Harold Wilson

In the aftermath of a season-opening loss to Texas High on Saturday, second-year John Tyler head coach Dereck Rush reflected on the positives that might make the Lions a playoff team on down the road.

While the 42-14 outcome hinted otherwise, JT showed flashes of being an improved team based on last year's 31- point loss to Texas High in the opener.

JT moved the ball fairly well, matching Texas High with 14 first downs and tying the Tigers in return yardage at 137. Also, JT won the rushing battle, 175-114, and recovered two fumble recoveries (Alvin Arps, Darrien Starling).

Meanwhile, the Lions penetrated the Tigers' end of the field on five of 12 possessions, and reached at least their own 41-yard line three other times.

Individually, JT junior quarterback Jeremy Johnson proved capable of carrying a load, gaining a team-high 87 yards rushing. Johnson orchestrated JT to scores on back-to-back possessions, one his own 22-yard TD run, to start the second half, pulling the Lions to within 28-14 at one point after four Texas High TDs in a 15-minute span broke open the game.

Ky'Ordric Black, one of nearly a dozen JT underclassmen who started, totaled 149 all-purpose yards. Black rushed for 66 yards on 10 carries, and returned three kickoffs for 83 yards, including a long of 41.

Defensively, the likes of sophomore linebacker Antjuan Lee (10 tackles) and senior end Ricky Marshall (eight stops) led the Lions, who limited Texas High to just 3.4 yards per rush.

Unfortunately, the passing departments disappointed the Lions, who had two interceptions returned for TDs, and allowed Texas High to throw for 294 yards and big scores of 46, 64 and 70 yards.

Going into another showdown Friday at Class 5A power Lufkin, JT will be looking to build off the good and improve on the not-so-good. The Lions nearly made the playoffs last year with two wins, and could be in a similar situation down the road with a challenging schedule ahead.

"We have a lot we can build on," Rush said. "They didn't quit (and) they fought hard at the very end. We're going to build on that and get ready for Lufkin."

Contact Harold Wilson at 903-596-6276 or e-mail hwilson@tylerpaper.com

Harold Wilson covers John Tyler High School sports for the Tyler Paper.
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