Photo by Andre Odums/ossports/OSspits
With all options considered, two teams battled with the prep time awarded. Even after two days of inclement weather, game time offered no slack for the unprepared.
Yet on a perfect evening for football, North Shore took a massive step toward solidifying its top ranking by exercising a sound defeat, 38-21 over Shadow Creek, last season’s Class 5A Division I state champs on Friday at Galena Park ISD Stadium.
Dematrius Davis threw for 197 yards on 14 of 20 attempts, one touchdown, a pick, and added 78 ground yards on 14 carries. Charles King caught 4 passes for 115 yards and a touchdown. Daveon Ford rushed 19 times for 83 yards and one score.
Whether both teams had sufficient time to prepare for Friday night lights, the spotlight shone brightly on North Shore (1-0), the two time 6A Division I defending champs.
“We didn’t practice for two days this week because of inclement weather, and it was obvious,” said Shadow Creek coach Butler.
Shadow Creek’s quarterback Kyron Drones finished 6 of 18 with 160 yards, a touchdown, two interceptions, and rushed for 72 yards. Tailback Kelvon Brown carried eight times for 95 yards, a touchdown, and Hancock had three receptions for 103 yards.
The highly intense battle developed when tailback Ford exploded up the middle of the Sharks defense to the end zone, inserting the finishing touches on a 79-yard drive with a five-yard run as the lead swelled, 28-14 with 5:00 minutes remaining in the third quarter. It was the second such touchdown North Shore benefitted from, including an interception.
Shortly after, Sharks’ receiver C.J. Guidry suffered three back-breaking drops as fans watched Drones absorb a sack two plays later by defensive end Lucas Banks. On fourth down, a low snap watched punter Matt Allison’s knee touch down on the Shadow Creek’s 17-yard line before punting the ball away.
“We turned the ball over and left some plays out there early and made it really tough on us,” Shadow Creek Brad Butler.
The Sharks (0-1) defense tightened, forcing an incomplete pass, and defensive lineman Theorin Randle sacked Shadrach Banks, who ran a reverse.
As the fourth the quarter opened, Ford picked up four yards before the Sharks defense believed it pinned Davis in the backfield for the sack, just as he committed a Houdini act as fans watched the mobile quarterback race to the Shadow Creek’s 38. A few plays later, Montes-Zamora nailed a 30-yard field goal with 9:24 left in the fourth quarter.
The momentum shifted after Shadow Creek took possession at its 24, and after an illegal player downfield, the ball moved to its 19. Still running back, Brown brought Shark fans to its feet with an electrifying 81-yard scoring run. That trimmed the deficit, 28-21, with 50 seconds left in the third quarter. The Sharks would come no closer.
“Overall, it’s a tough ball game for both teams,” coach Butler explained.
North Shore added a late touchdown to close out the scoring.
Cramps, fatigue, mistakes, penalties, and turnovers were on display, marking the season’s first game normal.
The Mustangs entered the season as the nation’s No 2 ranked team behind IMG Academy of Bradenton, Florida. It ranks Shadow Creek 17th.
The action took the shape of a defensive battle as the Sharks punted twice while forcing North Shore to punt and accounted for a fumble.
Mustangs junior Denver Harris picked off Drones twice, showing why Rivals 100 has him ranked as the nation’s top cornerback.
After filling each other out, North Shore marched 72 yards. Davis went to the air, converting a vast pickup at the Shadow Creek 26. From there it’s ground game took over. A false start set the Mustangs back at the 31. Then Ford ripped off 9 yards to the 20, and three plays later, Brannon Davis avoided a pair of defenders to reach the end zone.
Shadow Creek responded with a four-play 83-yard drive. Big plays setup the possession. Drones hooked up with receiver Hancock for a 30 yard gain at the 47. Then Brown added a five-yard carry to the Mustangs 48 where Guidry turned Drones slant pass into a 48-yard foot race to the end zone, tying the game at 7.
“I knew they would be good, they are defending state champs just like us,” North Shore quarterback Demetrius Davis said.” I feel like we prepared hard every day.”
“They have a great quarterback, great receivers, great running backs, and great defense,” said Davis. “We had to play this game as is if we were the Super Bowl champs.
Right after, Davis guided the offense deep into Shadow Creek’s territory, where he turned the ball over a second time when Cornerback Dejuan Lewis intercepted a pass at the ten-yard line with 11:52 left in the second quarter.
Drones would return the favor, fumbling the snap from center in its territory at 22-yard line. North Shore recovered.
Three plays later, Davis threw a nine-yard touchdown pass to receiver King. Kicker Andres Montes-Zamora extra kick gave the Mustangs a seven-point lead, 14-7.
Despite its mistakes, Shadow Creek refused to throw in the towel as Guidry stunned the North Shore crowd with an 86-yard kick-off return, knotting the score at 14 with the extra point kick to follow.
“They are very fast (Shadow Creek),” explained Davis
Then Sharks got the stop it needed when No 7 sacked Davis, forcing a field goal that failed.
Shadow Creek looked poised to take its first lead. However, it turned the ball over two consecutive times. The first resulted in a pick-six when Drones threw into coverage. Defensive back Harris picked the ball and weaved his way through traffic en route to the end zone with 3:45 left in the second quarter, and the Mustangs held a 21-14 lead.
Yet, the Sharks had just three minutes left before halftime but suffered another turnover when Drones fumbled the snap with 1:12 left in the second quarter.
Next week both teams will meet tough opponents. North Shore will host Klein Collins while Bridgeland travels to Shadow Creek for an interesting showdown.