RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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Week 1 of the Texas high school football season produced record-setting performances, breakout debuts and an important win for a young Wichita Falls program. Here are five presentations that stole the show across the area.
Cole Birkhead, Wichita Falls Memorial
Birkhead waited two seasons for his opportunity to become Memorial’s starting quarterback, then needed just one game to put his name in the school record book . The senior threw a school-record seven touchdown passes as the Mavericks beat Fort Worth Paschal 54-34 on Thursday. Even more impressive, six of those touchdowns came in the first half as Memorial raced to a 47-22 halftime lead. His performance also delivered Ross Dillard his first victory as Memorial’s head coach and gave the Mavericks quite an opening statement.
Brock Belcher, Windthorst
It'd be difficult to draw up a better opening night than the one Brock Belcher produced in Windthorst’s 49-43 win over Holliday. Belcher accounted for 440 yards of offense and seven touchdowns, completing 22 of 30 passes for 318 yards and four touchdowns while rushing 20 times for 122 yards and three scores. In a game where Holliday continually threatened to close the gap, Belcher kept providing an answer and led the Texas Class 2A Division II seventh-ranked Trojans to a season-opening victory.
Wichita Falls Legacy
For Legacy, Friday’s 24-21 win over Grapevine meant considerably more than simply starting the season 1-0. The Leopards went 0-10 during their inaugural season in 2024 and improved to 2-8 last fall, giving the program just two victories through its first 20 games. Entering year two under head coach Greg Davis, Legacy talked throughout the preseason about turning increased experience and offseason growth into results. The Leopards did exactly that in Week 1, winning a close game against a solid Grapevine team to immediately match half of last season’s win total.
Landon Jones, Holliday
Holliday didn’t get the result it wanted against Windthorst, but quarterback Landon Jones gave the Eagles a chance until the final minutes. Jones completed 14 of 31 passes for 290 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for two additional scores, accounting for five of Holliday’s six touchdowns in the 49-43 loss. His touchdown passes included explosive plays of 78 yards to Hudson Dray and 50 yards to Nathan Conor, along with a 24-yard strike to Preston Fandler in the fourth quarter. Jones added his second rushing touchdown with 1:12 remaining, pulling Holliday within six before the Eagles ultimately fell.
Cooper Corley, Graham
One of Graham’s biggest preseason questions received an encouraging answer Friday night. Cooper Corley, who played safety last season, took over at quarterback for a Steers offense returning 10 starters and helped Graham open with a convincing 42-12 victory over Godley. Corley’s transition to quarterback was one of Graham’s major storylines entering the season, particularly as he learned the responsibilities of the position after spending last year on the other side of the ball. Corley had already led Graham to the Division II 7-on-7 state championship this summer, but successfully guiding the offense in his first varsity start at quarterback represented an important first step for a Steers team carrying high expectations.
This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: Top performers from Week 1 of the Wichita Falls-area football season
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