With the cancellation of spring football and limitations to practice leading up to the beginning of the season, it seemed as though every team was playing catch-up to get to where it should be by the first game. 

Last night at E.H. Hanby Stadium, it was not the Coppell football team that was struggling to catch up. 

The Cowboys defeated Mesquite, 36-21, in their season opener. 

“It was very explosive,” said Coppell senior running back Jason Ngwu, who rushed for 102 yards. “I was very aware of my surroundings. It felt amazing to be back with all my teammates and to hit someone other than my teammates. It felt amazing to be back out there.”

From the first touchdown – a 1-yard carry from Ngwu with 7:51 left in the first quarter – Coppell was ahead and remained that way for the rest of the game. By the end of the first half, with a 3-yard carry from Ngwu and a safety from a bad snap, the Cowboys had a 16-0 lead. 

Two field goals from Coppell senior kicker Tyler Reid and a touchdown from a pass from Mesquite quarterback Chance Edwards to Gervin McCarthy left the score, 22-7, at halftime. 

However, the Skeeters came out stronger in the second half, both offensive and defensively. While Coppell had scored on every possession in the first half, this changed after halftime as the Mesquite defense forced the Cowboys to punt. Two Mesquite touchdowns (one in the third and one in the fourth quarter) and a safety resulting from a snap over Reid’s head in the third quarter as he was in punt formation tightened Coppell’s lead.

“To be honest, we got a little comfortable with our lead,” Coppell senior quarterback Ryan Walker said. “We got a little bit too relaxed and we didn’t keep the intensity up. That’s something that we will definitely work on: staying intense throughout the whole game. I don’t think that will happen again, I think our coaches will do a good job of keeping our heads in the game and playing until the final whistle.”

However, the offense did not let up, and Walker connected with senior wide receiver KJ Liggins for a 30-yard touchdown. Ngwu rushed for 15-yards in the fourth quarter for his third touchdown of the night. 

“The last one felt the best, it was [my] longest one and the last [Coppell] touchdown of the game,” Ngwu said. “It really sealed the deal for us and motivated our team. It helped us secure the victory.”

Though Coppell gave up more yards in the second half, there were still major defensive plays. Tackles by senior defensive back Canon Peters and an interception at the end of the third quarter by junior safety Charlie Barker prevented the Skeeters from getting any closer to catching up. 

“[Mesquite] had some momentum after we gave up a safety, and then they scored, but I think our kids responded by making some big plays,” Coppell coach Michael DeWitt said via email. “We intercepted a pass in the end zone that I felt like gave the momentum back to us.”

The victory brings confidence to a team looking to get back to the Class 6A playoffs after missing out last season. 

“Mesquite is a good team; they went two rounds deep last year,” Walker said. “We played a really good football game. There’s good news and there’s bad news; it wasn’t that perfect because we made a lot of mental mistakes, and there’s a lot of things we should work on, but that’s also the good news. We made those mistakes and we still won pretty big, and that says a lot about our football team. We have a lot of talent and it’s a pretty optimistic outlook on this year.”

Coppell plays Sachse – who defeated the Cowboys, 33-30, in last year’s season opener – on Friday at 7 p.m. at Buddy Echols Field.

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