DeSoto Holds Off Duncanville 21-20 in Cotton Bowl Clash

DeSoto started last season 0-2 and still ended up holding a state championship trophy. So maybe everyone should have known better than to write off the Eagles after another 0-2 start.

After losses to St. Thomas Aquinas and Allen, DeSoto made a pretty significant change for Duncanville: move star running back SaRod Baker to quarterback. It worked. Baker accounted for 208 total yards and all three DeSoto touchdowns as the Eagles beat Duncanville 21-20 Saturday at the Cotton Bowl.

The game was tied 7-7 before Wyatt Davis ripped off a 65-yard run that set up Baker’s second touchdown. DeSoto’s defense then repeatedly turned Duncanville away on fourth down, and Baker added another rushing score with nine seconds left before halftime to make it 21-7.

Duncanville battled back. Maximus Denson found Jairus Ingram for a third-quarter touchdown, and a wild fourth-quarter sequence gave the Panthers one final shot. A bad DeSoto punt snap handed Duncanville the ball inside the 5, and Chris Jackson Jr. recovered a fumble in the end zone to make it 21-20.

Then came the play of the game.

Khing Thibodeaux blocked the tying extra point. Baker later picked up the first down DeSoto needed to finish it.

The Eagles get their first win and next face unbeaten Burleson Centennial, which beat Ennis 31-10. Duncanville falls to 1-2 and now gets 3-0 North Crowley, coming off a 41-20 win over Summer Creek.