Jermaine Bishop Jr. Scores An Eye Popping 4 TDs, Leading Willis To The Quarterfinals Of The Texas State Playoffs

WILLIS, TX – The Willis Wildkats advanced to the 4th round of the playoffs after a 38-32 victory over the Forney Jackrabbits on Saturday. It was an incredible game for Willis from start to finish, marking another great win for the Wildkats as they move on to face DeSoto in the quarterfinals. DeSoto easily defeated fellow District 13 team College Park in the 3rd round last week, so this will be Willis’s toughest challenge yet as they aim to reach the 6A state semifinals for the first time in school history. DeSoto is also the team that knocked Willis out last year in the 3rd round, so the Wildkats will be looking to avenge that loss and end DeSoto’s season themselves. But let’s focus on the game against Forney, which showed why Willis remains such a formidable team in these playoffs.

Willis vs Forney: A 1^st Half Shutout and a Close End

This game showcased the talent of the Willis squad and confirmed why they were one of the favorites to advance from District 13 at the start of the season. A strong victory over a talented Forney team earns them a spot in the 4th round of the playoffs, a new milestone for the Wildkats. They are now the only District 13 team remaining and aim to outdo their College Park rivals by defeating the DeSoto team that eliminated them last round.

Willis was once again propelled by the heroics of Jermaine Bishop Jr., who continues to elevate his performances each week. Perhaps Bishop was inspired by his Longhorns' win over A&M the night before, as he recorded an impressive 15 catches for 329 yards and 3 TDs in this game, adding another rushing score for a total of 4 touchdowns on the day. His speed was on display once more, as he broke multiple tackles and juked out defenders, reaffirming why he is one of the top prospects in the nation. The Texas commit will certainly be a big factor in this upcoming game and one of the main reasons they are able to compete. QB Lincoln Frazier also had a standout day, throwing for 481 yards and 4 TDs with a 61.5% completion rate. Although Frazier threw an interception, his near 500-yard performance outweighs that mistake in the long run. He made several impressive throws, including one to Jaivion Martin in the endzone that was perfectly placed to evade solid coverage from the DB. Frazier continues to excel in these playoffs and will only improve. The rushing game was somewhat inconsistent, with the team rushing for just 50 yards total. Tyler Andrade led the rushing group with 32 yards on 7 carries, while Bishop scored the only rushing touchdown of the day. The passing attack was clicking, with Bishop amassing 329 yards, Martin adding 81 yards and a TD, and Jayden Lane contributing 54 yards. Martin remains a valuable #2 option in the passing game, consistently showing great efficiency whenever he gets the ball. At one point, he literally pulled three defenders with him for an extra 6 yards at the end of a play, showcasing his incredible strength. Lane also continues to rise, as this sophomore wideout steadily climbs the pecking order in the WR core. The passing attack was on fire in this game, and they’re looking to keep that momentum going into the next one.

The defense stepped up in this game, although it did kind of crumble towards the end. They played lights out in the first half, recording a shutout going into the locker room. Coming out of halftime, they only allowed 11 points in the third, before giving up 21 in the fourth. Fortunately, the offense was able to keep pace with Forney starting to come back, but it still got a little dicey at the end. If Jermaine Bishop hadn’t already done enough on offense, he also recorded an interception to really emphasize that this was one of his best games of the season. The defense managed to contain star RB Javian Osborne well, recording multiple tackles for loss on the Notre Dame commit, and forcing Forney to test the pass, which they don’t always prefer to do. If the defense can perform like this against DeSoto, they might have a good shot in that game.

Final Thoughts:

This is an overall excellent win for the Willis Wildkats and demonstrates the resilience of this team. They faced some tough challenges during the regular season, so it’s great to see they’ve learned from those mistakes and can make a run like this. They will now play in the coveted 4th round of the playoffs against DeSoto, a team they know well, as DeSoto knocked them out of the playoffs last year. This Willis team will be hungry for revenge and eager to prove how much they’ve improved this season. The game will be at Baylor’s McLane Stadium next Saturday and promises to be one of the best we’ve seen all season. To watch highlights of the 3rd round game, check them out here on Woodlands Online.