Kennedale routs Dunbar to extend district title win streak, locks up second playoff seed
Heading into the final Friday night of the regular season, the playoff picture was far from over in District 6-4A Division 1. All four playoff teams were set, but the top three seeds were still to be determined.
Plus Fort Worth Dunbar’s visit to Kennedale was for a piece of the district championship.
Dunbar was looking to bring home a district championship trophy for the first time since 2013, but Kennedale quickly put the game out of reach well before the first quarter even ended.
Kennedale scored three non-offensive touchdowns in the first half and put up half of 100 before the break as it beat Dunbar, 64-0, to cap off senior night and another district title.
Kennedale has won a district title in 11 straight seasons.
Kennedale (7-3, 6-1) is co-champ with Lake Worth, but will enter next week’s bi-district round as the No. 2 seed with Lake Worth owning the head-to-head. Lake Worth beat Kennedale 10-3 on Oct. 7.
Kennedale will play Waco La Vega in the first round. La Vega beat Kennedale 34-7 in Week 1. Meanwhile, Dunbar (5-5, 5-2) falls to the 3-seed and will face defending Class 4A D1 state champ Stephenville in the playoff opener.
Lake Worth will play Alvarado and Western Hills will play 4A D2 champ China Spring.
Oklahoma State commit Poasa Utu put his stamp on the game in the first half with two touchdowns, one on defense and one on special teams. Utu is a 3-star linebacker according to 247Sports and ranked No. 25 in the Star-Telegram preseason Top 100.
Kennedale scored on the game’s opening drive going 61 yards on eight plays with Cameron Lyles running in an 8-yard touchdown for a 7-0 lead with nine minutes in the first quarter.
Utu forced a fumble on Dunbar’s drive that resulted in a loss of 13.
Then a bad snap on the punt attempt bounced out of the end zone for a Kennedale safety and 9-0 lead. On the ensuing Dunbar punt, Utu took the return 53 yards for a touchdown to push the lead to 23-0 with seven minutes left in the quarter.
Kennedale added one more touchdown before the quarter ended when Zach Conner blocked a Dunbar punt and scooped it up for a 5-yard touchdown with 2:30 on the clock.
Kennedale tacked on 27 more in the second quarter and led 50-0 at halftime.
Damari Harrell-Jones scored on a 5-yard run to extend Kennedale’s lead to 30-0 four minutes into the second quarter. On Dunbar’s ensuing play from scrimmage, another bad snap got away and Utu picked it up and scored from seven yards out to make it 37-0 with 7:49 left in the period.
Kennedale drove again and on a fourth-and-11, quarterback Jackson Hammonds hit Jaylen Webb for a 16-yard touchdown and 43-0 lead with under five minutes left in the half.
Kennedale recovered a Dunbar and Lyles scored on a 23-yard run to put it at 50-0 just before the break.
Kennedale had over 200 yards total offense in the first half while it held Dunbar to only 12. Dunbar running Murry Moore is among the top rushers in the metroplex. He entered the night with over 2,100 yards and 19 touchdowns, but was limited to 34 yards on 12 carries through the first two quarters.
In the third quarter, Lyles had a big gain of 29 yards to the Dunbar 22 and Harrell-Jones capped off the drive with his score, a 14-yard run to make it 57-0 midway through the frame.
Daunte Scott and Lawrence Hodge picked off Dunbar passes in the third quarter. Hodge’s interception was returned 51 yards for another Kennedale touchdown and it led 64-0 after three.
Lyles led all rushers with 18 carries for 150 yards and two TDs. Kennedale rushed 41 times for 244 yards. Harrell-Jones added 66 yards and two TDs. Kennedale scored two TDs on defense, two on special teams and one safety.
Moore finished with 44 yards on 15 carries. Dunbar had 17 yards rushing and 33 yards total.
