Nolan Catholic, Azle stars headline Top 10 Fort Worth-area high school running backs
The Forth Worth area has produced several stellar running backs in recent years. Past stars have included Johnathan Gray (Aledo), Kennedy Brooks (Mansfield) and Jase McClellan (Aledo), and this season will be no exception.
By now, we all know that COVID-19 has forced a delay of the start of the Class 5A, 6A and private school seasons until September, but most 4A-1A programs will kick off their regular seasons on Aug. 27.
Return to dfwvarsity.com for the area’s Top 10 wide receivers on Friday.
1. Emeka Megwa, Jr., Nolan Catholic
Last season: 1,786 yards, 27 TDs
4-star back exploded in sophomore season with more than 1,100 yards from freshman year. Megwa holds 34 offers, which includes Alabama, Ohio State, TCU, Texas, Ohio State, Oklahoma, LSU and Notre Dame.
2. Jacob Lee, Sr., Azle
Last season: 1,439 yards, 23 TDs
Lee rushed for 100 or more yards in six games and was named first-team all-district. Lee has helped Azle to back-to-back district titles and can line up at multiple positions.
3. Owen Allen, Soph., Southlake Carroll
Last season: 1,266 yards, 23 TDs
Allen was named district newcomer of the year after a stellar freshman season. Allen averaged six yards per carry. He rushed for 178 yards and 4 TDs in his playoff debut against Lewisville, and added 115 yards and 2 TDs against state power Duncanville in the state quarterfinals.
4. Dez Forrest, Sr., Weatherford
Last season: 1,502 yards rushing, 28 TDs; 759 yards receiving, 9 TDs
In his first game as the Kangaroos’ varsity running back, Forrest scored 9 TDs and had 58 points, the fourth-most in a single game in 11-man state history. Forrest had seven games with a rushing TD and receiving TD, and two games of 200 yards rushing and 100 yards receiving.
5. Montaye Dawson, Sr., Fort Worth All Saints
Last season: 442 yards rushing, 7 TDs; 258 yards receiving, 3 TDs
The 3-star SMU commit has moved to All Saints after three years with Mansfield Timberview, where he shared the load. Dawson could be in for a career year as the premier back with the Saints. He accounted for 1,330 yards and 12 TDs in 2018. He’s the No. 8 ranked all-purpose back in the nation according to 247Sports.
6. B.J. Rogers, Sr., Arlington
Last season: 1,242 yards, 11 TDs
Rogers was named second-team all-district last season. He was district offensive sophomore of the year in 2018 when he rushed for 823 yards and 9 TDs. He holds seven offers.
7. Caleb Texada, Jr., Grapevine
Last season: 861 yards rushing, 8 TDs; 362 yards receiving, 3 TDs
Texada, who has started since his freshman year, returns to help lead the offense. With over 1,200 yards of total offense, Texada was named first-team all-district. Last season, he was named sophomore All-American by College Football Today.
8. Cash Jones, Sr., Brock
Last season: 2,678 yards, 35 TDs
Jones exploded last season for the Eagles, who reached the state semifinals. Jones was named first-team all-state by the TSWA and second-team all-state by the Associated Press. He holds offers from Army, Florida International and Florida Atlantic.
9. Mark Saunders, Sr., Grapevine Faith
Last season: 2,087 yards, 22 TDs
Saunders had a career year in 2019 with career-highs in carries (264), rushing yards, yards per carry (7.9), rushing TDs and yards per game (174). In 12 games, Saunders eclipsed the century mark 10 times. He’s rushed for 36 TDs in the past two seasons.
10. Hayden Whites, Sr., Fort Worth Lake Country
Last season: 1,918 yards rushing, 24 TDs; 502 yards receiving, 3 TDs
Whites has nearly gained 6,000 yards from scrimmage in an excellent career with nearly back-to-back seasons of 2,000 yards rushing. He rushed for 2,000 yards and 26 TDs in 2018. Whites also plays free safety.
Honorable mention: Sergio Snider, Nolan Catholic; Zach Watson, Granbury; Max Modeste, Byron Nelson; Andrew Paul, Keller Central; Ollie Gordon, Euless Trinity; Daunte Blake, Crowley; Kolby Bartlett, Godley; Keirahyn Brown, Kennedale; Braxton Ash, Colleyville Heritage; Isaac Shabay, Colleyville Heritage; Jalen March, Arlington Seguin; Kyndel Sims, Justin Northwest; Deuce Jones, Mansfield Timberview; Cleo Chandler, Cleburne
This story was originally published August 20, 2020 at 12:57 PM.
