Video by Marilyn Clark and McCullough.

By Alex Nicoll
Editor-in-Chief
@NicollMac

When asked who Coppell’s rival is in football, many would answer Southlake or Allen. However, the Cowboys have only played them each a couple of times in the past few years.

There is only one team, though, that year after year has defeated Coppell and kept them from reaching the coveted state championship.

The DeSoto Eagles, for three straight years, have knocked Coppell out of the playoffs, most recently in the Class 6A Division I bi-district game at AT&T Stadium on Nov. 13.

Losing 51-35, Coppell put up the most points it’s ever had against the Eagles. While the Cowboys did give up the most points as well, Coppell coach Mike DeWitt applauded his team’s determination and drive.

“They’re tough kids and they’re going to play until the last whistle,” DeWitt said. “They’re a good bunch of kids.”

DeWitt declined to comment further about the history between the two teams.

Even though they have only faced each other in the playoffs, the competition between these two teams is brewing to become a historic one.

“It’s becoming a big-time history between us and Coppell, especially seeing those guys in the first round,” DeSoto coach Claude Mathis said. “They’re a great ball club and coached very well.”

In the first matchup between the two powerhouses, Coppell was coming off an undefeated season, an upset against top-ranked Allen and a first round playoff win over Irving MacArthur.

DeSoto was also coming off an undefeated season when their defense dominated Coppell, holding them to only 263 yards of total offense and 14 points.

In the next year, Coppell almost pulled out an upset over the Eagles but two fourth quarter touchdowns cost the Cowboys the game, while only losing 34-30.

The history between these two teams is starting to heat up and may be a factor in how hard each team plays when they face each other. Multiple times in the game, players had to be separated and a personal foul call occurred at the end of the game.

“We expected there to be some chippiness here and there,” Mathis said. “They aren’t going to back down; we aren’t going to back down.”

Previous to this year’s game, senior quarterback Skyler Bonneau, who has been the starter for the Cowboys since the 2013 season, was no stranger to the difficulties of playing against the Eagles but felt this year’s team had something previous teams did not.

“During the regular season we had been through a lot more adversity,” Bonneau said. “It has allowed us to regroup, figure out what our strengths are and how to use them on the field.”

With this is mind, Bonneau also expressed what it felt like for the team to get another shot at DeSoto.

“We were excited,” Bonneau said. “It’s always exciting to play big-time teams like that. It’s always fun to go up against players that will be playing at the next level.”

Mathis also felt that his team had something his previous Eagles did not have too.

“This year’s team is building their own legacy and continuing to build their own legacy,” Mathis said. “We don’t have the same ball club we did two years ago.”

Unfortunately, the execution that Bonneau said was paramount for Coppell to win was not as apparent as the team would have liked.

Coppell and DeSoto might not be the typical matchup one would call to mine when thinking about Coppell’s rival, but after the past three years and close games, the Eagles deserve some recognition.

“[The game] can go either way each year, but fortunately, the last three years, it went our way,” Mathis said.

If Coppell will have to face DeSoto again next year, Mathis takes solace in the fact that he will not have to worry about senior running back Charles West.

West, one of the few players for Coppell that has faced DeSoto for all three years, seemed to get better and better with experience. He progressed from rushing for only 29 yards back in 2012 to rushing for 126 yards in the previous matchup.

“I’m tired of seeing [West], so I hope he’s a senior and I think he is,” Mathis said.