King Stuns North Shore 42-21 for First Win in Rivalry
King had never beaten North Shore in 10 meetings. On Friday night the Panthers changed that, riding quarterback Khylan Davis to a 42-21 upset of the No. 19 team in the national Super 25 rankings.
In 10 previous meetings, King had never beaten its Houston rival North Shore on the football field. That changed Friday night, when the visiting Panthers scored first, answered every Mustangs push, and pulled away in the second half for a 42-21 win over North Shore - ranked No. 19 in USA TODAY's Super 25 and the defending UIL Class 6A Division I state champion.
King opened the scoring with a drive that lasted just over four minutes, finished by quarterback Khylan Davis running it in himself. Davis threw a short touchdown pass to running back Arhiyan Montgomery a quarter later. North Shore answered twice in the half - Javoris Taylor to La'Damian Defreeze, then Taylor to Christopher Tolson for a 20-yard score after Davis had found Antwon Sanders for his second touchdown pass, with 2:15 left in the half - but the Mustangs never led.
From there it was all King. Davis ran for a touchdown in the third quarter and another in the fourth, stretching the Panthers' lead to 22 points. North Shore added a rushing touchdown with 10 minutes remaining, but junior quarterback Ty'Rin Gatson answered with a short rushing score for King, and the rout was on.
The win moves King to 7-1 and into sole possession of first place in the district standings. North Shore falls to 7-1, second in the district, and the loss was the Mustangs' first since November 7, 2025, ending a 13-game winning streak. Elsewhere in the Houston area Friday, Atascocita beat Kingwood 27-7 and Benjamin Davis beat Eisenhower 56-6, according to the statewide finals list published by High School on SI.
