photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence High quarterback Banks Bowen looks for a teammate to pass the ball to during the home opener against Shawnee Mission South on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Lawrence.

Ahead of the season, Lawrence High School coach Clint Bowen expected a lot from his defensive line. The three-man front along with their two outside linebackers were expected to show up in the pass game by getting into the backfield and disrupting the pass.

So far, the front seven has been as advertised.

“The defense played the style of defense we want,” Bowen said. “We’ve made a big point of making negative yardage plays. The defense played with a lot of aggression, and we pitched a shutout.”

The Lions won 43-0 against the Shawnee Mission South Raiders in Lawrence for the start of the regular season. It wasn’t perfect for the defense — missed tackles will be aggravating to watch back when the team watches the film — but it was about as good of a start as a team could hope for.

Offensively, the team succeeded when senior quarterback Banks Bowen threw deep to the sidelines. The first Lions drive stalled with incompletions around midfield, but the second drive started with a 49-yard throw from Bowen to senior receiver Jaylen Parks, and sophomore running back Ethan Curry took a short pass the final 22 yards to the end zone for the first score.

The offense stalled on the third drive, but the Lions scored again on the fourth drive after Bowen found junior receiver Jaxon Becker on a deep pass that Becker caught with his fingertips. The Lions lost a few yards over the next two plays but found the end zone when Bowen threw a 19-yard touchdown strike to junior Kavon Price while Bowen rolled to his right.

Friday night’s reliance in the first half on deep throws isn’t exactly going to be the offense’s go-to play through the rest of the season. Bowen said that they need to establish the run better, and that will be an emphasis going forward. But it is good to know that when needed, the Lions can rely on one of the receivers to go up and make a play.

“We made some (play) calls that probably weren’t right situationally, but we’re still trying to see who can make a play,” he said.

Becker said that the coaching staff pushes him and the other receivers to make those big plays.

“(Coaches) tell us to just run in the end zone and make a play,” Becker said. “Most defensive backs are not disciplined enough to stay with you, so you can break away and go make that play.”

The defense gifted the offense with great scoring position after holding the Raiders to a three-and-out. Bowen finished the drive with a 4-yard quarterback keeper, and the Lions took a 21-0 lead with 24.8 seconds left in the first half.

Josh Galbreath and the defense bent but didn’t break throughout the night. The offense put up four touchdowns, but they didn’t always make it easy for the defense. Yet the pass rush made the difference in the game. Galbreath alone had three sacks, with Devin Foster recording two more and Larney Finney recording one as well.

A collision between Tahj Edwards and a Shawnee Mission South defender on the Lions’ first drive of the second half stopped play for over 20 minutes as an ambulance was called as the Shawnee Mission South player was taken off the field. As he was loaded onto the ambulance, the player raised his first for a positive sign that created an eruption of support from the home and visitor crowds.

Once play resumed, Edwards fumbled inside the Raider 10-yard line. The Lion defense swarmed for two tackles for loss, the latter being for a safety that gave the Lions a four-score lead.

Two minutes after the safety, Bowen shook off an almost 10-yard sack to throw a deep pass to Parks for his second touchdown reception of the night.

The Raiders found some life on the kickoff, which brought them to Lawrence 7-yard line. Once again, the pass rush pushed the Raiders back and forced a turnover on downs on a fourth-and-goal when sophomore Tyrese Sessions sacked Shawnee Mission South quarterback Carter Cox.

Despite the lead, the Lions kept pushing offensively. Bowen threw short, quick passes to get downfield and threw a drag route to senior Gabe Wingerd for a 14-yard touchdown pass. Another defensive stop gave the Lions the ball back and they scored their final touchdown of the night with a 3-yard pass to Adric Webb.

Bowen finished with six touchdowns, five through the air and one on the ground.

Clint Bowen has a lot of areas on his mind he wants to see cleaned up. But, at the end of the day, the Lions came out with a tough 43-0 win at home and are 1-0 on the season. For the season opener, that’s good enough.

The Lions will face Junction City High School on the road on Thursday, with kickoff slated for 7 p.m.

Game stats

LHS team stats:

Rushing: 29 attempts, 129 yards, 1 touchdown

Passing: 19 completions, 30 attempts, 327 yards, 5 touchdowns

Total: 456 yards

LHS individual stats:

Passing:

Banks Bowen: 18-29, 322 yards, 5 touchdowns

Ethan Curry: 1-1, 5 yards

Receiving:

Jaylen Parks: 4 receptions, 113 yards, 2 touchdowns

Jaxon Becker: 4 receptions, 95 yards

Gabe Wingerd: 3 receptions 39 yards, 1 touchdown

Ethan Curry: 1 reception, 22 yards, 1 touchdown

Turner Juelsgaard: 2 receptions, 20 yards

Kavon Price: 1 reception, 19 yards, 1 touchdown

Rushing:

Banks Bowen: 12 attempts, 62 yards, 1 touchdown

Tahj Edwards: 11 attempts, 59 yards

Ethan Curry: 2 attempts, 6 yards

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence High School kicker Noah Richardson kicks an extra point to advance the Lions to 14-0 during a matchup against Shawnee Mission South on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Lawrence.

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence High School players celebrate a touchdown during a game against Shawnee Mission South on Friday, Sept 6, 2024, in Lawrence. The Lions were up 14-0.

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence High wide receiver Jaylen Parks celebrates a run toward the Lions’ end zone against Shawnee Mission South on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Lawrence.

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence High wide receiver Jaylen Parks attempts to run to the end zone against Shawnee Mission South on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Lawrence.

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence High wide receiver Jaylen Parks attempts to run to the end zone against Shawnee Mission South on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Lawrence.

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence High quarterback Banks Bowen looks for a teammate to pass the ball to during the home opener against Shawnee Mission South on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Lawrence.

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence High quarterback Banks Bowen makes a throw before getting tackled during the home opener against Shawnee Mission South on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Lawrence.

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence High quarterback Banks Bowen stiff-arms a Shawnee Mission South opponent during the Lions’ home opener against the Raiders on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Lawrence.

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence High School football players during pregame before the matchup with Shawnee Mission South on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Lawrence.