Inching closer to the ultimate goal of a UIL-record extending 13th state championship, the No. 1 Aledo Bearcats faced the No. 17 Arlington Heights Yellowjackets for the Class 5A Division I, Region I semifinal championship Friday at Crowley ISD Stadium. The Yellowjackets were in the midst of their best season since 1973 – the last time the program secured an area round championship – before they hit a brick wall in the form of high-level players in orange and black uniforms.
After a slow start, the Bearcats used a defensive play to open the floodgates, and the rout was on as Aledo rolled to a 55-0 victory.
“I think it totally changed the momentum of the game,” Bearcats senior Carson Dempsey said. “It was kind of steady there for a little bit, and after that, we just started putting it on them after the forced fumble.”
Following scoreless possessions and then a field goal drive by Aledo, Dempsey strip sacked Arlington Heights quarterback Carmelo Carter that was recovered by Cole Cox at the Heights 20 yard line with 5:09 left in the opening quarter on the first play of the Yellowjackets’ ensuing series. From there, Aledo needed just two plays to find the end zone, where senior running back Kaden Winkfield found paydirt from three yards out just 30 seconds of game time later.
With a 10-0 lead entering the second quarter, senior running back Brady Powell bulled his way into the end zone for a 17-yard score that pushed the advantage to 17-0 with 11:19 to go before halftime. The Bearcat defense thwarted Arlington Heights’ fourth-down conversion attempt near midfield moments later that eventually set up a 22-yard rushing score by senior quarterback Lincoln Tubbs, who weaved through Yellowjacket defenders and showcased a burst of his speed as he sprinted past the goal line. At this point, the offense was rolling, the defense remained suffocating and Aledo held a 24-0 lead at the 6:03 mark of the second quarter.
“They’ve played that way all year, and that’s what we expect out of those guys – we expect those guys to get out there and get after it like they did all day today,” Bearcats head coach Robby Jones said of his defense. “That was a running back coming in at over 500 yards in the last two games, so it was a statement that our guys had to come up and, hey, let’s not let him do that to us.”
The 24-0 lead was only set to grow, and that it did.
Due to windy conditions, Aledo put an emphasis on running the ball, and Aledo continued to run away with the contest, fueled by its ball carriers. Winkfield added a six-yard score to Aledo’s tally later in the half and the teams exchanged turnovers before halftime intermission. A nice interception by Alex Patton helped preserve the shutout, something Aledo defense takes pride in posting.
“It almost backfired on us. We were trying to get a situation where we can get some more points right before the half,” Jones said. “Lamel thought he had the punt, the wind carried it on him, they got a great bounce out of it and then we threw an interception. But, the defense just stood up and made a play to keep them from getting points.”
Aledo showed no mercy in the second half. Instead, the Bearcats came out of the gates red hot in the second half. Powell, who ran with force and conviction throughout, pushed Aledo’s point total to 49 after scoring on 57- and 65-yard touchdown runs. Not only did the 5-foot-9 bruiser show speed and power, he knows how to keep receipts, too.
“It feels good, especially after all the stuff they (Arlington Heights) has been talking about us,” Powell said. “Last year, we lost on this field, so coming here and just handling business, getting ready for next week – it feels amazing.”
Powell’s mindset embodies Aledo’s no-nonsense approach to things from both the near- and short-term past, and the level of execution in windy conditions allowed Aledo to run for 366 yards – 201 of those came from Powell.
“We knew that it was definitely going to be a running game, and it’s just every game, we have to show out with everyone doing their jobs,” Powell said. “Props to the linemen, the wide receivers, they’re doing their jobs which makes it a lot easier for me and (Kaden) Winkfield. Every time I see the ball, I’m just seeing the end zone – every yard counts and there’s no way I’m going down on the first hit or tackle. I’m going to get as much as I can.”
On the flip side, the Aledo defense was absolutely stifling throughout the early-afternoon action, holding Heights to a season-low 41 rushing yards. Additionally, Aledo posted its sixth shutout of the season and held its opposition without points for the fourth time in its last five overall contests.
“We were super prepared. We’ve been executing it in practice all week long,” Dempsey said. “They had a great season, but at the end of the day, they’re Arlington Heights and we’re Aledo, and we’re going to handle business on whoever comes next on the schedule.”
Dempsey said the bond he and his fellow defenders share has been a catalyst to their success, a unit that has only surrendered 78 total points across 13 contests.
“We’re all best friends, just flying around, man, making plays, playing physical football and I think we just enjoy it,” Dempsey said. “If you enjoy playing it and you enjoy playing together, it makes the game so much easier.”
As a team, Aledo compiled 25 first downs on offense while the defense limited Arlington Heights to seven first downs. As a team, Aledo out gained Heights 516-73. The Yellowjackets entered this matchup with star junior running back Carson James averaging more than 192 yards per contest, he was held to just 39 yards on 19 carries, an average of 2.1 yards per carry – all season lows.
Powell shined with 201 yards and two touchdowns on 10 carries to lead the backfield. Tubbs added 115 yards through the air along with 25 yards and a rushing score while Winkfield finished with seven carries for 66 yards and three touchdowns. Rudy Moya had 17 yards and a score while Jeremiah Johnson registered 50 rushing yards on eight carries. Star senior Kaydon Finley led the receiving corps with 50 yards on four receptions while Bayne Martin had three catches for 28 yards.
Dempsey led the defense with four tackles, one tackle for a loss, one sack, and a forced fumble. Senior linebacker Chase Wilburn recorded a team-high 10 tackles while junior Cole Cox was a force with eight tackles, and one tackle for a loss. Jojo Cooper and Roland Krieger combined for five tackles and two sacks while Alex Patton finished with a tackle and an interception. Decker Sanders had three tackles and a fumble recovery while Tymon Meeks recorded five tackles and one tackle for a loss.
Up next, Aledo faces a familiar foe – a district enemy and a postseason nemesis – in the Denton Ryan Raiders, who are coming off a dominant 41-10 victory over the fellow Richland Royals. While Aledo is playing sharply and crisply, the team knows the best is yet to come, and they will need their absolute best to topple the same foe that ended their season at this juncture a year ago.
“I’m pleased with the execution but thought we could’ve done better,” Jones said. “Kicking field goals is not what we like to do – we like to score touchdowns. We’re going to have to score touchdowns against the guys that we’re going to play next week.”
“We’re really fired up, especially since last year it ended our season early,” Powell said. “We’ve just been preparing ever since we played Ryan during the district game, we’ve been preparing every other game to get ready for this one.”
The No. 1 Bearcats (13-0, 10-0) will take on the No. 2 Denton Ryan Raiders (12-1, 7-1) at 7 p.m. Friday at Justin Northwest ISD Stadium. The Bearcats edged Ryan 15-14 in the teams’ regular season meeting in Denton, where Aledo overcame a 12-point deficit with a second-half comeback.
