Jenks Drops Stateline Showdown (Top Performers and Game Recap)

The Stateline Showdown pitting traditional powers from each side of the Red River in Texas' Southlake Carroll Dragons and Oklahoma's Jenks Trojans saw the Trojans give up its largest lead in a loss in program history as the Dragons comeback from down 27 points to earn a 34-33 victory Thursday night inside the historic Cotton Bowl.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Top Performers</h2>    The transfer running back was impressive in his first game as a Jenks Trojan rushing 17 times for 201 yards and a touchdown. Wright showed great vision and proved to be difficult for Dragon defenders to wrap up once he burst to the second level of the defense. Not a big back, Wright was able to break tackles and showcase his versatility.     The big offensive lineman for the Trojans was dominant early in this contest driving defenders backwards and sealing the edge to help Jenks streak out to an early 27-0 advantage. Oruru recently flipped his collegiate commitment from Arkansas to Oklahoma State. Expect the Trojans to run behind their big offensive lineman as the season progresses as they were able to make big holes in the run game early in this contest.     Cariker was a difference maker on both sides of the ball for the Trojans. Offensively, he finished with one rushing touchdown on a 48-yard scamper as a wildcat quarterback. Cariker showed incredible patience in allowing his blocks to develop, and then it was off to the races. Defensively, Cariker was able to get to the Dragons quarterback in the fourth quarter to record a sack. He was active defensively and showed good awareness from his linebacker spot, reacting and finding the ball carrier.     Dillard and quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1206910' first='Landon' last='Kizzar'] had a solid connection in the first quarter of play but that turned fuzzy as the game progressed and the Dragons became more focused on the Florida Gators commit. However the senior receiver made an impressive attempt on the final offensive play for the Trojans that was ruled incomplete but looked like a reception on the broadcast replay. Dillard showed how diverse his game can be defensively as he recorded a sack, had a pass break up that was nearly an interception, and the Dragons' QB Hudson Tomcheck seemingly avoided looking towards his side of the field for most of the game.    <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Game Notes</h2>   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>C.J. Wright finished with 17 carries for 201 yards and one touchdown in his first game as a Trojan.</li>   <li>Longtime Jenks play-by-play voice Don King noted that the 27-point comeback by the Dragons is the largest comeback victory by a Trojans opponent since 1963 when Jenks lost after leading by 19 points.</li>   <li>The last time the Trojans lost its season opener was in 2023 as Edmond Santa Fe shocked Jenks 27-26 inside Allan Trimble Stadium.</li> </ul>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Game Recap</h2>   On the opening drive the Trojans moved down the field in nine plays topped off with a one-yard touchdown run by [player_tooltip player_id='1834436' first='Kyron' last='Scott'] to take a 7-0 lead. The Jenks' offensive power continued the next possession as the Trojan offensive line got a massive push up front that sprung Lincoln Christian transfer running back C.J. Wright for a 64-yard touchdown. A missed extra point kick wide to the right put the Trojans up 13-0 with 5:55 remaining in the opening quarter of play.   The first quarter onslaught continued as the Trojans, on fourth down and three yards to go with just over three minutes remaining in the opening stanza, lined [player_tooltip player_id='527949' first='Clark' last='Cariker'] behind center as the wildcat formation quarterback took the snap and went behind the left side of the offensive line led by new Oklahoma State verbal commit [player_tooltip player_id='527903' first='Odaefe' last='Oruru'] and Cariker raced 48 yards to push the Trojan lead to 20-0. The Trojans built a four-touchdown lead with a fourth down conversion as quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1206910' first='Landon' last='Kizzar'] found receiver [player_tooltip player_id='692003' first='Jaylon' last='Cato'] for a 25-yard touchdown reception to put Jenks up 27-0 midway through the second quarter.   Southlake Caroll would respond as junior starting quarterback Hudson Tomcheck was replaced by Palmer Pensom on the ensuing drive with five minutes remaining before the half. The backup was able to get the Dragons on the scoreboard and provide an offensive spark with a 42 yard touchdown pass to Easton Nied as the Jenks secondary blew the coverage on the play action and Southlake Carroll cut into the Trojans lead making it 27-7.   The Dragons struck again just before halftime as Tomcheck returned on the next Southlake Carroll possession and found star receiver Brody Knowles on a 14-yard strike as the Illinois verbal commit tiptoed inside the pylon and cut the Jenks lead down to 27-14 at halftime.   <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"> “We didn't keep our foot on the pedal,” said second year Trojan head coach Adam Gaylor postgame on the TrojansTV broadcast. “Didn't execute like we did in the first quarter.” </blockquote>   In the third quarter the Trojans were able to move down the field bringing up a fourth down and goal from the three-yard line with just over seven minutes to go in the period. The Southlake Carroll defense was able to get the goal line stop and hand the ball over to an offense that was starting to gain momentum entering the halftime break.   <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"> Gaylor addressed the goal line decision in the postgame, “Probably should have kicked a field goal there on the two- or three-yard line. But we are going to be aggressive, so we weren't going to come down here to just play well we wanted to come down here to win.” </blockquote>   The Dragon offense was able to work its way down the field and finalized a 98-yard drive with a three-yard touchdown quarterback draw off the right side of the line by Tomcheck to pull Southlake Carroll within a one-score game at 27-21 with 3:09 to go in the third quarter.   On the Trojans possession the Dragon defense forced the Trojans punt team onto the field but a muffed punt by the Southlake Carroll return man gave Jenks the ball heading into the fourth quarter with a six-point lead.   Jenks running back [player_tooltip player_id='1834436' first='Kyron' last='Scott'] reached paydirt for the second time on a seven-yard rumble with 11:54 remaining to put the Trojans ahead by 12 points, 33-21, after the two-point conversion was stuffed on a Scott run attempt.   The Dragons were able to once again move down the field reaching the red zone, but a fumble recovered by Jenks gave the Trojans the ball back with 10:15 remaining and made things look bleak for the home team from the Lone Star state.   A quick Trojan possession gave the ball back to the Dragons and Tomcheck found Knowles once again on a 54-yard touchdown strike behind the Jenks safety to pull Southlake Carroll within five with over eight minutes remaining.   Another short drive by the Jenks offense and Southlake Carroll was back with the ball with just over six minutes to go in the contest down by five points. Tomcheck tried to thread the needle on a second down pass across the middle to Knowles but Florida Gator commit [player_tooltip player_id='1030447' first='Kailib' last='Dillard'] nearly came away with an interception but the incomplete pass led to a third down and ten yard play as Dillard was forced to the sideline following an injury despite the Trojans burning a timeout in an attempt to keep their star defensive back on the field.   Tomcheck was able to find Knowles down the left sideline against Dillard's replacement on the play and put the Dragons at the Trojans' 30-yard line with 6:08 remaining. On second down, Cariker was able to get to Tomcheck for the sack and bring up third down. A strike to the right side by Tomcheck kept the drive alive and put the Dragons inside the red zone at the 19 yard line.   Tomcheck mishandled the snap on first down and was able to get back to the line of scrimmage and a one-yard run on second down put Southlake Carroll in its third, third-down of the possession with 3:25 left in regulation. Tomcheck found an open receiver to convert and then rumbled on first down to the three-yard line. The Dragons kept the ball in its junior quarterback's hands for a three-yard scamper off the left tackle to take its first lead of the game at 34-33 after the two-point conversion failed.   Jenks' [player_tooltip player_id='1164507' first='CJ' last='Wright'] returned the kickoff to the Trojans 30-yard line, five yards further than the Texas touchback rules that place the ball at the 25-yard line. But three consecutive incompletions by Kizzar brought up a decisive fourth-down with 96 seconds remaining.   On fourth-down and the game on the line Kizzar sent a man in motion from right to left, took the shotgun snap and looked to his left as pressure came from the Dragons defensive end. Kizzar delivered a ball low to his star receiver Dillard who appeared to slide across the natural grass surface of the Cotton Bowl and make the reception but the official on the near sideline in front of the Trojan bench signaled incomplete and the Trojans turned the ball over on downs.   <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"> “The last call there I don't know if it was a catch or not, but we've got to play better so it doesn't come down to the officials, we got to coach better,” explained Gaylor of the final offensive play for Jenks. </blockquote>   Jenks (1-0) will remain on the road next week as the Trojans travel to face Rogers, Arkansas with a 7 p.m. kick in the Natural State on Sept. 4 before facing its first Oklahoma opponent of the 2026 season inside H.A. Chapman Stadium on the campus of the University of Tulsa on Friday, Sept. 11.

The Stateline Showdown pitting traditional powers from each side of the Red River in Texas' Southlake Carroll Dragons and Oklahoma's Jenks Trojans saw the Trojans give up its largest lead in a loss in program history as the Dragons comeback from down 27 points to earn a 34-33 victory Thursday night inside the historic Cotton Bowl.