
Duncanville High School brings home another 6A Division I State Title game championship
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(The Dallas Examiner)
Led by legendary head coach Reginald Samples, the Panthers defeated Houston’s Galena Park North Shore Mustangs, 49-33, making it the Panthers’ third state title since 1998.
The Panthers dominated the game throughout all four quarters and were led by running back and Louisiana State University commit Caden Durham who rushed for over 230 yards and scored three touchdowns. quarterback Keelon Russell also contributed 288 yards passing and three touchdowns as well.
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“I thought the kids played really well and they went out and executed,” Samples said. “The coaches prepared them well. Winning back-to-back, I really don’t know how it feels because I am still really numb, and it may set in later on. As far as the football field being named after me, it’s a great honor and always feels good when people honor you and show their appreciation for the work that you have done. So I am really happy being at Duncanville having to work for the people that I work for. It really gives you a warm and fuzzy feeling.”
North Shore Head Coach Willie Gaston, a former student of North Shore, was in his first season as head coach where he took North Shore to the state title game.
“They are a well-coached team, and the quarterback play was strong and made the difference,” Gaston said. “We didn’t tackle well early and if we did and were more consistent on offense, we could have done well and won.”
The 6A games featured four minority coaches this year and the 5A Division featured one Black head coach, which made Saturday’s state title game dominant with five out of six African American head coaches leading their team.
Samples said it also means a lot to him to be a part of a group that has proven themselves despite others doubts as to their coaching abilities.
“It addresses the stereotypes that are out there, and I am pretty much tired of it. Like we only do well because we have great players, we play every week with great players on both sides. And so I think the record speaks for itself, and what you see on the field speaks for itself. At some point some of the chatter has got to stop and at some point, they just need to give us credit for being good coaches like everybody else,” Samples said.
Duncanville’s only loss this season came against DeSoto High School during the regular season.
“People were telling us all season, is there anybody that can beat Duncanville and that we needed to play SMU,” Samples reflected. “Sometimes that whole thought process really makes you feel bigger than you really are. I think the DeSoto game really put our feet back on the ground and showed us that we are just like anybody else and like I told them our biggest enemy was ourselves, and after DeSoto that’s what happened. After that DeSoto game, we vowed to never lose another game this season and it came through.”
Durham said the Panthers have been working hard all off season to win its second straight title.
“We started in the weight room this summer and put in the hard work,” Durham said. “For the future football classes at Duncanville, I would just stand your own ground so you can three-peat. We love coach Samples and thank him for everything.”
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