EARLY – The Early Longhorns have scored 48 points through three games this season, but 41 of those points came in their lone win. In losses to Bangs and Comanche, the Longhorns have mustered a combined 7 points.

A more consistent offensive performance is among the keys to the game for the Longhorns, according to first-year head coach Daniel Price, as Early (1-2) visits the Merkel Badgers (2-1) at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

“Offensively we’ve got to find the end zone, that’s the name of the game,” Price said.

“We were inconsistent on offense at a few points and times last week. We had a couple of good drives and had a chance to cut the lead in half before halftime, but we threw an interception, the quarterback got hit while throwing the ball, so it was not our greatest half.”

In last week’s 35-7 loss to Comanche, Price said, “The scoreboard wasn’t good to us but the game was a lot closer than what the scoreboard showed. I felt like we played pretty well in the second half. We struggled in the first half and had a couple of miscues that cost us some touchdowns.”

Merkel enters the game allowing 24 points per contest with seven takeaways, but gave up a season-high 35 points in last week’s loss to Hawley – the Badgers’ first defeat after a 2-0 start.

Defensive leaders for the Badgers include Joey Zink (26 tackles), Elijah Flores (21 tackles), Elijah Salas (20 tackles), Shawn McFadden (20 tackles), Braelin Cowling (19 tackles), and Jarrett Fulfer (19 tackles).

“Defensively, Merkel runs a four-man front, sometimes a five-man front, and they’re pretty physical,” Price said. “The back half is pretty athletic as well, they’re a good football team.”

Early is averaging 16 points and 262 yards – 162 rushing and 100 passing – per outing.

Quarterback Jaxyn Price has completed 27 of 65 passes for 259 yards with two touchdowns and four interceptions, while rushing for 101 yards and one score. Leading rushers include Alex Jacobs (216 yards, 1 TD) and Tre Beam (170 yards, 2 TDs) while primary receiving threats are Caleb McCullough (8-43, TD), Jacobs (5-13), Tyson Tyler
(4-34), Beam (3-70), Hayden Schroeder (3-61, TD), John-Stewart Gordon (2-66, TD), Rylie Hill (2-14) and Jeremy Brown (1-5).

On the flip side of the ball, Merkel averages 30 points and 354 yards – 184 rushing and 170 passing – per outing.

“Offensively, Merkel is very multiple in their formations,” Price said. “They have a good sized offensive line, their skill sets are pretty impressive, and they’ve got some guys that can break long runs and make spectacular catches.”

Zink has passed for 326 yards and two touchdowns while Preston Jackson has thrown for 156 yards and two scores. Leading rushers are Isaac Sebastian with 371 yards and four touchdowns while Zink has chipped in 101 yards with a trip to the end zone. J.J. Myers (8-187, 3 TDs) and Jace Thompson (8-141, TD) are the primary receiving threats.

“I want to see our guys compete like they did in the second half against Comanche last week,” Price said. “We were a lot more physical and we flew around more in the second half and ran and tackled as a group.”

The Longhorns yield 29 points and 329 yards – 190 rushing and 139 passing – per game. Standouts include Beam (31 tackles, 4 for loss, 3 sacks), Marcus Morelan (18 tackles, 1 sack), Korbin Hall (18 tackles, 1 for loss), McCullough (15 tackles), Franky Villarreal (12 tackles), Tucker Hale (11 tackles), Gordon (10 tackles) and Bradon Schwartz (9 tackles).

Other keys Friday night, according to Price, include special teams and red zone production.

“We have to do better in the special teams areas,” Price said. “Special teams hurt us quite a bit last week, so we have to clean that up and get better. We also have to be better in the red zone. We got inside the red zone three or four times and got no points from it. Those have been points of emphasis as we go through the week.”

According to Harris Ratings Weekly, Early is a 3-point underdog.

Early Longhorns 2020 Football Stats

Through 3 Games (1-2)

TEAM OFFENSE
16.0 points per game (48)

262.0 yards per game (786)
162.3 rushing yards per game (487)
99.7 passing yards per game (299)

PASSING
‒ Jaxyn Price
27 of 65 for 259 yards, 2 TDs, 4 INTs

‒ John-Stewart Gordon
1 of 1 for 40 yards

RUSHING
‒ Alex Jacobs
216 yards on 41 carries, 1 TD

‒ Tre Beam
170 yards on 30 carries, 2 TDs

‒ Jaxyn Price
101 yards on 43 carries, 1 TD

‒ Caleb McCullough
0 yards on 1 carry

RECEIVING
‒ Caleb McCullough
8 catches for 43 yards, 1 TD

‒ Alex Jacobs
5 catches for 13 yards

‒ Tyson Tyler
4 catches for 34 yards

‒ Tre Beam
3 catch for 70 yards

‒ Hayden Schroeder
3 catches for 61 yards, 1 TD

‒ John-Stewart Gordon
2 catches for 66 yards, 1 TD

‒ Rylie Hill
2 catches for 14 yards

‒ Jeremy Brown
1 catch for 5 yards

TEAM DEFENSE
29.3 points per game (88)
329.0 yards per game (987)

189.7 rushing yards per game (569)
139.3 passing yards per game (418)

TACKLES

‒ Tre Beam
31 tackles, 4 for loss, 3 sacks

‒ Marcus Morelan
18 tackles, 1 sack

‒ Korbin Hall
18 tackles, 1 for loss

‒ Caleb McCullough
15 tackles

‒ Franky Villarreal
12 tackles

‒ Tucker Hale
11 tackles

‒ John-Stewart Gordon
10 tackles

‒ Bradon Schwartz
9 tackles

‒ Rylie Hill
7 tackles

‒ Tyson Tyler
6 tackles, 1 INT

‒ Casey Moseley
6 tackles

‒ Jeremy Brown

4 tackles, 1 INT

‒ Wade Kennedy
4 tackles, 1 sack, 1 FR

‒ Chris Fernandez
1 tackle

‒ Adan Aleman
1 tackle

‒ Bradly Roman
.5 tackle

‒ Ryan Parisi
.5 tackle

‒ Alex Jacobs
.5 tackle