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Clean-Up Act: Allen corrects mistakes, takes control in second half to down Mesquite
BY Devin Hasson, dhasson@starlocalnews.com
PLANO -- Allen (11-1) did a lot of things well in the first half of Friday's area playoff game against Mesquite (11-1).
The one glaring exception was turnovers, where the Eagles had three giveaways.
Despite those mistakes, each of which led to a Skeeters' touchdown, Allen felt it was in good shape at halftime and, if it simply took care of the football, the final score would take care of itself. That proved to be true as the Eagles dominated in the third quarter to seize momentum and turn a 21-21 tie into a 42-28 victory in front of a sellout crowd of more than 12,000 people at John Clark Stadium.
"I don't know if it was a statement game or a statement quarter, I don't look at it like that; it was just having to correct some stuff," said Tom Westerberg, Allen head coach. "We had three turnovers and they score off all three of those so we had to make some corrections and we got them corrected and we went on and played hard in the second half."
To offset the turnover differential, the Eagles relied on their ability to come through in clutch situations, particularly on third and fourth downs.
One of the those biggest situations came late in the first half when Allen faced third-and-11 but converted after sophomore Kyler Murray hit senior Cameron Calcote over the middle for a 38-yard touchdown that tied the game at 21-21 with just 43 seconds left.
The Eagles were in a similar situation early in the third, facing third-and-15, but Murray, who was 11-of-22 for 197 yards, eluded pressure and found senior Oliver Pierce for a 40-yard pass to the Mesquite 6. Senior Marcus Ward scored on the next play to make it 28-21.
Allen would not relinquish that lead.
"It starts with those guys up front and [Murray] pulling the trigger," said Westerberg, whose team was 4-of-4 on fourth downs. "On a couple of those he got in a tough situation and had to scramble and it was just a matter of trusting those guys to make plays. And then on the fourth and shorts, give it to the guys up front, being able to blow them off the ball and allow us to able to pick up a yard or two yards or whatever we needed."
One of those fourth downs helped Allen establish breathing room late in the third when Murray needed only a yard, but got 26 on a touchdown run that made it 35-21.
"I think our inability to stop them (was a big difference)," said Robbie Robinson, Mesquite head coach. "I thought our defense played hard, we just gave up some big plays. We were on the field a lot and it was a tough night, but again I give Allen the credit, they got after us, they had a good game plan and they executed it."
The Skeeters had a rough night moving the ball, finishing with only 194 yards, but did pull within 35-28 when Alex Cooper hit Jordan Bracy on a 20-yard score with 10:44 left.
Mesquite's ensuing possession went nowhere though as Allen's defense recorded one of its eight sacks.
Westerberg said the Eagles altered their normal three-man rush to more four-man fronts and that helped keep Cooper, who had thrown for more than 3,000 yards and is also a running threat, corralled.
Cooper, who was 20-of-30 for 166 yards, got up slow after a sack in the first quarter and seemed to be favoring his back for the rest of the game. The senior was limited in what he could do during the final three quarters, but that had as much to do with what was lining up across from him as an injury.
"I don't think the [Cooper injury] was the biggest thing, they just got after us," Robinson said. "They were able to pressure him, which made it tough for him."
Allen put the game away with a textbook power rushing display in the fourth.
The Eagles took over at their 24 and moved 76 yards in 10 plays -- all on the ground. Ward, who had 28 carries for 111 yards, capped the five-minute drive with a 5-yard touchdown that made it 42-28 with 3:56 left. Mesquite countered to the Allen 39, but the drive ended with an incomplete pass on fourth down and the Eagles ran off the final 2:24.
Those final seconds were the first time Allen was able to relax, which was the opposite of how it felt early on.
The Skeeters could not have asked for a better start as Javon Jones sacked Murray on the first play from scrimmage and then, on third down, the Eagles fumbled and Christian Williams recovered at the 37-yard line. Mesquite moved efficiently from there, using a seven-play drive capped by a 5-yard touchdown pass from Cooper to Junior Session for a 7-0 lead less than four minutes into the game.
Allen drew even later in the first, with Murray sneaking in from a yard out, and then took a 14-7 lead when Murray hit junior Cole Carter on an 8-yard touchdown pass.
But Mesquite turned the tide in sudden fashion, with a little help from the Eagles, midway through the second.
Jones blocked a punt that Joseph Holmes recovered and one play later, Tyson Reed raced untouched to the end zone to tie the game, 14-14. The Eagles muffed the ensuing kickoff and Aaron Lloyd pounced on the loose ball. Six plays later, Session's 3-yard touchdown run gave Mesquite a 21-14 lead.
But the Eagles regrouped, with Murray engineering a touchdown drive to tie the game at the half.
That momentum carried over into the second half of an eventual 42-28 victory.
Next up for Allen is Round Rock Westwood (9-3), with that regional semifinal set for 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Waco ISD Stadium.
"I don't think we've played our best game yet," Westerberg said. "I don't think this was a statement game, but you have to win some good ones along the way."
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