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Mistakes help lift Marcus over Plano, 35-32

By on October 16, 2010 in '10 Fall Season

FLOWER MOUND – A poor snap, muffed punt and a lost fumble led to a 21-point swing Friday and an onside kick skipped over the sideline just before Plano could make a play on it as Marcus held on to defeat Plano, 35-32, at Marauders Stadium.

Plano (4-3, 1-3 in 8-5A) will have plenty of ground to make up in its final four games, but a win would have put it in a four-way tie for third place with the final three games at John Clark Stadium.

Marcus (6-1, 3-1) turned the three Plano miscues into a 21-7 advantage with 5:09 left in the third quarter and Plano was in catchup mode the rest of the night.

It had closed the lead to a field goal, 28-25, on a 24-yard Murat Kuzu touchdown pass from Connor Michelsen and a Brandon Hamilton pass reception on the conversion. Chris Moore’s onside kick was nearly perfect. He struck it upfield and toward the Plano sideline and Plano had position on the bobbling ball. It rolled and flipped, but came to a rest on the sideline about 9-and-a-half yards downfield. Two Plano players were in position to make a play on the ball had it gone 10 yards. Marcus scored in four plays and though Plano answered it couldn’t get a break on a second onside kick attempt that sealed the loss.

The things that have made Plano successful mostly happened outside of the three mishaps. Brandon Hamilton had consecutive 100-yard receiving games, Michelson broke 250 yards passing going to seven different receivers and Kevin Merrill broke 100 yards rushing and 150 offensive yards.

But mistakes dug a hole from which the team couldn’t respond. The poor snap led to a Marcus touchdown with 24 seconds left in the first half that resulted in a 7-7 halftime tie. The muffed punt extended Marcus’ opening drive of the second half that resulted seven plays later in a touchdown run. Four plays into the first Plano possession of the second half a fumble turned into another touchdown.

Then Plano responded. Merrill scored on a 4-yard toss off left tackle to cut the 21-7 lead in half. Xavier Harbert’s fumble recovery resulted in a 22-yard Moore field goal that trimmed the lead to 21-17 with 11:06 left.

But, Plano couldn’t get the stop it needed in the fourth quarter to pull ahead.

Dagan Newsome, in his third year at running back for Marcus, scored on a 7-yard run to put Marcus up, 28-17, with 8:16 left. Plano answered two drives later when Steele Hoetger caught a fourth-down pass for 35 yards and Michelsen hit Kuzu on a 24-yard strike to trim the margin to a field goal, 28-25, with 2:53 left.

When the first onside kick rolled out of bounds, Marcus had another short field and scored in four plays to go up, 35-25, with 2:01 left. Still, Plano wasn’t done. A 49-yard pass completion to Hamilton on fourth down set up a 14-yard touchdown pass to Hoetger to cut the lead to 35-32 with 1:09 left. But the second onside kick never seemed to have a chance and Marcus survived.

Plano is left needing to win out to have a chance at returning to the playoffs for the fourth straight year. It has Lewisville at home Friday. Then it plays crosstown games against Plano East and Plano West, also at John Clark Stadium, to close the regular season. The loss Friday has Plano a game back of Plano East, tied with Lewisville and a game up on Plano West in district play.

FM Marcus 35, Plano 32

Plano 0 7 7 18 – 32
FM Marcus 0 7 14 14 – 35
Scoring Summary
First Quarter
No scoring
Second Quarter
P – Connor Michelsen 2 run (Chris Moore kick), 5:56
M – Taylor Smith 10 pass from Deion Sanders Jr (Drew Hamrick kick), 0:24
Third Quarter
M – Rufus Mason 6 run (Hamrick kick), 8:23
M – Sanders Jr 34 run (Hamrick kick), 5:09
P – Kevin Merrill 4 run (Moore kick), 2:24
Fourth Quarter
P – Moore 22 FG, 11:06
M – Dagan Newsome 7 run (Hamrick kick), 8:16
P – Murat Kuzu 24 pass from Michelsen (Hamilton pass from Michelsen), 2:53
M – Mason 4 run (Hamrick kick), 2:01
P – Steele Hoetger 14 pass from Michelsen (Moore kick), 1:09
P M
21 First downs 20
33-120 Rushes-yards 50-296
263 Passing yards 23
383 Total yards 319
16-30-0 Passing 2-6-0
3-102 Total punting 6-192
8-50 Penalties-yds. 6-56
1-1 Fumbles-lost 1-1
INDIVIDUALS
Rushing — P: Kevin Merrill 26-137, Murat Kuzu 2-4, Brandon Hamilton 1-2, Connor Michelsen 3-(minus-3), Team 1-(minus-20). M: Rufus Mason 27-179, Dagan Newsome 15-88, Deion Sanders Jr. 7-28, Ryan Staffileno 1-1.
Passing — P: Connor Mickelsen 16-30-0, 263 yards;  M: Deion Sanders Jr. 2-6-0, 23 yards.
Receiving — P: Brandon Hamilton 4-103, Blair Burns 2-63, Steele Hoetger 3-53, Kevin Merrill 4-25, Murat Kuzu 1-24, Clayton Parlin 2-14, Sam Leavitt 1-5. M: Cale Shriver 1-13, Taylor Smith 1-10.
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FM outlasts Plano in shootout, 61-52

By on October 9, 2010 in '10 Fall Season

FLOWER MOUND – The thing about an offensive slugfest is just one misstep, failure to counter-punch just one time can turn fate against you.

It seemed for moments Friday that Plano had managed to outduel Flower Mound, as Connor Michelsen passed for four scores, rushed for another touchdown and then caught a touchdown pass from Murat Kuzu. But Flower Mound rallied with 15 unanswered fourth quarter points to defeat Plano, 61-52, at Neal Wilson Stadium.

Connor Michelsen had 410 yards passing for four touchdowns, rushed for a score and caught a touchdown pass Friday, but Flower Mound edged Plano, 61-52.

Plano (4-2, 1-2 in District 8-5A) turned in its most productive offensive showing in five years and it wasn’t enough to get past Flower Mound (4-2, 2-1).

Michelsen completed 22 of 39 passes for a career-high 410 yards, but it was Kuzu’s touchdown pass to the senior quarterback that appeared as if it would be the first stroke in sealing a victory over the high-octane Flower Mound offense. Kuzu, not unfamiliar to the quarterback position, took a snap out of the Wildcat formation and found Michelsen to give Plano a 49-40 lead with 7:28 left in the third quarter.

Flower Mound answered, but Chris Moore’s field goal with 1 second left in the third quarter put Plano up, 52-47. All the while, the defense had begun to hit stride. After a first half that saw Flower Mound score points on all seven possessions, the defense allowed it to score just once in its first four possessions of the second half.

Then, as quickly as momentum had swung in Plano’s favor, Flower Mound put together a pair of drives that sealed Plano’s fate. Josh Brake caught a 20-yard touchdown pass from Paul Millard to go up, 55-52, with 6:18 left. Then, Hunter Lee edged out a 61-52 advantage on a 6-yard touchdown run with 1:39 left to seal the win.

In a passing showcase, Michelsen had matched Paul Millard, who completed 29 of 46 passes for 402 yards against the district’s top defense.

It was a shootout from the onset. Thirty-four points were scored in the first quarter, including 21 in the first 3:43. Brandon Hamilton answered Flower Mound with a 79-yard touchdown reception from Michelsen with 10:10 left in the first quarter. Then Michelsen hooked up with Kuzu on a 20-yard touchdown off a screen.

Flower Mound pulled out to a 27-14 lead with 11:19 left in the first half. Then Michelsen hit Hamilton on a 68-yard touchdown pass and proved he can run when he has to on the next drive when his 28-yard scamper set up his 2-yard keeper to trim the margin to 34-28. His second touchdown pass to Kuzu narrowed the Flower Mound lead to 37-35 with 1:03 left.

Brandon Hamilton was a big play weapon Friday. He caught touchdown passes for 79 and 68 yards.

The only mistake may have been leaving Flower Mound even a minute on the clock. It got into field goal range with 8 seconds left in the half. A 50-yard attempt was blocked, but an infraction was called on Plano and a successive 34-yard Flower Mound attempt with time expired in the first half was good for a 40-35 halftime lead.

Plano responded to take its first lead of the game on a Ben Laures 8-yard return after a fake Flower Mound punt attempt was blocked. Then Matt Johnson’s fumble recovery set up the Kuzu pass to Michelsen for a 49-40 lead with 4:32 expired in the second half. From there, Flower Mound outscored Plano, 21-3, to seal the victory.

As an example of the success Plano had offensively, Michelsen went over 100 yards passing on the fifth snap of the game and Hamilton went over 100 yards receiving on the opening play of the third series. Hamilton finished with 176 yards on four receptions, but Flower Mound had two 100-yard receivers and a 100-yard rusher.

Flower Mound 61, Plano 52

Plano 14 21 12 0 – 52
Flower Mound 20 20 7 15 – 61
Scoring summary
First Quarter
F – Josh Brake 64 pass from Paul Millard (Aaron Stock kick), 11:05
P – Brandon Hamilton 79 pass from Connor Michelsen (Chris Moore kick), 10:10
F – Millard 8 run (Stock kick), 8:17
P – Murat Kuzu 20 pass from Michelsen (Moore kick), 4:45
F – Nolan LeSueur 12 pass from Millard (kick failed), 2:50
Second Quarter
F – Hunter Lee 24 run (Stock kick), 11:19
P – Hamilton 68 pass from Michelsen (Moore kick), 10:56
F – LeSueur 3 pass from Millard (Stock kick), 9:16
P – Michelsen 2 run (Moore kick), 7:30
F – Stock 28 FG, 1:52
P – Kuzu 24 pass from Michelsen (Moore kick), 1:03
F – Stock 34 FG, 0:00
Third Quarter
P – Ben Laures 8 punt recovery return (Moore kick), 8:02
P – Michelsen 4 pass from Kuzu (Moore kick), 7:28
F – Lee 4 run (Stock kick), 4:50
P – Moore 44 FG, 0:01
Fourth Quarter
F – Brake 20 pass from Millard (LeSueur pass from Millard), 6:18
F – Lee 2 run (Stock kick), 1:39
P
F
23 First downs 31
21-45 Rushes-yards 34-119
414 Passing yards 402
459 Total yards 521
23-40-0 Passing 29-46-0
4-153 Total punting 1-51
9-100 Penalties-yds. 15-150
4-1 Fumbles-lost 1-1

INDIVIDUALS

Rushing — P: Murat Kuzu 11-40, Connor Michelsen 8-3, Kevin Merrill 2-2. F: Hunter Lee 24-123, Paul Millard 7-22, Connor Ashley 2-6, Team 1-(-32).

Passing — P: Connor Michelsen 22-39-0, 410 yards; Murat Kuzu 1-1-0, 4 yards. F: Paul Millard 29-46-0, 402 yards.

Receiving — P: Brandon Hamilton 4-176, Clayton Parlin 4-89, Murat Kuzu 7-61, Kevin Merrill 4-47, Steele Hoetger 2-11, Connor Michelsen 1-4. F: Josh Brake 5-123, Hunter Lee 7-119, Nolan LeSueur 10-72, Matt Cavanaugh 2-35, Marshall Williams 2-28, Connor Ashley 1-10, Delvin Holmes 1-9, Brad Bush 1-6.

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FM poses another defensive challenge

By on October 8, 2010 in '10 Fall Season

In four of five games this season, Plano has held its opponent under 20 points and three times has held opponents to less than 10 points.

It is a defense that is showing it can make life rough on about any offense.

The next major challenge takes place today as Plano (4-1, 1-1) travels to Flower Mound (3-2, 1-1) for the third game of the District 8-5A schedule. Kickoff at Neal Wilson Stadium takes place at 7:30 p.m.

Plano has the district’s top-ranked defense. Flower Mound has the top-ranked offense. It follows a game in which the defense was supposed to be put to the test. Plano defeated Hebron, 33-6, last week. Hebron, which had been averaging more than 500 yards of offense was held out of the end zone and compiled just 258 yards. It had just 184 yards through the first three quarters.

But, another week offers another test in a very strong district alignment. Flower Mound is averaging 51.2 points and 617 yards per game. Last week’s game developed into a defensive slugfest in the first half, but ultimately Plano’s defense stood firm and the offense put together enough offense to pull away from Hebron.

That could be what happens again against what appears to be an even higher octane offense this week.

Plano isn’t all defense, though. Quarterback Connor Michelsen, who has 879 yards passing and eight touchdowns to go with three rushing scores and a 142.7 quarterback rating, will grace the cover of Vype in October. See the issue here. Through five games, Murat Kuzu and Kevin Merrill have combined for 605 yards rushing and three touchdowns. Kuzu joins Brandon Hamilton, Clayton Parlin and Steele Hoetger with at least 10 receptions and 100 yards receiving.

Be sure to check out our District 8-5A standings, offensive statistics, our “record when” file, and the “last time it happened” file before the game. Also check in on how the Dallas Morning News’ writers pick the game.

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Game notes: Plano vs. Hebron

By on October 1, 2010 in '10 Fall Season

Plano 33, Hebron 6: Final score.

  • Plano seems to have iced its 715th all-time victory, making it the second winningest program in state history and tied with Amarillo as the winningest Class 5A program. Although, many would point out all those victories didn’t take place in Class 5A. Plano has won state titles in five classifications.
  • Plano 33, Hebron 6: Kevin Merrill 1-yard touchdown run set up by Murat Kuzu’s 22-yard run to the Hebron 6. 7:28 left.
  • Plano 26, Hebron 6: Punt snapped out of end zone for safety. 10:06 left to play.
  • Plano 24, Hebron 6: Murat Kuzu 56-yard touchdown run. 11:19 left.

Stats through third quarter:

H P
12 First downs 8
27-80 Rushes-yards 16-64
104 Passing yards 137
184 Total yards 201
8-22-1 Passing 11-20-0
5-188 Total punting 5-174
3-10 Penalties-yds. 7-82
0-0 Fumbles-lost 1-1
  • Plano 17, Hebron 6: End of third quarter.
  • Murat Kuzu now has 112 yards on 12 offensive touches with 3:26 left in third quarter. He went over 100 yards on a 36-yard reception.
  • Plano 17, Hebron 6: Defense gets key stop with 4:58 left in third quarter.
  • Plano 17, Hebron 6: Blair Burns 96-yard kickoff return for touchdown. 11:45 left in third quarter. In three games against Hebron, Plano has got a kickoff return for touchdown in all three games. They were by Rex Burkhead in 2008, Kevin Merrill in 2009 and Blair Burns tonight.
  • First half recap: Plano’s offense was slow to get started, but Murat Kuzu gave it a spark with a 44-yard run for its initial first down with 4:30 left. Connor Michelsen scored on the next play to put Plano up, 7-3. Chris Moore added to the lead with a 22-yard field goal with 29 seconds left. Hebron closed the halftime margin to 10-6 with Kurt Walker’s second field goal with 1 second left. Plano had just 17 yards on its first four series and 130 on its last two. At halftime, the district’s second-leading offense has been limited to 136 yards. Plano gets the ball to open the second half.
  • Unofficial halftime defensive leaders: Collin Brence 4 tackles, Zach Laures 4 tackles, Matt Johnson 3 tackles and interception.
  • Plano East 29, Plano West 0 (halftime)
  • Flower Mound 30, FM Marcus 14 (halftime)
  • Allen 35, Lewisville 0 (halftime)

Halftime Statistics:

H P
8 First downs 6
18-64 Rushes-yards 12-54
72 Passing yards 93
136 Total yards 147
5-13-1 Passing 8-17-0
4-146 Total punting 4-135
1-0 Penalties-yds. 4-40
0-0 Fumbles-lost 0-0

Rushing — Murat Kuzu 4-48, Connor Michelsen 7-6, Clayton Parlin 1-0.

Passing — Connor Michelsen 8-17-0, 93 yards.

Receiving — P: Murat Kuzu 3-18, Steele Hoetger 2-18, Kevin Merrill 2-46, Clayton Parlin 1-11.

  • Plano 10, Hebron 6: End of half. Halftime stats coming up.
  • Plano 10, Hebron 6: Kurt Walker 40-yard field goal. 0:01 left in first half.
  • Plano 10, Hebron 3: Chris Moore 22-yard field goal good with 29 seconds left in first half to cap 12-play, 80-yard drive highlighted by a 34-yard pass from Connor Michelsen to Kevin Merrill.
  • Murat Kuzu has 66 of Plano’s 103 yards.
  • Plano 7, Hebron 3: Murat Kuzu 44-yard run sets up 1-yard Connor Michelsen 1-yard touchdown run to give Plano lead with 4:10 left in first half. Kuzu’s carry gave Plano its initial first down with 4:30 left. The drive was set up by a Matt Johnson interception.
  • Plano still doesn’t have a first down and only 17 yards with less than 7 minutes left in the first half.
  • With 8:04 left in first half, Hebron still leads, 3-0. The Hawks offense has been limited to 75 total yards.

First quarter statistics:

H P
5 First downs 0
12-62 Rushes-yards 3-2
17 Passing yards 12
79 Total yards 14
2-7-0 Passing 2-3-0
1-25 Total punting 2-73
0-0 Penalties-yds. 2-20
0-0 Fumbles-lost 0-0
  • Hebron 3, Plano 0: Kurt Walker 21-yard field goal. 3:37 left in first quarter. Zach Laures has four tackles so far to lead Plano’s defense.
  • Plano goes 3-and-out. Hebron will take over after punt.
  • Plano gets defensive stop. Will receive punt to open first offensive series with 9:07 left in first quarter.
  • Hebron will receive to open the first half. Kickoff will take place shortly. Of note, tonight is “pinkout” for the Planoettes, benefitting the Susan G. Komen For The Cure.
  • Kickoff is a little more than an hour away here in a rare Plano Wildcats appearance at Tom Kimbrough Stadium. Tonight’s game features one of the district’s best offenses against a top defense. Hebron (3-1, 1-0) is ranked second in offense in District 8-5A with an average of 43.5 points scored and 508.5 yards per game. Plano (3-1, 0-1) is ranked second defensively by allowing an average of 15.7 points scored and 273.2 yards per game. Plano is ranked last in district offense, but could have a chance to break out against the sixth-ranked defense. Of note, Plano can move into a tie for the most all-time wins in Class 5A with its 715th victory tonight. Amarillo (715) currently leads Plano by one win, but is on a bye this week.
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Big second half lifts Allen past Plano, 30-13

By on September 25, 2010 in '10 Fall Season

With a heavy dose of Jonathan Williams and by scoring on its first four possessions of the second half, Allen defeated Plano, 30-13, Friday at Eagle Stadium in a District 8-5A opener.

Plano (3-1, 0-1) has not defeated Allen since 2005. But, there were moments that appeared this time would be different.

Kobie Douglas breaks up a pass intended for Blake Boyd that allowed Plano to take a 13-7 lead to halftime. / Thad Fenton

Behind a 31-yard touchdown strike to Brandon Hamilton and a 55-yard touchdown completion to Murat Kuzu, quarterback Connor Michelsen helped Plano to a 13-7 halftime lead.

But a lopsided second half did Plano in. Allen struck on two game-breaking plays and scored 23 unanswered points in the second half to rally from the halftime deficit.

Blake Boyd narrowed the deficit to 13-10 with a 28-yard field goal just 3:49 into the second half. A Plano drive that moved into Allen territory stalled and the very next play gave Allen the lead for good. Williams, who finished the game with 179 yards rushing and two touchdowns, made the most of his final carry of the night. He found a hole, made a couple of nifty moves and went 80 yards on a touchdown run to put Allen up, 17-13, with eight minutes elapsed in the second half.

Murat Kuzu's 55-yard touchdown reception gave Plano a 13-7 halftime lead. In the second half, Plano couldn't convert his long kickoff return into points as Allen was attempting to pull away. / Thad Fenton

And Plano was never able to answer. It wasted a long kickoff return by Sam Morell that gave it a series starting inside Allen’s red zone. A 35-yard field goal failed, resulting in Plano’s second missed field goal of the game.

Five plays later Allen scored again – this time on a 70-yard pass play from Alec Morris to Jonathon Lee – to go up, 23-13. Again, Plano drove to Allen’s 20 before a series stalled. A key fourth down play was stopped by Allen with 6:45 left and Plano coach Jaydon McCullough said he considered a field goal to narrow the deficit to one score.

He wouldn’t have another chance to make the decision. Allen responded with an 80-yard drive capped by a 12-yard Paul Walker touchdown that put the game out of reach, 30-13, with 4:03 left to play.

Two missed opportunities prevented Plano from having a two-score lead of its own at halftime. A 28-yard field goal failed on its first possession of the game and a conversion kick failed midway through the second quarter. All told the failings in the kicking game left seven points off the board in the game.

Plano answered Allen’s early score when Hamilton scored on a 31-pass completion from Michelsen. Then, after the defense forced a punt, it went to Kuzu in the passing game. He opened the drive with a 7-yard reception, then had a 20-yard reception and scored the go-ahead touchdown on a short pass he turned into a 55-yard score after a couple of moves and a mix of some game-breaking speed.

Among the more impressive defensive series in the game came on Allen’s second drive after Plano scored to tie the game. Arthur Skinner and Taylor May teamed up on a sack of Morris on first down. Skinner came back and recorded a sack of Morris on second down and Blair Burns intercepted Morris on third down.

Then there was a defensive series that seemed to make a statement late in the first half. In 11 plays, Allen drove inside the Plano 5. It was facing a third-and-goal from the Plano 1 – the 14th play of the drive – when Kobie Douglas defended a pass thrown into the back corner of the end zone and Allen’s 19-yard field goal attempt failed.

But Allen came back to score on its first four possessions of the second half and Plano failed to score on four second-half possessions – three that included moving into Allen territory.

Allen 30, Plano 13

Plano 7 6 0 0 – 13
Allen 7 0 10 13 – 30
Scoring Summary
First Quarter
A – Jonathan Williams 12 run (Blake Boyd kick), 3:54
P – Brandon Hamilton 31 pass from Connor Michelsen (Chris Moore kick), 1:59
Second Quarter
P – Murat Kuzu 55 pass from Michelsen (kick failed), 6:13
Third Quarter
A – Boyd 28 FG, 8:11
A – Williams 80 run (Boyd kick), 4:00
Fourth Quarter
A – Jonathon Lee 70 pass from Alec Morris (kick failed), 11:09
A – Paul Walker 12 run (Boyd kick), 4:03
P TEAM STATS A
14 First downs 20
31-96 Rushes-yards 35-255
168 Passing yards 217
264 Total yards 472
9-17-0 Passing 11-20-1
3-95 Total punting 1-33
8-46 Penalties-yds. 7-45
1-0 Fumbles-lost 0-0

INDIVIDUALS

Rushing — P: Kevin Merrill 14-51, Connor Michelsen 14-31, Brandon Hamilton 1-13, Murat Kuzu 2-1. A: Jonathan Williams 17-179, Alec Morris 7-25, Paul Walker 6-23, Oliver Pierce 2-12, Onajee Ollie 2-10, Andrew Rodriguez 1-6.

Passing — P: Connor Michelsen 9-17-0, 168 yards. A: Alec Morris 11-20-1, 217 yards.

Receiving — P: Murat Kuzu 3-82, Brandon Hamilton 3-52, Clayton Parlin 2-30, Kevin Merrill 1-4. A: Andrew Rodriguez 6-96, Oliver Pierce 2-23, Blake Boyd 1-19, Paul Walker 1-9.

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Defense leads Plano past Legacy, 23-7

By on September 9, 2010 in '10 Fall Season

MANSFIELD – Zach Laures blocked a pair of punts, a field goal and three different defenders intercepted passes as shutdown defensive play led Plano past Mansfield Legacy, 23-7, Thursday at Vernon Newsom Stadium.

Zach Laures celebrates one of his three blocked kicks in Thursday's 23-7 victory over Mansfield Legacy. / Thad Fenton

Legacy (0-3) was held under 150 total yards and to less than two yards per rushing attempt as Plano (3-0) went unbeaten in non-district play for the third time in four seasons. The District 8-5A schedule will begin Sept. 24 at Allen (2-0).

Connor Michelsen completed 14 of 22 passes for 150 yards and two touchdowns, his first to take the lead for good after moving Plano out to an early 7-0 spot with a rushing score.

But defense led the way. Laures’ first block led to an early scoring drive capped by Michelsen’s 2-yard touchdown run. He blocked another punt that allowed Plano to stretch its lead to 23-7 with 10:10 left in the second half.

And from there the defense took over again. Matt Johnson and Blair Burns repeated performances from the prior week with interceptions and Steven Murray’s sack forced a punt on the other Legacy drive.

The first two Plano drives of the second half were for scores to expand a 14-7 halftime margin into a three-score lead.

Clayton Parlin scored the game-winning touchdown in stylish fashion. He was uncovered and went untouched into the end zone. / Thad Fenton

Behind a dose of halfback Kevin Merrill and the play of Michelsen, Plano marched 80 yards in seven plays on their first drive of the second half. The team never faced a third down on the drive. Merrill rushed for 16 yards on the first two plays. Michelsen found Clayton Parlin on a 22-yard gain and then Steele Hoetger for 13 more. Then Michelsen took off on a 21-yard keeper and two plays later hit Hoetger on a 11-yard fade route into the left corner of the end zone for a 20-7 lead.

A key pass defense by Kent Bateman on the following Legacy drive was followed two plays later by Laures’ second block. He recovered the ball at the Legacy 3 and a 20-yard Chris Moore field goal gave Plano a 23-7 lead.

A big Parlin reception got Plano going early in the game. He caught a Michelsen pass for 33 yards on the first play of the team’s second series. Then Michelsen hit Brandon Hamilton for an 11-yard gain. Michelsen converted a 2-yard keeper into a 7-0 lead.

Blair Burns (3) and Matt Johnson recorded interceptions in consecutive games. / Thad Fenton

Legacy earned its only score of the game on an interception return for a touchdown, but it followed what might have been a statement defensive series. Legacy moved inside the Plano 10 on a 13-play drive. Xavier Harbert and Arthur Skinner teamed up to record a sack inside the Plano 20 and two plays later Collin Brence appeared to have the drive stopped. He was called for a pass interference and Legacy got a first down at the Plano 5. Laures then blocked the field goal attempt four plays later, leaving Legacy with nothing to show for a 17-play drive.

Michelsen came back to Parlin on the successive drive to take the lead for good. Michelsen opened and closed the drive with completions to Parlin and in between converted twice on carries and got a big gain on a pass completion to Merrill. But the go ahead score was out of a trips package. Parlin went uncovered and Michelsen delivered a perfect pass that Parlin turned into a 14-7 lead.

The final drive of the first half was a precursor to the end of the game, as Sam Morell hauled in an interception. But the defense showed up early and often throughout the game. Like, for example, the first drive of the game. After earning a first down and moving into Plano territory, Legacy was threatening to score first. Then Taylor May got a key pressure and Johnson and Laures teamed up on a sack that forced the punt blocked by Laures, which led to Plano’s first score.

Plano 23, Mansfield Legacy 7
Plano 7 7 6 3 – 23
Legacy 0 7 0 0 – 7
Scoring Summary
First Quarter
P – Connor Michelsen 2 run (Chris Moore kick), 4:03
Second Quarter
L – Kendal Washington 25 interception return (Matt Shimp kick), 9:12
P – Clayton Parlin 10 pass from Michelsen (Moore kick), 3:32
Third Quarter
P – Steele Hoetger 11 pass from Michelsen (kick failed), 3:27
Fourth Quarter
P – Moore 20 FG, 10:10
P TEAM STATS L
15 First downs 11
29-111 Rushes-yards 28-53
150 Passing yards 94
261 Total yards 147
14-22-1 Passing 12-24-3
3-74 Total punting 4-94
5-35 Penalties-yds. 2-1
1-0 Fumbles-lost 0-0

INDIVIDUALS

Rushing — P: Murat Kuzu 13-63, Kevin Merrill 6-32, Connor Michelsen 9-13, Clayton Parlin 1-3. L: Quentin Hasten 16-41, Andrew Antia 5-16, Ian Simon 6-(-1), DeCarlos Humphrey 1-(-3).

Passing — P: Connor Michelsen 14-22-1, 150 yards. L: Quentin Hasten 12-23-3, 94 yards; Tevin Mitchel 0-1-0, 0 yards.

Receiving — P: Clayton Parlin 4-70, Hunter Gore 4-20, Kevin Merrill 1-19, Steele Hoetger 2-24, Brandon Hamilton 1-11, Murat Kuzu 2-6. L: Josh Doctson 5-39, Conner Smith 2-22, Trent Davis 2-16, Ian Simon 1-11, Marchie Murdock 2-6.

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