North Shore takes on fellowstate power
North Shore and Austin Westlake, a pair of storied high school football programs, have not met since the 2015 Class 6A Division I state championship game at NRG Stadium. North Shore won that classic in overtime 21-14, getting the best of the Chaparrals and their star quarterback, Sam Ehlinger.
A lot has happened in five years. But one thing that hasn’t changed is North Shore andWestlake’s penchant for winning. North Shore is ranked No. 2 nationally byMaxPreps and Westlake No. 10.
Both juggernauts come into Saturday’s 2 p.m. Division I state semifinal showdown at Katy’s Legacy Stadium unbeaten, with long winning streaks and as defending 6A state champions. Last year, North Shore wonDivision I andWestlake won Division II.
“I think the whole town (of Galena Park) will be there,” said Mustangs senior quarterback and Auburn signee Dematrius Davis, who has guided North Shore (14-0) to back-to-back state titles and 29 consecutive wins.
Westlake (12-0) has won its last 22 games.
“I think it’s going to be a great one,” said Mustangs coach Jon Kay, whose team has won 45 of its last 46 games. “Whether it’s 7-0 or 70-70, I don’t know. But I’m anticipating a game that is going to be one for the ages.”
The Mustangs won the Region III championship by hammering Ridge Point 5614, running up 545 yards with Davis accounting for five touchdowns.
One win away from a third straight appearance in the state title game, North Shore has the athletes, but it takes more than athleticism to win football game after football game. The Mustangs have a system that works.
“Our staff does a really goodjob of developing players, and we take full advantage of our time in the playoffs with our younger kids,” Kay said. “We’re running essentially a second spring ball right now for the last five weeks with our JV team and doing what we would normally do during spring football.
“Our staff’s attention to detail, not just with the varsity but with the kids at all levels, makes a huge difference when we get into the season and the development of those players and the buy-in of our community and our administration. Just the support that we have here in the east side of Houston is incredibly impressive.
“It doesn’t just happen with great athletes, with a great staff. It has to be a complete buy-in, and the fact that these kids are hearing the same message, whether they’re hearing it in the fieldhouse with us or in the school building or at the Walgreens down on Wallisville. The same message of constant improvement and taking care of their business outside of football has paid huge dividends.”
Davis and wide receiver Shadrach Banks are the marquee names for the Mustangs. The dual-threat Davis has passed for 37 touchdowns and rushed for 21. In a third-round win at Legacy Stadium — 47-22 over Tompkins — Texas A&M signee Banks had 11 catches for 251 yards and two touchdowns.
In a rarity, Banks and Davis have started varsity games at the Class 6A level in five calendar years. Justifiably, they receive a large share of the attention and are cementing their legacy. But theMustangs were winning games before the two arrived at the east side school and likely will continue to make extended playoff runs.
“We don’t spend a lot of time talking about state championships or district championships. It’s about improvement,” Kay said. “When you’re careful not to define what that pot of gold at the end of the rainbowis, then your kids are constantly working toward something, and our something is improvement.
“Whether you are coming off a loss or a state championship, our kids are mature enough to identify things that they do well in what they want to build on but also things thatwe need to improve. There’s no talk, there’s no countdown, there’s no ticker, there’s nothing pointing toward a state championship. Our kids and our staff understand that’s a result of the work that they are doing day in and day out. When you can build that kind of a mindset, it fights off complacency naturally.”
Like North Shore, the Chaparrals under coach Todd Dodge have remained a perennial state power despite annual graduation among players. Dodge has a similar take to Kay for both teams’ sustained success.
“At our place and at North Shore, I’m sure, there’s such a great tradition, but as one group leaves and is celebrated, then that next group is hungry to make their mark,” Dodge said.
“When you go on long runs year in and year out, you make your culture of the young kids hungry to keep doing that. When you make those runs, that’s an extra five and six weeks of football for your program. You can’t put a premium on that, what that does for your future. The kids that are playing for North Shore and Westlake, they get almost two spring football practices.”
Competition within the program has helped North Shore build on its success. Supporting players include receiver Charles King, a Houston Baptist signee and three-year starter who at times gets lost inthe shuffle, Ta’Von Griffin in the secondary, safety Caleb Flagg and receiver Jhalyn Bailey.
A rotation of four players at running back doesn’t deliver eye-popping individual stats but keeps fresh players on the field.
“We actually get more rushing yards a game than passing yards,” said Davis, referring to the combined production of Daveon Ford, Brannon Davis, Rashaad Johnson and Xavier Owens.
And as good as North Shore is offensively, don’t sell the defense short.
“We’re not all about offense,” Banks said. “Our defense is good, too.”
Even with a youthful secondary headed by Griffin and Flagg, North Shore has an elite defense. Cornerback Denver Harris is a national-level recruit who started every game last year as a sophomore. Sophomore defensive back Jacoby Davis has looked impressive, and Kay said senior Aaron Brown will go down as one of the finest defensive linemen the school has produced.
Westlake junior quarterback Cade Klubnik has passed for 3,099 yards and 32 touchdowns, but few schools play defense like Westlake. In outscoring the competition 661-51 and allowing only seven touchdowns, the Chaparrals have posted six shutouts, including last week’s 34-0 pasting of Cibolo Steele to capture the Region IV championship. The Chaparrals generated 608 yards of offense.
“These guys play defense as well as anybody in the state of Texas,” Kay said. “Their secondary support is as impressive as anybody I’ve seen inmy 25 years. So I know they’re going to come out here and play defense, and I think our kids are playing defense at a high level as well.”