The Cooldown: Week 7
Cover Photo courtesy of The Houston Chronicle.
Week seven marked the start of week three for the big schools, and we didn’t have quite as many good games as we had in an outstanding first two weeks. Still, we did have a few intriguing games. We’ll recap a few and look forward to this week's linuep in this edition of The Cooldown.
Klein Collins Survives George Ranch
Klein Collins came into this game a little handicapped. The Tigers saw quarterback Colby Powers go down with a shoulder injury against North Shore last week, and had to start sophomore Justin Castillo. While Castillo is a more-than-capable quarterback, it’s always tough playing a sophomore with no prior varsity experience.
Castillo stepped in and completed five of his eight passes for 33 yards, adding five carries for 20 yards. He certainly didn’t do anything to hurt Collins’ chance to win the game, but he accounted for just 53 yards. That’s due-in-part to an outstanding night from senior running back Johnathan Lewis, who ran the ball 29 times for 266 yards and all four of the Tigers touchdowns. Lewis’ performance put the game just out of reach, giving Collins a 28-21 win.
That performance was matched by George Ranch junior back Hymond Drinkard, who went for 161 yards and two scores on 19 carries. Quarterback Sam Miller out-dueled his sophomore counterpart, completing 10-of-19 passes for 106 yards and an INT: the games’ only turnover.
Collins will have a bye week before opening district play against Klein Oak; going 1-1 in the non-district portion of its calendar. George Ranch also gets a bye week to regroup before opening district play at Elkins. The Longhorns are 1-2 on the season.
C.E. King Impresses Against Ridge Point
C.E. King continued its impressive start to 2020 with a big 31-21 win against Ridge Point. Kameron Kincheon had a nice night through the air, completing 7-of-9 passes for 101 yards and a score… that’s an efficient 14.4 yards-per-completion.
The real damage was done on the ground as King finished with two 100-yard rushers. D’Koreion Hammond carried 13 times for 146 yards and two scores while Jerrell Wimbley carried 20 times for 187 yards and a touchdown.
For Ridge Point, Bert Emanuel completed 12-of-20 passes for 107 yards and a touchdown, but hurt the Panthers with three picks. Keith Jackson ran the ball 27 times for 130 yards and a score.
King will play at Huntsville this week before district play begins against Kingwood. I’m interested to see where the Panthers wind up at seasons’ end, 21-6A is perhaps the toughest district in the state. The good news is, King looks like it could push just about anyone. Ridge Point has a bye before district play begins on Oct. 22 against Clements. The Panthers are 0-2 on the year, but King and Dickinson are two of the best in the area. Ridge Point should still be the favorites in 20-6A.
Tomball Memorial Wins a Points-Fest
For the second week in a row, Tomball Memorial let up at least 35 points points. But for the second week in a row, Memorial also hung nearly 70.
The numbers here are gaudy. Colton Marwill completed 12-of-17 passes for 218 yards and three scores against one pick, while the ground game rolled up more than 500 yards. The Wildcats had three 100-yard rushers: Richard Rodriguez with 197 and two scores, Sima Weaver with 117 and a touchdown, and Marwill with 102 and a touchdown. Wide receiver Joseph Manjack also had a rush that went for 56 yards a score to go with his 131 yards and two additional touchdowns through the air.
In all, Memorial finished with 747 yards of offense, which is obscene. Klein Collins hasn’t lost its district in a half-decade, but I don’t know if the Tigers can keep up with Memorial in an offensive shootout. The Wildcats have scored at least 55 points in all three games this season. Memorial begins district play this weekend against rival Tomball while Deer Park starts district play as well against Sam Rayburn.
Other Notable Games
It wasn’t a particularly great week in Houston, but some other games deserve mentioning. Crosby picked up a shoot-out style win against Montgomery 55-52, while Spring impressed in a 55-17 win against DeKaney. In a surprise, Baytown Lee took down Friendswood to put the Mustangs at a shocking 0-3. Angleton rallied from a 14-point deficit for a walk-off field goal victory, 22-20, over Lamar Consolidated. I was also impressed with Lake Creek in a 30-29 win against Travis. Conroe impressed me as well in a win against Summer Creek. Bellville and Grand Oaks continued dominant starts to their seasons’ as well.
Week 7 Look Ahead
The best game in week seven is a showdown between Katy and Katy Tompkins. Both are undefeated and looked impressive on offense last week, and this game could decide the district champion. That game will be on Thursday night.
Friday night has two good 6A-5A showdowns between North Shore and Manvel, and The Woodlands and Hightower. I’ll also have my eye on rivalry showdowns between Pearland and Pearland Dawson and Klein and Klein Cain. While the Tompkins-Katy showdown might be the best, it isn’t by much. I’m excited to see Spring take on Spring Westfield.
Those are the best games in the Houston area for week seven. It’s a lighter week as many teams have bye’s on the schedule, but there are still plenty of heavyweight showdowns. Come back next week to read up on some of these great games.