The Woodlands, Willis, and Oak Ridge Get Big Wins and More - Week 5 Recap

This week, district play continued as teams' identities started to take shape, and by now, we have an idea of who these teams are and how they might perform week to week. Let's review each game from this week and see how these teams did.

The Woodlands vs. Caney Creek

THE WOODLANDS -- To kick off the week, The Woodlands faced Caney Creek in their homecoming game for the Thursday night game. Both teams were coming off tough losses to Willis, and even though the Panthers had a bye week in between, they still looked out of sync as The Woodlands took control. Notably, QB Jack Daulton did not play for the Highlanders, but that hardly mattered, as the offense scored a commanding 52 points and the defense didn’t allow a single point all night. RBs Jason Haskins and Lincoln Halsey stepped up in Cody Jordan's absence, with Haskins finding the end zone twice and Halsey rushing for 61 yards and a touchdown. Kaden Copelin filled in for Daulton and had a solid day, throwing for 175 yards and a touchdown. That score came on a 27-yard screen to Beckett Barefoot, who made the most of his lone catch. The defense was exceptional, recording 6 sacks and 1 fumble recovery. One highlight was Caycen Bartolazzi returning a punt 64 yards for a touchdown, breaking about five tackles and powering through a defender at the end. Caney Creek looked out of sorts, with their offense unable to cross the 50-yard line and their defense struggling to hold. While this win was straightforward for the Highlanders, it serves as a confidence booster and shows they can still be dominant despite last week's tough loss. To see the game on Woodlands Online, check it out here.

Willis Wildkats vs. Cleveland Indians

WILLIS -- Cleveland hosted a blazing-hot Willis team eager to extend their winning streak in the district on Friday, and it was anything but close. Willis came out firing on all cylinders as both Jermaine Bishop Jr. and Jaivion Martin scored two touchdowns, and the offense as a whole looked great as usual. QB Lincoln Frazier threw six touchdowns today, passing for over 200 yards and playing a great game compared to how he performed in The Woodlands game. Bishop again looked like the best player in the district, making a fantastic catch for a 24-yard TD and a good run on a 15-yard screen pass that resulted in a touchdown. He didn’t punt this game, so that might’ve just been a special game plan only for The Woodlands, but he had a great day on both sides of the ball. The big story of this game, however, came from the Cleveland offense, which finally put some points on the board. Granted, it was against the backups, but they still found the end zone after a great pass from their QB Estrada, which connected, and was capped off by a touchdown run to avoid yet another shutout. Cleveland also almost scored again late in the 4th quarter, but a holding penalty stopped the Indians from accomplishing their only two-score game. Overall, this was yet another dominant performance from Willis, who will look to next week when they take on the other blazing-hot team in the district, College Park. For the full game as it was broadcast on Woodlands Online, check it out here.

Oak Ridge War Eagles vs. New Caney Eagles

NEW CANEY -- There hasn’t been much attention on New Caney this year, and unfortunately, there’s a reason for that. They hosted the Oak Ridge War Eagles on Friday for a clash of the eagle teams, and it turned out to be the closest game of the night. Oak Ridge won a hard-fought 31-28 battle, improving to 2-1 in district. Down 20-14 entering the 4th quarter, the War Eagles fought back and scored 17 points to secure a win that echoed their earlier victory over Stratford this season. For New Caney, their offense was not completely ineffective, as they threw for 210 yards and rushed for 83 yards—an improvement from previous games. While a win was desperately needed for the Eagles, they instead suffered their second loss in district play and will look to improve next week against Grand Oaks. As for Oak Ridge, despite a tough loss to College Park last week, they sit tied for third place in the district after a solid win today, showing that they can rally when given the chance in games.

College Park Cavaliers vs. Grand Oaks Grizzlies

THE WOODLANDS -- This game wasn’t much of a contest, as was common this week, as College Park steamrolled Grand Oaks with a 41-14 victory. College Park again looked impressive on offense, with five different players all scoring touchdowns. QB Camden Hughes slowed down compared to his usual performance, throwing only one touchdown and throwing an interception. WR Julian Cromartie had 61 yards receiving and a touchdown, as did Brian Snodgrass with 51 yards and a touchdown. On the other hand, Grand Oaks was shut down offensively, as RB Keilan Gause couldn’t continue his 100-yard rushing streak, finishing with just 22 yards for the day. The Grizzlies also struggled through the air, as QB Grant Smith completed only 11 of 32 passes for just 150 yards. College Park still appears to be the dominant team in the district, remaining undefeated through five games, and will travel to Willis for a critical matchup against the Wildkats and Jermaine Bishop Jr. Meanwhile, Grand Oaks drops to 1-2 in the district and needs to figure out how to handle tough defenses, as their offense performs well against weaker opponents but struggles against stronger teams.

Final Thoughts:

It was another great week of football. Although there were a couple of blowouts, there was at least one interesting game in New Caney, and Cleveland actually scored a touchdown, which is a positive for that program. Next week will feature some marquee matchups as College Park travels to play Willis, and Oak Ridge will face Conroe.