It is Playoff time in Texas! After a strong end to the season, which included Jesuit winning two in a row where they averaged 46.5 points in those games, they went on to face Arlington Lamar in the Bi-District Round of the UIL Playoffs. Jesuit would go on to put up a season high 65 points and win 65-41.
The Local Spotlight
Jesuit would receive some local attention for this game as Jesuit Dallas vs. Arlington Lamar would be chosen as NBC and WFAA’s game of the week. I had the wonderful opportunity to interview both stations about the game. First, I interviewed NBC’s sports reporter Abbi Bennett, who is from Texas and is very familiar with high school football Playoffs within the area. She said:
“Both teams are entering this matchup with a 5-5 record so it should be a pretty close game. There is nothing like [Playoff football] so i’m sure the emotions will be high and fans will be super rowdy.”
After that, I headed over to the other side of the field to interview WFAA’s sports reporter Jonah Javad, who is blessed to cover Texas high school football because of how large football is in Texas. Additionally, he said:
“the home field advantage may be beneficial to jesuit. BUT i am hopeful for A COMPETITVE GAME. THIS IS WHERE CAREERS CAN BE PARTLY DEFINED, IT IS A CHANCE FOR KIDS TO FURTHER GET THEIR NAMES OUT, AND POTENTIALLY GET A SCHOLARSHIP AND GO OFF TO PLAY COLLEGE.”
Game Summary
The game started off hot. After a big play from Harlan Beucler ’26, Jesuit was able to score off of a Shane Parker ’26 nine-yard run to strike first 7-0. Lamar would respond, but then, Jesuit would have another big play as Cade Kirby ’26 was able to catch a pass
from Beck Berry ’26 and take it to the house for 83 yards to give Jesuit the lead 14-7. In the second quarter, Jesuit exploded, scoring 34 points, which is the most they have scored in a quarter since their 2020 season vs. MacArthur. Scores included a Beck Berry rushing and passing touchdown (the passing touchdown was to Cade Kirby), Shane Parker’s second rushing touchdown, and two field goals. The score at half was 48-21 Jesuit.
“You only dream of these moments. you know a lot of people, they want to be here, they dream of being here. we were able to be here and get the win in front of our friends, so it was a blessing.” -shane parker ’26
Jesuit added two more touchdowns in the third quarter through a Ty Daboub ’27 rushing touchdown and a Shane Parker receiving touchdown to give Jesuit their largest lead of the game at 41 points. However, Lamar was able to put up 20 points after that, but never really came back, making the final score 65-41 Jesuit.
Offensive Stats
This was by far the best game by Jesuit’s offense. The offense put up 513 yards of offense while Lamar put up 475. Beck Berry played fantastically, going 11-13 with three touchdowns and 293 yards. Shane Parker led the running game with 122 yards and two touchdowns on nine attempts. Cade Kirby led Jesuit receiving-wise with 181 yards and two touchdowns on just four receptions.
“OUr chemistry has been tremendous this whole year so we just make sure to continue to love one another, trust each other on the routes, and trust our o-line with the blocking scheme. everything has been firing on all cylinders.” -shane parker ’26
Defensive Stats
The Jesuit defense forced three turnovers, which were all fumbles. Jesuit accumulated seven TFL’s, which amounted to a total of 30 yards. Tanner Krug ’26 was responsible for two of those
TFL’s, getting two sacks for 17 yards total and also had five tackles on the day (two solo and three assisted). Gabriel James ’26 and Cabe Weissmueller ’26 led the team in tackles with seven each (both had six solo and one assisted), and James was able to force and recover a fumble. Jack Bourret ’27 was also able to force and recover a fumble, and Andres Vann ’27 recovered the other fumble for Jesuit.
“We are just trying to be 1-0 each week and try to get better throughout the season. we are playing at a high level, [and] we feel pretty good about it. We are happy to win, move on, and advance.” -Head coach hickman
Looking Ahead
Jesuit now shifts their attention to the Area Round in the UIL Playoffs where they will be playing #10 in the state Denton Guyer (via MaxPreps). I asked Coach Hickman about the matchup and he stated:
“We want to tackle guyer the way we Do everyone else. We want to go 1-0 next week. We got to focus on us and not really focus on the opponent.”
Jesuit will play Guyer at Irving at a very familiar place in the Joy & Ralph Ellis Stadium, a stadium where they have continuously dominated opponents. Come out and cheer on your Rangers as they look to further advance in the Playoffs!
Tune into The Roundup for the Jesuit Varsity Football Playoffs!
All stats can be found on jesuitrangers.org.
