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Home, sweet home: The local beat at the Heart of Dallas Bowl
BY Matthew Costa, Staff Writer
DALLAS--The Cotton Bowl served as more than just a meeting ground for Oklahoma State and Purdue on New Year's Day.
It was also a chance for former high school stars of the Metroplex to return home at the Heart of Dallas Bowl game, a 58-14 win for the Cowboys.
Fourteen athletes came back to the area they grew up in, three for the Boilermakers and 11 for the Cowboys, happy to showcase their talents in front of the nation after hard-fought seasons.
Johnson contributed to his team's defensive success against Purdue, accounting for four tackles and a forced fumble which was recovered by a Cowboy teammate.
Junior Caleb Lavey, former Celina star, started for the Cowboys at linebacker, adding two tackles and a sack for his team as well.
"I was really excited (to come to Dallas), but I thought the weather would be better," Lavey jokingly said. "It's so great that the bowl is so close so everybody could come."
The other heavy local contributor was quiet possibly the lone bright spot for Purdue. Sophomore Ryan Russell of Carrollton Creekview put on a great display throughout the game, accounting for a team-leading seven tackles to go along with a sack that ended a scoring threat from Oklahoma State near halftime.
Even with Russell's efforts, the Oklahoma State squad was a force to be reckoned with, as the extra practice time served the Cowboys well.
"We prepared for Purdue for a month," Lavey said. "We came out and dominated from the beginning. It was a good win and a great finish to the season."
Asked about the quality of high school football in North Texas and how it has helped in the NCAA, the consensus was overwhelmingly positive from the former high school studs.
"North Texas has got the best high school football in the country," Lavey said. "A lot of the guys (on the team) say it's Oklahoma or Houston, but it's definitely here."
Johnson added to his teammate's praise, saying, "It's the best. It definitely carried over (to college)."
Although only a handful of players from the area were in the game, most will return to their school next year with the chance to win starting jobs and have more success.
Other players include Purdue freshmen J.J. Prince (Southlake Carroll) and Jordan Roos (Celina), while Oklahoma State includes sophomore Derek Branson (McKinney Boyd), redshirt freshman Travis Cross (Plano West), redshirt freshman Brendan Fagan (Flower Mound Marcus), sophomore Daxx Garman (Southlake Carroll) junior Deion Imade (Rowlett), sophomore Teddy Johnson (Coppell), senior Jarid King (Plano West), redshirt freshman Taylor May (Plano Senior) and sophomore Cody Phillips (Allen).
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