John Tyler Evens District Record After Dominant Win Over North Mesquite

TYLER -- John Tyler head coach Ricklan Holmes was so displeased with his team's performance in last week's district-opening loss to Rockwall, he shelved the normal varsity uniforms, and instead dressed his players in JV attire.

On Homecoming Night no less.

Message received.

John Tyler dominated both sides of the ball in a bounce-back 44-7 rout of North Mesquite on Friday night at CHRISTUS Trinity Mother Frances Rose Stadium.

“This is a proud performance," Holmes said. "With my reaction to last week’s loss, the kids took it upon themselves, and that’s a very proud moment for me as a head football coach.”

John Tyler (3-2, 1-1 in District 12-6A) scored the game's first 14 points and outscored the Stallions, 24-0, in the second half -- a far cry from last week's lackluster 48-7 loss at Rockwall.

“I liked that we finally did the two things that we always want to do every game: start fast and finish strong," Holmes said. "The guys came together and took it upon themselves to make the necessary corrections to be a better football team, to be the kind of football team I know they can be.”

The win was not without adversity for the Lions, who lost starting quarterback Devlen Woods to a concussion midway through the second quarter.

His replacement, junior K'Lon Warren, tossed a pair of touchdown passes and threw for 141 yards.

“He settled down quicker than most people would have in that type of situation," Holmes said. "(Warren) is a very talented kid, he understands the offense, he just had to get comfortable. And once he got a little bit more comfortable in what we were doing offensively, he started making some plays and trusting his arm.”

The John Tyler defense grounded a North Mesquite offense that came in averaging 439 yards per game by limiting the Stallions to 170 on the night, including just 57 rushing.

Lions senior linebacker Tre Allison returned an interception 28 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter, and was in on several tackles throughout the night. Senior defensive end and Houston pledge DeKalen Goodson also came away with two sacks and a forced fumble.

“I think they played lights-out, I think they finally played up to their potential against a very good North Mesquite football team," Holmes said of his defense. "The score does not tell the talent level of the opposing team. But we played John Tyler football today, and that’s what we strive to do every week.”

Junior running back Roderick Hawkins paced the Lions offense with 134 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries, and he also added 28 yards on two receptions. Sophomore Kitan Crawford added 65 yards as the duo filled in for starting running back Cameron Grant, who missed his second-straight game with a concussion.

Warren's first pass of the night was a big one. He launched a deep ball to junior receiver Ke'Andre Street, who beat his man in one-on-one coverage and juked his way into the end zone for a 70-yard touchdown.

That gave John Tyler a 20-7 lead with seven seconds remaining until halftime.

Allison's pick-six pushed the Lions' lead to 27-7 in the third. Warren connected with Victor Campbell Jr. on an 8-yard touchdown, and Michael Givens-Washington returned a punt 56 yards for a score in JT's 17-point fourth quarter.

John Tyler started the game on fire, scoring on its first two possessions.

Warren was on the receiving end of an 8-yard touchdown pass from Woods, and Hawkins' 41-yard scoring run gave John Tyler a 14-0 lead with 4:03 remaining in the opening quarter.

North Mesquite used a 37-yard completion from Alex Vigil to Ja'Marzeyea Arvie to set up a 17-yard touchdown pass from Vigil to Azaveshe Daniyan on the ensuing possession.

Both teams return to action next Friday night. North Mesquite plays host to Rockwall-Heath (4-1, 2-0), while John Tyler plays at Mesquite (1-4, 0-2).

“This is something, as a coach and as a football player, you look on this game right here and you understand that kids do understand … they know what they’re doing, they know how to do it," Holmes said. "They just have to take it upon themselves to do it.”

John Tyler 44, North Mesquite 7

At CHRISTUS TMF Rose Stadium, Tyler

North Mesquite             7      0      0      0    --     7
John Tyler                   14      6      7    17    --    44

First Quarter
JT--K'Lon Warren 8 pass from Devlen Woods (Frankie Sanchez kick), 6:33.
JT--Roderick Hawkins 41 run (Sanchez kick), 4:03.
NM--Azaveshe Daniyan 17 pass from Alex Vigil (Heriberto Campuzano kick), 1:22.
Second Quarter
JT--Ke'Andre Street 70 pass from Warren (pass failed), :07.
Third Quarter
JT--Tre Allison 28 interception return (Sanchez kick), 5:28.
Fourth Quarter
JT--Victor Campbell Jr. 8 pass from Warren (Sanchez kick), 10:41.
JT--Michael Givens-Washington 56 punt return (Sanchez kick), 8:55.
JT--FG Sanchez 30, 3:37.

                                            NM                      JT
First Downs                            11                      15
Total Yards                            170                    379
Rushes-Yards                    28-57               30-172
Passing Yards                       113                    207
Comp.-Att.-Int.               11-18-1             14-23-2
Punts-Avg.                        9-35.1               2-42.5
Fumbles-Lost                         2-1                    0-0
Penalties-Yards                     5-40                 8-55

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING--North Mesquite, LaTavion Larry 11-25, Tre'shaun Harrell 10-22, Jawuan Clark 4-18, Ja'Marzeyea Arvie 1-1, Alex Vigil 2-(-9). John Tyler, Roderick Hawkins 12-134, Kitan Crawford 7-65, Victor Campbell Jr. 2-4, Devlen Woods 2-1, K'Lon Warren 7-(-32).
PASSING--North Mesquite, Vigil 11-18-1--113. John Tyler, Warren 7-13-1--141, Woods 7-10-1--66.
RECEIVING--North Mesquite, Arvie 8-92, Azaveshe Daniyan 2-15, Kenyata Ento 1-6. John Tyler, Ke'Andre Street 3-93, Blake Washington 3-20, Hawkins 2-28, Warren 2-18, Michael Givens-Washington 1-33, Michael Hogg 1-11, Campbell Jr. 1-8, Jaivon Williams 1-(-4).