Strong second half by Grapevine sends Mustangs to blowout win over Colleyville Heritage
Oklahoma and Texas will play their annual Red River football game next Saturday in Dallas.
It’s one of the biggest rivalries in college football.
On Friday night in Grapevine, one of the biggest rivalries in Texas high school football took place with Grapevine and Colleyville Heritage’s annual Red Rail game at Mustang-Panther Stadium.
In front a sold out crowd, Grapevine scored 23 straight points in the second half to pull away from its district rivals, 44-26 in a District 4-5A Division 2 showdown.
Grapevine, No. 8 in the Class 5A D2 state rankings and No. 6 in the Class 5A area rankings, improved to 4-1 overall and 2-0 in district. Heritage, No. 5 and No. 3, falls to 3-2 and 1-1.
The Mustangs beat the Panthers for the first time since 2018, snapping a three-game skid in the series. Heritage came in having won nine of the last 11 meetings.
“Means everything for the kids,” Grapevine coach Mike Alexander said. “They’re the ones that have to walk the halls and do that stuff every day so for us to come out here and get a win for them, it means everything to me.”
Added senior running back Parker Polk, “It’s awesome man. You hear a bunch of talk throughout my whole high school career. I’ve never had it. It’s not only big for our school, but for the whole town. Bragging rights for the next year.”
After both teams took their opening possessions across midfield, both had to settle for punts.
Heritage was able to strike first on its second drive, a 12-yard touchdown pass from 6-5 Princeton committed quarterback Weston Smith to the versatile Luke Ullrich for a 7-0 lead with 3:05 left in the first quarter.
Ullrich started the game at QB.
Smith, No. 14 in the Star-Telegram Top 100, was last year’s all-area offensive newcomer after throwing for 2,608 yards and 29 touchdowns for the Panthers.
Grapevine would respond with a 5-play 75-yard drive capped off by an 8-yard TD run from QB Evan Baum that tied the game at 7 with 1:20 left in the quarter.
The teams traded turnovers when Heritage defensive back Mohamed El Hassan recovered a Grapevine fumble, but the Mustangs got it back three plays later on a Maddox Stanley interception.
The Mustangs turned the pick into points and a 14-7 lead two plays later on a 59-yard TD run from Polk, the team leader in rushing. Polk found a gap up the middle and scored untouched with 8:48 left in the second.
Polk is also a member of the Top 100.
“Our O-line is the best in the state. I just trust them, I hit the hole fast and they do the rest,” Polk said.
But just like Grapevine responded on its first touchdown, Heritage would do the same on the ensuing drive, going 61 yards on eight plays capped off by a 4-yard TD run from running back Colin Bennett that tied the game at 14 midway through the quarter.
The Heritage forced a quick three-and-out and a Grapevine punt and the Panthers’ offense once again marched down field to regain the lead.
Smith called his own number and scored on an 11-yard run, but the extra point was missed, giving Heritage a 20-14 lead with just over three minutes showing on the clock.
Grapevine was able to score and take a 21-20 lead into halftime thanks to a 4-yard run from Polk. The score came two plays after Baum hit Rondale Carridine for 56 yards to set up a first and goal.
Leading 21-20 at the half, the Mustangs came out strong in the third with a touchdown on their first play, a 33-yard TD run from Polk. After the extra point was missed, it was 27-20 Grapevine.
Polk finished with 26 carries for 215 yards and three touchdowns.
“He makes my job easy,” Baum said.
“I don’t know if I’ve coached a guy with a bigger heart,” Alexander added. “From the time he was a freshman and sophomore, he’d take shots and just pop up. He’s like a little iron man. He’s just one of the toughest suckers in the world.”
Evan Naeta had two tackles for loss on back to back plays for the Grapevine D to force a punt and the Mustangs went down and scored again on a 34-yard run from Carridine to make it 34-20 in the third.
Hayden Rhoades made a 24-yard field goal for Grapevine and Drew Nelson picked off a Heritage pass.
Red Watkins added a 34-yard TD run in the fourth quarter to up the Grapevine lead to 44-20.
“We’ve been here before. Two weeks ago we played Argyle and we were up one at half,” Alexander said. “I told our guys tonight, we’ve been here. Last time we were up one, we came out with lesser intensity and the game unraveled. We can’t do that and they knew what I was talking about and so they answered the bell.
Heritage finally broke Grapevine’s run with a 20-yard TD pass from Smith to Ullrich with 4:35 left in the game.
Grapevine finished with 534 yards of total offense with 419 coming on the ground. Baum and CJ Holmes rushed for 57 and 53 yards, respectively and Carridine and Watkins combined for 99 yards and a touchdown apiece.
“We went into halftime, the coaches made great adjustments and we were just firing on all cylinders,” Baum said. “We just knew we had to keep pressing the gas.”
Smith threw for 235 yards with two TDs and two interceptions while rushing for 36 yards and a score. Ullrich rushed for 25 yards and caught seven passes for 91 yards and two TDs.
This story was originally published September 30, 2022 at 9:41 PM.
