WHITEHOUSE — Whitehouse’s final scrimmage before the season opener featured a full lineup. And when everyone’s on the field, the Wildcats are hard to stop.
In senior quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ first scrimmage of the preseason, Whitehouse scored twice during the controlled portion and claimed a 28-12 victory during live action against Mount Pleasant on Friday night at Wildcat Stadium.
Mahomes and senior receiver Jake Parker were the night’s top standouts, combining for three touchdowns during live action and also a 28-yard play that set up another score. The touchdowns were from 10, 43 and 34 yards out —- all three showcasing Mahomes’ rocket arm and Parker’s athletic skills.
Whitehouse, No. 6 in the Associated Press preseason state poll, begins the season on the road next Friday against Hallsville. The Wildcats were held scoreless in last week’s scrimmage against Gilmer while playing without several starters, including Mahomes.
“There’s still some kinks that we need to work out, but they got right in there and didn’t miss a beat,” Whitehouse head coach Adam Cook said. “We had a good week of practice. Of course, last week we didn’t perform like wanted to.
“Patrick came out and did great. And Jake Parker, boy, made some awesome plays out there tonight. You talk about a young man that’s hungry right now.”
Mahomes, a Texas Tech pledge, appeared to be in mid-season form by completing 7 of 10 passes for 180 yards and two touchdowns during the controlled scrimmage. He then went 8 for 15 for 117 yards during live action, which spanned two 12-minute halves.
Whitehouse’s defense maintained Mount Pleasant star K.D. Cannon throughout the night, limiting the nation’s second-ranked receiver (according to Rivals.com) and Baylor pledge to a touchdown in scrimmage play. The Wildcats picked off Mount Pleasant quarterback Cullen Grubbs on the first two possessions of live action.
Tigers running back Tarrence Taylor scored two long-range rushing TDs on the night, the second coming from 70 yards away during live action against Whitehouse’s second-team defense.
“The defense, I felt like they played well, but we just have a few kinks we have to work out,” Cook said. “But those guys are learning a new system and we’re asking our (middle) linebacker to do quite a bit.”
In the controlled portion, which featured two sets of 20 plays for each team, Mahomes drove the Wildcats down the field in four plays before getting intercepted by Mount Pleasant defensive back Ladarius Craddock in the end zone. But despite suffering four three sacks and watching a snap sail over his head, Mahomes and his receiving corps controlled the remaining 15 plays —- one being a 59-yard swing-pass score to Vincent Dunning and another a 52-yard TD pass to Jake Parker.
Whitehouse’s second team, led by junior quarterback Jackson Allen, scored during the second series of plays during the controlled scrimmage. That followed Mount Pleasant’s starter scoring twice during their first 20 plays, one score being a 75-yard run by Taylor on the first play and the other a 42-yard pass and catch between quarterback Joseph Griffin and Cannon.