With two weeks remaining in the regular season, the postseason picture is becoming clearer as district championship and playoff contenders have taken center stage. While several local teams look to keep their postseason hopes alive, the District 14-A Division I showdown between No. 7 Jonesboro and May will determine the league champion.
Jonesboro (7-1, 2-0) at May (7-2, 3-0)
7:30 p.m. Friday
The May Tigers’ string of six straight district championships was snapped by the Jonesboro Eagles last year, as head coach Craig Steele’s squad looks to return to the favor in their regular season finale Friday.
May is coming off a 51-6 victory over Santa Anna last week as the Tigers generated 314 yards of total offense – 227 rushing and 77 passing.
Braden Steele rushed for 157 yards and two touchdowns on just three carries, while completing both of his pass attempts for 77 yards and two more scores.
Ben Harrell contributed 78 yards rushing and a touchdown on three carries and caught a 43-yard touchdown pass. Mikey Scheriger hauled in a 34-yard scoring reception and also reached the end zone on a 2-yard run, his lone carry.
Defensively for the Tigers, Scheriger and Cayson Dail led the way with 10 tackles apiece followed by Harrell with 9, Jackson Lusk with 6 tackles and a 36-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown, Steele with 3 tackles and 2 passes defended, Wyatt Hardy with 3 tackles and a fumble recovery, Levi McInnis with 2 tackles, and Hagan Hester, Cutter Dearick, and Ryland Billadeau with 1 tackle apiece.
The only loss for No. 7 Jonesboro this season came at the hands of No. 2 Westbrook, 60-14, in Week 2.
Players to watch for the Eagles include Nathan Forrest (489 passing yards, 12 TDs), Jacob Cisneros (354 passing yards, 10 TDs; 726 rushing yards, 11 TDs), DeMarcus Acoff (545 rushing yards, 13 TDs; 8-199, 4 TDs receiving), EJ Thorman (12-313, 5 TDs receiving) and Maddox Stroud (8-247, 7 TDs receiving).
According to sixmanfootball.com, May is a 39-point underdog.
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Blanket (5-3, 2-0) at Sidney (5-3, 1-1)
7:30 p.m. Friday
The Blanket Tigers will attempt to keep their playoff hopes alive and secure a postseason berth with a win over the Sidney Eagles Friday night, who would be eliminated from playoff contention with a loss.
A Blanket loss to Sidney would create a scenario next week in which the Tigers would have to knock off Zephyr to create a three-way tie for the district championship and a tiebreaker scenario that would determine which two teams advance to the playoffs.
Blanket is coming off a 71-18 victory at Mullin in which the Tigers churned out 314 total yards – 207 on the ground and 107 through the air.
Kannon Kensing rushed for 110 yards and three touchdowns on five carries, while Cameron Aultman chipped in 94 yards and three scores on six carries. Kensing also returned a kick 60 yards for a touchdown.
Gage Jones completed all three of his pass attempts for 87 yards with a touchdown and Aultman threw a 20-yard touchdown on his lone pass attempt. Mason Beck finished with two grabs for 35 yards and a pair of touchdowns, and Isaac Smith pulled down two receptions for 72 yards.
Defensively, Beck, Kensing and Smith recorded nine tackles apiece followed by AC French with seven and Aultman with four.
Sidney came up just short at Zephyr last week, falling by a 21-20 count.
The final stats were nearly as close as the margin as Sidney gave up 264 yards of total offense and finished with 261. The Eagles surrendered 154 yards on the ground and 110 through the air, while the offense generated 198 yards on the ground and 63 through the air.
The Eagles received 93 yards rushing and a touchdown from Lehman Lindeque, along with 75 yards on the ground and two scores from Cameron Grant. Sidney completed 5 of 11 passes for 63 yards with a pair of crucial interceptions.
According to sixmanfootball.com, Blanket is a 45-point underdog.
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Brookesmith (4-4, 1-1) at Cherokee (6-1, 1-1)
7:30 p.m. Friday
The Brookesmith Mustangs’ playoff hopes come down to the final two games of the season against Cherokee and Rochelle, with a road trip slated for this Friday.
Brookesmith is coming off a 68-0 loss at Richland Springs, while Cherokee slipped past Rochelle, 84-72, last week to keep its playoff hopes alive.
The Mustangs began their district slate with a 60-12 victory over Lohn. In that contest, Adyn Ribble rushed for 253 yards and seven touchdowns on just 15 carries. Issac Haby scored a pair of touchdowns as well – one rushing and one receiving.
Players to watch for Cherokee include Rode Ligon, Joey Bond, Joel Valdez, Gunner Baugh, Caden Houston, and Caleob Houston.
According to sixmanfootball.com, Brookesmith is a 45-point underdog.
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Merkel (5-3, 1-2) at Comanche (4-4, 1-2)
7 p.m. Thursday
Coming off their first District 5-3A Division II victory, the Comanche Indians will attempt to continue their climb in the league standings and improve their playoff positioning as they host the Merkel Badgers.
In last week’s 60-15 victory over Dublin, Comanche compiled 561 yards of total offense – 407 rushing and 154 passing.
Quarterback Layden Welch rushed for 98 yards and three touchdowns and completed 5 of 7 passes for 154 yards and two touchdowns. Sawyer Wilkerson also contributed 98 yards on the ground and scored once, Colt Schwertner rushed for 78 yards and a touchdown, Kazdon Thedford added 68 yards with a trip to the end zone, and Ezequiel Medrano scored on a 20-yard carry. Easton Gonzalez, with 23 yards, and Cayden Davis, with 21, also contributed to the ground game.
Cayden Davis and JJ Davis caught touchdown passes of 58 and 50 yards, respectively, while CT Buford (20 yards), Ayden Fishback (14 yards) and Marc Cuevas (12 yards) also hauled in receptions.
Merkel is coming off a 78-13 loss to Jacksboro last week as the Badgers allowed 782 yards of total offense – 463 rushing and 319 passing – and 11 touchdowns.
Players to watch for the Badgers include quarterback Maddox O’Malley (62 of 113 for 1,277 yards, 13 TDs, 3 INTs; 589 rushing yards, 13 TDs), running back Connor Willyerd (996 rushing yards, 8 TDs), receivers Kaden Blubaugh (25-506, 10 TDs) and CJ Walcott (11-270, 2 TDs).
According to Harris Ratings Weekly, Comanche is a 17-point favorite.
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Coleman (6-2, 3-1) at De Leon (6-3, 3-2)
7 p.m. Friday
Fresh off their bye week, the Coleman Bluecats look to solidify their hold on the No. 2 position in the District 5-2A Division I standings as they visit De Leon, coming off an upset loss at the hands of Hamilton last week.
Coleman’s last outing was a 29-22 home victory over Hamilton on Oct. 13. The Bluecats trailed Hamilton throughout the contest – 6-0 after one quarter, 14-8 at halftime and 22-16 through through periods – but owned a 13-0 scoring advantage in the final period to snatch the victory.
Brayden Torres scored on a 2-yard run with 5:07 left to push the Bluecats in front, 23-22, and Jadin Jackson added the final score on a 23-yard carry with 1:49 remaining.
The Bluecats finished with 327 yards of total offense – 229 rushing and 98 passing – and overcame a pair of turnovers. Hamilton tallied 335 yards – 190 through the air and 145 on the ground – and coughed up the ball just once.
Jackson finished with 100 rushing yards and two touchdowns for Coleman trailed by Torres with 63 yards and a pair of scores and Brent Bouldin with 61 rushing yards.
Torres completed 6 of 13 passes for 98 yards with two picks as Hunter Lackey grabbed two receptions for 66 yards, Blaze Hronek caught two passes for just 2 yards, and Anthony Espitia and Jackson added receptions of 19 and 11 yards, respectively.
In De Leon’s 27-20 loss to Hamilton last week, the Bearcats led most of the way, including 20-13 at halftime and 20-19 going into the fourth quarter.
Players to watch for De Leon include quarterback Heston Jobe (1,408 passing yards, 9 TDs, 7 INTs; 722 rushing yards, 6 TDs), running back Jake Cooper (886 rushing yards, 12 TDs) and receiver Max Jones (23-447, 3 TDs).
According to Harris Ratings Weekly, the game is a toss up.
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Tolar (7-1, 4-0) at Goldthwaite (3-5, 1-3)
7 p.m. Friday
The Goldthwaite Eagles will attempt to improve their chances of reaching the playoffs by pulling off one of the biggest upsets of the season as they host the No. 2 Tolar Rattlers, front-runners in District 5-2A Division I.
In last week’s 40-35 loss to San Saba, the Eagles finished with 345 yards of total offense and surrendered 329 yards, but six costly turnovers proved to be the difference.
For Goldthwaite, Luke Sanderson caught nine passes for 73 yards and a pair of touchdowns while rushing for 36 yards and three more scores. Max Storm led the way on the ground with 110 yards trailed by quarterback Ethan Deeds with 60 and Marcus Stevens with 55 yards. Deeds connected on 10 of 14 passes for 83 yards with two scoring strikes and a pair of interceptions.
Tolar is coming off a 61-6 victory over Bangs as the Rattlers allowed just 122 yards of total offense and forced four turnovers. Tolar led 27-0 after one quarter, 44-0 at halftime and 54-0 through three periods.
Isaac Blessing passed for 170 yards and three touchdowns – one each to Drake Owens, Clayton Stembridge and Matthew Behrens. Garrison Nation rushed for two touchdowns while Grant Sherley, Kelvin Murray and Blessing added one apiece. The Rattlers finished with 382 total yards – 210 rushing and 172 passing.
This is no line is this game according to Harris Ratings Weekly. Tolar is ranked 53 points higher than Goldthwaite this week.
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Cross Plains (3-5, 1-2) at Abilene TLCA (1-7, 0-3)
7 p.m. Thursday at McMurry’s Moore Stadium
With their first District 6-2A Division II victory under their belts, the Cross Plains Buffaloes will attempt to improve their league standing as they venture to Abilene TLCA Thursday night.
The Buffaloes knocked off Hamlin, 28-6, last week as Cross Plains recorded 431 yards of total offense – 301 rushing and 130 passing – with three turnovers, while giving up just 54 yards – 49 through the air and 5 on the ground – with three takeaways.
Dusty Wyatt rushed for 227 yards and three touchdowns for the Buffaloes, while Theron Albrecht chipped in 47 yards and Kade Purvis added 26 yards on the ground.
Purvis also completed 8 of 18 passes for 130 yards and a touchdown to Tyler Mackey, who finished with two grabs for 18 yards. Alex Parker notched three catches for 30 yards, Gray Albrecht added two receptions for 37 yards and Coltyn Barron caught a 37-yard pass.
Defensively, Theron Albrecht recorded eight tackles followed by Gray Albrecht with seven tackles and three sacks, and Bentley Hall with five tackles. Caleb Blue, Ryder Reed and Barron recovered fumbles, while Colt Sanderson, Michael Samora and Mackey also chipped in sacks.
Players to watch for Abilene TLCA – which has been outscored 148-13 in three district games – include quarterback Johnathon Rico (421 passing yards, 5 TDs, 10 INTs), receiver Ja’Markis Lowery (16-239,2 TDs receiving) and running back Joshua Soto (183 rushing yards, 1 TD).
According to Harris Ratings Weekly, Cross Plains is a 42-point favorite.
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Richland Springs (9-0, 3-0) at Lohn (0-8, 0-2)
7 p.m. Thursday
The Class A Division II No. 4 Richland Springs Coyotes have already claimed a share of the District 16-A Division II championship and have earned the No. 1 playoff seed, and can complete an undefeated regular season and capture the league title outright Thursday.
Richland Springs is coming off a 68-0 win over Brookesmith in which the Coyotes manufactured 260 yards of total offense –186 rushing and 74 passing.
Billy Perry finished with 85 yards and three touchdowns on the ground, Cohen Ethridge rushed for 57 yards and a score, Gage Behrens tacked on 23 yards, and Josh Meador rushed for an 8-yard touchdown.
Through the air, Perry threw for 34 yards and a touchdown, Ethridge passed for 30 yards with a scoring toss, and Kenny Triplett connected on a 10-yard scoring strike.
Jayden Sutherland caught three passes for 64 yards and scored twice and Hutton Rogers hauled down a 10-yard scoring toss.
Defensively for Richland Springs, Clayton Meador returned a fumble for a touchdown while Sutherland, Behrens and Troy Kubin also pounced on loose balls. Triplett and Rush Norris led the way with four tackles each and Behrens added two.
Players to watch for Lohn include Kavaan Flores, Zac Barrington, Fermin DeLaRosa. and Alex Pitcox.
According to sixmanfootball.com, Richland Springs is a 45-point favorite.