McFadden runs wild in Muir win

It's easy to lose track of Muir wide receiver Daityevon McFadden.

At 5-foot-6, 135 pounds, he's easily one of the smallest players on the field. He just doesn't look like the kind of player a team has to account for on every play from scrimmage.

But then he gets the ball and takes off toward the end zone. It's then that the Mustangs' diminutive wideout becomes a big-time playmaker, as he was Friday night against Hoover.

McFadden only caught three passes, but two of his receptions went for touchdowns of 47 and 63 yards, respectively, in the Mustangs' 53-0 throttling of Hoover.

"This kid's going to go after it every chance he gets," Muir coach Ken Howard said. "If he gets the ball, he's trying to score every time."

McFadden's first touchdown grab punctuated a dominant first quarter for Muir, in which the Mustangs (3-4, 2-2 in the Pacific League) outscored the Tornadoes 19-0.

Quarterback Jeffery Davis found McFadden across the middle of the field on a slant route for what should have been a routine first-down reception. But McFadden stopped, cut right and ran through Hoovers' secondary for an easy score.

"I just did what I did in practice," McFadden said. "I just tried to stay balanced and run hard. In their defense, I saw that they kept running the Cover 2. I knew that the corner was playing up so I could just outrun him."

On most nights that play easily would have led a team's highlight video, but McFadden wasn't done making defenders look silly. On Muir's second possession of the second quarter, McFadden again found himself sprinting down the sideline toward pay dirt.

This time Hoover (1-6, 0-4) was in position to keep the Muir junior out of the end zone. A Tornado defensive back had the angle to knock McFadden out of bounds at about the 10-yard line, except he forgot to take into account McFadden's ability to stop on a dime and change course.

McFadden stopped running as his defender ran past him, then he cut back toward the middle of the field for another electrifying touchdown.

"I felt him creeping up on me," McFadden said, "so I just was like 'if I stop right now, he'll fly by me.' "

McFadden, though, wasn't the only Mustang to do a number on Hoover. The entire Muir defense combined to record seven tackles for loss in its first shutout of the season.

Davis threw for 178 yards and three touchdowns, and junior tailback Tairen Owens had a 72-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.

It's that kind of effort that makes Howard confident in his team's chance of finishing in the top-tier of the Pacific League after a 1-4 start to the season.

"We've got to win outright right now," Howard said. "We've got to win everything coming our way right now in order for us to get into the playoffs. They take four teams but you don't want to be that fourth place team.

" … We're not a fourth place team. We're not a fourth or third place team so we've got to battle back."

Muir 53, Hoover 0

Hoover            0            0            0            —            0

Muir            19            14            7            13            —            53

First Quarter

M — Owens 72 run (Castro kick)

M — Glass 45 interception return (kick failed)

M — McFadden 47 pass from Davis (kick failed)

Second Quarter

M — McFadden 63 pass from Davis (Castro kick)

M — Seymour 1 run (Castro kick)

Third Quarter

M — Holmes 52 run (Castro kick)

Fourth Quarter

M — Hayes 48 pass from Davis (Castro kick)

M — Seymour 55 punt return (kick failed)

Leaders:

Passing: Hoover — Pule (6 of 18, 38 yards); Muir — Davis (6 of 9, 178 yards, 3 TDs).

Rushing: Hoover — Taboyoyong (8 rushes for 24 yards); Muir — Owens (5 rushes for 92 yards, TD).

Receiving: Hoover — Williams (3 recepctions for 32 yards); Muir — McFadden (3 receptions for 116 yards, 2 TDs).