The varsity football season started with bang as the team defeated Marshall 51-27 in the season opener at Heroes stadium Sat. Aug. 29.
With a new quarterback at the helm in sophomore Tyler Vitt, and one of the top running backs in the city in Daijon Williams, the MacArthur offense exploded in the first half and put up 48 points to Marshall’s 7. This led to the resting of starters on both offense and defense for the entire second half.
Vitt took almost no time to adjust as he found receivers Bobby Lepovitz, Jeremiah Cura, and Daijon Williams early and often throughout the first half. The offensive showcase would have made the 80’s “Showtime” Lakers proud as the Brahmas often scored on drives under two minutes.
The defense was equally as spectacular. The starting defense did not allow Marshall to score a single point, and made it a struggle for them to get a first down. Two kickoffs were returned for touchdowns for the Rams however, which should be a cause for concern.
The players all have each others backs. As cliche as this may sound, it has been even more evident than in recent years. Players constantly motivate one another or talk strategy to improve from the last play. Running back Daijon Williams knows how critical this is in improving and ultimately winning.
“We look at each other as brothers not actual teammates and that’s what’s really benefiting the team,” Williams said.
After week one, six of the seven NEISD schools are 1-0, however some showed weaknesses that could be exposed in district play. The Brahmas seldomly looked bothered by the Rams and sent a fairly strong message to the rest of the district.
“(NEISD schools) better watch out for the 2015 Brahmas,” Williams said. “We’re back.”
Next week Mac takes on a very strong Clemens team that appears to be heavily reliant on their QB Frank Harris, who had a total of 508 yards and 6 touchdowns coming both on the ground and in the air in week one.
“We may need to improve on our secondary because they have Frank Harris, so we’re going to improve on that this week and we’ll be ready,” Williams said.
Not to get too excited, but the last time Mac won their season opener was 2010, that season they made it to the region final.
