It was a high school version of the greatest show on turf.
Two HISD schools generated 112 points in a football game at Barnett Stadium recently that served as the District 24-5A opener for both schools.
Madison got the better of Sterling 64-48 because the Marlins’ dynamic duo of quarterback Erin Thomas and triple threat Dashawn Williams were virtually unstoppable on this night.
The 6-foot-6 Thomas completed 13 of 16 passes for 365 yards and five touchdowns. The senior added a nine-yard TD run midway through the first quarter to give the Marlins an advantage (16-0) they would never relinquish.
Williams, a 5-9 junior running back, began his night on the receiving end of scoring passes of 53 and 65 yards from Thomas in the first half. In the second half Williams would add an 80-yard kickoff return for a touchdown along with TD runs of one and nine yards.
“They did a great job,” said Madison head coach Pat Reinecke. “Erin had close to 300 yards in the first half and Dashawn does a great job of catching it and running with the ball. On special teams he makes things happen.
“We’re excited to have them. With those two on the field we have a chance every week,” Reinecke said.
The Madison coach wasn’t thrilled to be in a shootout with a district rival.
“We’ve been in a few of these kinds of games over the years,” Reinecke said. “You never like to be involved in a shootout. Luckily we were able to keep putting the points up when we were on the field.
“We’ve got some work to do and some corrections to make on defense to get them back on track,” he said. “We’ll be all right.”
Madison senior receiver Jamarcus Young also had a memorable performance with six receptions for 214 yards and TD catches of 66, 60 and 34 yards.
“If I had to rate the offense I’d give us a 10,” Thomas said. “If it wasn’t for Fatty [Williams], I wouldn’t be on the stat list.”
Williams added that he’d never had a game quite like this one.
“I was just focusing on Erin and hoping to catch passes and touchdowns passes all game,” he said.
Williams is a Scorpio, who was born on Nov. 3, 1998. His favorite football player is Los Angeles Rams wide receiver/return specialist Tavon Austin of the National Football League. His favorite subject in school is math and his favorite food is pizza.
Thomas is still undecided on a college he’ll attend next fall. He’s a Virgo who was born on Sept. 21, 1997. His favorite subject in school is science and he lists cereal among his favorite foods. Cam Newton is his favorite football player.
“This was our best game so far but we’ve got a few more games to get even better,” Thomas said.
The Madison Marlins head into their bye week 3-2 on the season and 1-0 in district play. Madison will host Sharpstown Oct. 7 in a District 24-5A contest at Butler Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.