As last Friday’s beaming blood-orange sunset starts to fold under the horizon and it slowly vanishes under the clouds, the smell of fall is here, and the anticipation throughout Ranger Stadium is present, as kickoff roams through the air… this begins Senior Night for the class of ’23 and DPL night too!
Defensive tackle Chris Simington ’24 (Big Sim) preparing for the snap. Source: Jaxx Rigelsky ’24 (flicks.by.rigs).
Injured outside linebacker converted hype-man, Drew Noonan ’24, said “I mean honestly, seeing the guys come out, getting after it, and hustling. We were really firing on all cylinders on both sides of the ball. With the offense putting up almost 60 points, it is safe to say it was a very strong performance from our offense. I love seeing the atmosphere, you know, its a home game at Jesuit Dallas @ Ranger Stadium, so that’s always great. And the environment we have at home is really something special that not a lot of schools have and I think that’s what separates us from the competition in our district.”
Stats:
Offensively for your Rangers, Charlie Schmidt led the way for the Jesuit offense, completing 24-29 of his passes for 384 yards, and 5 touchdowns… a season-best. On the ground, Schmidt also scored two rushing touchdowns himself and carried the ball 11 times for 75 yards. Schmidt also becomes the second-ever Jesuit quarterback to throw for 5 passing touchdowns in a game; the last person to do that was Bo Schneider ’15. Schnider completed this four times in his career at Jesuit.
Another record was broken in the UIL… wide receiver Jake Musso ’23 caught 12 passes for 278 yards, passing the previous record of 276 yards back in 2011 when Jesuit played against Coppell. He caught four of 5 of Schmidt’s passing touchdowns. And Matty Wagner ’23 snagged an 18-yard reception for a receiving touchdown.
Defensively for your Rangers, Blake Miller led the team with 11 tackles of his own, additionally, linebacker Grayson Wombacher ’24 racked 7 tackles, with a TFL of his own. Sophomore linebacker Cade Gill ’25 played a significant role in converting two stops, and 1.5 TFL too. Both Roark Holman and Luke Buckner picked off Berkner quarterback Cornell McGee IV. And Oneal Murray stripped the ball out of the defender, as defensive back Bo Jouette recovered it.
Roark Holman ’23 and Grant Peters ’23 preparing for the play call. Source: Jaxx Rigelsky ’24 (flicks.by.rigs)
Jackson Fleischer ’24, said, “The records that the Rangers set against Berkner made it an exciting game to experience.”
Recap/Play-by-Play:
Here is some information for people that were not able to attend the game.
1st Quarter:
At the start of the 1st quarter, the Rangers pounced on the Rams early. Tight end Matty Wagner ’23 caught a ball The Rangers were challenged by the Berkner Rams, leading by 4 at the end of the first half 14-10 in just three plays driving down the field. Richardson Berkner responded with a 71-yard passing touchdown from Cornell McGee IV in just roughly a minute. Berkner knocked in a 20-yard field goal with 22 seconds left in the first quarter. Jesuit got the ball back, and Charlie Schmidt ’23 launched a 71-yard pass to end the quarter with momentum. Jesuit ended the quarter 14-10 in a dynamic manner.
2nd Quarter:
Berkner received the ball back, and delivered a 7-yard run to make it 17-14; their only lead the entire game. After, Schmidt threw a 45-yard pass to Jake Musso, and McGough missed the extra point. And then just three minutes Schmidt barreled in the endzone for a 7-yard play making it 27-17 Jesuit, their first double-digit lead of the game. To end the half off, kicker Noah McGough ’25 knocked in a 40-yard field goal. The Rangers led at half 30-17, from the electric offense.
Reid McMillan ’24, said, “The o-line played well. The special team was devious with their pointage.”
Reid McMillan ’24, said, “The o-line played well. The special team was devious with their pointage.”
3rd Quarter:
Leading into halftime, Jesuit had their longest drive of the game with 10 plays, and Schmidt rushed for another rushing touchdown. 2 minutes later, McGee found his receiver for a 63-yard pass. Once again, Jake Musso ’23 caught a 5-yard pass with just three minutes left in the third. The Rangers lead 44-24 going into the 4th quarter.
4th Quarter:
Musso caught his fourth receiving touchdown that game with five minutes left to go in the 4th. Jesuit received the ball back, after a failed Berkner drive. And afterward, quarterback Will Greenwood ’23 ran the ball in for his first rushing touchdown of the game. Berkner received the ball back, and in the last 20 seconds of the game. The final score of the game was 58-31 Rangers!
Photo of the offensive huddle on the field. Source from Jaxx Rigelsky ’24 (flicks.by.rigs).
Wide receiver Landon Polk ’24 lines up on the line scrimmage. Source by Jaxx Rigelsky ’24 (flicks.by.rigs).
Summary:
Jesuit heads to play @ Irving Nimitz next Thursday the 20th at 7 P.M! This season Irving Nimitzs’ record is 1-7, following a 6-51 loss to Highland Park. Jesuit stands currently 2nd in the 6A Region 1 sitting behind Highland Park. The Rangers are 5-1 in the district and are stampeding through. Charlie Schmidt against Berkner was phenomenal, leading the Rangers, not only in passing but even rushing. So far offensively for the Rangers, the Rangers put up the most points in any game this season, which shows Charlie Schmidt’s dual-threat abilities. Defensively, however, some important moments in this game were linebacker Blake Miller’s ’23 11 tackles, a season-high for him. Also, to mention, there were two momentum-swinging interceptions picked off by linebackers Luke Buckner and Roark Holman. The camaraderie on both the offense and defense is outstanding, as it is evident to watch from the student section and the stands.
Stay tuned to the Roundup for more Jesuit football coverage and recaps!
