Coppell continued its recent dominance over the Hawks with a convincing 52-30 win Friday night at Buddy Echols Stadium.

Junior receiver Josh Fink opened the game with an 82-yard kick return for the Cowboys, scoring his first of four touchdowns that he would contribute to the team. Charles West then gashed the Hawk defense for a 68-yard touchdown a few minutes later, making a defender slip and fall in the process.

Having given up two explosive touchdowns in the early minutes of the first quarter, the visiting team needed a morale boost quickly. That boost came in the form of junior receiver Isaiah Gary, who returned a kickoff 95 yards right after West’s scoring play. After Cowboy quarterback Skyler Bonneau ran in a 6-yard score for Coppell’s third touchdown of the first quarter, senior running back Angelo Garbutt responded with a 63-yard run as the quarter expired. The teams combined for five touchdowns in the first quarter, with Coppell holding the 21-17 advantage.

The second quarter was vastly different than the first. Neither team was able to score as both defenses clamped down. The Hawks had a chance to take the lead right before halftime, but were unable to put the ball in the end zone after three tries from the 1-yard line.

Fink took over the second half for the Cowboys, catching touchdowns of 15, 62, and 29 yards, the latter of which came on a trick play thrown by fellow receiver Obi Obialo. Fink finished the game with four catches for 111 yards, exposing the Hawks’ weak secondary. Garbutt and senior running back Christian Dawson each scored touchdowns in the second half, but it was too little too late.

Garbutt finished the game with 220 yards rushing on 30 carries, proving he is able to carry the load on this run-heavy team. In fact, all of the offense was on the ground because the Hawks attempted only two passes all game, both of which were incomplete. While 399 yards rushing as a team is great, there has to be more balance in the offense if the run is going to continue to be successful against future opponents. However, if the run game is able to continue averaging 6.5 yards a carry, then I don’t see a reason to deter from a run-first mindset.