As the playoffs kicked off on Thursday night and went straight through Saturday, there were several quality performances from area players but here I'll try to narrow it down to the cream of the crop in postseason performances.
1. Jarman Johnson, RB, Pilot Point -- Some people, including myself, figured Pilot Point would have a win going away in its first-round playoff matchup against Boyd, but the Bearcats had another thing coming. Their usually stout defense couldn't contain Boyd, which put even more pressure on their offense, and Johnson thrived on it. The senior carried the ball 28 times for a whopping 378 yards and six touchdowns. In case you're wondering, that's an average of 13.5 yards per carry. In the game, Johnson broke the school record for yards in a game and yards in a season, as he's now up to 2,234 yards. With Pilot Point's chances of a deep playoff run, it's very likely Johnson could get to 3,000 yards.
2. James Franklin, QB, Lake Dallas -- It wasn't the best set of numbers for the senior signal caller, but even a "not spectacular" night for Franklin is still a pretty darn good night, and when you put it on the playoff stage in a huge matchup it makes his night even bigger. Franklin combined for 308 yards, a very pedestrian number for the dual-threat machine, but he also accounted for all five of the Falcons' touchdowns in their 35-27 win over fellow 9-1 Birdville. He passed for a score and rushed for four. Thirty-one of his 171 yards on the ground came on the game-winning touchdown in the closing minutes.
3. Luke Woodley, QB, Highland Park -- The senior threw almost as many touchdowns as he did incompletions in the Scots' big win over McKinney. Woodley tossed four touchdowns and had nine incompletions, but it's not like he threw just 15 passes. Nine incompletions is pretty darn good when you go for 480 yards and the four scores.
4. Damien Hart, RB, Euless Trinity -- In one of the crazier playoff games in quite some time, the Trojans put it on Flower Mound, beating the Jags 88-27 on Saturday at Cowboys Stadium. Hart was one of many Trinity runners who just ran roughshod on Flower Mound, totaling 142 yards on 18 carries and scoring four touchdowns.
Adam Boedeker is a sports writer/award-winning blogger for the Denton Record-Chronicle. He loves Brady vs. Manning. Every time.
