Birdville opens district play, secures first win of season against Carrollton Turner

FARMERS BRANCH -- Junior quarterback Noah Normand passed for 267 yards and four touchdowns while running for another as Birdville (1-2, 1-0) rolled past Carrollton RL Turner in a 5-5A Division I Region II district matchup at Standridge Stadium.

Normand, after the Hawks defense forced a three-and-out defensively to start the game, connected with Caleb Kelley on a 44-yard aerial TD on the second play of the series.

Another three-and-out defensive stop was followed by a six-play 51-yard drive by the Hawks that culminated in a Jaylen Davis 12-yard TD scamper, giving Birdville a quick 14-0 lead with 4:42 left in the opening stanza.

RL Turner then got its vaunted ground game untracked on its next possession, marching 82 yards in 12 plays that took 6:25 off the clock. It was capped by quarterback Jonathan Moreno’s five-yard TD run.

The Lions’ Edgar Cantu recovered the onside kick, but the Hawks came up with a Lamar Leggins fumble recovery that set up a Brian Kent 54-yard TD reception from Normand.

After Moreno’s one-yard TD sneak narrowed the Birdville lead to 21-12, the Hawks responded with a seven-play 68 yard march resulting in a Kent 22-yard TD catch from Normand. The Hawks led 27-12 at intermission.

Birdville then exploded coming out of halftime, taking the kickoff and needing just four plays to go 52 yards with Davis racing in for an 18-yard TD.

Forcing another three-and-out defensively, Normand connected with Decorian Patton on a 90-yard TD strike, forging a 41-12 lead.

Following a RL Turner fumble recovery in the end zone for a six-pointer, Normand’s four-yard TD run rounded out the scoring.

Normand needed just eight completions in 13 attempts for his game-high 267 yards and four passing TDs.

Normand had 299 passing yards a week ago in the 24-23 loss to Garland, throwing a pair of TDs but suffering four interceptions.

Senior wideout Caleb Kelley, who totaled nine receptions for 171 yards and a TD in last week’s 24-23 loss to Garland, caught his lone pass in the first quarter for a score.

History

Birdville had defeated RL Turner in all three of its previous meetings in records kept by MaxPreps which dates back to 2004, including a 56-3 rout last season.

Birdville also had convincing wins of 74-0 and 59-7 in 2019 and 2018, respectively.

RL Turner has not had a winning season since a 6-4 mark in 2004, though it did manage a 6-6 record in 2015.

Standout performances

Birdville wideout Brian Kent hauled in four passes for a game-high 112 yards and two TDs, all in the first half.

Running back Jaylen Davis finished with a game-leading 152 rushing yards on 14 carries and the two TDs.

Kent’s first TD reception was set up by a Lamar Leggins fumble recovery at the Hawks 40 yard line.

The Birdville defense held the powerful RL Turner ground game to 259 yards rushing on 56 attempts. The Lions had run 400 yards in the season opener and racked up 590 rushing yards last week.

Birdville outgained RL Turner 473 yards to 309 total offense. RL Turner did not attempt a first-half pass offensively, though a two-point conversion pass failed.

Birdville faces district foe Carrollton Newman Smith in a home contest next Thursday night with a 7 p.m. CT scheduled kickoff.