Manor's Titus Petteway among new stars making 2023 football debuts
Manor coach James Keller had a gut feeling that his new running back would emerge as a star during the "Battle of 290" season opener against LBJ on Thursday.
Forgive the casual high school football fan who might have had doubts that Manor would find a suitable replacement for Quinten Joyner, one of the nation's most coveted running back prospects last season before signing with USC. Manor is a fast-growing city, and Keller's conveyor belt of football players keeps spinning around with fresh faces who are eager to please.
In the first week of high school football, Mustangs senior Titus Petteway represented a new breed of talent in Central Texas. At 6 feet 1 and 225 pounds, he was a huge force against old rival LBJ, finishing with 241 yards and four touchdowns in a 39-26 victory over the Jaguars.
Not bad for a player who spent the entire 2022 season playing linebacker.
"Titus had been a two-year starter for us at linebacker," Keller said Saturday. "I always knew he had the ability to be a great running back but didn't want to waste his talent watching Quinten play the position. He patiently waited his turn. Now everyone will know him. I've had a lot of great running backs here in Manor. Titus will be the next one to go DI."
In recent years, Manor has developed college-bound running backs such as Joyner, Tahj Brooks (Texas Tech) and Tyron Owens (New Mexico).
Manor also unveiled a new quarterback, Jason Zardavets. He was a starter on the 2021 team that went 9-3. After sitting out his junior year because of knee surgery, he helped lead the victory over LBJ, passing for 228 yards and three touchdowns.
Move to defense pays off
Speaking about grand openings, Anderson discovered a player who will rattle some helmets this year. During a 42-0 victory over McCallum in the annual Taco Shack Bowl, Trojans defensive end Jack Middleton created his own highlight film. An offensive tackle last year, he switched to defense this season and promptly contributed 19 tackles, seven behind the line of scrimmage.
"I really enjoy playing defense more," said Middleton, a junior who should soon start getting serious looks from college scouts.
Some Friday night surprises
Dragons stumble: As for games, no one should have been shocked that Weiss spoiled Round Rock's home opener. Weiss, under first-year head coach Vernon Hughes, has been a steady winner since it began to play a full schedule in 2018, but Friday night's 37-7 final score turned heads. After all, Round Rock was the state's seven-on-seven state champion in the summer, and Texas Football magazine had the Dragons as the No. 2 team in rugged District 25-6A.
Wins at the top weren't easy: Although they had to work hard, the area's top three Class 6A teams — Westlake, Vandegrift and Lake Travis — held serve against tough opponents. Westlake, which has the pieces to make a strong bid for state, defeated Fort Bend Ridge Point 31-21, Vandegrift throttled Dripping Springs 27-7, and Lake Travis rallied late to edge Arlington Martin 13-6.
Dripping Springs shouldn't get down after opening with a loss to Vandegrift. After all, Vandegrift lost the opener to Dripping Springs last year and went all the way to the Class 6A Division II state finals.
Both coaches said the contest will make them better down the road, with district play three weeks away.
“We get a lot out of this because that’s a quality program,” Tigers coach Galen Zimmerman said. “If we want to play another 15 weeks, we get on film what we need to work on from this, and our kids get to see it.”
Lake Travis coach Hank Carter saw his offense struggle to find the end zone for more than three quarters. The defense, though, resembled the old units that helped the Cavaliers win six state championships. Last year, the only team Lake Travis held to six points or fewer was Akins.
Friday night's top winners
So who were the big winners over the weekend?
There were several head-turning openers, of course, but Hutto's 66-35 victory over San Marcos was particularly impressive. So was Leander's 48-28 victory over Pflugerville. Cedar Park opened some eyes with a 29-7 victory over Cedar Ridge.
There is good news for teams that lost this weekend. No team can win state in August. All they can do is regroup and try again. You never know when a promising new player is about to shine.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Some Central Texas unknowns have breakout high school football openers
