5A Team of the Week: Lake Dallas Falcons
Dave Campbell’s Texas Football had Lake Dallas as a 30-point underdog ahead of its matchup last Friday against Frisco Emerson.
It looked like the matchup was going to play out on the field just as on paper with the Falcons seemingly dead and buried down 12 with under three minutes to go.
However, Lake Dallas quickly flipped that narrative on its head. Falcons safety Jalen Brooks came up with a huge interception, which led to a 14-yard touchdown pass from Cade Bortnem to Sam McAfee to make it 35-30.
Then after Lake Dallas recovered an onside kick, Bortnem and the Falcon offense rose to the occasion again. He found Keonde Henry for the game-winning score with just 18 seconds to go as Lake Dallas scored the final 13 points in a huge 36-35 win.
4yd TD pass on 4th-and-goal from Lake Dallas’ Cade Bortnem to Purdue commit Keonte Henry to give Falcons a 36-35 lead on Frisco Emerson with :18 to play.
Falcons trailed by 12 and were at own goal line. A long INT return sparked the comeback.
More on @sportsdayhs soon #TXHSFB pic.twitter.com/VdBxSCYzyX
— Josh Manck (@Manck) October 21, 2023
Bortnem finished with 190 passing yards and three touchdowns, along with two interceptions, while Henry led the receiving corps with seven catches for 77 yards and two touchdowns.
The comeback had a big implication of the district standings as Lake Dallas now sits tied for second place, one spot ahead of Emerson. The Falcons will look to secure that second place spot with wins over Frisco Independence and Denton, who is the other team currently tied for second, the last two weeks of the regular season.
*Stats from MaxPreps
Previous 5A Teams of the Week
Week One: Melissa
Week Two: Liberty Hill
Week Three: Frisco Lone Star
Week Four: Boerne Champion
Week Five: PSJA North
Week Six: La Porte
Week Seven: El Paso Ysleta
Week Eight: Cedar Park
CLICK HERE to listen to the Texas HS Football Podcast, with Taylor Arenz
