For the second time in two weeks, the Paris Wildcats stood toe-to-toe with a state-ranked opponent only to fall to the canvas in a late-round decision under a heavy barrage of power punches.
Friday night the Cats fell victim to Liberty-Eylau, 52-38, at Texarkana Harris Field as senior quarterback Ke’Mon Freeman rushed for 166 yards and 4 touchdowns to start the Leopards’ District 7-4A-1 title defense. Two weeks ago, the Cats closed out the pre-district portion of their schedule with a 31-20 loss at Argyle, led by senior running back Taylor Sweatt’s 165 rushing yards and 3 TD runs.
The games bore an eery similarity in that Paris caught a pair of powerful rivals on nights when they clearly weren’t at their best. Argyle gifted the Cats with uncharacteristic turnovers and penalties that Paris wasn’t able to convert. Friday night, L-E was penalized 28 times for 248 yards, but the Cats didn’t have a clean game, either, drawing 17 flags for 186 yards.
Pictured: Ty Gray celebrates an early sack of L-E quarterback Ke’Mon Freeman, who gets up to lead the 10th-ranked Leopards to a win over the Wildcats in the District 7-4A-1 football opener.
Paris played Argyle to a 7-7 deadlock for an entire half before 17 unanswered Eagle points provided separation. Paris and L-E were tied, 38-38, with time running down through three quarters before Freeman and his teammates turned on the jets for the final victory margin while the Wildcat attack flamed out down the stretch.
The Paris offense had a respectable 385 total yards against the speedy L-E defense as quarterback Quez Allen rushed for 153 yards on 28 carries and completed 11 of 22 passes for 192 yards and a pair of TD passes to Jalon Pipkins.
Still, on an evening when Paris never punted, all but one of the Cats’ second-half drives sputtered out on downs. On two straight Paris possessions with the Cats trailing by just 38-44, the visitors were missing a key offensive weapon in junior playmaker JaKerion Brown. The Paris receiver was victimized by a targeting a defenseless receiver hit which drew a personal foul but no ejection by the L-E defender.
Brown provided a big spark for Paris with a touchdown pass on a trick play as well as an 85-yard kickoff return for a score.
The Leopards also scored on an 85-yard kickoff return and notched another special teams milestone with their first field goal in eight seasons. Paris junior kicker Zach Lamb was a perfect 5 for 5 on extra points and hit his first field goal of the season to continue his remarkable showing in his first year on varsity.
The Cat defense had some promising moments against Freeman and the Leopard offense. Defensive end Ty Gray was particularly noticeable early with a sack, fumble recovery, and team-leading 11 tackles.
Cornerback Diarva Brown also totaled 11 stops, while safety TD Williams had 8, but that’s a troubling stat that indicates that most of those contacts were made beyond the line of scrimmage. L-E gained 408 total yards, including a game-controlling 272 on the ground.
There is no time for the Cats, now 4-2, to catch a breather. Paris, which hasn’t had a home game in Wildcat Stadium since Sept. 11, continues its road journey next Friday, Oct. 16, at 5-1 Princeton. The Panthers dominated Quinlan Ford, 50-7, while 6-0 Pittsburg overcame 4-2 North Lamar, 49-28, in other Friday district openers.
Scoring Summary:
- Paris 7, L-E 0. Jalon Pipkins 33 pass from Quez Allen (Zach Lamb kick), 9:31, 1q. Cats need just 2 plays to go 43 yards on their first possession to score on a post pattern when Pipkins reaches out to snag the ball in stride.
- L-E 7, Paris 7. Denzel Green 85 kickoff return (Dalton Turner kick), 9:18, 1q. Green splits the middle of the Cats’ kick coverage to sprint untouched to the opposite end zone.
- L-E 14, Paris 7. Ke’Mon Freeman 8 run (Turner kick), 7:30, 1q. Leopards score 5 plays after recovering a fumble on the kickoff at the Paris 26.
- Paris 14, L-E 14. JaKerion Brown 85 kickoff return (Lamb kick), 7:16, 1q. Brown starts down the middle, then darts diagonally to the left sidelines where he picks up a key block from Dre McKinney that wipes out two Leopards.
- L-E 21, Paris 14. Freeman 3 run (Turner kick), 2:22, 1q. Leopards drive 60 yards in 13 plays on a steady march that includes a pair of fourth-down conversion runs by Freeman.
- Paris 21, L-E 21. Allen 69 run (Lamb kick), 10:58, 2q. After the teams swap fumbled center snaps, Cats go 69 yards in 3 plays. The Paris O-line executes a perfect middle trap to spring Allen and he steps over a diving tackle by Andre Wiley at the L-E 10 to score.
- Paris 28, L-E 21. Rollerson 30 pass from Brown (Lamb kick), 9:35, 2q. Both teams reach into their bag of tricks on consecutive plays. Leopards try, and fail, on a fake punt that doesn’t fool the Cats. Ty Gray gets the initial stop on up-back Arymis Johnson, and Dennis Coleman and McKinney secure the tackle. Paris then pulls off a trick double pass as Allen laterals to Brown on a bubble screen in the left flat, and Brown lofts a left-handed lob to a wide-open Rollerson, who’s camped out at the L-E 5.
- L-E 28, Paris 28. Freeman 22 run (Turner kick), 7:23, 2q. Freeman actually scores twice on this 70-yard, 5-play drive. His first score is nullified by a Leopard hold, so he scores again on a sweep to the right side.
- Paris 31, L-E 28. Lamb 23 FG, 3:28, 2q. Cats take 12 plays to drive from their own 37 to a first-and-goal at the L-E 2 following a Leopard pass interference in the end zone. However, a run on first down loses 3 yards and they have to settle for the 3 points.
- L-E 31, Paris 31. Turner 25 FG, 0:30, 2q. Leopards convert their first field goal in 8 years to tie the game at halftime. They drive 60 yards in 9 plays, keyed by a 33-yard pass from Freeman to Thurman Morbley and a pass interference call on the Cats.
- L-E 38, Paris 31. Kameron Levingston 5 run (Turner kick), 5:26, 3q. Leopards score on their first possession after halftime with a 79-yard, 8-play drive. The key play is a 45-yard run by Lamont Byrd, who sweeps left, is contained, then cuts back to the right sidelines for a long gain.
- Paris 38, L-E 38. Pipkins 41 pass from Allen (Lamb kick), 3:04, 3q. This 85-yard, 6-play drive is helped by a pair of Leopard personal fouls, including a vicious targeting hit on Brown, who was helped off the field and missed most of the remainder of the game. Allen, under big pressure from the L-E pass rush, hits Pipkins in stride down the right sidelines on a go pattern.
- L-E 44, Paris 38. Bryd 3 run (kick failed), 1:06, 3q. Leopards travel 83 yards in just 5 plays, including a 37-yard pass to Garyco Witcher and a 42-yard run by Freeman. The EP kick bounces off the left upright.
- L-E 52, Paris 38. Freeman 9 run (Witcher pass from Freeman), 2:56, 4q. Leopards take advantage of a short field to go 35 yards in 5 plays and ice the win. Appropriately, Freeman picks up his fourth TD run to end it.
How Wildcat Opponents Fared:
- Mount Pleasant (2-4), lost to Hallsville, 24-7
- Melissa (1-5), lost to Gilmer, 60-0
- Tyler Chapel Hill (1-5), lost to Brownsboro, 29-14
- Palestine (1-4), lost to Kilgore, 51-0
- Argyle (5-1), beat Carrollton Ranchview, 63-7
- Liberty-Eylau (5-1), beat Paris, 52-38
- Princeton (5-1), beat Quinlan Ford, 50-7
- Pittsburg (6-0), beat North Lamar, 49-28
- Quinlan Ford (1-5), lost to Princeton, 50-7
- North Lamar (4-2), lost Pittsburg, 49-28