Lake Highlands and Jesuit football have met up on 13 occasions since 2004. With the Rangers leading the all-time series, 7-6, the Wildcats have a chance to even the score against their cross-city rivals.
Lake Highlands coach Cory Campbell speaks with his team. Mike Duhon Photography
Last year, Lake Highlands carved Jesuit up en route to a 38-10 victory at Wildcat-Ram Stadium. This Friday, the Wildcats will hit the road, hoping to make it a third-straight win against the Rangers. Despite Jesuit’s modest 2-3 record (2-0 District 7-6A), Lake Highlands will need to come prepared if the Wildcats want to come away with a win.
So far this season, the Rangers’ offense has been led by senior Cade Kirby, a 6-foot-1-inch receiver. Kirby has amassed 24 receptions for 296 yards and four touchdowns through the first five games of 2025.
Despite the standout pass-catcher, Jesuit’s quarterback play has struggled early. The Rangers’ starting signal-caller, senior Beck Berry, has thrown just three touchdowns compared to eight interceptions on a 59% completion rate. That being said, Berry has been successful running the ball, leading the team with 244 rushing yards on 41 carries with a touchdown. Sophomore J.P. Livingstone, Berry’s backup, has completed only six of his 18 attempts.
The Wildcats, who jumped one spot in the SportsDay Dallas-area football rankings to No. 17, have shared one common opponent with Jesuit so far: Richardson Pearce. Last Friday, the Rangers hosted the Mustangs and eked out a 17-14 win. Knotted at 14 points with 4:45 remaining in the fourth quarter, Jesuit kicker Cooper McGough drilled a 36-yard field goal to will the Rangers to victory. Lake Highlands (4-1, 2-0), on the other hand, throttled Pearce in a 49-13 road win on September 25.
Against the Mustangs, the Wildcats put up 577 total yards, with 327 coming from the run game. Jesuit managed 306 total yards against Pearce, 155 of which came on the ground. Both teams struggled with penalties against the Mustangs, though, with Lake Highlands being penalized seven times and the Rangers nine times. Both teams will look to clean up on that front as they each face their toughest challenge since district play began.
In district, Jesuit has held its opponents (Pearce and Irving) to 13.5 points. The Wildcats, who have averaged 43 points per game this season, will present a tough matchup for the Rangers’ defense. Lake Highlands’ defense has impressed as well, recording a 42-0 shutout last Friday against Irving MacArthur.
Even with the competitive nature of this matchup, all eight SportsDay Week 7 pickers predicted the Wildcats to win against Jesuit.
Lake Highlands will have a chance for a statement victory at 7 p.m. this Friday on the road at Ranger Stadium.Â
