DAWG BITES

- Wylie scored on nine straight possessions, eight of those touchdowns

- The Bulldogs led 15-0 before Coronado took an offensive snap

- Junior running back Cooper Jones gains 128 yards and scores twice

- WHS scored 70 points for the second straight season


Clay Martin wanted his team to start faster when the Wylie Bulldogs played Lubbock Coronado on Friday night.

Perhaps his final words in the locker room were “Gentlemen, start your engines.”

Wylie started NASCAR fast against the outmatched Mustangs, scoring 24 first-quarter points and playing few starters in the second half en route to a 70-14 homecoming victory at Hugh Sandifer Stadium.

Offensively, Wylie had scored 11 first-half points in two games. The Bulldogs had 15 points on the scoreboard with 7:14 left in the first quarter.

It’s the second straight year that Wylie has scored 70 points in a regular season game; the Bulldogs pounded Palo Duro 70-28 last year.

“I was really proud of the start. All of our guys went back to work after last week’s loss,” Martin said. “We played really well early in the game. When we got the lead, we really stepped on the gas.

“The point of emphasis this week was getting off to a fast start. I really thought we did that.”

ALL NIGHT LONG

The Bulldogs did a little bit of everything Friday:

Scored on their opening drive for the second time.

Recovered a pooch kick, then scored.

Ran in two two-point conversions

Added a field goal to their eight offensive touchdowns.

Scored on a pass for the first time this season

Scored on a scooped fumble

Added two more points to the scoreboard with a safety

Wylie scored on every possession until its final drive. However, that was a 17-play, clock-chewing, run-only drive that ate up the entire fourth quarter. The Bulldogs got to the Coronado 8, then twice took a knee to end the game.

WHS totaled almost 500 yards on offense and allowed just 156 yards - 98 of that came on two plays, when Coronado went deep to its standout wide receiver Campbell Stanek.

That’s 58 yards otherwise.

“We continued to execute throughout the game,” Martin said.

The win puts Wylie at 2-1 ahead of Friday’s 7:30 p.m. game at Class 4A state-ranked Stephenville. Coronado, a Class 5A, Division I team, lost its third game of the season, all to members of District 2-5A, Division II.

RUN, BULLDOGS, RUN

Junior Cooper Jones, who normally spells starting running back Julius Laine, rushed 14 times for a game-high 128 yards. Jones was out of the game with 99 yards, then put back in. He slipped on his first carry and gained nothing. He then broke free on the left side for a 29-yard scoring run near the end of the third quarter, his second TD of the game.

“It was a great game,” said Jones, who was all smiles after it was over. “(Julius) is hard to compete with but I just try to stay up there with him.”

Martin turned to another Jones, sophomore Rodrigo Jones, who responded with 62 yards on eight carries. He burst 23 yards to score on his first varsity carry.

Enough of that. Enter junior Carlos Martinez, who then carried nine times for 40 yards. He was the workhorse on that long fourth-quarter drive.

Finally, senior Fermin Martinez got the call and gained five yards on two totes. Wylie subs converted a third down and two fourth downs on the drive.

“I was proud of our entire roster and the way they executed when they had a chance to go in the game,” Martin said of game-long success by his players.

Martin also wanted to see his offensive and defensive lines take control. They did.

Wylie rushed for 337 yards, thanks to whatever O-line configuration was in the game.

“Those guys up front did a phenomenal job blocking and I though our backs ran really hard and made some good cuts,” Martin said. “When you can control the line of scrimmage, like I felt like we did tonight, we’re going to be pretty good.”

Cooper Jones echoed his coach.

“They did great,” he said of the line. “That makes us running backs better. They were wonderful.”

Laine almost was lost in the hoopla despite doing his job.

The senior back rushed 12 times in the first half and scored on runs of 3, 16 and 1 yard on his way to 88 yards.

He now has six TDs in three games.

Laine had 43 yards on the opening, 56-yard drive to exceed his game total in the Game 2 loss at Lubbock Monterey.

In contrast, Coronado rushed for 23 yards on 22 carries, with a 7-yard gain the best of the night.

RUFFIN BREAK THROUGH

Wylie didn’t need to pass much, but junior Jadin Karleskint was effective. He totaled 135 yards in two quarters, with scoring tosses of 15 and 46 yards to favorite receiver Blaze Ruffin. Those came on back-to-back possessions.

“It’s always good getting your first touchdown of the season,” Ruffin said about getting a score. “It was a great team atmosphere on the sidelines, so it was very exciting.

“Two on the night, not bad.”

Ruffin said the focus in practice paid off.

“We take every practice like it’s a game. It made tonight easier.”

Karleskint gave way to junior Jonah Holmes, who quarterbacked the offense effectively the entire second half.

ANOTHER DEFENSIVE TD

Perhaps the most crowd-pleasing touchdown was Blake Frailing’s scoop.

Down 49-7 at halftime, Coronado only added to its woes on its first drive of the second half. After gaining a first down on a completion to - who else? - Stanek, quarterback J.J. Villalobos lost control of the snap, was bowled over by defensive players and the football bounced free at his 40. Charging in, too, Frailing grabbed the ball and ran untouched to the end zone 1:17 into the second half.

“I didn’t do any of the work,” he said. “The ball just came to me. And then I ran. I just wanted to make sure I didn’t get tackled.”

The defense, he said, has been playing well but Friday was about “getting the little things right. I think last week really humbled us and punched us in the mouth to get back on track. It was a great feeling tonight.”

Meanwhile, the offense was unstoppable.

Wylie totaled 472 yards and gained 28 first down to just six for Coronado.

The Bulldogs lowered their penalty total to five. The only serious miscue was a muffed punt that Coronado turned into a second-quarter touchdown. By that time, however, Wylie had built a 32-0 lead.

The result was a happy ending to homecoming.

“Great crowd, great atmosphere,” Martin said. “We talked before we came out that a lot of people paid good money to see them play.

“We have great community support, so I am glad we were able to put on a good show.”

The show goes on the road to unbeaten Stephenville.

“It’s always good to go on to next week on a win,” Ruffin said. “We need to bring this intensity and energy into Stephenville.”


YARDSTICK
WYLIE 70, CORONADO 14

WYLIE CORONADO
First downs 28 6
Rushing 51-337 22-23
A-C-Int 9-16-0 7-12-0
Passing 135 133
Total offense 472 156
Punting 0 5-23.5
Fumbles/lost 2-1 4-1
Penalties 5-35 3-25

SCORING
Coronado 0 7 7 0 -14
Wylie 24 25 21 0 -70

First quarter
Wylie - Julius Laine 3 run (Noah Rehburg kick), 8:26
Wylie - Laine 16 run (Landry Pate run), 7:14
Wylie - Cooper Jones 3 run (Rehburg kick), 1:59
Wylie - Safety, 0:58
Second quarter
Wylie - Laine 1 run (Pate run), 10:55
CHS - Campbell Stanek 4 pass from J.J. Villalobos (Skye Zint kick), 8:47
Wylie - Blaze Ruffin 15 pass from Jadin Karleskint (Rehburg kick), 5:30
Wylie - Ruffin 46 pass from Karlesking (Rehburg kick), 2:13
Wylie - Rehburg 33 FG, 0:00
Third quarter
Wylie - Blake Frailing 40 fumble return (Rehburg kick), 10:43
Wylie - Rodrigo Jones 23 run (Rehburg kick), 7:26
Wylie - Cooper Jones 29 run (Rehburg kick), 3:07
CHS - Stanek 57 pass from Villalobos (Zint kick), 0:27

WYLIE INDIVIDUAL STATS
Rushing - Cooper Jones, 14-128-2; Julius Laine, 12-88-3; Rodrigo Jones, 8-40-1; Carlos Martinez, 9-40; Jonah Holmes, 3-8; Jadin Karleskint, 4-6; Fermin Martinez, 2-5.
Passing - Karleskint, 9-15-0-1; Holmes 0-1-0-0
Receiving - Blaze Ruffin, 3-73-2; Wyatt Kidman, 2-41; Cash Isbell, 1-8; C. Jones 1-6; Jayden Naemi, 1-5; Blake Frailing, 1-2

DISTRICT 2-5A STANDINGS
TEAM W L PF PA
WF Memorial 3 0 106 68
Wylie 2 1 116 38
Am. Palo Duro 2 1 83 17
Lub-Cooper 2 1 100 63
Plainview 2 1 113 124
Ab. Cooper 1 2 97 99
WF Legacy 1 2 45 136

DISTRICT 2-5A RESULTS
Wylie 70, Lubbock Coronado 14
Amarillo Palo Duro 35, Canyon 7
San Angelo Central 40, Abilene Cooper 35
Lubbock-Cooper 20, Amarillo Tascoa 14
Plainview 41, Hereford 39
Frenship 61, Wichita Falls Legacy 14
Wichita Falls Memorial 37, Fort Worth Dunbar 20

WEEK 4 SCHEDULE
Wylie at Stephenville
Amarillo Palo Duro vs. Amarillo High
Lubbock Coronado at Abilene Cooper
Lubbock-Cooper at Frenship
Plainview at Dumas
Randall at WF Legacy
WF Memorial at Andrews