Arlington Martin has long been the standard bearer for Arlington ISD football, winning five consecutive outright district titles and claiming at least a share of a district championship in eight of the last 11 years.
Martin took a 36-game district winning streak into last Friday’s game against Arlington Bowie, a team it hadn’t lost to since 2016. Martin had rarely been challenged during its streak, winning by an average of 38.4 points.
But Bowie came away with a shocking 34-24 victory, handing Martin its first district loss since 2018 and becoming one of several first-place teams this season trying to end lengthy district-title droughts.
“It has been a process of learning how to close out games,” Bowie coach Joseph Sam said. “Out of our three losses, one of them was in double overtime and one was in overtime. We just didn’t finish those teams off. Our kids have just believed in the process.”
Bowie (3-3, 3-0) is tied with Arlington High (5-1, 3-0) for first place in District 8-6A, and they meet at 7 p.m. Friday at Wilemon Field in what might be the biggest Arlington ISD game of the year. Bowie hasn’t won a district title since 2012, and Arlington last claimed one in 2018 — its only outright district championship since 2002.
“Bowie beating Martin last week was a big deal,” Arlington High coach Scott Peach said. “We feel like why not us? When we won it in 2018, we just had that team. I think we’re talented enough to do it this year.”
Teams with long-sought district titles
Mansfield Summit is another Dallas-area team with its sights set on a district title, which would be its first since 2011 after reaching the state semifinals in 2020 and 2021. Summit (4-2, 4-0) has won four in a row after an 0-2 start, and it’s tied with two-time state champion Argyle (5-1, 4-0) for first place in District 3-5A Division II going into their showdown Friday at R.L. Anderson Stadium in Mansfield.
“We know we are in one of the toughest districts in the state of Texas,” Summit coach Channon Hall said. “The key for us is just ensuring that it’s about us and we keep growing game by game and trying to find the momentum at the right time. We have to make sure that every time we watch film and go through our conversations that we’re getting better.”
Richardson, which last won a district championship in 1992 (sharing the title), is 3-0 in District 7-6A and tied with Lake Highlands for first place. Carrollton Newman Smith (5-1, 4-0), last a district champion in 1983, joins Carrollton Creekview (7-0, 5-0) and West Mesquite as undefeated teams in District 6-5A Division I play.
West Mesquite (7-0, 5-0) last earned a share of a district title in 2009 and last won an outright district championship in 1995. Creekview, which ended a 21-game losing streak this season, is looking for its first district title since 2015 and is three wins from the first undefeated regular season in school history.
North Forney (5-2, 3-0) last won district in 2011, its second year of varsity football. It has a half-game lead in 10-6A over perennial powerhouse Longview (4-2, 2-0), which entered this season with the seventh-most wins (780) in state history.
College recruits, veterans powering teams
College-level prospects and multi-year starters have helped anchor some of this season’s surprise teams, including Arlington, which is looking for its first season with more than six wins since going 9-4 in 2019.
Peach, the Arlington coach, considers three-star senior wide receiver Isaiah Robertson, an SMU pledge, to be one of the all-time greats in school history. Others who have played key roles include second-year starting quarterback Coleman Cravens; leading rusher Abe Otokiti, who played on the JV last year after transferring in; outside linebacker Caleb Olabode; and defensive tackle Tobi Akintade, a three-year starter.
“We have a lot more kids that are college football players on the field than we’ve had really since pre-COVID,” Peach said. “We have not had a second-year quarterback in several years. That has been a big deal.”
Last season, Martin stopped a two-point conversion attempt by Bowie with 36 seconds left for a 30-29 victory to keep its district streak alive. The balance of power in Arlington ISD shifted Friday for a Bowie team that returned eight starters on offense. Quarterback Larry Nichols scored on a 52-yard run on the first play from scrimmage after Martin had made it a three-point game.
Bowie’s defense — which returned only two starters — forced a punt, an interception and a turnover on downs on Martin’s final three possessions to secure the win.
Bowie running back Darrion Bowers (788 yards, 10 touchdowns), Nichols (1,251 yards, 12 touchdown passes) and three-star Bowling Green pledge Dilon Tallie (703 yards, eight touchdowns receiving) all rank in the top 20 in the area in 6A in at least one statistical category.
Mansfield Summit overcame a 13-point deficit to beat rival Timberview 21-20 last week, winning on a 25-yard touchdown pass from DeMarus Bird to Domonique Young with 5:37 left. Timberview was 40-10 over the past four seasons, but with three district losses finds itself in sixth place in an ultra-competitive district that has five teams ranked in the top 20 in the area in Class 5A.
Houston pledge Travis Buhake, a four-star defensive lineman, is Summit’s only college commit at this point. But Summit has gotten a big season from running back Adarion Nettles, a transfer from Keller Timber Creek who has run for 612 yards and eight touchdowns, and Zaeden Smith has emerged as the team’s leading receiver after playing on the freshman team last year.
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