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Football: Temple of Doomed: Dragons shut out Wildcats, 34-0

Published: Saturday, September 15, 2012 1:43 AM CDT

Matthew Costa, Staff Writer

ARLINGTON- The bright lights and atmosphere inside Cowboys Stadium may intimidate some, but Southlake Carroll (2-1) welcomed the big stage again Friday night, shutting Temple (2-1) out, 34-0.

"This is obviously a great stadium," said Aaron Hoagland, Carroll senior defensive back. "It's always fun playing here; it's a great feeling."

Carroll held a 21-0 lead as the end of the first half approached, but the Wildcats were desperate to get a score before then.

A 76-yard drive by Temple's offense had it poised to end the shutout. Facing a 4th-and-12 from the Dragon's 18-yard line, Wildcats quarterback Zachary Allen misfired on a corner pass to wide receiver Devonte McClennon. The incompletion gave the ball to the Dragons, who took over with under a minute remaining and two timeouts. Carroll executed a near-perfect drive that saw the team drive down to Temple's 3 before junior Drew Brown kicked a 20-yard field goal as time expired in the second quarter to make it 24-0.

"[Those drives] speak volumes about our defense and our offense," said Hal Wasson, Carroll head coach. "[Senior quarterback Kenny Hill] is definitely very aware of the clock and how to manage the game.

"It was a huge momentum lift."

The drive was led by Hill, who dominated the first half by rushing for 205 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries. The Texas A&M commit was almost unstoppable before the break, running for gains of 49, 41, 22 and 20 yards.

"I thought the offensive line came out and played great," Hill said. "Everybody came out throwing blocks. The whole offense was clicking."

At the start of the third, Temple appeared to mount a scoring drive, taking the ball from its 25-yard line to the Dragons' 36. Carroll's defense would once again rise to the occasion, forcing a turnover on downs from the Wildcats. After another 20-yard field goal by Brown, Temple mounted its longest drive, marching down to the Dragons' 4 before a snap over the head of Allen cost the Wildcats 42 yards and any hopes of its first points of the night.

Allen finished the night with 372 yards, but could not gain a touchdown as the Carroll defense bent but did not break.

Temple had many costly errors in the game, amassing 20 penalties and more than 140 yards to go along with three turnovers on downs and two fumbles. Carroll also able to contain the running backs of Temple, holding the Wildcats to 23 yards on 33 rushing attempts.

"They've got great playmakers at the skill positions," Wasson said. "We really focused on shutting the run game down because that's when our defense really goes to work.

"I'm so proud of them tonight."

Hill would seal the game away, ending a 54-yard drive with a 7-yard run that had the Wildcats defenders falling over themselves as the Dragons increased the lead to 34-0. After that drive, Carroll finished the fourth quarter strong, keeping the Wildcats out of the end zone and earning its second win of the season.

Carroll began the game in style, holding Temple to a three-and-out and scoring on its second drive with a 49-yard run by Hill to gain a 7-0 lead. Hill was aided by junior running back A.J. Ezzard, who scored the Dragons' second touchdown. Ezzard was productive in a limited role, gaining 72 yards on 14 carries.

Carroll stopped the Wildcats again after that and eventually cruised to a 34-0 victory.

"I'm really excited for the team tonight," Wasson said. "Great team effort and a great team win."

The Dragons will need to continue their run of success going into next week's District 4-5A opener, which is 7:30 p.m. Friday at Keller Central.

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