5A District 1 Top Player Performances of the Week
Congratulations to this week's top players! We're covering the best performances from Friday's football action (using all statistics entered as of the time of writing). Enjoy!
Owen Smith Delivers Best Effort of Season
Sadly, Owen Smith posting his best game of the season wasn't enough to lead Natchitoches Central over Airline on Friday. Smith threw for 401 yards and five touchdowns, and also rushed for 147 yards and a touchdown on only 14 carries, good enough to set a new career-high in rushing yards in the process.
Natchitoches Central is on a seven-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 1-8. Smith and Natchitoches Central will be playing in front of their home fans against Huntington at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
Gamescore: 77.43
Taylor Posts Huge Game in 76-52 Win
Ben Taylor's big game helped extend Airline's winning streak to eight on Friday. Taylor was dynamite, throwing for 460 yards and six touchdowns while completing 82.4% of his passes, and also punching in two touchdowns on the ground. He has been hot , having posted four or more passing touchdowns the last six times he's played.
If the past is any indication, Taylor could be in store for another big game when he takes on Byrd on Friday. Taylor threw for 366 yards and four touchdowns while completing 76.9% of his passes the last time he and the Yellow Jackets duked it out back in October of 2023.
Gamescore: 72.07
Underclassman Peyton Houston Major Player in Evangel Christian Academy Victory
While Friday's win was certainly a team effort, someone pulling more than their own weight was underclassman Peyton Houston. He did his part (and then some), throwing for 276 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 12.5 yards per attempt, and also rushing for 50 yards and a touchdown for the 'W'.
The victory made it two in a row for Evangel Christian Academy and bumps their season record up to 3-5. Houston and Evangel Christian Academy will play host again on Friday to welcome Lafayette Christian Academy, where kickoff is scheduled at 7:00 p.m.
Gamescore: 50.60
Damari Drake Dazzles in Evangel Christian Academy Victory
Another Evangel Christian Academy player making an appearance on this list is Damari Drake. He picked up two sacks and made 12 total tackles (3.0 for loss).
For the year, Drake has averaged 12.5 total tackles per game and for the season has 3 sacks.
Gamescore: 46.08
Kenny Darby Turns in Season-Best Effort
Kenny Darby produced his most outstanding game to date while leading Airline to the win on Friday. Darby picked up 202 receiving yards and four touchdowns.
On the year, Darby has caught 18 touchdowns while averaging 150.2 receiving yards per game. He's made a big improvement compared to last season: at this point last year, he was only averaging 32.63 receiving yards per game.
Gamescore: 45.03
Other Notable Players
- Joshua Isaac Jr: 146 yards rushing, 2 TDs ; 75 yards receiving (Gamescore: 44.15)
- Derrian Milligan: 169 yards rushing, 1 TD (Gamescore: 36.08)
- Nyles Hullaby: 164 yards rushing, 2 TDs (Gamescore: 32.80)
- Cayleb Armstrong: 3 sacks and 6 total tackles (3.0 for loss) (Gamescore: 26.25)
- Jarvis Davis: 112 yards receiving; 2 TDs rushing (Gamescore: 24.35)
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
