DAWG BITES

• Wylie led the defending Class 4A Division I champs twice, and it was a five-point game entering the fourth quarter.

• Bulldogs receiver Blaze Ruffin caught his 7th touchdown pass in three games, while varsity newcomer Jett Wilson scored his first.

• Stephenville amassed 453 yards - 217 by running back Zyler McClendon and 194 passing by quarterback Trot Jordan

Stephenville still is Stephenville.

Despite a game effort by Wylie on homecoming night, the Yellowjackets pulled away in the fourth quarter to their 20th straight win, taking a 42-23 victory Friday at Sandifer Stadium.

It was the final non-district game for the Bulldogs, who make a third trip to Lubbock to take on Coronado to start District 2-5A play in a Thursday night game.

Coronado fell 41-35 to Plainview, which dropped from 2-5A this year and was replaced by the Mustangs.

Stephenville is the defending Class 4A Division 1 champion and is off to 4-0 start in 2026. However, Wylie, which lost 52-13 to the Yellow Jackets last fall, made the Yellow Jackets earn the road win.

“I felt like we were right there,” coach Clay Martin said. “It was a very competitive game. Obviously, we’re not happy with the outcome. Everyone wants to win, but we got better because of it.”

Wylie had its chances. A 1-yard run by Dylan Regala out of the “box” formation cut Stephenville’s lead 21-16 halfway through the third quarter. The scoring drive followed a defensive stop by the Bulldogs to open the second half.

The Bulldogs could not get the two-point conversion to make it a three-point game.

Stephenville then marched 75 yards in 15 plays, draining the clock to score again just into the fourth quarter.

A blocked punt on Wylie’s next possession set up the Yellowjackets at the Wylie 35 and three plays later, quarterback Trot Jordan went 15 yards to a wide-open Pecos Tally to make it 35-16 with 8:19 to go.

That effectively sealed the outcome, though the Bulldogs provided fans with a thrill two minutes later. Quarterback Jadin Karleskint dropped a screen to speedy back Jett Wilson who jetted through the middle of the Stephenville defense for a 57-yard touchdown.

“There are some guys who are stepping in and getting experience,” Martin said of his younger players, such as sophomores Wilson and Jackston Williams on offense.

The Yellow Jackets scored once more after a failed Wylie onside kick. The touchdown came from Zyler McClendon, his only score despite rushing 28 times for 217 yards. He had three TDs in the 2025 game.
Jordan had 194 yards passing as Stephenville’s balanced offense kept Wylie off balance.

“They obviously are a very good football team,” Martin said. “They put a lot of pressure on you, but I was really proud of how we played on both sides of the ball, and how hard we played.

“We got them in third and medium, and third and long, and we got them behind the sticks, but they were able to make great plays. That’s how it goes in football.”

TURNING POINTS

The week before in Wolfforth, Wylie came up with a turnover as Frenship was driving for its first touchdown late in the first half. The Bulldogs then went downfield and scored with under a minute to play to turn a potential 14-7 halftime lead into a 21-0 advantage. That turnaround allowed Wylie to play with the upper hand in the second half.

The same situation occurred Friday, but not to Wylie’s favor.

Down 14-10, the Bulldogs drove from their 19 into the Stephenville red zone. Passes of 17 yards to Blaze Ruffin and 27 yards to Williams field the drive that began with 4:17 left in the half.

Wylie stalled at the 22, with Karleskint sacked on third down by Yellowjacket Levi Yarbrough.

The Bulldogs set up for the field goal by kicker Kannon Ruffin but he took the snap, rolled to his left and fired a pass to Carter Edmiston.

It looked to be a catch but was ruled an incompletion.

With 1:51 left, Stephenville marched 78 yards in six plays to score as McClendon broke a 29-yard run. Backed up to their 10, Wylie blitzed only to see Jordan slip through the rush and trot untouched into the end zone.

“I don’t think we executed very well,” Martin said of his team’s letdowns at times. “We did some things we can clean up. Against a team like that, you don’t get away with very many mistakes.”

The Yellowjackets took an 11-point lead into halftime and were getting the second-half kickoff. That wasn’t the only turn of events.

Wylie took the opening kickoff at its 35 and went to work. Blaze Ruffin pulled in a deep sideline pass from Karleskint and the Bulldogs at the Yellowjackets 26. Karleskint rushed for five yards and then checked off to Cooper Jones, who scored the touchdown. The score was called back on a penalty.

“We actually scored twice but we had both called back, and we had to settle for a field goal,” Martin said. “I thought that was a big turning point in the game. If we go down and put up seven, I think that changes things.”

The Bulldogs got those three points from Kannon Ruffin.

Stephenville then went on a 13-play, 75-yard drive that ate up more than 6 minutes to take the lead on Jordan’s first scoring pass, a 14-yarder to Adan Jergins. McClendon rushed for 51 yards on the drive.

“We made mistakes all game,” linebacker Bo Kates said. “There were plays we made but you can find something wrong on every play. We’ve got to get those fixed. This really exposed our defense. From here on out, we’re going to work the hardest we’ve ever had.

“We’ll be even better in the weeks to come.”

WYLIE ANSWERS BACK

While the football traded hands rapidly at Wolfforth, this game was about long drives.

Falling behind 7-3, Wylie went on an 11-play, 81-yard drive. An 18-yard scramble across open field by Karleskint and a 26-yard spectacular sideline snare by Williams keyed the drive that reached the Stephenville 16.

On third down, Karleskint threw a high football to Blaze Ruffin, who outleaped Xavier Gonzalez in the center of the end zone for the touchdown. His brother’s kick made it 10-7, Wylie.

The Bulldogs haven’t registered many takeaways this season but got one on Stephenville’s next possession. Jordan, flushed out the pocket to his left, went deep but was intercepted on the home sideline by Liam Chapman at the Wylie 13.

Wylie couldn’t get a first down as Stephenville stepped up the pressure on Karleskint. A punt went just 25 yards into the southerly breeze and the Yellow Jackets took over at the Wylie 45.

It took five plays to regain the lead. McClendon gained 32 yards on three carries before Jordan went to Caden Monk for 13 yards and the touchdown. Monk caught a TD pass in the second half.

It was reminiscent of how Wylie used field position to score twice with the wind against Frenship.

The Bulldogs would stay competitive until late in the game. Stephenville scored six times on nine possessions, punting once and kneeling its final possession.

“We had opportunities to get off the field all night,” Martin said.

If there was any doubt about the outcome, an interception of Karleskint - rushed and underthrowing Blaze Ruffin in the end zone - by Julian Perez with 3:00 to play ended Wylie hopes. Stephenville brought in backups and ran out the clock.

WYLIE PASSING GAME SHINES

Wylie had 404 yards of offense. Karleskint had another stellar game, hitting 20 of 32 passes for 306 yards and two touchdowns. The interception was only his second of the season.

Eleven of his competitions were greater than 10 yards and four were 30 yards or longer. He was pinpoint on his long throws.

Blaze Ruffin had eight grabs for 141 yards. Williams added five catches for 85 yards.

“Having two threats makes things easier for us both,” Blaze Ruffin said. “Making sure the other team lines up for both us and not double-team. (Williams) is continuing to play hard.”

Ruffin also credited his offensive line for giving his quarterback time to drop an accurate deep ball.

“I am grateful for the o-line holding up, and Jadin was throwing great balls out there and I was able to come down with them and make some big plays for our team.”

Throwing the jumpballs to Ruffin is part of the game plan, he said. It’s his job to bang with the defender and win the ball.

Several of Karleskint’s incompletions were throwing away the football.

Karleskint added 45 yards rushing, smartly tucking the ball to evade the rush or when he saw open field.

Overlooking his two sideline strikes and the TD toss to Blaze Ruffin, Karleskint’s best play may have been picking up a bad snap, avoiding a sack near his goal line, and throwing incomplete. In a game where giving the football back to Stephenville was asking for trouble, he at least kept his team in manageable field position.

That seemed to be the story of the game. Wylie kept it manageable but could not pull off the upset.

Wylie is 2-2 overall but now 0-0 as the more important season begins.

“We’re just looking forward to going into district now,” Blaze Ruffin said. “We played a great opponent and I think everyone knows that. We’re just going to focus on ourselves and get better every single day.”

With a short week ahead, Wylie sets its sights on Coronado.

“We’ve done all this pre-district stuff to prepare us for district play,” Martin said. “It’s here now.”

YARDSTICK

SHS WHS
First downs 26 20
Rushing 36-262 21-97
A-C-Int 16-22-1 20-33-1
Passing 194 306
Total offense 453 404
Punting 1-24.0 2-12.5
Fumbles/lost 0-0 1-0
Penalties 10-90 8-71

SCORE BY QUARTERS
SHS 7 14 0 21 - 42
WHS 3 7 6 7 - 23

SCORING
First quarter
WHS - Kannon Ruffin 40 FG, 8:30
SHS - Adan Jergins 14 pass from Trot Jordan (Daniel Cervantes kick), 2:03
Second quarter
WHS - Blaze Ruffin 16 pass from Jadin Karleskint (K. Ruffin kick), 11:02
SHS - Caden Monk 13 pass from Jordan (Cervantes kick), 4:38
SHS - Jordan 10 run (Cervantes kick), 0:30
Third quarter
WHS - Dylan Regala 1 run (2-point pass failed), 5:48
Fourth quarter
SHS - Monk 14 pass from Jordan (Cervantes kick),
SHS - Pecos Tally 15 pass from Jordan (Cervantes kick), 11:25
WHS - Jett Wilson 57 pass from Karleskint (K. Ruffin kick), 6:40
SHS - Zyler McClendon 6 run (Cervantes kick), 3:58

WYLIE INDIVIDUAL STATS
Rushing - Jadin Karleskint, 11-45; Cooper Jones 5-33; Dylan Regala, 4-13; Blaze Ruffin 1-6
Passing - Karleskint, 20-32-1-2, 306; Kannon Ruffin, 0-1-0-0
Receiving - B. Ruffin, 8-141-1; Jackston Williams, 5-85; Jett Wilson, 2-74-1; Jones, 3-5; Regala, 1-2; Brody Anderson, 1-0.

DISTRICT 2-5A STANDINGS
Team District Season
W L PF PA W L PF PA
Am. Palo Duro 0 0 0 0 3 1 118 59
WF Legacy 0 0 0 0 3 1 164 94
Wylie 0 0 0 0 2 2 107 70
Ab. Cooper 0 0 0 0 2 2 92 77
WF Memorial 0 0 0 0 2 2 205 185
Lub. Coronado 0 0 0 0 1 3 104 117
Lub-Cooper 0 0 0 0 0 4 63 172

LAST WEEK
Canyon 49, Lubbock-Cooper 24
Stephenville 42, Wylie 23
Abilene Cooper 34, Odessa High 14
Palo Duro 42, Dumas 21
Plainview 41, Coronado 35
Greenwood 43, WF Legacy 42
WF Memorial 52, FW Chisholm Trail 45

THIS WEEK
Wylie at Coronado (Thursday)
Palo Duro at Legacy
Memorial at Abilene Cooper
Lubbock-Cooper open