Weight lifted for Coronado football's D.J. Mann, Jett Carroll in first win

Coronado's D.J. Mann can breathe a sigh of relief.

Finally.

Mann, a first-year head coach, got career win No. 1 when the Mustangs raced past Midland High 42-17 on Thursday on the field where the now 36-year-old used to play as a student.

The Coronado grad and former West Texas A&M wide receiver had to wait longer than he'd hoped, but the victory was still sweet.

"It's been tough," Mann said. "I was blessed to coach in the state championship last year, so I've come from a lot of winning programs. Yeah, I put a lot of pressure on myself to be successful here. So I'd be lying if I said, 'Ah, it wasn't no big deal, I'll be all right.'

"It's been tough on me. It's been tough on my family. It's been tough on my mom and dad. I'm relieved right now but ready to go back to work."

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To get there, Mann got a season-best performance from his junior quarterback.

Jett Carroll, in many ways facing pressure of his own, was 13 of 20 passing for 243 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. He also ran for a 6-yard score.

As if replacing Gatorade Texas Football Player of the Year Sawyer Robertson wasn't difficult enough, Carroll surely heard scrutiny after throwing eight picks during Coronado's 0-3 start.

He, too, had a weight lifted off his shoulders with Thursday's win.

"Jett's had it tough," Mann said. "I talked to him before the game, I said, 'Let's see if we can get some people off our back.' People have been riding him, people have been riding me. So I'm so happy for Jett, man. He's such a great kid, he comes from a really good family. It was really good to see him be successful tonight."

Carroll guided the Mustangs to a 28-point second quarter, part of 35 unanswered after the team fell behind 3-0. His second TD pass, a 51-yarder to tight end Trevor Stephens, put Coronado up 28-3 going into halftime.

The Mustangs rolled up 416 yards of offense on the night.

"It feels great," Carroll said. "Yeah, I had a rough couple of weeks, but I'm glad I was able to come out here this week and bounce back, show people what we can do on offense."

The fact the result also marked Mann's first win wasn't lost on Carroll.

"We had our backs against the wall coming into this week," Carroll said. "We knew that we had to come out and get a huge win, not just for us, but for Coach Mann. It feels great. We're about to go back to the school and party it up a little bit.

"It's a huge weight coming off our shoulders. Everyone in the back of their minds thinking like, 'We've got to get that win.' And it feels good to get it."

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The Mustangs got off the schneid just in time for district play.

Mann, who said the victory "doesn't mean a whole lot" as it doesn't affect the playoff race, can now turn his attention to the District 2-5A Division I opener Oct. 1 against undefeated Amarillo Palo Duro.

"It's big for the west side of Lubbock, man," Mann said. "They've been having my back and they've been very supportive. It's fun. This is where I played ball at, this is where I grew up at. To get a win, it ain't for me, it ain't about me. It's for these people in the stands. It's for the people that have had trust in me."

CORONADO 42, MIDLAND HIGH 17

Midland         3     0     0     14       —        17

Coronado     0     28    0     14      —         42

Scoring summary

First quarter

MID — Bam Ruiz 25 field goal, 2:12

Second quarter

COR — Antonio Malone 1 run (Carson Shields kick), 10:13

COR — Cam Manahan 48 interception return (Shields kick), 8:00

COR — Jikiri McGrew 27 pass from Jett Carroll (Shields kick), 5:05

COR — Trevor Stephens 51 pass from Carroll (Shields kick), 1:06

Fourth quarter

COR — Carroll 6 run (Shields kick), 11:07

MID — Brylee Perez 1 run (Ruiz kick), 6:56

MID — Zion Ward 1 run (Ruiz kick), 2:16

COR — Bricion Griffin 3 run (Shields kick), 1:00

TEAM STATISTICS

First downs: (M) 23; (C) 15

Rushes-Yards: (M) 62-320; (C) 20-173

Passing: (M) 55; (C) 243

Comp-Att-Int: (M) 7-13-1; (C) 13-20-0

Punts-Avg: (M) 4-34; (C) 2-33

Fumbles-Lost: (M) 3-0; (C) 0-0

Penalties-Yards: (M) 5-37; (C) 7-32

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING: Midland, Zion Ward 18-147, Landry Walls 18-67, Brylee Perez 10-44, Jacob Urias 5-43, Jake Cunningham 1-16, Jakob Vines 8-13, Team 2-(-10). Coronado, Antonio Malone 14-165, Bricion Griffin 3-10, Jett Carroll 3-(-2).

PASSING: Midland, Walls 7-13-1—55. Coronado, Carroll 13-20-0—243.

RECEIVING: Midland, Ward 3-28, Kyle Blanchard 1-9, Teagan Marlow 1-7, Noah Crumpler 1-6, Perez 1-5. Coronado, Jikiri McGrew 3-39, Trevor Stephens 2-56, Surreal Garrett 2-50, Jordan Kelley 2-23, Malone 2-1, Darrion Taylor 1-59, Griffin 1-15.

RECORDS: Midland 1-3; Coronado 1-3.