The Wylie Bulldogs last year expected tough going in Stephenville and the Yellow Jackets, who went on to win the Class 4A Division 1 title and all 16 games, made it so.

However, Wylie’s loss at home to a 0-2 Wichita Falls Memorial team was more emphatic.

The Mavericks started the 2025 season 4-0 and earned a No. 10 ranking in the state. Then came two losses to start District 2-5A play before a bye week.

One was a 42-27 defeat at Shotwell Stadium to Cooper.

Wylie downed its Southtown rival 29-22 in a home game.

During its week off, Memorial regrouped and blew out Wylie 45-14 at Sandifer Stadium.

The outcome was critical to the postseason. The loss to the Mavericks was key to keeping Wylie out of the playoffs while Memorial got to the area round and finished 7-4 overall.

“Last year, there still is a bad taste in your mouth because we didn’t play very well and we didn’t execute,” coach Clay Martin said. “We didn’t perform up to what we think our standard is.

“But that was last year. It’s irrelevant to this situation. It’s a different team each year. I feel confident that we’re going to come out and play a good game on Friday.”

The teams meet at 7 p.m. Friday, back at Sandifer.

BENEFITS OF A BYE WEEK

It’s Wylie that drew the early bye week ahead of the key district game with the Mavericks.

The Bulldogs have had a 15-day break from action since winning their district opener over Coronado on a Thursday night.

Martin said a bye week is a blessing but also a challenge.

The mid-season break this year trended more toward a blessing because it allowed players with injuries significant time to heal and then get ready to play.

“Some need rest and some need reps,” Martin said. “The bye week has always been about focusing on the Wylie Bulldogs.”

His team worked on what it likes to do offensively and defensively, but also had time to focus on Memorial.

“I feel like we got both of those accomplished,” Martin said. “A lot of credit for that goes to the kids and how they approached the week.”

Martin said the off week is about balancing rest and conditioning.

“The way in which the kids handle the bye week with the maturity and perspective they have is paramount. I was really proud of our plan and the way the kids handled it,” the coach said. “I thought we got a lot of good work done.”

Wylie has played without two of its top linebackers - Landry Pate and Carter Nelson - for several weeks, among other injuries.

Each week has brought unknowns as to who is out and who possibly can play. The defense has been the most affected.

Still, the Bulldogs have given up just 99 points in five games, with much of that total coming in a 42-23 loss to Stephenville. Aside from that game, Wylie has played well with its starters in the game. Frenship’s 21 points came at the end of the game when Martin had the field filled with backups.

The only upside to injuries is that it brings other players onto the field. Wylie got good results from the players who stepped in and now, the Bulldogs have a deeper pocket from which to draw players. Fresh legs on players with game experience as a team moves deeper into a season is a good thing.

Still, having Pate and Nelson available, along with a long list of other players is a plus. Wylie should be as close to full strength as it was for the season opener.

WARNING: BIG GAMES AHEAD

In many ways, Wylie’s football season begins this week.

The Bulldogs have gotten healthier, but so will their schedule. Still to come are the four 2025 playoff teams and a Legacy team that played competitively against Wylie last year and is much better this year. That game will be back in Wichita Falls, too

Wylie wants to take a 2-0 record to Amarillo for next week’s battle with the defending champion Dons.

No one is thinking about the Dons right now, however.

A 31-point loss at home the year before can narrow the focus, and there is this season to worry about.

“Each and every week you play in this district you have the chance to separate yourself from other teams. This time of year, that separation starts adding up,” Martin said.

“Obviously, this is a big game … but they’re all big games. You only get six of these things, so there is so much emphasis on each game to put a notch in the win column. When you approach that way, it gives you a better chance at success.”

Memorial is 1-1. The Mavs lost 49-27 at Abilene Cooper before destroying Coronado 59-7.

Fans coming Friday to Sandifer Stadium should plan for a long game. Memorial has scored the most points among the seven 2-5A teams with 291 ((48.5 ppg) in six games.

However, the Mavericks, 3-3, have given up 241 (40.2 ppg), the most in the league.

Will Wylie have to outscore Memorial, or can the Bulldogs shut down the Mavericks?

“Friday at 7, somebody is going to kick that thing off. We’re going to see how the Wylie Bulldogs match up against Memorial,” Martin said. “Everyone wants to say what Memorial has done and what we’ve done to this point. But until game time, when it’s us matched against Memorial, nobody has any idea if it will be high scoring or low scoring.”

Still, good money is on a scoreboard full of glowing bulbs.

“Both of us have a chance to put up a lot of points,” Martin said.

MEMORIAL AGAIN BRINGS THE PUNCH

Memorial dominated Wylie last year, totaling more than 500 yards on offense. Quarterback Joe Castles threw for four touchdowns and Eric Powell accounted for four - two on catches and two rushing. Both players are gone, with the 6-foot-7 Castles now on the Abilene Christian University roster.

The Mavs led 14-0 at halftime and 21-0 before Blaze Ruffin ran back a kickoff. Ruffin also caught a TD pass from Karleskint before Memorial scored the final 21 points of the game. Though Wylie cut its deficit to 24-14 in the second half it never seemed the Bulldogs had enough offense to make it a closer game.

Wylie rushed for only 62 yards and Karleskint threw for only 167 on 17-of-22 throwing.

Stephenville had a 200-yard rusher and a 200-yard passer in that game, causing a double heartache for Wylie.

LIke Stephenville, Memorial will be a double-barrel threat. Martin, however, believes the preseason game prepared his team for the Mavericks.

“I feel confident in our defense being able to limit explosive plays. The key is to do our job and take care of our responsibilities,” he said.

This year, Memorial is relying on the running of junior Gage Wurhrich, who gains 95 yards a game. He has accounted for 13 touchdowns - 12 on the ground.

Quarterback Cole Birkhead has thrown for 25 touchdowns with his favorite target being senior Izaeah Foster, who has nine scoring grabs. Krew Bailey had eight.

Birkhead has completed 59 percent of his passes.

Martin said the Bulldogs must make Birkhead uncomfortable. Wylie didn’t do that facing the Brownwood and Stephenville quarterbacks but did so in its three wins.

If Karleskint and Birkhead get into a throwing match, the Wylie quarterback will have to watch out for Mavs junior Donovan McAllister, who has six interceptions. Sophomore J.J. Hickman has three. Linebacker Reese Risner averages 9.5 tackles a game, just ahead of senior Bobby Ayala (9.2). With the defense giving up so much yardage and so many points, the tackle counts will be higher.

WYLIE'S OFFENSE IS PROLIFIC, TOO

On offense, Wylie has been driven by senior quarterback Jadin Karleskint. He was over 1,000 yards going into the Coronado game, but let his running backs do the work against the Mustangs. The Bulldogs totaled almost 300 yards on the ground.

Jones had almost 100 yards in the first quarter and had scored before leading the game with an injury. He could be on the field for Memorial.

With Jones out, Wylie saw more production from sophomore Jett Wilson and even backup Kory Gibson added 88 more with a team-high 14 carries in the second half.

If the running game can be effective, the passing can be even more damaging.

Karleskint has thrown for 1,176 on 84-of-118 passing - a 71 percent completion rate. He has 14 touchdown passes, nine of those going to Blaze Ruffin.

Karleskint and senior wide receiver Ruffin have put on a show after the season opener, when Brownwood limited Ruffin to three catches. Ruffin has a team-high 24 catches for 446 yards.

Yet, Karleskint now has more weapons. Sophomore Jackston Williams (17-399 and three TDs) has provided another deep threat, while reliable Dylan Regala has been joined by other pass catchers such as Jayden Naemi and Maylon Green-Rhodes.

Sophomore Jett Wilson is emerging as a double threat. He has 136 yards rushing on 27 carries but also had two catches for 74 yards and a long catch-and-run TD against Stephenville.

Jones has 41 carries for 268 yards and a couple of scores.

Martin said Wylie’s offense is geared toward taking advantage of the opposing defenses. If the pass is open, the passing game dominates. If the Bulldogs can run the ball, as they did against Coronado, the game plan tilts that way. It’s Karleskint’s job to choose.

Memorial has similar weapons.

Fans will wonder which defense can step up to make a critical stop. Martin said the game likely will come down to which team dominates the line.

“It’s not as glamorous as all that other stuff but it’s going to come down to who can control the line of scrimmage,” he said.

The kicking game also could be a determiner.

Bulldogs sophomore Kannon Ruffin has been booming kickoffs even out of the end zone, hit all his PATs and settled in after a rough start (missed and blocked field goals) against Brownwood.

And there is the return factor. Blaze Ruffin ran back a kickoff against the Mavs last year and had a xx-yarder this season. A Wylie kickoff returned for a TD this season was negated by a penalty.

A big play on special teams could be the difference in the score or even change the tone of a close game.

AROUND THE LEAGUE

Palo Duro already has brought upstart Wichita Falls Legacy back down to earth and handled Cooper to go 2-0. The Dons were to play Coronado on Thursday and expected to improve to 3-0.

Abilene Cooper took care of Memorial but not PD. The two teams played for the district title in the final game last year but got their showdown early this time.

With Lubbock-Cooper struggling without a win this season and Coronado already 0-2 in district, the season is starting to shape up as to which team can knock off the Dons. The Cougars and Leopards took their shot and missed.

That puts emphasis on the Wylie-Memorial game. The winner will stay closer to PD ahead of their respective games against the Dons.

Martin is aware, of course, on how things are playing out but the focus is on Memorial.

“But we’ve got plenty to worry about with the opponent we have each week,” said Martin, who does not compare scores. He understands that football fans will do that but it comes down to how the game is played Friday nights.

“I think it’s detrimental to your preparation. PD has done a good job to separate themselves the first two weeks. This is our second opportunity to do that,” Martin said.

Wichita Falls Memorial will be prepared to play Wylie, and Wylie will be prepared to play Memorial, he said.

“Coaches for both teams will have done a good job preparing their teams,” Martin said, but it’s going to be the kids on the field and how they execute that will determine the game.”

2026 DISTRICT 2-5A STANDINGS
Team District Season
W L Pts. Def. W L Pts. Def.
Am. Palo Duro 2 0 85 16 5 1 203 85
Wylie 1 0 56 20 3 2 163 99
Ab. Cooper 1 1 56 63 3 3 148 140
WF Memorial 1 1 87 56 3 3 291 241
WF Legacy 1 1 46 64 4 2 210 158
Lub-Cooper 0 1 14 37 0 5 77 209
Lub. Coronado 0 2 27 115 1 5 131 232

LAST WEEK'S GAMES
Memorial 59, Coronado 7
Palo Duro 35, Abilene Cooper 7
Legacy 37, Lubbock-Cooper 14

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