Matt Stepp’s 10 thoughts from the Texas high school football Week 9

The D is for defense in Duncanville The Duncanville Panthers have turned things around since the arrival of head coach Reginald Samples as in 2016, the Panthers advanced to the 6A Division I state quarter-finals. However, the Panthers were still a bit under the radar as they had yet to earn that statement win, but had that chance on Friday against defending state champion and rival DeSoto. Their defense rose to the occasion in a big way as they dominated the Eagles in a 24-14 win at Eagle Stadium. Duncanville’s defense held DeSoto to just 64 yards rushing on 31 carries as the Panther defensive line was a problem for DeSoto. The offense was able to make enough plays down the stretch against a good DeSoto defensive unit. In addition to shutting the DeSoto rushing attack down, the Duncanville defense forced a pair of key turnovers as well. Clear Lake’s defense sets the tone We thought Clear Lake had a chance to be in the mix in the always tough District 24-6A, but the Falcons came into their matchup against district unbeaten Friendswood as an underdog. But Clear Lake had other ideas as its defense put together its best performance of the year in a massive 14-10 win. For three quarters, the Clear Lake defense shut a potent Friendswood offense out and late in the game got a key stop to preserve the win and put the Falcons in a first-place tie with Friendswood and Clear Springs at 4-1 in district play. San Marcos’ big rally For two quarters, it appeared that the San Marcos Rattlers’ unbeaten run in 14-6A was going to come to an end as the Rattlers trailed 21-0 at the half on the road against Manor. Prudy Calderon ran for 160 yards and three touchdowns, including a 50-yard run down the sidelines with little more than four minutes left to give the Rattlers their first lead of the game. The Rattler defense held on down the stretch keeping San Marcos unbeaten in district as it appears headed for a Week 11 showdown against Austin Bowie. Jase McClellan’s return Aledo star sophomore running back Jase McClellan, an Oklahoma verbal commit, made his return to action last week after missing seven weeks with a wrist injury. He wasn’t needed for long as he carried just four times for 40 yards and three touchdowns in the first half as Aledo blasted past White Settlement Brewer 59-7. McClellan’s return won’t mean much in the regular season as Aledo has had no issues during his time away, but come playoff time, Aledo will likely need a 100 percent healthy McClellan to repeat as state champions. Brazosport’s turnaround After winning just five games the past four years, first year head coach Mike Ferrell has completely changed things around for the Exporters who improved to 6-2 after a hard fought 28-22 win over Bay City. The Exporters are in one of the state’s most balanced districts in 12-4A Division I and are now 3-1 and in great shape towards a potential spot in the playoffs which is a tremendous achievement considering where they’ve been the past few seasons.

Photo by Artie Guerrero Tough day for Gatesville It was a long day for the Gatesville Hornets who came into its game against China Spring with an undefeated 7-0 record. Head coach Kyle Cooper and the GISD administration spent all day in two different meetings regarding the eligibility of six student athletes. In the morning, the District 13-4A Division I (DEC) met in Lampasas and ruled the athletes ineligible for 30 days. But Gatesville filed an immediate appeal to the UIL State Executive Committee (SEC) and that afternoon in Georgetown, the SEC overruled the DEC and the six athletes were eligible for Gatesville. It was a trying day for all involved in Gatesville and the Hornets came out Friday night against a very good China Spring team and fell 43-16. Coach Cooper was quick to not make any excuses for the loss as he told the Waco Tribune, “Everybody steps out here and plays the game between the white lines. We didn’t get it done tonight.” Gatesville is a good team and it would be tough for any team to come out and put forth an optimal effort and not be distracted. Against a very good team, it makes the hill even tougher to climb. I expect a bounce-back from the Hornets in the final two weeks of the regular season against Liberty Hill and Waco LaVega. Seminole’s big win After dropping its season opener to Lubbock High, many dismissed Seminole as a contender in Region I. However, head coach Kent Jackson’s squad rattled off seven straight wins including a massive 28-27 win over Sweetwater at the Mustang Bowl Friday to seize control of the 2-4A Division II race. The Indians’ quarterback Alex Menchaca scored on a nine-yard run with 1:06 left to send the game to overtime tied at 21 after Reese Moore’s two-point pass from Menchaca. Menchaca scored in overtime from a yard out to give Seminole a 28-21 lead. Sweetwater scored on its OT Series, but the PAT was blocked and Seminole held on for the 28-27 win avenging two losses to Sweetwater in the 2016 season. Wimberley ends Navarro’s district dominance In a battle of top 10 teams in Class 4A Division II, the Wimberley Texans ended Geronimo Navarro’s 15-game district winning streak with a 49-35 win last night. The Texans now look to be Cuero’s primary competition in Region IV after handing Navarro its first district loss since Oct. 25, 2013, a 31-29 loss to Fredericksburg. Maypearl shocks the state In Battle of 916 Head coach Tal Sanders’ squad pulled off one of the state’s biggest upsets last week knocking off unbeaten arch rival and state-ranked Grandview, 19-14, in the Battle of 916 on Friday night. Maypearl’s defense forced four Grandview turnovers and held the Zebras’ star running back to just 70 yards rushing on 11 carries. The Panthers are quietly off to a 6-2 start on the season, are 4-1 in district play and have put themselves in position for a quality playoff seed. Big Doings in the Concho Valley on Friday