They say the third time’s a charm, but try telling that to Duncanville. Whether it was the hail mary in 2018 or the Ja’Quinden Jackson injury in 2019 – The Panthers had reason to believe those were rare occasions and a thing of the past. Both teams only had 1 loss going into to the state title game but you got the feeling that North Shore were the clear underdogs. After a few punts early on, the Mustangs took a 7-0 lead in the first after freshman Kaleb Bailey connected with his brother and senior Jhalyn Bailey on a 3 yard touchdown pass. Duncanville would score on a slow, methodical drive to even things up when Arkansas signee Jordan Crook lines up in the Wildcat formation and punches it in for six. With the score tied at only 7 at halftime, many expected a big second half from the offenses but both defenses got even more stingy. Neither squad really got into a rhythm but were able to trade field goals in the third period. Now, three quarters down, it’s 10-10, and it’s to a point where you thought that whoever scored next, would win the game. It got sorta scary for North Shore when the freshman phenom Kaleb Bailey limped off the field but was back after a couple of plays off. The Mustangs defense put on their best performance of the season – getting consistent pressure on senior quarterback Solomon James all evening long, led by Defensive Player of the Game Ronald Wilson. The secondary wasn’t too bad either, although there was one busted play when Panthers’ WR Dakorien Moore failed to haul in a wide open pass that more than likely would’ve went all the way. Outside of that, 5 star Denver Harris and 4 star Jacoby Davis respectively proved to be one of the best cornerback duos in the nation. Duncanville front 7 played fantastic, but even with Omari Abor flying off the edge, they weren’t able to create any big plays on defense. Finally, a game breaker – first play after a punt, Bailey was able to hit sure-handed David Amador on a post to take the lead. On the next possession for the Panthers, Solomon James threw a pick on fourth down to 2023 safety Jayven Anderson, who had a pick-6 in the semifinal against Lake Travis. That would eventually seal the deal on a third 6A-D1 state championship in four years for the Mustangs of North Shore.
