Arlington Martin pins huge upset loss on No. 5 DeSoto in big Texas high school football matchup

Video: (5) DeSoto vs. Arlington Martin - high school football preview
See the build-up to this game, part of the MaxPreps Top 10 Games of the Week.

MANSFIELD, Texas — Another nationally ranked football team bit the dust this weekend.

DeSoto (Texas), ranked fifth in the country by MaxPreps, fell behind 19-0 at halftime and 32-0 late in the third before dropping a 46-26 contest to a very good Martin (Arlington, Texas) team on a steamy Saturday at Vernon Newsom Stadium.

A pair of three-year starters, Nick Smith and Eric Walker, did in the Eagles.

Smith, a 5-foot-10, 182-pound senior halfback, rushed 18 times for 103 yards and two scores, including an 11-yard run midway through the first quarter, to give his team a 13-0 lead. Patrick Grady had kicked field goals of 40 and 41 yards to give Martin a 6-0 lead.



Following a 23-yard scoring pass from Walker (11 of 17, 158 yards) to Tyler Wilson, Smith put the game away with a 3-yard scoring run to make it 25-0 midway through the third quarter. A 6-yard scoring toss from Walker to Wilson made it 32-0.

Ohio State-bound quarterback Tristen Wallace got little protection and struggled early for DeSoto. He wound up with monster numbers, throwing for 484 yards and three scores, but most of that production came late, with fourth-quarter scoring tosses of 76 and 86 yards to Khairi Muhammad and Laviska Shenault. He also rushed 19 times for just 43 yards and added a 46-yard scoring pass to Keylan Chapman with 1:11 remaining.

With the late flurry, DeSoto actually outgained Martin 591-435.

Last year Wallace, a 6-3, 225-pound senior, threw for 287 and rushed for 217 and accounted for seven touchdowns in a 55-30 win over Martin.

Friday was the DeSoto coaching debut of Todd Peterman, who was previously the team's offensive coordinator.

Martin, which rushed for 267 yards, might be a sleeping giant. It scrimmaged 10th-ranked Allen last week and outscored those Eagles in the second half of that get-together.



The Martin-Desoto game preceded the De La Salle (Concord, Calif.) versus Trinity (Euless, Texas) game. Martin, which has never won a state title but has been very competitive, hosted De La Salle at a practice on Friday.

Manvel, ranked 20th in the country, dropped a 29-26 game to Westfield on Friday as well.

All statistics courtesy of the Dallas Morning News.