Muhammad, Walton go back-to-back: "We are going to win big in Austin"
South Oak Cliff has reached the mountaintop of the Texas High School Football world for the consecutive season. SOC overcame a first half deficit to Port Neches-Groves to claim back-to-back 5A DII state championships.
It was the latest chapter in the Golden Bears overcoming adversity. South Oak Cliff opened the season with an 0-3 record before flipping the switch in district play and running through their side of the playoff bracket.
Those experiences helped them come out victorious on Friday night inside AT&T Stadium.
“Duncanville and DeSoto are playing for state championships, too, so that played a huge part in our success,” Billy Walton told Orangebloods after winning the state title on Friday. “It prepared us to beat teams like this.”
Texas commits Malik Muhammad and Billy Walton both played key roles in SOC claiming its second straight title. Muhamamd patrolled the secondary, while Walton created havoc up front. Walton got to the quarterback to account for a safety in the second quarter of the championship contest.
“We wanted to set the tone,” Walton said. “The people that have set the tone for us this season have been on the defense. We made a play and the whole bench said ‘we got this in the bag.’”
Muhammad grabbed a pick-six in the third quarter to put South Oak Cliff up by two touchdowns. The future Longhorns defensive back put his ball skills and playmaking ability on full display by grabbing the pass out of the air and reaching the end zone.
“It means everything (to win back-to-back state championships,” Muhammad said. “I remember talking to the secondary guys, talking to (Kevin Henry-Jennings), about us having a pretty good team. We’ve been building to this since our freshmen year.”
Both Texas pledges are looking forward to carrying over their success from South Oak Cliff to the 40 Acres. The two have big goals in mind for when they begin their college careers at Texas.
“We can do exactly what we just did (at Texas),” Walton said about what the incoming class can accomplish in Austin. “We are going to win big in Austin. Number one recruiting class; we mean business.”