Mistakes doom Highlanders

WACO, Texas - Allen took advantage of two Highlander fumbles in the first quarter en route to a 56-21 Class 5A Division I regional playoff win at Floyd Casey Stadium in Waco Saturday afternoon.

“We knew that they (Allen) were a very, very explosive offense and we were going to have to try to match them score for score. The (first) turnover was big in the momentum game. We had another opportunity, where we blocked the play right and if we run outside, we walk in for a touchdown. If we’d been able to capitalize on those two possessions, I feel it would of been a different first half,” said Highlander Head Coach Mark Schmid.

Allen (13-0) took the initial possession of the game and drove deep inside Highlander territory, but couldn’t capitalize. Allen lined up for a 26-yard field goal attempt, however the snap was fumbled and the Highlanders recovered at their own 6-yard line.

The Highlander turnovers happened on the first two Highlander possessions in the first quarter. On a third-and-2 play from the 11-yard line, Junior quarterback Chris Andritsos was sacked and had the ball was jarred loose as the Eagles recovered at the Highlander 11-yard line. The turnover was the first for The Woodlands in nine postseason quarters. Allen took advantage of the fumble two plays later when Eagle Senior running back Jaelen Barlow plunged in from the 1-yard line, giving Allen a 7-0 lead with 7:12 left in the first quarter.

The Highlanders (10-3) got the ball moving on their second possession when Andritsos connected on back-to-back passes to Junior wide receiver Chris Bell and Senior wide receiver Tyler Patrick, respectively. The Woodlands had the ball at the Allen 23-yard line, but the next three plays went for five total yards and another fumble ended the Highlander scoring threat.

Allen responded to the turnover with a 12-play 87-yard drive, capped off by Junior quarterback Kyler Murray connecting on a 7-yard touchdown strike to Senior wide receiver Cole Carter. The score extended the Eagle lead 14-0, with 1:10 remaining in the first quarter.

The Woodlands again got moving on the third possession when Junior running back Patrick Carr took an end-around hand off and raced 49 yards to the Allen 22-yard line and the Highlanders were again threatening the defending Class 5A Division I champions. The Woodlands couldn’t move the ball any further and turned the ball over on downs.

The Highlander defense came up with another stop when Allen running back Jaelen Barlow fumbled and Junior Jake Coll recovered for The Woodlands giving them a first-and-10 at the Allen 23-yard line. After the recovery Allen was flagged for a personal foul that gave The Woodlands a first-and-10 at the Allen 12-yard line. The Allen defense stiffened when the Highlanders were flagged for delay of game and Andritsos was sacked on third down.

The momentum changed to Allen when The Woodlands went for it on fourth-and-18 from the Allen 20-yard line and didn’t convert. Allen went for the big play and got it when Kyler Murray connected with Senior wide receiver Josh Pettijohn on a 71-yard touchdown pass that gave Allen a 21-0 lead with 8:39 left in the second quarter.

Allen for the game finished with 567 total yards to The Woodlands’ 407. The Eagles had five drives start in Highlander territory, scoring on each of the first three. Allen quarterback Kyler Murray finished 16-of-21 for 335 yards, five touchdown passes. Murray also had four rushes for 44 yards, including a 49-yard touchdown run in the second quarter.

The hole was too deep for The Woodlands to overcome as Allen took a 42-0 lead at halftime.

The Woodlands did not quit as they outscored Allen 21-14 in the second half. Junior quarterback Chris Andritsos led an 8-play, 88 yard drive capped off with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Senior wide receiver Jeremy Davis Harper. On the next possession Junior running back Patrick Carr shined with an electrifying 59-yard touchdown run off the left-side. Carr finished with 196 yards rushing on 19 carries. The Highlanders got their final touchdown on a 1-yard quarterback keeper from Senior Dylan Larsen to cap the scoring.