next kickoff, Bowers scooted 24 yards for his first rushing TD of the year, bringing the score to 28-17.

The next several minutes proved decisive for the contest. Rockwall steadied itself and mounted an impressive drive to the Dragon end zone, capping it with a rushing TD, or so it seemed. In the event, standout linebacker R.J. Mickens forced a fumble and the Dragons took over on their own 20.

Bowers was masterful in the following drive. Almost tripped on one play, he regained his footing and managed a 23-yard gain. On the next play, he ran for 25 yards, eventually setting up a 9-yard TD pass to WR Hudson Shrum that gave the Dragons an unsurmountable 35-17 lead early in the 2nd quarter.

To their credit, the Jackets, who trailed at the half 52-24, never gave up and kept the game interesting until the end. In fact, late in the 4^th, after a 26-yard Neal Koskay field goal, the Dragon Band alarmed me when it struck up “Hey, Baby,” which it only plays when Dragon victory is assured.

“Too soon, too soon,” I murmured, thinking of Rockwall’s explosive offense, and its capability to cause mischief even at this late stage. After all, Clark already had connected with leading WR Jaxon Smith 10 times for 146 yards and with several others for double-figure gains.

Surmounting a 14-point lead with a draining clock is a tall order, but the Jackets had been attempting unsuccessful onside kicks all night, so a comeback wasn’t complete paranoid fantasy.

Except it was. Rockwall’s last possession ended in its third fumble of the night, and the Dragons ran out the clock before a thinned-out crowd.

Carroll emerges from its tough pre-district schedule in relatively good shape. It missed the services last night of its inestimable linebacker, Jacob Doddridge, presumably because of a concussion protocol But he and other banged-up Dragons will have two weeks to prepare for their district opener against Flower Mound on Sept. 29. Next week is a bye week.

Elsewhere, the Dragons are humming. With the step forward he took last night, young Bowers now commands a formidable arsenal – McDaniels is hitting his stride, Cade, another 100-yard night under his belt, is streaking; and the O-line gave Bowers time last night to go through his progressions and hit on target.

On defense, Carroll struggled to contain Clark, Bailey and Smith, but the Big Guys made the stops they had to, and never allowed Rockwall to mount a serious assault on the Dragon lead.

Health is always an issue with the Dragons, who lack depth at most positions, but things look bright at this point for another successful run for the District 5-6A title.

Go Dragons!