The Dragons remain undefeated in their bid for a return district championship.
Slam the door
KELLER – It was billed as a “battle of the unbeatens.” But
it looked more like a total beatdown.
And while Southlake Carroll’s domination of the Keller
Indians was total and unquestioned, its ultimate victory did not come without a
cost and revealed a vulnerability that the Dragons must address if they are to
meet their goal of a deep and fruitful plunge into the postseason.
First, the good news. The Dragon defense continues to shine,
slamming the door shut on a Indian offense that coasted to an early lead and
appeared briefly poised to match Carroll score for score.
But save for a handful of showy offensive plays during
Keller’s initial two possessions, the Dragon D choked the life out of the
Indians, intercepting Keller’s quarterbacks three times and limiting its
vaulted ground game to a paltry 85 total rushing yards.
Defensive back Logan Anderson was a beast, snaring two
Keller interceptions and disrupting the Indian schemes left and right.
Linebacker Aaron Scherp snatched a third errant pass in the Keller red zone to
set up a Dragon score.
Ruling the field
Meanwhile, its own offense ruled the field – reeling off 42
unanswered points while running backs Owen Allen and James Lehman shredded the
Keller front line and compensated nicely for a struggling Kaden Anderson, who
completed only 5 of 14 passes. It’s only fair to note, however, that 4 of those
completions were for touchdowns, three by RJ Maryland and one by Landon Samson.
As a result, the 6-0 Carroll remains the odds-on favorite to
repeat as champion of District 4-6A. It remains No. 1 ranked team in the
Dallas-Fort area and the No. 3 ranked in the state. The Indians, who until
yesterday’s matchup had been enjoying their best start since 1967, now slide to
5-1.
They had high hopes, the rascals. The game originally was
scheduled for Thursday night, but lightning in the area delayed – and then
postponed – the game until 2 p.m. yesterday.
Keller High must had dismissed school at noon because the
student section was packed. I’ve never seen a bigger crowd at KISD Stadium, a
dismal place to watch a football game, even with the addition of a fancy new
electronic scoreboard. Lipstick on a pig.
But after a few early flourishes, the Keller fans didn’t
have much to cheer about.
Indian quarterbacks Tre Guerra and Matthew Anderson couldn’t
penetrate the Dragon secondary. Guerra completed only 5 of 19 completions for
180 yards and one interception, almost all on a pair of plays early in the
game. When Anderson replaced him, he did even worse, throwing two interceptions.
Powered downfield
Keller, digging into its trick-or-treat bag early, took only
two plays to score first. When Carroll’s first possession stalled, Guerra sent
a 71-yard flea-flicker to Seth Henry that the receiver carried to the Dragon
13. On the next play, Guerra connected with Amarion Henry, who grabbed a 6-0
lead for the Indians. They muffed the PAT.
The Dragons responded immediately, powered downfield by
Allen’s stout running and capped by his 5-yard scoring plunge that handed
Carroll a 7-6 lead.
The Indians’ second and last score came later in the 1st
period, when Guerra lofted a 82-yard bomb to Amarion Henry, who carried it into
the end zone. The Indians would not enjoy that 13-6 lead long, but in seizing
the initiative, the Dragons would endure an unsettling loss.
On their subsequent possession, Allen suffered a sprained
ankle as he muscled for more yards. He walked off the field with only a slight
limp, but he didn’t return for the rest of the game. Allen ended the day with
65 yards on 12 attempts and 1 touchdown. That breaks his streak of
double-scoring games at eight.
Coach Riley Dodge said after the game that the injury was
not serious and his talented running back probably would be able to return for
next week’s game against Keller Central.
With Allen’s departure, sophomore James Lehman stepped into
some rather large cleats and kept the pressure on the reeling Keller defense.
He rushed 22 times for 133 yards and two 2nd-quarter TDs: an 8-yard
dash that gave the Dragons a 14-13 lead they never relinquished, and a 1-yard
plunge that carried Carroll into halftime with a 28-13 lead that sealed
Keller’s doom.
But the hard-charging Lehman suffered a shoulder injury in
the second half that also took him out of the game. Dodge described it as more
serious than the injury to Allen and suggested Lehman may miss some games.
Carried the load
Next up was sophomore Maddux Reid, who ably carried the
rushing load until the closing minutes of the game, when backup Austin Page
stepped in, the fourth Dragon RB to see substantial playing time against
Keller.
The injury roll call was not yet complete, however. Center
Walker Anderson, a key member of Carroll O-line, also had to leave the field.
The nature, and degree, of his injury isn’t known. And Dragon Radio reported
that standout defensive lineman Cade Parks was seen being attended to on the
sideline. His status also is unknown.
Yesterday's victory did not come without cost. That’s a regrettable and alarming injury toll for a single
game. It is testimony, I suppose, to the hard-hitting nature of the contest.
Keller may have been over-matched, but it wasn’t a cupcake. It fought to the
last whistle.
Despite the lopsided nature of the score, the inability of
the Dragons to establish a consistent passing attack helped keep Carroll’s
punter busy all afternoon.
The Dragons rolled up a respectable 435 total yards
yesterday. But Anderson had trouble all afternoon connecting with his talented
receiving corps, particularly on long-pass plays down field. The senior
overshot receivers almost a half-dozen times, sending the ball about a foot and
a half beyond their grasping hands. Missed opportunities – missed touchdowns.
That was on Dodge’s mind in his post-game interview on
Dragon Radio.
Asked what his team needed to work on, Dodge was quick to
reply, “We have to have a more balanced offense,” he said, then added, “Our
passing game has got to get better.”
They were beauties
It seems strange, does it not, to talk about improving the
game of a quarterback who made 4 passing touchdowns yesterday? And those four
were beauties. Maryland’s trio included a 32-yarder that gave Carroll a
one-score lead, and he captured two more Anderson throws in leaping grabs at
the back of the end zone. To finish Carroll scoring, Anderson sailed a 74-yard
pass to Samson, who scored after traveling the length of the field down the
right sideline.
All of which is fine and good. On the other hand, Anderson
finished the game with a puny 36 percent completion ratio and failed to keep
drives alive. Carroll punted a season-record of six times yesterday. This
Dragon team is too good for that.
Anderson has all the elements he needs to succeed. He has
the arm, he has the eye and he has the composure of a top-flight quarterback.
He also is graced with an excellent receiving corps, led by South Carolina
commit Samson and NFL offspring Maryland.
More than that, he has Riley Dodge.
If anyone can straighten out his game, it will be the former
state championship quarterback who learned his trade from another stellar
quarterback and coach, his father, Todd Dodge.
Southlake spoiled the
party for Keller yesterday, but it was hardly a surprise. The two school have
met 11 times since they entered the UIL’s big-school division. And Carroll has
won all 11. It’s a tradition, folks. And you know what we say in Southlake:
Protect the Tradition.
Time to heal
With the Indians behind them, the Dragons will turn their
attention to Keller Central, which they host next Friday at Dragon Stadium. They
should have no problem with the 2-3 Chargers, who fell to Keller 41-7 last
week. Perhaps the Central game will give some of Carroll’s battered starters a
little extra time to heal.
The real test comes Oct. 21, when Carroll travels to Haslet
Eaton to take on the only other unbeaten school in District 4-6A. The Eagles
put the hurt to Byron Nelson 45-10 last night and now pose the only serious
challenge to the Dragons’ district aspirations.
That said, here’s something to keep in mind. Since Riley Dodge
became Carroll head coach, his teams have never lost a district game. Not a
single one. I’d say that’s another tradition worth preserving.
Go Dragons!
The Dragons host Keller Central at Dragon Stadium next Friday.
