“No one believed in us and we shocked them all.” -Charlie Peters ’25
The early weeks of the football season provide a very interesting scene for fans of the sport. Generally, in high school and college, the first weeks of the season teams play out-of-conference teams. There can be very exciting games, such as the Notre Dame against Ohio State game this year, which schedules two top-15 opponents against each other early on, or South Oak Cliff, who competes well in the UIL, against Parish, who has controlled the TAPPS landscape for the past several years. Nonetheless, the weeks provide matchups that we would not have seen otherwise. This was the case when Jesuit hosted 17th ranked Rockwall at home on Friday, September 1.
First Half
Rockwall opened the game by scoring a touchdown quickly, and many Rockwell fans thought it was over then and there. Charlie Peters ’25 and the Rangers answered by putting up a touchdown of their own on a pass from Peters to Blake Bodnar ’25. The Yellowjackets put up another touchdown on their next drive, which was responded to yet again with a 1-yard touchdown run from Zane Williams ’25. Rockwall, showing why they were 17th ranked, put up a third straight touchdown against the Rangers defense after a controversial forced fumble that stayed in possession of Rockwall inside the red zone. This altered of the Rangers and they did not return the score. Rockwall took advantage of the momentary struggle from the Rangers and added a field goal to the board, giving the Yellowjackets a 24-14 lead going into the half.
Second Half
Rockwall opened the half with a touchdown, making the 31-14 and seemingly out of reach from the Rangers. That’s when Coach Hickman pulled tomfoolery out of his back pocket, running a flea flicker utilizing the arm strength of former quarter back Jaeger Krauss ’25 to throw a dime in stride to wide open receiver Cooper Cutler ’24 for a touchdown. The defense then picked up a critical stop with a bad snap fumble from Rockwall jumped on by Roundup associate editor Tristan Bird ’24, causing a huge momentum shift in the game. Peters quickly threw a corner touchdown pass to Quentin Williams ’24, putting the Rangers within two.
“Our defense was searching for a stop all night and in such a big moment in the game, it was awesome to come up with a fumble. this gave our offense a chance to close the gap we needed to pull off a win.” Tristen Bird ’24
Things looked grim as Rockwall scored two unanswered touchdowns, making the game 45-29, but Zane Williams went in for his second touchdown of the night with a pass from Peters and ran it in for the two point conversion. Rockwall answered with a touchdown of their own, and the Rangers returned the favor with Krauss catching a 34-yard pass from Peters for a touchdown, Quentin Williams scoring the two point conversion.
With just over three minutes left in the game the Charlie Peters escaped pressure from the pocket and hit a 61-yard pass to Cooper Cutler who ran in the touchdown to tie the game for the first time since the first quarter. Rockwall was determined not to go down, however, and scored on a long pass. With seconds ticking off the clock, the rangers marched downfield and Charlie Peters hit Zane Williams for yet another touchdown between the two, tying the score 59-59. Coach Hickman made the gutsy call to go for two and win the game right there, and it was successful. With 23 seconds left in the game Rockwall got the ball trailing for the first time all game. They went downfield, but a short-by-much field goal was hit as the final moments of the game cam to an end. Jesuit had beaten Rockwall for the first time since 2013.
“This might be a top three win in program history.” – Coach Hickman
Stats
Offensive
Charlie Peters ’25: 37/48 passing (breaks Jesuit completion record by two), 370 passing yards passing, 6 TD (ties Jesuit record), 0 int, 24 net rush yards, Dallas Morning News Sportsday Offensive Player of the Week, @txprivateschoolfootball Large School Player of the Week
Zane Williams ’25: 6 rushes, 11 net yards, 1 TD, 6 rec, 53 yards, 2 TD
Ryan Engelhardt ’25: 9 rushes, 31 net yards. 2 rec, 11 yards
Cooper Cutler ’24: 10 rec, 202 yards, 2 TD
Henry Bourret ’25: 7 rec, 54 yards, 3 rushes, 6 net yards,
Jaeger Krauss ’25: 3 rec, 52 yards, 1 TD, 1/1 passing, 79 yards, 1 TD
Quentin Williams ’24: 6 rec, 51 yards, 1 TD
Blake Bodner: 4 rec, 26 yards, 1 TD
“Our execution on offense was phenomenal and our tempo was the fastest we have ever run it.” – Ben Petroff ’24
Defensive
Tristen Bird ’24: 1 solo, 11 ast, 1 FR
Grayson Wombacher ’24: 4 solo, 6 ast.
Robert Prager ’25: 4 solo, 5 ast
Cade Gill ’25: 3 solo, 5 ast, 1 QH
Logan Thompson ’24: 1 solo, 7 ast, 1.5 TF
“I could not be prouder of our team’s incredible victory against Rockwall last Friday night. The electric atmosphere in the packed stands fueld our determination, and in a nail-biting finish, we emerged triumphant with a close 60-59 win. it’s moments like these that remind us of the unwavering spirit of Jesuit Dallas and the incredible support of our fans which help us to emerge victorious in historic games like this.” – Captain Chris Simington ’24
Special Teams
Noah McGough ’25: 4 PAT, 7 kickoffs, 409 yards, 4 TB, 58.4 avg
Dylan Drennan ’24: 1 kickoff, 60 yards, 1 punt, 36 yards
My Thoughts
What a game. Rockwell has been very good for a very long time and the past five times the contest has resulted in a loss for us. Many did not believe in the team, many of the doubters came within the Jesuit community. There were lots of questions after the Hebron game, which was looking like a very winnable game going into the season, and which could have been if a few plays here and there had gone differently.
I think the biggest question that was answered was our offense. Charlie Peters looked confident from the start and it was like the struggle of the Hebron game had never happened. It looks like a very promising future at the QB position for the next two years of Jesuit football.
What makes the Jesuit offense very special is the amount of weapons Jesuit has. Many thought it may come down to a Peters-Cutler target every time, but Peters has spread his targets out throughout many different receiver and even is including the running backs in the passing game. This made it especially difficult to predict the offensive play, which has shown to be helpful on third downs and red zone plays.
Zane Williams has won over the student section with six touchdowns over the past two games. Often, the students would be yelling “2BC,” his Instagram handle, as he comes into the game or after a player. He can play both as a power and a speed back, while also receiving the ball well.
Many times throughout the game it felt like the defense could not get a stop, which is to be expected against an opponent like Rockwall. The defense were able to pull off a stop in the second half of the game almost every time it was critical. The big thing is just getting those stops when it does not seem to matter as much.
The special teams was great again this game. McGough and Drennan have been phenomenal on kickoffs this year and McGough has yet to miss a kick worth points this year. I think the four two-point conversions proved less of a reliance on special teams and I feel like we will see many conversions in future games.
I think for the most part the team is confident for district play next week after the two games, but I think the biggest effect was the attitude to the Highland Park game this year. I mentioned in my last article that it was likely the matchup would be the district championship, and after Rockwall that looks increasingly to be the case. The biggest change now is that is looks like a much more winnable game after defeating a top opponent like Rockwall, proving that if everything is executed. well, this team could go far this year.
Overall I think this game is best described as:
“A tremendous show of grit and hard work that led to a historic ending.” – William Spicer ’24
Looking Forward
That concludes non-conference play for the Rangers as they go to play JJ Pearce on September 7 at Eagle-Mustang Stadium at 7:00. The Rangers have won the last eight matchups, with last year’s matchup ending 40-13.
Stay tuned to The Roundup for more football coverage!
