Starting the District 5A-1 campaign at 1-0 was the clear objective for the Durant Lion football team.
Mission accomplished. The Lions put together their best all-around performance of the season in all areas to cruise past Duncan, 40-10, and celebrated Homecoming in style while snapping a three-game skid.
“I was extremely pleased with all three phases of the game,” head coach Todd Vargas commented afterward. “I am excited for the kids. We executed at a high level. The kids made plays. We had key third or fourth downs we had to get and got them in the first half. We hit some key passes. It just seemed like every kid out there that had an opportunity to make a play made a play.
“The kids really matured after the way things went down at Clinton. We talked at halftime that we’d seen before it wasn’t over even with the big lead and we came out and stepped on their throats in the third quarter. Our goal all week was to be 1-0 in district after this game and that’s where we stand.”
Durant set the tone offensively from the start by scoring all four first half possessions for a commanding lead.
The Lions marched 47 yards in seven plays on the opening drive with Draegen Baker bolting across from a yard out for the touchdown. The biggest play however came just before on a dazzling 27-yard fourth down conversion run from Karson Finley off a tremendous Joseph Flores pitch.
After stopping the Demons on downs, Durant needed only two plays to find the end zone again as Flores found Finley wide open for a 63-yard scoring pass.
Continuing to dominate field position, the Lions began their next drive at midfield following a Duncan three-andout and 12 plays later Flores ran it in for a one-yard touchdown and 20-0 advantage.
Following a Duncan personal foul the Lions were kicking off in Demon territory and went for an on-side kick that Baker jumped on at the Duncan 31. Flores cashed in backto- back fourth down conversions, hitting Josh Bull for 11 yards on the first and rushing five yards himself on the second. That set up Braylen King’s first touchdown of the season on another one-yard plunge into the end zone.
The visitors answered with their best drive of the night before settling for a 23-yard field goal as time expired before intermission.
Durant kept the throttle down after the break, as Flores fired a 40-yard touchdown pass to Bull on the Lions’ first play of the third stanza and Aiden Makke covered a Duncan fumble three plays later, setting up another short DHS scoring drive that pushed the margin to 40-3. James Wallis got credit for the touchdown falling on a Lion fumble in the end zone. Flores had the big play moments earlier with a 20-yard pass to Bladyn Brown.
The Demons punched in a touchdown with just under two minutes remaining for the final points of the night after being held under 100 total yards through three quarters.
Durant finished with a 293164 edge in total yardage led by a season-high 158 yards through the air on 7 of 10 passing by Flores. Bull snagged four of the completions for 63 yards.
Makke led the defensive charge for the Lions with 13 tackles as Tyler Rhodes contributed eight and Graham McIlvoy chipped in seven stops.
Next on the schedule for the Lions is a Friday trip to four-time defending 5A state champ Carl Albert, which is riding a state record 59-game winning streak with a bevy of talent.
“We’ll just suit up and get after it against Carl Albert this week,” Vargas said. “Our kids are resilient and looking forward to the opportunity against the number one ranked team in the state.”
