TCU safety Chris Hackett (1), a John Tyler graduate, intercepts a pass against Southeastern Louisiana running back Xavier Roberson (1) during the second half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 7, 2013, in Fort Worth, Texas. TCU won 38-17.(AP Photo/LM Otero)

1. John Tyler looks to unseat defending champ, No. 1 Aledo

One.

A single line, a solitary tally.

It signifies first or worst, the best or the loneliest.

At John Tyler High School, the number 1 has a special connotation, one of breathtaking athleticism and shattered school records.

Wearing the No. 1 jersey for the Lions football team the last six years has carried significant weight and expectations.

First Chris Hackett, the school’s all-time interceptions leader. Then Greg Ward, who set countless passing records.

Now Jeremy Wilson, the diminutive running back who’s chasing the biggest name of them all: Earl Campbell.

Hackett, Ward and Wilson — all bearers of the ‘1′ for Cujo, all cousins.

Wilson, a 5-9, 170-pound dynamo, has 1,752 rushing yards through 14 games for John Tyler. He’s 284 yards shy of the legendary Campbell’s school record of 2,036.

Wilson has at least one more game to go.

“Just him being the Tyler Rose, his name carries a lot of weight around this school,” Wilson said. “Just to even be mentioned close to him is an unbelievable feeling.

“I’m shooting for a ring first, but besides that I’m shooting for the record.”

The Lions face Aledo in the Class 5A Division I state semifinals at 2 p.m. Saturday in Mesquite. A win gives Wilson a 16th game to pass Campbell, the Heisman Trophy winner and Pro Football Hall of Famer.

It would only be fitting for Wilson to claim a school record given his cousins who came before, cementing their status as the first family of John Tyler football.

Hackett snagged a record 15 interceptions over his high school career, including 12 during his senior year in 2010.

Ward owns JT records in career passing yards (7,963), career completions (566), career passing touchdowns (77), single-season passing yards (4,190) and single-game passing yards (551). Ward also has a share of the single-game state completions record with 48, set against Denton Guyer in the 2012 state semifinals.

“That’s really crazy the way it falls like that,” Hackett said. “I’m pretty sure he’s more worried about getting the win and getting to state as a team.”

Added Ward: “He needs to keep it all in the family, so he needs to go ahead and get this record.”

Wilson has run for 125 yards per game this year and needs to run for 142 in the next two games to reach Campbell’s mark. That number is feasible given that Wilson has averaged 168 yards in four playoff games, including 231 last week against McKinney North.

While Campbell was a bruiser who left defenders dazed, Wilson takes the smallest opening and dashes through a defense, leaving opponents in the dust.

“Sometimes it’s crazy watching him run,” JT quarterback Geovari McCollister said. “Me and him grew up together, we’ve been playing football together for a long time. Some of the things he does, it’s not normal.

“He’s fast; he’s strong. He can pretty much take over a game by himself if we need him to and I love that about him. He’s determined.”

Though cousins by name, the relationship of Hackett, Ward and Wilson is closer to that of brothers. Playing and competing with each other through the years has helped all three excel at John Tyler and beyond.

Hackett, a redshirt junior at TCU, was recently named Big 12 first-team all conference as a safety. The 6-2 defender tied for the league lead in interceptions with six, the seventh-best mark in the nation. Hackett finished fourth on the sixth-ranked Horned Frogs with 73 tackles.

Ward earned the starting quarterback job at the University of Houston as a sophomore this fall after performing as a receiver, while also running and throwing as a freshman. The 5-11 quarterback threw for 1,736 yards and nine touchdowns while rushing for 643 and six more scores during the regular season.

“Every day that we worked out with each other, we competed with each other,” Ward said. “They always worked hard, they never complained about anything, they always showed effort regardless of the situation. They’re amazing to play with.”

“It was all about separating ourselves and showing each other that we were going to make it.”

Wilson, the youngest and shortest at 5-9, had the most guidance and the most to live up to.

In 2012 when Wilson was a sophomore role player and Ward the star quarterback, Wilson said Ward gave him constant advice.

“He was on me like I was a senior,” Wilson said. “I didn’t even really get to play that much, but he was still on me when I made a mistake or made a wrong step.”

All those years of competing with future Division I athletes had an effect on Wilson, who has elevated his game in his first year as the starting running back after going for 442 yards as a junior.

“It was rough playing backyard football with them; it was rough,” Wilson said. “They showed me tough love, but it’s all paying off now; and they always told me it would be hard because of my size, but they told me I could overcome it and I’m waiting for my opportunity right now.”

Added Hackett: “Jeremy’s had a great season and he’s showing that he can be one of those top players that can go play Division I football. It’s coming from the help of his teammates and a great coach, coach Ricklan Holmes.”

While Hackett, Ward and Wilson all have different abilities, one common theme is speed.

“They all can run,” said Holmes, who was Hackett’s secondary coach before being named JT head coach in 2012. “Hackett is the biggest of the three. Greg is the more football savvy one. Jeremy is just tough.

“He’s a tough little kid. He’s a blazer.”

Holmes said he thinks Wilson is the fastest of the three, to which Wilson unsurprisingly agreed. Hackett said Wilson might be a little faster while Ward admits it’d be one heck of a race between the two.

“We’re all athletes; we basically do the same exact things,” Hackett said.

Holmes has a special relationship with the No. 1 trio, knowing their parents and having watched them grow up in his neighborhood.

“Just seeing them mature into the guys that they have matured into — Jeremy having the success that he’s having his senior year, Greg being a starting quarterback for the University of Houston and Hackett being one of the best safeties in the country right now — seeing those guys go from the little snotty nosed kids that was running up and down the street trying to keep up with older guys like us, it’s pretty unique I must say,” Holmes said.

According to Hackett, Holmes is part of the reason he wears the No. 1 jersey. Holmes wore the number at Oklahoma State before going on to play in the NFL.

“It’s just been passed down,” Hackett said. “We’re basically like family too with coach Holmes. From him wearing it, he passed it down to me. I wore it, then Greg, then as soon as Greg left, Jeremy was able to get it. Down the line we just try to keep the generation going wearing No. 1.”

Hackett had to wait a year at TCU to get his No. 1 jersey while Ward was granted the coveted number as a true freshman at Houston.

“It’s just a family tradition,” Wilson said.

Now there’s just one number left for the family to attain — last one standing.

Hackett’s John Tyler teams were stopped in the quarterfinals in back-to-back seasons in 2009 and 2010. Ward led the Lions to the state semifinals in 2011 and 2012, though Cujo couldn’t quite get over the hump.

Wilson hopes to help JT reach the state championship game for the first time since 2000. The Lions haven’t won a state title since 1994, Holmes’ freshman year.

He’ll have a couple of cousins rooting for him and John Tyler to become No. 1.

“I’m overjoyed because I just know that it’s the time right here,” Ward said. “They’re going to go out there and do something we weren’t able.

“They’re going to prove it to the world now.”

LIONS TALES: Tickets for the John Tyler-Aledo game at E.H. Hanby Stadium will be sold on campus to students and faculty today and Friday during lunch. Additional ticket sales will be at the TISD athletic office (807 W. Glenwood) today and Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.; and at Tyler Athletics (5201 S. Broadway) during regular business hours today and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Friday. Presale tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for students. Gate tickets cost $10 for general admission. John Tyler is the designated home team.

 

2014 John Tyler Statistics

Scores

Non-District

John Tyler 30, Plano 12

John Tyler 41, Longview 25

Robert E. Lee 37, John Tyler 31

District 16-5A

John Tyler 52, Whitehouse 17

John Tyler 76, Lindale 13

John Tyler 26, Lufkin 24

Ennis 30, John Tyler 27

John Tyler 33, Corsicana 3

John Tyler 62, Jacksonville 7

John Tyler 44, Nacogdoches 14

Playoffs

John Tyler 58, Texas High 23

John Tyler 44, Mansfield Summit 27

John Tyler 49, Rockwall-Heath 21

John Tyler 64, McKinney North 40

Score By Quarters

    1st    2nd    3rd    4th       OT        Tot.

Opponents    67    73    96    57    0    —    293

JOHN TYLER    160    140    211    126    0    —    637

———

Team Statistics

Scoring

    JT    Opp.

Rushing    246    132

Passing    192    96

PAT    78    26

FG    33    21

Defense/Special Teams    88    12

2 Pt Conversion    0    6

Total    637    293

———

First Downs

    JT     Opp.

Passing    127    77

Rushing    150    131

Penalty    11    18

Total    288    226

———

Third Down Conversions

JOHN TYLER    72-154 (47%)

Opponents    57-180 (32%)

Fourth Down Conversions

JOHN TYLER    10-15 (67%)

Opponents    12-26 (46%)

Field Goals Made/Attempted

JOHN TYLER    11-16 (69%)

Opponents    7-8 (88%)

———

PATs Made/Attempted

JOHN TYLER    78-87 (90%)

Opponents    26-36 (72%)

Team Yardage

Rushing

JOHN TYLER    2808 (200.6)

Opponents    2444 (174.6)

Passing

JOHN TYLER    3285 (234.6)

Opponents    1943 (138.8)

Total Yards

JOHN TYLER     6093 (435.2)

Opponents    4387 (313.4)

Punts-Avg.

JOHN TYLER    42-1556 (37.0)

Opponents    64-2188 (34.2)

Fumbles-Lost

JOHN TYLER    34-15

Opponents    41-21

Interceptions Thrown

JOHN TYLER    6

Opponents    19

Turnover Ratio

JOHN TYLER    +19

Penalties-Yards

JOHN TYLER    139-1091

Opponents    106-762

———

Individual Statistics

Rushing

Player    No.    Yds.    Avg.    TD    Lg.

Jeremy Wilson    228    1752    7.7    26    80t

Geovari McCollister    159    650    4.1    8    44

Nick Cain    21    176    8.4    3    31t

Bryson Smith    16    88    5.5    1    37t

Dejuan Beal    25    77    3.1    0    15

Martrevious Allison    12    39    3.3    0    13

Pierre Leonard    6    32    5.3    2    13

Cordarion Johnson    8    28    3.5    1    14

Quaylan Brown    5    20    4.0    0    8

Damion Miller    1    15    15.0    0    15

Bryston Gipson    1    10    10.0    0    10

Duntayviun Gross    2    -15    -7.5    0    -7

Team    6    -61    -10.2    0    -1

Totals    490    2811    5.7    41    80t

Opponents    571    2444    4.3    22    75t    

———

Passing

Player    Co.    Att.    Yds.    TD    INT    Lg.

Geo. McCollister    201    310    3137    30    5    83t    

Bryson Smith    14    19    148    2    1    30t

Totals    215    329    3285    32    6    83t

Opponents    125    263    1943    16    19    53t

———

Receiving

Player    No.    Yds.    Avg.    TD    Lg.

Nick Cain    48    690    14.4    6    71t

Duntayviun Gross    45    639    14.2    6    51t

Jeremy Wilson    33    348    10.5    3    57t

Rodney Bendy    27    457    16.9    6    51

Damion Miller    23    567    24.7    8    83t

Bryson Smith    15    303    20.2    3    57t

Tommy Dyer    10    104    10.4    0    33

Quaylan Brown    6    105    17.5    0    68

Cordarion Johnson    5    39    7.8    0    14

Pierre Leonard    2    26    13.0    0    15

Dejuan Beal    1    7    7.0    0    7

Totals    215    3285    15.3    32    83t

Opponents    125    1943    15.5    16    53t

———

Punting

Player    No.    Yds.    Avg.    N20    BK    Lg.

Luis Duran    42    1556    37.0    11    1    55

Totals    42    1556    37.0    11    1    55

———

Kicking

Player    XPM/A    FGM/A    TB    Lg.

Luis Duran    71-80    9-13    30    74

Luis Lizalde    7-7    2-3    0    35

Totals    78-87    11-16    30    74

———

Kickoff Returns

Player    No.    Yds.    Avg.    TD    Lg.

Deandre Williams    8    264    33.0    1    77

Quaylan Brown    10    159    15.9    0    28

Duntayviun Gross    9    119    13.2    0    23

Jeremy Wilson    3    37    12.3    0    21

Nick Cain    4    21    5.3    0    15

Isaac Warren    2    15    7.5    0    15

Bryson Smith    1    15    15.0    0    15

Cordarion Johnson    1    12    12.0    0    12

Totals    37    642    17.4    1    77

———

Defensive Stats

Fumble Recoveries

Player    No.    TD    

Bryston Gipson    6    3

Tony Johnson    3    0

Shaundrick Williams    2    0

Pierre Leonard    2    0

Isaac Warren    1    1

Jaylon Watson    1    1

Cordarion Johnson    1    0

Damion Miller    1    0

Decorian Blaylock    1    0

Jordan Owens    1    0

Jaylon Reese    1    0

Quaylan Brown    1    0

Totals    21    5

———

Interceptions

Player    No.    TD

Jordan Owens    8    1

Tony Johnson    3    1

Shaundrick Williams    2    1

Damion Miller    2    0

Bryston Gipson    1    1

Jaylon Reese    1    1

Isaac Warren    1    0

Deandre Williams    1    0

Totals    19    5

———

Sacks

Player    No.

Pierre Leonard    12.0

Braylon Jones    7.0

Jassavia Reese    6.0

DeAndre Benson    3.0

Joshua Williams    3.0

Rodney Bendy    2.0

Tony Johnson    2.0

Nick Cain    1.0

Shaundrick Williams    1.0

Tresdon Brooks    1.0

Jaylen Tennyson    1.0

Brandon Dade    1.0

Bryston Gipson    1.0

Totals     41.0

———

Tackles

Player    TOT    TFL    SAC    QBP    PBU    FF

Jaylon Reese    103    0    0    0    0    1

Pierre Leonard    91    15    10    6    0    1

Braylon Jones    88    6    5    2    0    0

Tony Johnson    78    2    1    0    3    0

Shaundrick Williams    77    5    1    0    0    0

Bryston Gipson    71    2    1    0    1    0

Jordan Owens    60    0    0    0    2    0

Isaac Warren    59    0    0    0    0    0

Jassavia Reese    50    4    5    0    1    0

Deandre Williams    46    0    0    0    2    0

DeAndre Benson    32    3    3    0    0    0

Joshua Williams    27    4    3    2    0    0

Damion Miller    18    5    0    0    0    0

Nick Cain    13    1    1    0    0    0

Rodney Bendy    11    2    2    0    0    0

Howard Hawkins    11    0    0    0    0    1

Jaylen Tennyson    9    1    1    0    0    0

Jaylon Watson    9    0    0    0    0    0

Brandon Dade    9    1    1    0    0    1

Justin Session    8    0    0    0    0    0

Joseph Gipson    6    0    0    0    0    0

Ka’Darius Henderson    5    0    0    0    0    0

Tresdon Brooks    5    1    1    0    1    0

Grasean Whitlock    5    0    0    0    0    0

Duntayviun Gross    3    0    0    0    0    0

Luis Duran    3    0    0    0    0    0

Martrevious Allison    3    0    0    0    0    0

Kieran Freeman    2    0    0    0    0    0

Thomas Boyd    2    0    0    0    0    0

Quaylan Brown    2    0    0    0    0    0

Jeremy Wilson    1    0    0    0    0    0

Decorian Blaylock    1    0    0    0    0    0

———

Scoring

Player    TD    FG    PAT    2PT    Tot.

Jeremy Wilson    29    0    0    0    174

Luis Duran    0    9    71    0    98

Nick Cain    9    0    0    0    54

Geo. McCollister    8    0    0    0    48

Damion Miller    8    0    0    0    48

Duntayviun Gross    7    0    0    0    42

Rodney Bendy    6    0    0    0    36

Bryston Gipson    4    0    0    0    24

Bryson Smith    4    0    0    0    24

Pierre Leonard    2    0    0    1    14

Luis Lizalde    0    2    7    0    13

Deandre Williams    2    0    0    0    12

Isaac Warren    2    0    0    0    12

Jordan Owens    1    0    0    1    8

Cordarion Johnson    1    0    0    0    6

Jaylon Reese    1    0    0    0    6

Shaundrick Williams    1    0    0    0    6

Jaylon Watson    1    0    0    0    6

Tony Johnson    1    0    0    0    6

Totals    87    11    78    2    637

Opponents    40    7    26    3    293