North Crowley quarterback Chris Jimerson Jr. named Fort Worth-area Player of the Year
Introducing the Fort Worth-area Player of the Year: North Crowley quarterback Chris Jimerson Jr.
The Star-Telegram is releasing Texas high school football awards daily until the release of the Fort Worth All-Area Team on Sunday. Jimerson’s head coach, Ray Gates, was named the Coach of the Year on Wednesday.
On Thursday, Aledo quarterback Hauss Hejny was named the Offensive Player of the Year. On Friday, Byron Nelson linebacker Eze Osondu was named the Defensive Player of the Year.
North Crowley represented Fort Worth football, and Jimerson was at the forefront of a record-setting offense that averaged 56 points. The North Crowley Panthers won 14 consecutive games prior to a state semifinal loss to Duncanville, the eventual Class 6A D1 state champion.
Jimerson, a TCU commit, said it feels good to represent Fort Worth football, especially given the toughness it takes to succeed in the area. The Panthers, with their exceptional season, continued to improve their brand and reputation as one of the elite programs in Texas’ largest classification.
“Growing up in Fort Worth, there aren’t that many people that actually make it in football,” Jimerson said. “Being able to make it coming out of Fort Worth makes me feel good because I put a lot of work into it.”
Inside Jimerson’s impressive season
Jimerson passed for an average of 202 yards per game and threw 40 touchdown passes and had only three interceptions. He tallied more than 3,000 total passing yards.He also averaged 73 yards per game rushing and had 12 rushing touchdowns.
The star quarterback passed for more than 100 yards in every game, including a seven-touchdown, 359-yard effort in the performance-of-the-year against Chisholm Trail.
Jimerson showed stellar improvement from his sophomore campaign, improving his rushing and passing yard totals by 40 and 43 yards, respectively. He greatly improved his efficiency, throwing seven less interceptions en route to winning the District 3-6A MVP Award.
Jimerson also led North Crowley to playoff victories over Allen and Prosper, two Dallas-area powerhouses.
In the 2022 season, Prosper eliminated North Crowley from the playoff. Jimerson and the Panthers got the upper hand in the 2023 season, defeating a Prosper team that went undefeated in District 8-6A play.
Before the season started, Gates said it can be challenging for players as good as Jimerson Jr. to make more improvements in their game. Jimerson certainly found a way, taking another massive jump.
“I felt like I made better decisions on the field,” Jimerson Jr. said. “Reading defenses. Getting the ball where it needs to go in the open spots.”
Jimerson credited his parents, Gates, offensive coordinator Eli Reinhart and his teammates for putting him in a position to succeed. He said “everybody” in the North Crowley family played a role.
The North Crowley offense was extremely well rounded, which made Jimerson’s job as the quarterback and manager of the offense a bit easier. Playing alongside athletes like running back Ashton Searl and receivers Dekoryian West-Davis, Mason Ferguson and Lamarcus Davis “meant a lot” to Jimerson.
“That took a lot of weight off my shoulder,” Jimerson said. “Me getting the football in their hands and them making plays with it. That helped me a lot this season.”
In 2021, Jimerson made the all-district second team as a freshman. In his sophomore campaign, Jimerson was named to the all-district first team. Now, he’s the District 3-6A Most Valuable Player and the Fort Worth-area Player of the Year.
“What he’s been able to do in two years has put him in the conversation,” Gates said of elite quarterbacks in the 2025 senior class. “It’ll put him at the top of that list of quarterbacks in the state. … We’re really excited about him.”
The future of Fort Worth football
Eventually, Jimerson will take his talents to Amon G. Carter Stadium to play for head coach Sonny Dykes and the TCU Horned Frogs. In 2024, however, Jimerson has unfinished business with North Crowley.
“It’ll be more so his team next year,” Gates said of Jimerson. “A lot of the guys coming back will be his peers. His age. They’ve played football together since they’ve been playing youth football.”
To end the 2023 season, North Crowley suffered an emphatic 52-10 loss to Duncanville that will stay in their minds throughout the off season.
How do you take down a program with that much talent? To Jimerson, North Crowley’s program will compound success over time. He said the team needs to stays persistent and keep working hard.
“Do more than we did this year,” Jimerson said. “Obviously, this year it wasn’t good enough for us to come out with the W, so that means we gotta get back in the lab and do better.”
Gates said now is the time for Jimerson to “speak up a bit more” and “have a voice.” He added that Jimerson’s teammates will follow his lead.
Jimerson agreed with Gates, saying he wants to focus on his leadership in order for North Crowley to take the next step.
“I want to be more of a leader to my team,” Jimerson said. “I want to lift them up. When everything is not going well, I want to be a better teammate.”
Gates said the upcoming group of players are arguably the most talented athletes to come through North Crowley High School. With a player of Jimerson’s caliber returning, there’s no telling what the Panthers will accomplish.
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