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RED OAK — Without notice, and without warning, one round of fireworks exploded in the Red Oak sky at halftime of the Hawks game against Ennis, turning some heads in the home team’s stands.
The display was apt and the timing appropriate: Ennis, the preseason No. 1 5A-II team in the state, was expected to be good this year, but the explosive performance it had in the season opener still supplied some shock value.
The Lions never punted on Friday night and their defense dominated, leading to a 52-21 road win over Red Oak, the No. 6 team in the preseason 5A area rankings.
It was a complete team performance for Ennis, which outgained Red Oak 602-to-287. Red Oak didn’t have a first down until the second quarter and didn’t score until 3:45 left in the third quarter.
“They were just focused all day and I knew we were going to come ready to play well,” said Ennis head coach Sam Harrell. “I didn’t know we’d win like that, to be honest with you, because I thought Red Oak was really good.”
Ennis quarterback Collin Drake, the team’s leading rusher and passer a year ago, finished with 265 total yards and three touchdowns. Harrell gave Drake a lot of credit for leading the offense on a night where the starters scored on every possession.
“He’s going to have a good season, I can tell you,” Harrell said.
Red Oak senior running back Zach Sanders had a team-high 91 rushing yards two rushing touchdowns for the Hawks.
When the preseason state rankings came out, it was a little bit of a surprise to see two-time defending champion Aledo — a program that’s made the state championship every year except once since 2013 -- not on top. Instead, it was Ennis, the same program that nearly beat Aledo in the regional final last year before falling 46-39 in overtime.
Immediately, Ennis showed Friday night why it was deserving of the top spot in the state. Junior Devion Beasley scored two of his three touchdowns on the night on the first two possessions of the game. The Ennis defense — led by preseason all-area defensive lineman Jarveon Williams and safety Stephon Townsend — also started fast, forcing back-to-back three and outs to start its season.
In response, Red Oak made a significant quarterback change. The Hawks replaced senior starter Josh Ervin, the district offensive player of the year on last year’s 11-2 team, with sophomore Chris Parson, who transferred from Duncanville. Parson made his first career start in the 6A-I state championship game.
Ervin started the second half, but after that the Hawks turned back to Parson for the rest of the game. Parson completed 12-of-14 passes for 139 yards and one touchdown, a 32-yard diving completion to Oklahoma State pledge Raymond Gay.
Meanwhile, Ennis continued to cruise. The Lions had 301 more yards than Red Oak in the first half and 15 more first downs. The Lions even capped the first half with a 91-yard touchdown drive in 40 seconds. The final play of the half: a 34-yard jump ball touchdown pass from Drake to Skylan Simmons as time expired.
That made the game 31-0. And after that the single shot of fireworks came, unexpectedly, adding even more shock to a first half score that wasn’t the expectation coming into Friday night.
Ennis, however, wasn’t shocked. The Lions were hungry and ready.
“If you don’t think you can win state, I’d say you don’t truly believe in yourself,” Drake said. “This year, same thing: I know we can if we go execute and play like we’re supposed to.”
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