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First impressions: Leopards dominate Heritage in Green's debut
BY CHRIS O'DELL, codell@starlocalnews.com
FRISCO -- Playing the first game in program history without Jim Bob Puckett leading the team, Lovejoy took the field Friday night to face Frisco Heritage and came away with a dominant 53-14 win in new head coach Matt Green's debut game.
"It was really a tribute to the kids," Green said. "They really turned it on out there."
The dominance on both sides of the ball came after Heritage forced a three-and-out on Lovejoy's opening offensive possession. The Coyotes then wasted no time on offense with sophomore quarterback Twayne Blackwell breaking free for a 48-yard touchdown run to give Heritage a 7-0 lead just five minutes into the contest.
The quick start didn't stop there for Heritage, as Lovejoy again went three-and-out on its next possession before flipping the switch for the remainder of the game.
The third time was a charm for the Leopards after freshman quarterback Bowman Sells found junior receiver Grant Jarvis for a 74-yard strike, knotting the game at 7-7 with 5:35 remaining in the opening quarter.
Heritage then made matters worse by fumbling the snap on a punt attempt, giving Lovejoy possession at the 27-yard line. The Leopards took advantage of the shortened field and Sells connected with junior receiver Justice Luce for a 27-yard hook up that made it 14-7 in favor of Lovejoy.
"We made some bad plays that snowballed on us," Hendrix said. "It was a great learning experience though and hopefully we'll grow from it."
Things then went from bad to worse for Heritage after a three-and-out set up a 55-yard punt return for touchdown by Lovejoy senior starting quarterback Zach Saffle.
Badly needing a successful drive on the following possession, the Coyotes were again forced to punt and Lovejoy senior running back Nick La Sane kept the Leopards rolling with a 53-yard touchdown run as time expired in the first quarter. The score gave Lovejoy a 27-7 cushion after 12 minutes of play and dug Heritage into a deep hole in the early going.
Blackwell temporarily put the Coyotes back into the game with a 75-yard touchdown run on the first play of the second quarter, trimming the deficit to 27-14.
"For a sophomore [Blackwell] made a lot of good plays," Hendrix said. "He also made some bad plays too though. That's all a part of growing up."
However, it was the last time Heritage would find the end zone for the remainder of the night, as Saffle added a 12-yard quarterback keeper with just under three minutes left in the half to give Lovejoy a 37-14 advantage at the break.
"Our approach right now with [Saffle and Sells] is that they really compliment each other well," Green said. "It's a nice two-headed monster to have and they understand that and the team understands that."
Needing a quick turnaround in the third quarter, the Heritage offense became stagnant in the second half and opened the third quarter with multiple three-and-outs before Lovejoy eventually widened its lead during last half of the frame.
Senior wide receiver Cullon Oldham-Greene took an end-around handoff from Saffle and punched it in from just two yards out to give the Leopards a 42-14 lead with 6:12 left in the quarter.
Saffle then added his second touchdown run of the game from a yard away with only 1:46 remaining in the third to make it a 50-14 affair.
"[Saffle and Sells] are both great players," Hendrix said.
Saffle ended the game with 27 yards rushing and two touchdowns on seven carries while completing 1-of-2 pass attempts. Meanwhile, Sells threw for 176 yards and two touchdowns after completing 6-of-10 attempts with one interception.
Heritage was led by Blackwell, who ended the night with 131 yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries while throwing for another 115 yards through the air. However, the sophomore completed just 16-of-29 attempts and threw two interceptions without a touchdown pass.
"Our goal was basically to build a lead and make [Heritage] abandon their game plan a little bit," Green said.
Lovejoy would complete its scoring in the game after a 33-yard field goal from junior Mick Ellis, securing a 53-14 victory in the team's regular season opener.
"Our defense really dug in," Green said. "I'm really proud of the way they finished the game."
The Leopards will stay on the road next week with a 7:30 p.m. contest Friday against Forney at City Bank Stadium.
"It's going to be a war," Green said. "I'm looking forward to it."
After blowout loss at home Friday night, the Coyotes will look to rebound with a Thursday night game against McKinney at Ron Poe Stadium with the two teams slated for a 7:30 p.m. kick off.
"We have to get a lot better than the way we played tonight," Hendrix said.
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