No. 4 Allen holds strong, defeats No. 23 Southlake Carroll

Friday's Metroplex showdown between Allen and Southlake Carroll had all the makings of an early season classic, and it was — at least for the first quarter and a half.

Trailing 7-0 after the first quarter, Allen turned on the offense and scored 28 points in the second quarter to take a 28-17 halftime lead. The Eagles eventually came away with a 49-27 victory Friday night on the road.

Dynamic Allen quarterback Kyler Murray's talents were on full display, as he passed for 464 yards and three touchdowns, adding 80 yards and two more scores on the ground.

His favorite target was senior Cole Carter, who pulled down seven catches for 233 yards and two touchdowns.

Southlake Carroll's Ryan Agnew passed for a touchdown and ran for another in the loss.

Both teams came into the game ranked nationally in the Xcellent 25, with Southlake Carroll at No. 23 and Allen at No. 4.

After a fruitless three-and-out on the first possession of the game, the Carroll defense provided a spark when Joel McClellan intercepted a Murray pass and ran it back 56 yards for the game's first touchdown.

Startled, the Allen offense punted on its next two offensive possessions, and it appeared as if Southlake Carroll was in good shape.

However, the Eagles took advantage of good field position following a Southlake Carroll turnover on downs, and engineered an 11-play scoring drive capped by a Murray 1-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 7-7.

Agnew responded by using his legs and his arm to lead the Dragons down the field on their next possession, eventually throwing a 7-yard touchdown pass to Luke Timian to regain the lead, 14-7.

Not to be outdone, Murray threw a 50-yard strike to Kendall Clinton on the second play of the ensuing drive to get the Eagles withing striking distance once again. After gaining a first-and-goal from the 10, Murray ran the ball in himself to tie the game, 14-14.

An interception gave the Eagles the ball at their own 12 with six minutes left in the half, and Murray and Carter immediately connected on an 88-yard touchdown to give Allen its first lead of the game, 21-14.

The duo struck once again on the next Eagle possession, this time on a 74-yard touchdown pass to give Allen 28 points in the second quarter.

The Dragons showed resolve, however, putting together a 53-yard drive just before halftime which ended with a Drew Brown 34-yard field goal as time expired, narrowing the gap to 28-17.

Whatever momentum Southlake Carroll may have had heading into halftime was immediately extinguished when Murray connected with Grant Finney for a 75-yard touchdown on the second play of the second half.

Following a Carroll 41-yard field goal by Brown, Allen responded with a 19-yard touchdown run by Jaelen Barlow to take a 42-20 lead, and the rout was on.

Carroll scored once more on a 17-yard touchdown run by Agnew, while Allen's final score came on a 5-yard run by Mev Ajdin.