No. 12 DeSoto overwhelms Waxahachie in 7-6A opener

By Travis M. Smith | KBEC Sports Everything needed to go right for the Waxahachie Indians at home Friday night against state-ranked DeSoto. It didn’t, and that’s not near as bad as it reads. DeSoto ran away — literally — with the 55-12 victory at Stuart B. Lumpkins Stadium behind 399 rushing yards. The game was the first in the “District of Doom,” formally known as District 7-6A, for either program. The Eagles entered as the 12th ranked team in Class 6A, according to the official Dave Campbell’s Texas Football poll, and improved to 4-0 with the win. The Indians, who are now 0-8 all-time in 7-6A play, fell to 1-4 on the season. As previously typed, the loss is not indicative of failures within the Indians program. Instead, it’s further proof of just how dominant the Eagles have been through four weeks of the season. DeSoto opened the season with a 35-14 rout of perennial power Odessa Permian. The Eagles then embarrassed Dallas Jesuit, 55-27, and Bishop Dune, 49-0. These Eagles can fly and will be hard for any team in 7-6A, or the state playoffs, to clip. THE GAME As for Friday, DeSoto scored four touchdowns in the opening 16 minutes and change to build a 27-0 lead. DeMarcus Jackson capped that run with a 1-yard carry with 7:14 in the second quarter. The Waxahachie offense punted on its ensuing possession and its defensive unit then stood strong to force a DeSoto turnover on downs. Campbell Sullivan and the Indians offense then mounted a six-play, 57-yard drive to the end zone. Sullivan found BJ Hawkins for a 28-yard touchdown to pull the Indians within three scores, 27-6, with under one minute to play in the first half. Unfortunately, the DeSoto offense needed just 42 seconds and five plays to cover 60 yards and take a 34-6 lead into the halftime locker rooms. The scoring drive ended with quarterback Samari Collier (11-18, 170yds, 3TD) connecting with Lawrence Arnold for a 13-yard touchdown with 10 seconds left on the clock. With momentum back on the sideline of the Eagles, Sullivan was sacked for a 10-yard loss on the opening snap of the second half and exited with a leg injury. His exit brought 2018 quarterback-turned-tight end DJ Hollywood back under center for the remainder of the ball game. Hollywood eventually tossed his first touchdown pass of the season — a 38-yard pass to Jaden Basham — with 4:48 to play in the fourth quarter. The touchdown cut the DeSoto lead to 48-12. Bilal Muhammad added an 11-yard touchdown run with 53 seconds to play in the fourth quarter for the 55-12 final. THE NUMBERS DeSoto tallied 593 total yards in the win with 399 of those coming on 45 carries from scrimmage (8.9 yards per carry). Jyison Brown led all ball carriers with eight carries for 133 yards and one touchdown, while Joshua Jackson had seven rushes for 93 yards and two scores. Jordan Brown was the Eagles leading receiver with three grabs for 94 yards, but it was Lawrence Arnold who hauled in two touchdown passes on his four catches for 34 yards. The duo of Sullivan and Hollywood completed 14-of-28 passes for 210 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. Hollywood posted the biggest numbers, finishing 9-of-16 for 130 yards and a score. Hawkins was once again the Indians leading receiver with an impressive 10 catches for 159 yards and one touchdown. Derrick Jackson led the Indians ground game with 12 carries for 19 yards. The Eagles were penalized 10 times for 100 yards, while the Indians were flagged seven times for 66. UP NEXT Waxahachie (1-3, 0-1 in 7-6A) returns to action at 7:30 p.m. Friday on the road against Cedar Hill. _____ Travis M. Smith, @Travis5mith tsmith@kbec.com

NO. 12 DESOTO OVERWHELMS WAXAHACHIE IN 7-6A OPENER

Photo Credit: Kirk Holt/KBEC Sports