Sports Update
11-5A FOOTBALL PREVIEW: High-powered Sachse offense faces biggest test yet in Flower Mound
By DEVIN HASSON, dhasson@starlocalnews.com
Last Thursday, Sachse quarterback Kent Myers had a game to remember.
Myers threw for 434 yards and six touchdowns and rushed for 117 yards and three more scores. In all, his nine total touchdowns helped the Mustangs pull away late for a 69-49 victory over Grapevine.
While Myers' numbers might grab the headlines, Sachse understands that improving to 3-0 goes much deeper.
"He can't do it any of that without catching and blocking and all our guys were able to do a good job with that," Sachse head coach Mark "Red" Behrens said. "That being said, somebody asked me if I remembered seeing nine touchdowns in a game and I said I'm pretty sure I haven't."
Despite breaking in some new faces on the offensive line that Behrens said was "still coming together", they have helped the offense average 56.6 points per game.
Sachse's quick-strike passing attack has not missed a beat thus far behind Myers, who played primarily wide receiver last season.
Returning starters Austin Williams (18 rec., 219 yds., 3 TDs) and Tyrique Edwards (14-188, 2) have produced as expected, while Bruce Brookins (10-228, 5) and James Mayden have also come on strong.
Sachse's offensive efficiency not only wears on opposing defenses, but sometimes its own, who are often not on the sideline for long.
Last week, the Mustangs led 49-18 in the third quarter only to watch Grapevine score 31 points in a little more than four minutes.
"We were trying to talk to them in the third quarter last week and they were on the field three more times before we had a chance to talk," Behrens said. "The goal on defense is to slow them down and get the ball back to the offense as many times as we can. In the fourth quarter, they had a chance to listen to the adjustments and they were able to shut them out."
Sachse is still young on both sides of the ball, with just seven starting seniors, and despite missing a couple of regulars on defense, there are playmakers. Isaiah Smith had 15 tackles last week, Deondrick Williams had 12 tackles and an interception and Dylan Harrison recorded 10 tackles to lead the way.
That unit will face a tough challenge in Flower Mound, which is coming off a 35-14 loss to Colleyville Heritage last week.
The Jaguars have used a pair of quarterbacks and both have been effective. Connor Wanhanen has thrown for 273 yards and leads the team in rushing with 219 yards and three touchdowns.
Matt Hirst has thrown for 272 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions and is also a factor on the ground.
Cole McKeel, Finn Foster and Caleb Blake are other players the Mustangs will have to be aware of.
Defensively, Flower Mound has held up against Heritage, South Grand Prairie and Keller Central. One of Heritage's scores was an interception return, they forced three turnovers against South Grand Prairie and they held Keller Central to just six points.
"It is going to be a big challenge. They are very well-coached and we will be in hostile territory, so it is going to be a great test," Behrens said. "We need to be organized, prepared and ready to go. This is our last chance before we go into district play so we need to be clicking on all cylinders by the end of the game."
ROWLETT (1-2)
For the second consecutive year, Rowlett emerged from its third game of the season with a last-second loss. A year after Wylie kicked a last-second field goal to pull out a 30-27 victory, Lake Highlands repeated the feat for a 30-28 win last week.
The good news for the Eagles is that both of those were non-district games and they will have one more tune-up for 11-5A play this week against Rockwall-Heath.
Moving the ball has not been a problem for Rowlett. Carson Hyles has made a smooth transition into the starting quarterback role, completing 76 percent of his passes (56-of-73) for 767 yards and five touchdowns.
With Jalen Rhodes back in the lineup, Rhodes (45 carries, 290 yards) and Derrick Imade (39-263) give the running game a formidable 1-2 punch.
Chris Heath has emerged as a big-play threat on the outside with 26 catches for 431 yards and three touchdowns, while Tyler Hogan has 17 receptions.
The defense will look to improve on its average of 28.3 points per game against a dangerous Rockwall-Heath team.
The Hawks won their first two games, but fell to Richland last week, 28-24, after losing quarterback Chase Schultz to an injury. Schultz, whose status is uncertain, has thrown for 479 yards and six touchdowns, while adding three scores on the ground.
Rico Henderson is a solid running back, while Shyon McCullough and R.J. Williams are the top threats on the outside.
Myers threw for 434 yards and six touchdowns and rushed for 117 yards and three more scores. In all, his nine total touchdowns helped the Mustangs pull away late for a 69-49 victory over Grapevine.
While Myers' numbers might grab the headlines, Sachse understands that improving to 3-0 goes much deeper.
"He can't do it any of that without catching and blocking and all our guys were able to do a good job with that," Sachse head coach Mark "Red" Behrens said. "That being said, somebody asked me if I remembered seeing nine touchdowns in a game and I said I'm pretty sure I haven't."
Despite breaking in some new faces on the offensive line that Behrens said was "still coming together", they have helped the offense average 56.6 points per game.
Sachse's quick-strike passing attack has not missed a beat thus far behind Myers, who played primarily wide receiver last season.
Returning starters Austin Williams (18 rec., 219 yds., 3 TDs) and Tyrique Edwards (14-188, 2) have produced as expected, while Bruce Brookins (10-228, 5) and James Mayden have also come on strong.
Sachse's offensive efficiency not only wears on opposing defenses, but sometimes its own, who are often not on the sideline for long.
Last week, the Mustangs led 49-18 in the third quarter only to watch Grapevine score 31 points in a little more than four minutes.
"We were trying to talk to them in the third quarter last week and they were on the field three more times before we had a chance to talk," Behrens said. "The goal on defense is to slow them down and get the ball back to the offense as many times as we can. In the fourth quarter, they had a chance to listen to the adjustments and they were able to shut them out."
Sachse is still young on both sides of the ball, with just seven starting seniors, and despite missing a couple of regulars on defense, there are playmakers. Isaiah Smith had 15 tackles last week, Deondrick Williams had 12 tackles and an interception and Dylan Harrison recorded 10 tackles to lead the way.
That unit will face a tough challenge in Flower Mound, which is coming off a 35-14 loss to Colleyville Heritage last week.
The Jaguars have used a pair of quarterbacks and both have been effective. Connor Wanhanen has thrown for 273 yards and leads the team in rushing with 219 yards and three touchdowns.
Matt Hirst has thrown for 272 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions and is also a factor on the ground.
Cole McKeel, Finn Foster and Caleb Blake are other players the Mustangs will have to be aware of.
Defensively, Flower Mound has held up against Heritage, South Grand Prairie and Keller Central. One of Heritage's scores was an interception return, they forced three turnovers against South Grand Prairie and they held Keller Central to just six points.
"It is going to be a big challenge. They are very well-coached and we will be in hostile territory, so it is going to be a great test," Behrens said. "We need to be organized, prepared and ready to go. This is our last chance before we go into district play so we need to be clicking on all cylinders by the end of the game."
ROWLETT (1-2)
For the second consecutive year, Rowlett emerged from its third game of the season with a last-second loss. A year after Wylie kicked a last-second field goal to pull out a 30-27 victory, Lake Highlands repeated the feat for a 30-28 win last week.
The good news for the Eagles is that both of those were non-district games and they will have one more tune-up for 11-5A play this week against Rockwall-Heath.
Moving the ball has not been a problem for Rowlett. Carson Hyles has made a smooth transition into the starting quarterback role, completing 76 percent of his passes (56-of-73) for 767 yards and five touchdowns.
With Jalen Rhodes back in the lineup, Rhodes (45 carries, 290 yards) and Derrick Imade (39-263) give the running game a formidable 1-2 punch.
Chris Heath has emerged as a big-play threat on the outside with 26 catches for 431 yards and three touchdowns, while Tyler Hogan has 17 receptions.
The defense will look to improve on its average of 28.3 points per game against a dangerous Rockwall-Heath team.
The Hawks won their first two games, but fell to Richland last week, 28-24, after losing quarterback Chase Schultz to an injury. Schultz, whose status is uncertain, has thrown for 479 yards and six touchdowns, while adding three scores on the ground.
Rico Henderson is a solid running back, while Shyon McCullough and R.J. Williams are the top threats on the outside.
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