Frisco Liberty opened up the season with a nailbiter against Frisco Reedy in Week 1. A two-point conversion in the final seconds of the game won it for the Redhawks.
No late-game heroics were required tonight.
Playing at Toyota Stadium, Liberty pulled away from Greenville with ease in the second half to win 55-21. Four second half touchdowns, one of which was from five-star wide receiver Evan Stewart, ended up being the difference.
For Stewart, the new No. 3 player in the country per the 247Sports composite had another monster day on the stat sheet. He finished with 11 receptions for 211 yards and a touchdown.
Most throws came from within 10 yards, letting Stewart get outside to use his speed. Greenville’s defensive backs were playing off him plus a safety over him the entire game, calling for a few comeback routes.
One of Stewart’s best plays came early in the third quarter where he almost blew by three defenders but a last-ditch tackle tripped him up.
Early apologies for the crummy camera work. Thanks to Frisco ISD’s sidelines policies, plus my outdated phone, it was tough to get a quality shot.
.@0fficial_evan shows some speed on the outside. Barely brought down pic.twitter.com/YhVe114qZI
— Griffin McVeigh (@Griffin_McVeigh) September 4, 2021
In another comeback route, Stewart did a good job of tracking back to the ball and getting both feet in bounds to get another first down.
.@0fficial_evan doing a nice job getting both feet in on a comeback route pic.twitter.com/LVRzZjJbly
— Griffin McVeigh (@Griffin_McVeigh) September 4, 2021
Liberty called a couple of jet sweeps for the five-star as well. Both resulted in solid chunk plays for the Redhawks. Instead of fully trying to get outside, Stewart hit the first hole he found both times and made his way upfield.
Something I was excited to see was Stewart’s jump-ball ability, especially in the red zone. Greenville’s defense made it priority No. 1 that I would not see such a thing. Wherever the five-star lined up inside of the 20, the cornerback would play press with another defensive back lined up right behind him.
Greenville had a difficult time bringing Stewart down with just one defender. The first guy would try to wrap up and quickly get bounced. Three to four guys would have to swarm and push Stewart out of bounds before the play was blown dead.
It was easy to see how he would transition and fit into Sarkisian’s system. Moving around across formations could create matchup problems, especially once in the slot. No linebacker, even within the SEC, is going to keep up.
Texas remains in the thick of it for the No. 1 in-state prospect. Stewart has already taken his official visit, coming to Austin in June. He has not set a time for an unofficial in the fall yet.
Seeing how Sarkisian’s offense performs throughout the season could be a major factor. Put up gaudy numbers with the receivers, plus make the move to the SEC next season, and your chances to land Stewart skyrocket.