Since Katy’s season-opening win at Clear Springs on Sept. 26, the Tigers’ starting offense has not punted in its last two games. That’s 14 consecutive possessions with touchdowns.

And it’s happening as Katy works in sophomores at crucial positions, quarterback and running back. The precocious duo of Caleb Koger at signal-caller and Seth Davis at running back sparked Katy’s 59-3 rout of Seven Lakes on Friday, Oct. 9, at Legacy Stadium, boosting Katy’s record to 3-0 and extending its district winning streak to 74 games.

Koger has seemingly taken hold of the quarterback reins with his poise and efficiency under center. Davis was the No. 1 back for the first time this season against Seven Lakes as his older brother, Jalen, deals with a muscle issue.

Davis was spectacular once again. After compiling 119 rushing yards and two touchdowns in a sidekick role to Jalen against Cy-Woods on Oct. 3, the gritty 5-foot-6, 160-pounder ran over and through the Spartans for 217 yards and three touchdowns on 17 carries.

“He’s a competitor,” coach Gary Joseph said of the younger Davis. “He doesn’t worry about how big he is or anything like that. He just wants to compete. That’s a great thing. It inspires a lot of kids when you have one that size who runs that hard and plays that well. It can inspire your team, and he does.”

Koger completed 6 of 9 passes for 94 yards and two touchdowns. In his last two games, Koger has completed 12 of 17 passes for 226 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions.

“He’s growing up,” Joseph said. “It doesn’t surprise me. He’s got to continue getting better, and the kid’s getting more and more confident as he goes about it, too.”

The expectation was Katy’s offense would eventually start humming. This soon, though, was unlikely, because of a quarterback platoon system and no receivers with varsity experience to begin the season.

It’s a credit to the maturity and no-nonsense workmanlike effort of youngsters like Koger and Seth Davis. They’re competing, and the elder statesmen around them are seeing to it that their work during practice and in the film room is paying off.

“We’re confidence boosters for them,” said junior receiver Nic Anderson, who has scored touchdowns in each of the last two games and is Koger’s most reliable target so far. “As long as they see the ball in the end zone, I feel they’re having fun. As long as the game is fun for them and they’re having a good time and they’re executing, it’s all good all around.”

The defense is also taking responsibility of its own in the growth of Koger and Davis.

“If we stay hyped and keep the pressure off of them, that’s key,” senior defensive end Cal Varner said. “We want it to where we’re stopping teams and they can come onto the field and just play. That’s what makes this fun.”

The Tigers put up more than 470 yards against Seven Lakes. That came after totaling 501 against Cy-Woods. It’s a different offense after Katy mustered 210 total yards and had to punt nine times against Clear Springs.

“Our energy has been astounding since the first game,” Anderson said. “That first game didn’t really feel like a game to us and we came out that second game with a totally different mindset. I feel that propelled us to our achievements.”

AILING TIGERS

Jalen Davis, who had 163 yards and five touchdowns in the first two games, is “banged up with a muscle issue,” Joseph said. Joseph elected not to play Davis, who was suited out in uniform on the sideline during the game, as to not make the injury worse.

“You don’t know how those things are,” Joseph said of muscle issues. “That’s the thing. It’s happened to our kids before and sometimes they miss a week and sometimes they miss a month. We’re treating it and treating it, and we felt like the best thing for him was to not put him out there. We have pretty decent backups.”

Katy also had senior fullback Aiden McKinney go down with a leg injury during the second quarter. Joseph said he did not know how bad McKinney’s injury was and it is pending evaluation.

In the meantime, the Tigers will turn to junior Isaiah Smith at fullback. Smith entered the season No. 1 on the depth chart.

DOMINANT DEFENSE

Katy’s starting defense has allowed a total of 16 points through the first three games. Overall, the Tigers have five takeaways: three interceptions and two fumble recoveries.

“We work together as a unit and depend on each other to fill each other’s gaps,” senior defensive lineman Cohen Dearman said. “If one person does one thing, someone else does something else, another person will do something off of that. We just play off each other.

“We’re hungry. We want it this year, and I feel like we’ll provide.”

Defensive players have credited maturity and their work in the film room for their success. Dearman said each player spends about 2-3 hours each week watching film.

“We’re decent, but we can get way better,” Varner said. “We’re not at our full potential yet.”