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10 high school football players to watch, Week 9: Dallas-area RBs hope for big games

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10 high school football players to watch, Week 9: Dallas-area RBs hope for big games


Here are 10 Dallas-area players to watch in Week 9 of the Texas high school football season.

Kamari Carter, West Mesquite, RB

Carrollton Creekview at West Mesquite, 7 p.m. Thursday at Mesquite Memorial Stadium

Carter rushed for 106 yards and two touchdowns in a 48-0 win over Bryan Adams in Week 7 to keep West Mesquite undefeated on the season. Carrollton Creekview, Carrollton Newman Smith and West Mesquite all carry perfect records in District 6-5AI after last week. Entering a pivotal district matchup with unbeaten Creekview, Carter is West Mesquite’s leading rusher with 65 carries for 580 yards and nine touchdowns.

Braeden Imhoff, Prosper, QB

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Prosper at Allen, 7 p.m. Friday at Allen

Prosper, which has beaten Allen in close district games the last three years, meets the five-time state champion in a game that could decide the District 6-6A champion. Imhoff, a junior, has helped 6–1 Prosper to a perfect record in district play ahead of its contest with undefeated Allen. He ranks ninth in the area among 6A quarterbacks, having passed for 1,775 yards and 20 touchdowns to five interceptions. Imhoff leads a Prosper offense that is averaging 463.4 yards per game.

Chance Culley, Plano, RB

Plano East at Plano, 7 p.m. Friday at Plano’s John Clark Stadium

In Plano’s 42-35 win over McKinney Boyd last week, Culley had 194 yards rushing and a touchdown on 31 carries. On the season, the junior has rushed for 925 yards and eight scores to rank fourth among the Dallas-area’s 6A rushers. Plano (4–4, 3–3 District 6-6A) meets crosstown rival Plano East (6–1, 4–1) this week and hopes for a win after losing last year’s matchup 31-28.

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Kobey Wall, Justin Northwest, WR

Justin Northwest at Trophy Club Byron Nelson, 7 p.m. Friday at Northwest ISD Stadium

Leading Justin Northwest in receiving, Wall is averaging 14.5 yards per reception on 28 catches for 406 yards and five touchdowns. He’s also rushed for two touchdowns this season. Wall was Justin Northwest’s leading receiver last season, too. Then a junior, he finished the year with 46 catches for 577 yards and five touchdowns for an average of 12.5 yards per reception.

Marcus Simpson, Flower Mound, RB

Flower Mound Marcus at Flower Mound, 7 p.m. Friday at Flower Mound

Simpson carried the ball 17 times for 103 yards in Flower Mound’s 31-14 win over Denton Braswell last week. He has tallied 740 yards rushing and six rushing touchdowns for Flower Mound, which is 2–2 in District 5-6A play ahead of its rivalry game with Marcus. The senior ranks among the area’s top 20 rushers in Class 6A.

Drew Kates, Richland, QB

Richland at Aledo, 7 p.m. Friday at Aledo

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The area’s Class 5A passing leader, Kates has played incredible for 7–1 Richland, which meets Aledo in a District 3-5AI contest this week. Kates has completed 71% of his passes for 2,108 yards and 22 touchdowns to two interceptions. The senior has also been effective on the ground with 334 yards rushing and six scores. He is on pace to surpass his numbers from his junior season, when he threw for 2,498 yards and 29 touchdowns to four interceptions

Deondrae “Tiger” Riden Jr., DeSoto, RB

DeSoto at Cedar Hill, 7 p.m. Friday at Cedar Hill

Riden is on pace to have another 1,000 yard plus season. Through seven games, Riden has tallied 782 rushing yards and 11 rushing touchdowns on 116 carries. The four-star Texas A&M pledge scored three rushing touchdowns and recorded 114 yards in DeSoto’s 65-24 win over Mesquite Horn last week. Despite missing games last season due to injury, Riden finished his junior campaign with 1,023 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Luke Watkins, Prosper Walnut Grove, WR

Lovejoy at Prosper Walnut Grove, 7 p.m. Friday at Prosper’s Children’s Health Stadium

Prosper Walnut Grove continues a challenging back half to its district schedule with a contest against Lovejoy this week. Expect Watkins to be a factor in the game after making five catches for 158 yards and two touchdowns in Walnut Grove’s 55-41 loss to Anna last Friday. The senior leads Walnut Grove, which has the area’s top 5A offense, in receiving with 28 receptions, 695 yards and 12 touchdowns for an average of 24.8 yards per catch. He is the area’s sixth ranked 5A receiver.

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Noah Schuback, Melissa, QB

Melissa at Frisco Emerson, 7 p.m. Friday at Frisco’s Ford Center

Ahead of Melissa’s district showdown with Frisco Emerson, Schuback has passed for 1,530 yards and 20 touchdowns. The three-star junior has added 296 yards and five touchdowns on the ground. Schuback turned in a strong performance in Melissa’s 75-6 win over Frisco Independence, finishing 15-of-21 for 255 and three touchdowns. He also finished with eight carries for 63 yards and a touchdown last week.

Matthew McClain, Prestonwood Christian, WR

Parish Episcopal at Prestonwood Christian, 7 p.m. Friday at Prestonwood Christian

After losing out on the district title to Parish Episcopal last season in a 49-40 loss, Prestonwood Christian gets another shot at the defending TAPPS Division I state champion. McClain could be key in securing the Prestonwood win. He has 37 catches for 800 yards and 11 touchdowns. The junior had five catches for 88 yards in Prestonwood’s 35-28 win over Frisco Legacy Christian. In Prestonwood’s 30-27 loss to Argyle Liberty Christian, the area’s top-ranked TAPPS team, he recorded five receptions for 140 yards and two touchdowns.

On Twitter/X: @t_myah

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Don Stone, Dallas philanthropist and arts advocate, dies

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Don Stone, Dallas philanthropist and arts advocate, dies


Don Stone, a Dallas civic leader and strong supporter of the arts, died on Sunday. He was 96.

Angela Stone, Don’s youngest child, said her father was one of a kind, a rare mix of sweet and tough.

“He was just the most wonderful man I ever knew, just generous to a fault, smart, charming. He influenced so many people,” she said.

Stone gave widely across North Texas, including $500,000 to endow college scholarships for musically gifted Dallas ISD students. Stone also held leadership positions at several North Texas arts organizations, including the Dallas Public Library, Voices of Change, Dallas Black Dance Theatre, Fine Arts Chamber Players, Orchestra of New Spain, the Greater Dallas Youth Orchestra, Shakespeare Dallas and Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts.

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“He just believed that all of our lives would be so much poorer without music, art and theater. He said in our country we have the freedom to support whatever we want and that we needed to support the arts so that they would continue to exist,” Stone said.

Stone, a businessman who lived in Turtle Creek, worked for Sanger Harris, which later became Macy’s. He was a 2018 TACA Silver Cup Award honoree for his arts and culture advocacy in North Texas.

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Maura Sheffler, president and executive director of The Arts Community Alliance (TACA), said in a statement that Stone’s legacy will continue to inspire the local arts community.

“We are deeply saddened by the passing of Don Stone, a devoted champion of the arts whose leadership and generosity,” she wrote.

Stone’s wife of over 72 years, Norma, died in June. She was the one who first got her husband involved in the arts, according to their daughter Angela.

Michelle Miller Burns, the DSO’s president and CEO, said the Stones had a profound impact on the DSO.

“It is with such a heavy heart that I received news of Don Stone’s passing earlier this week. Don was a devoted patron, a donor and a board member of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, and his leadership and generosity really have helped shape the Dallas symphony across five decades,” she said.

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In 1980, Stone served as DSO’s chairman of the Board of Governors and helped launch efforts to raise $80 million for Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center and secure architect I.M. Pei.

In 1997, the Stones launched the Norma and Don Stone New Music Fund and committed $1 million to continuously support new works. Some of the works supported through the fund include this year’s world premiere of Angélica Negrón’s requiem For Everything You Keep Losing. The fund also supported a Grammy award-winning violin concerto by Aaron Jay Kernis co-commissioned with the Seattle Symphony, Toronto Symphony and Melbourne Symphony.

“I think it is rare for a couple who so firmly believes in the future of classical music and creating opportunities for new musical voices to be heard to really put support behind that in a meaningful way to fuel that process, to ensure that it can come to fruition,” Burns said.

She said the DSO will continue the Stones’ legacy by commissioning new works through the Norma and Don Stone New Music Fund.

Stone is survived by his children Michael, Lisa and Angela, six grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. The family will have a private funeral.

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Arts Access is an arts journalism collaboration powered by The Dallas Morning News and KERA.

This community-funded journalism initiative is funded by the Better Together Fund, Carol & Don Glendenning, City of Dallas OAC, Communities Foundation of Texas, The University of Texas at Dallas, The Dallas Foundation, Eugene McDermott Foundation, James & Gayle Halperin Foundation, Jennifer & Peter Altabef and The Meadows Foundation. The News and KERA retain full editorial control of Arts Access’ journalism.



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Daniss Jenkins sparks rally but Detroit Pistons fall in OT to Dallas

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Daniss Jenkins sparks rally but Detroit Pistons fall in OT to Dallas


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DALLAS — A late comeback attempt fell short for the Detroit Pistons.

They fell to the Dallas Mavericks in overtime, 116-114, after recovering from a third-period 18-point deficit. A dunk by Anthony Davis gave the Mavericks the lead for good with 1:32 to play in overtime.

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Cade Cunningham (29 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists) missed a short jumper with 7 seconds left that would’ve tied the game at 116, and Jalen Duren (17 points, 13 rebounds) couldn’t convert two offensive rebounds into a tip-in basket. Davis corralled the rebound with 0.9 seconds left, and the Mavericks called timeout.

The Pistons fouled Davis after the inbounds pass with a foul to give. Daniss Jenkins, who scored 11 points after halftime, stole the second inbounds pass with 0.6 seconds left but didn’t have enough time to get a shot off.

The Pistons trailed by 18 points with five minutes to play in the third quarter. Their bench unit was instrumental during a 31-11 run that gave the Pistons the lead again, 99-97, midway through the fourth quarter. They held Dallas to 38.5% shooting and forced nine turnovers in the second half.

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No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg gave his Mavericks the lead, 110-109, with under 20 seconds to play with a midrange jumper. Isaiah Stewart was fouled by Davis on the other end with 3.4 seconds left, and he split the trip to the line to tie the game at 110. Klay Thompson missed a floater at the buzzer, sending the game into overtime.

‘Dallas’ unit leads Detroit back from big deficit

Down 86-68 with 4:57 to play in the third quarter, coach J.B. Bickerstaff looked to the end of his bench for a spark. Jenkins, Marcus Sasser and Paul Reed checked into the game for the first time in consecutive order, joining Ron Holland and Javonte Green. The Pistons have a Dallas-centric roster — Holland, Sasser and Jenkins are all from the city, and Cunningham is from nearby Arlington.

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They led an 11-3 run to cut the deficit to 10, tallying four steals during the stretch — two for Green and one each for Jenkins and Reed. Cunningham checked in for Green to open the fourth quarter, and the run continued. A 3-pointer from Jenkins, coast-to-coast layup by Holland and midrange jumper from Jenkins extended the run to 21-7, cutting the deficit to 93-89 with under 10 minutes to play.

As he has done several times this season, Jenkins rose to the moment in the final period. An entry pass from Jenkins to Holland created an open layup to slash Dallas’ lead to two, and Jenkins made a layup over three Mavericks defenders to tie the game at 95 with 7:46 remaining and push the Pistons’ run to 27-9.

With 59 seconds left in the fourth, a pair of free throws from Jenkins extended the Pistons’ lead to 3, 109-106. He played 11 minutes and 32 seconds in the final period, second only to Cunningham, and overtime.

Ausar Thompson ejected in second quarter

The Pistons lost Thompson — their primary defender on Flagg — midway through the second period after an exchange with an official. 

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With 5:09 remaining before halftime, Thompson tied up Mavericks guard Ryan Nembhard under the rim and was whistled for a foul. Thompson didn’t like the call and got in the ref’s face, and was instantly ejected. NBA rules make it an auto-ejection when a player makes physical contact with an official. 

It was a strong start for Thompson prior to the ejection, as he had eight points, two assists, two rebounds and a steal in nine minutes of play. Stewart entered for him in the second quarter. 

In all, it was a rough night for the Pistons regarding the officials. Cunningham was whistled for a tech late in the second quarter after disagreeing with a call, and Bickerstaff was whistled for a tech during halftime after arguing with an official.

Duncan Robinson exits with left knee injury

With 11:08 to play in the third quarter, Robinson suffered a knee-to-knee collision with Mavericks wing Naji Marshall. Robinson limped off of the floor and was initially ruled “questionable” to return until he was downgraded to “out” in the final period. 

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Robinson finished with two points and two rebounds, shooting 1-for-7 overall and 0-for-5 from 3. He missed two games in early December with a right ankle sprain. 

[ MUST WATCH: Make “The Pistons Pulse” your go-to Pistons podcast, listen available anywhere you listen to podcasts (Apple, Spotify) ] 

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Change In Eagles’ Red-Zone Philosophy Opens Opportunities For Dallas Goedert

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Change In Eagles’ Red-Zone Philosophy Opens Opportunities For Dallas Goedert


PHILADELPHIA – It was evident in July and August that Dallas Goedert was going to be a big part of the Eagles’ offense in the red zone. It felt that way most summers, but this time, with first-year offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo in place, the Eagles are dialing up plays for the tight end.

“I think when I get a ball in my hand down there, I’m tough to tackle, I can find my way in, fight my way in,” said Goedert. “It’s just that our red-zone philosophy has changed a bit. We used to run a lot, a lot of quarterback sneaks, things like that down there. We’ve tried to find ways to get me the ball, which is really cool, and I’m gonna keep trying to make them work.”

So far, Goedert has nine touchdown catches. According to NFL Research, five of his touchdowns were thrown behind the line of scrimmage this season, the most by a non-running back in the Next Gen era.

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“He’s such a physical guy,” said Patullo. “His determination to just get yards and have an impact on anything, whether it’s in the pass game, whether it’s gadgets, whatever it may be. He’s really dynamic with the ball in his hands. So anytime you can get the ball in his hands, obviously, that’s what we’re going to try to do.”

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However, the touchdown math didn’t add up for Goedert. He thought eight was the magic number to break the record for most TD catches by a tight end in franchise history, owned by Pete Retzlaff, but Retzlaff had 10 in 1965, meaning Goedert needs one more to break that dusty, 60-year-old mark.

“I thought it was eight, but I was wrong, so I thought I already had it,” he said.

Reminded that he would have had it already had he not dropped a wide-open throw to him in the end zone on Sunday, which would have given him a career-high three in one game, he winced, then answered.

“Yeah, scars right there,” he said. “That one hurts.”

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Dallas Goedert Has Eye On Record

Dec 14, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert (88) walks off the field after win against the Las Vegas Raiders at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
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With three games left, and with his heavy involvement in the red zone, it is reasonable to expect that the record will at least be tied, perhaps even broken.

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“It’s pretty cool,” he said. “Anytime you can break a record, obviously things are going well for you. Obviously, winning is the most important thing and I want to do whatever I can to help win. If they’re giving me the ball down there, I’m gonna try to score. It would be a cool thing to have.”

Goedert’s production in the low red zone is a reason the Eagles lead the NFL in red-zone success, converting close to 70 percent of their trips (25-for-36) inside the 20 into touchdowns. The tight end has nine of those 25 red-zone TDs.

“We’ve had different things for me in the red zone throughout my career here, a lot of them just haven’t got called,” said Goedert. “Once they started calling them, I tried to make sure they worked so they could keep designing and calling other ones. Any time you go in the huddle and hear that play, knowing you have the opportunity to get in the end zone, it gets you kind of excited, for sure.”

Nore NFL: Eagles’ Backup Staying Patient, Takes First-Team Practice Reps

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