# DeSoto High School (Texas)

DeSoto High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school in DeSoto, Texas, United States. It is part of the DeSoto Independent School District and is classified as a 6A school by the UIL. In 2015, the school was rated "Met Standard" by the Texas Education Agency.
The district, and therefore the school, serves most of DeSoto and the Dallas County portion of Glenn Heights, and a portion of Ovilla in Dallas County, as well as a small portion of Cedar Hill.

## School profile

From 1956 to 1962, DeSoto High School was located at 200 East Belt Line Road. In 1962, a new campus opened at 601 East Belt Line Road (present-day DeSoto East Junior High). As the district continued to grow, voters approved a $7.5 million bond by a vote of 445–366 in 1973 that contained a provision for the construction of a new high school.
On February 15, 1974, a groundbreaking ceremony took place at the new site, 600 Eagle Drive. The building contract was awarded to Central Texas Construction of Terrell at a cost of approximately $3,100,000. The school opened on August 16, 1976.
To relieve overcrowding, an adjoining Freshman Campus opened in 1997 to serve the district's ninth graders.
In 2011 The Dallas Morning News reported that the school "had a lower-than-expected college readiness percentage." In 2011, the district built additions to improve the school's college and career academies. The State of Texas defined "college readiness," or readiness to undergo university studies, by scores on the ACT, SAT, and 11th grade Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) tests.
DeSoto High offers International Baccalaureate, early college, and academic magnet programs to better serve the academic needs of its high-achieving students preparing to attend college.

## School uniforms

In the 2005–2006 school year, DeSoto ISD began a mandatory school uniform policy at all of its schools. Formerly, the mandatory uniform was:
* Shirt - yellow, green, black, white, or gray
* Pants - khaki or black
* On Fridays, a DeSoto or college shirt may be worn with jeans.
In 2019, DeSoto ISD changed the policy and the students no longer have to wear uniforms.

## Student demographics

In the 2014–2015 school year, DeSoto High had a total of 2,238 students in grades 10-12 (82% African American, 3% White, 14% Hispanic, 0.2% Asian, and 0.2% Native American).

## Athletics

The DeSoto Eagles compete in the following sports:
* Baseball
* Basketball
* Cross country
* Football
* Golf
* Soccer
* Softball
* Swimming and diving
* Tennis
* Track and field
* Volleyball
* Band
* Cheerleading
* Wrestling

### State championships

The DeSoto Baseball team won State Championships in 1979 and 1985.
The Lady Eagle track and field team won a State Championship in 2007 followed by three consecutive State Championships in 2011, 2012, and 2013. They also won 5 straight titles in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2021 bringing their total to 9 State Championships.
The Eagle Boys' Track and Field team won State Titles in 2012 and 2016.
The Boys' Basketball team won the Texas 5A State Championship in 2003 and 2009. In 2016, the boys' team won the 6A State Championship, upsetting #1 ranked Atacostia High 73–54.
In 2016, the Varsity Football team won the 6A Division II State Championship in the AT&T Stadium. This was the first State Football Championship in school history. DeSoto won the State Championship again in 2022 and 2023.
In 2021, the Varsity Girls Basketball team won the Texas 6A State Championship over an undefeated Cypress Creek High School (Texas). This was the first Girls State Basketball Championship in school history. In 2022, the Girls Basketball team would win a repeat championship title bringing their total to two state titles.

### Rivalry

For decades, DeSoto High has maintained a popular rivalry against their regional foe the Cedar Hill High School Longhorns. The rivalry has been deemed the "Battle of Belt Line". DeSoto has an even longer rivalry with Duncanville High School.
The earliest DHS rivalry was with Lancaster High School, DeSoto on the West and Lancaster to the East of Interstate 35. Pranks against each other in the 70's-80's included: Live goats tied to front door of school, and paint dumped atop the bronze eagle statue that sits in front of the building.

### Marching band

DeSoto Eagle Band is a 90+ music group that represents the school at athletic games, band competitions, parades, and other events.

## Student Investigation Award

In January 2005, the school district was investigated by the press for its questionable hiring of an outside "gang consultant". The investigation focused on whether the district truly had a "gang problem" (the local police chief said it did not), or whether the consultant was creating the "problem", since the consultant stood to gain a sizeable contract if in fact a problem existed. The result is that there was no real gang problem, and the consultant's contract was terminated.
The unique feature of the investigation was that none of the media outlets in the Dallas area had anything to do with it. The investigation was performed solely by the Eagle Eye, the DHS student newspaper. For their role in the story, four members of the newspaper staff received the Courage in Student Journalism Award for their work; the student advisor received the educator's version of the award. Both awards came with $5,000 prizes.

## Notable alumni

* Erica Banks (class of 2017), rapper
* Tatum Bell (class of 1999), former running back for the Denver Broncos
* Marques Bolden (class of 2016), center, Milwaukee Bucks, 2016 6A State Champion in basketball
* Johntay Cook II (class of 2023), wide receiver for the Texas Longhorns
* Patrick Crayton (class of 1997), former wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys and San Diego Chargers
* Rosey Effiong (class of 2020), sprinter
* Steve Foster (class of 1985), Cincinnati Reds pitcher, pitching coach of Colorado Rockies
* Cyrus Gray (class of 2008), retired running back for the Kansas City Chiefs and Denver Broncos
* Byron Hanspard (class of 1994), former running back for the Atlanta Falcons
* Tim Hendrix (class of 1983), former tight end for the Dallas Cowboys
* Ellis Hobbs (class of 2001), former cornerback, New England Patriots
* Mike Humphreys (class of 1985), retired New York Yankees outfielder
* Feron Hunt (class of 2018), NBA player
* Ed Ingram (class of 2017), guard for the Minnesota Vikings
* Brian Jackson (class of 2005), former cornerback for the New York Jets New York Giants
* Tony Jerod-Eddie (class of 2008), former nose tackle for the San Francisco 49ers
* Matt Jones (class of 2013), Bank of Taiwan (basketball), 2015 National Champion for Duke University
* Chris Lacy (class of 2014), wide receiver
* DeVere Levelston (class of 2019), defensive end for the Seattle Seahawks
* Jason London (class of 1991), actor
* Jeremy London (class of 1991), actor
* Von Miller (class of 2007), linebacker for the Denver Broncos and Buffalo Bills and one-time SuperBowl MVP
* Jalen Mills (class of 2012), former cornerback for the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles
* Jabbar Muhammad (class of 2020), cornerback
* Byron Murphy II (class of 2021), defensive tackle for the Seattle Seahawks
* Marcus Murphy (class of 2010), running back
* Zach Orr (class of 2010), Outside Linebacker coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars, former linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens
* Chris Orr (class of 2015), linebacker for the New Jersey Generals
* Casey Printers (class of 1999), former quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs
* James Proche (class of 2015), wide receiver for the Baltimore Ravens
* Laviska Shenault (class of 2017), wide receiver for the Seattle Seahawks
* Mark Simmons (class of 2002), former wide receiver for the San Diego Chargers
* Mike Thomas (class of 2005), former wide receiver for the Jacksonville Jaguars
* Marcus Tubbs (class of 1999), former defensive tackle for the Seattle Seahawks
* Shemar Turner (class of 2021), defensive lineman for the Texas A&M Aggies
* Howard Wilson (class of 2014), former cornerback for the Cleveland Browns
* Quintrevion Wisner (class of 2023), running back for the Texas Longhorns
* Jimmy Wyrick (class of 1995), former cornerback for the Detroit Lions