Playoffs Round 4 – DeSoto vs Cedar Hill:
In the regional finals round of the Texas high school football playoffs, I decided to make the long trek to Dallas to check out the DeSoto Eagles in their game against the Cedar Hill Longhorns at Kincaid Stadium.
For DeSoto, the team has a few star athletes that Steve Sarkisian and the Longhorns are keeping an eye on, such as Texas target 2025 four-star running back Deondrae ‘Tiger’ Riden and 2025 three-star offensive lineman Byron Washington.
To begin, Riden is one of the most highly-recruited running backs in the country with 34 college offers from schools such as Alabama, Georgia, Michigan and Oklahoma. Currently, Ridden is the highest-rated junior running back prospect in the state of Texas that the Longhorns have offered. During Sarkisian’s tenure as the head coach of the Longhorns, his staff has not been afraid to fight in recruiting battles across the country, but certainly has not forgotten about his team’s roots – repeatedly plucking players from across Texas’ top high schools as well.
After dealing with an arm injury earlier in the season, Riden is back to scoring touchdowns on the football field – tallying 102 yards and a touchdown rush on just 10 carries against Cedar Hill. Despite the aforementioned injury, the junior running back still has a chance to eclipse the 1,000-yard rushing mark on the season, a testament to how consistent the DeSoto product has been when healthy.
Along with Riden, Byron Washington is the other player that the Longhorns are targeting and it is not hard to see why. What stands out about Washington? Well… it is quite difficult to visibly miss a 6’7.5″ and 380 pound offensive lineman. Currently, the junior offensive lineman is starting as DeSoto’s right guard and has helped to create ample running lanes for the Eagles rushing attack.
Right now, Washington possesses a total of 5 scholarship offers, with schools such as Oregon and TCU joining the mix. One thing is for sure, Steve Sarkisian and Longhorns offensive line coach Kyle Flood love recruiting large human beings.
Ultimately, DeSoto was able to put away their rival with ease, soaring to a 59-16 win over Cedar Hill, inching one step closer to another state title victory.
Extra Point:
It would be fun to see the Longhorns land Washington, and then pair him with 6’5″ and 369 pound offensive lineman Cameron Williams, who graduated from Duncanville in 2022. Since he was hired in 2021, Steve Sarkisian has put an emphasis on recruiting talent in the trenches. Texas’ current state of recruiting up front has been as good as it has been in some time, with Kyle Flood and Bo Davis being a big reason why.
Lastly, I am excited to see if DeSoto can win another state title this season. So far, they have scaled through the playoffs with ease but have a couple of more challenges to face this season, including the state’s tenth-ranked Carroll Dragons on Saturday.
Miles Logged:
432 miles
