Tyler Legacy looking for first district win at Mesquite Horn

Published 3:38 pm Thursday, October 13, 2022

If the Tyler Legacy Red Raiders are going to advance to the postseason for the fourth consecutive year, Friday night would be classified as a must-win game.

“There’s no doubt,” Legacy head football coach Joe Willis said. “We told our team that there’s a sense of urgency that should be felt throughout our practice this week. I think our kids have responded to that. We’ve played much better the last two weeks, but we still have not finished our opponent or gotten to a place where we can get to the fourth quarter with them and try to win. We’ve gotten better every week, but at this points, there really aren’t a whole lot more chances that you’ve got, so we’ve really got to put it together this week And I think our guys will respond to that.”

“We’ve got to win now,” quarterback Luke Wolf said. “We’ve got to make the playoffs. It’s a big deal for me to make the playoffs. I think if we can start winning now, I think good things will start coming.”

Legacy (1-5, 0-2) will take on Mesquite Horn (5-2, 2-1) at 7 p.m. Friday at E.H. Hanby Stadium in Mesquite.

The Red Raiders have lost four straight games since a 29-27 four-overtime victory over rival Tyler. Horn is 2-2 since a 43-6 win over Tyler, losing by a total of seven points to Arlington and Rockwall.

“They run the ball very effectively,” Willis said. “They’ve got a lot of foot speed on the field. He’s got a lot of young players that are playing but are contributing. Defensively, they’re physical. They’ve got good size, and they run to the ball well with a lot of speed. They’ve got a pretty complete package. I knew that was a good hire that they made over there. I knew they were going to be much better this year. Their younger group has been really good the past couple of years, and we’re seeing the effect of that noew with several of those sophomores that are out there.”

To slow down a Horn offense that is averaging 34.1 points per game, the Red Raiders will need continued production from defensive lineman Travis Jackson and the rest of the defense.

“I’ve got to limit penalties and play smart,” Jackson said. “I think most of our losses have come from little mistakes. If we fix our little mistakes, we should come out with a win.”

“Travis has been maybe our best defensive player in terms of his production and his consistency. He’s put together several good games. It looks really good on film, and he’s a big impact player. Defensively, we’ve played good. We just have to cut down on some mistakes.”

Freshman Ethan Brown came up last week and immediately made his impact felt in his varsity debut.

“That guy has a lot of confidence in his ability,” Willis said. “He’s really coachable. We like that about him. He’s a deep snapper and he plays safety for us. The other night, I thought he was in attack mode the whole time. He didn’t look scared. He didn’t look bright eyed. He’s just out there playing football and having fun.”

Legacy will return home to host Royse City on Oct. 21.

Around District 10-6A

Rockwall (6-1, 3-0) will play at North Forney (3-3, 0-2). Rockwall has won four straight games, while North Forney has lost two straight.

Mesquite (3-4, 1-2) will play at Royse City (3-3, 1-1). Mesquite has lost two straight since its win over Legacy. Royse City lost to Rockwall 50-24 last week.

Rockwall-Heath is on bye week.