When the dust settled on the season for Grand Prairie, it seemed like the Gophers never truly hit their stride. The Gophers put up consecutive wins against Garland Naaman Forest and Irving Nimitz after losing their first two games, but the challenge to win becomes much harder when facing the upper tier of DeSoto, Cedar Hill, Duncanville and rival South Grand Prairie in District 7-6A.
The result: A 4-6 (3-4) season filled with ups and downs that ultimately left the Gophers on the outside looking in for the playoffs. However, this was a step up from the previous campaign in which Grand Prairie went 2-8 with a winless district season. Getting wins against Nimitz, MacArthur and Irving are all steps in the right direction to help Grand Prairie elevate from an on-the-fringe team.
A few starters will be returning that will be instrumental and help dictate whether Grand Prairie can shake a few of the I-20 football factories off their usual football summit or whether Grand Prairie will still have to play second fiddle to the more celebrated programs.
Key Departures
QB Joe Reyes, RB Jordan McGuire, WR Shaidron Williams, DL Lavadriene Brown, LB RJ Williams
Grand Prairie will have to replace their starting quarterback, leading rusher and leading receiver on offense. They will also have to replace two starters that made up the interior of their defensive front seven.
Williams and McGuire combined for 1,602 total yards and 15 touchdowns for the Grand Prairie offense. Reyes threw for 1,858 yards and 18 touchdowns. Defensively, the team’s leading tackler RJ Williams will leave a void that will need to be filled and Lavadriene Brown’s interior quickness and agility will be a missed luxury as well.
Key Returners
QB/RB Qualan Jones, WR Rene Valenzuela, DB Reggie Williams, OL Demarcus Marshall
Grand Prairie will have an All-District senior lining up on the offensive line in Demarcus Marshall next year. Wide receiver Rene Valenzuela will look to up his production from the 20 receptions for 148 yards he had and have members of the secondary account for him.
Speaking of secondary, All-District selection and rising senior Reggie Williams will be a big part of the defense.
Rising junior Qualan Jones will also be a big part of Grand Prairie’s offense heading into the 2017 season. As a possible starting quarterback next year, Jones rushed for 538 yards and nine touchdowns which could be a viable dual-threat asset to the offense next year. Jones also hauled in 197 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Verdict
Grand Prairie looks to have a good amount of athleticism heading into next season which will be beneficial in helping this team trend further up. The Gophers were the final playoff spot at the end of the season and almost captured the final playoff spot. If they can build upon their successes and pull out a win against one of the “big brother” teams in the district, then Grand Prairie could very well be one of the four teams that advances to the playoffs next year. While still a few strides away from a state contender, Grand Prairie is primed for another step forward heading into next season.
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