Entering this season with just two returning regulars — one of them a part-time starter in 2024 — the Wylie defense experienced near complete turnover from a unit that allowed just under 25 points per game during a run to the District 2-5A Division II championship and Region I-5A DII area around last year.

But despite that potentially sobering reality, coach Clay Martin was confident in the preseason that the Bulldogs would field a strong defense this fall.

Through three games — home wins over Brownwood and Lubbock Coronado around a three-point road loss to Lubbock Coronado — it would appear the former longtime defensive coordinator’s confidence was well founded. Not only has Wylie limited its three opponents to an average of just 12.7 points per game, it has done so while creating four turnovers and 37 negative plays with a fast and aggressive playing style that Martin believes will serve as an anchoring identity as the Bulldogs’ schedule toughens in the coming weeks.