The final week of the regular season has arrived, as several local teams continue to jockey for position ahead of the postseason, which kicks off next weekend. Among the most intriguing contests in Week 11 is the Zephyr Bulldogs’ visit to the Blanket Tigers. Zephyr needs a win to clinch a second straight outright district title, while a Blanket victory would create a three-way for the district crown with Sidney, assuming it defeats Gustine, and a tiebreaker for the two playoff spots.

Zephyr (7-2, 3-0) at Blanket (5-4, 2-1)

7:30 p.m. Friday

The Zephyr Bulldogs simply need a win to earn their second straight District 15-A Division II championship, while a Blanket Tigers victory by at least 13 points would secure a postseason berth and three-way share of the league title.

Zephyr is coming off its bye week as in its last outing it edged Sidney, 21-20. Blanket, meanwhile, dropped a 55-8 decision to Sidney last week.

In the Bulldogs’ one-point win over Sidney, the final stats were nearly as close as the margin as Zephyr finished with 264 yards of total offense and allowed 261. The Bulldogs rushed for 154 yards and passed for 110, while giving up 198 yards on the ground and 63 through the air.

Karsen Floyd rushed for 70 yards, Tripp Ballard added 52 and a touchdown and Chayden Woodcock chipped in 32 yards. Through the air, Wyatt Stevens connected on 5 of 8 passes for 89 yards with a touchdown and an interception, and also caught a touchdown pass from Floyd. Ballard led the way with two grabs for 38 yards, Woodcock caught a 15-yard scoring toss, Floyd hauled in a 35-yard reception and Trapper Schoenhals and Rhett Williams added receptions for 8 yards apiece.

In Blanket’s setback against Sidney last week, the Tigers were limited to 107 total yards – 87 rushing and 20 passing.

Kannon Kensing rushed for 53 yards and the lone Tiger touchdown, while Cameron Aultman chipped in 37 yards on the ground. Gage Smith completed his only pass attempt to Isaac Smith for 20 yards.

Isaac Smith led Blanket’s defense with 11 tackles and AC French recorded nine.

According to sixmanfootball.com, Zephyr is a 45-point favorite.

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Rochelle (7-2, 1-2) at Brookesmith (4-5, 1-2)

7:30 p.m. Friday

The Brookesmith Mustangs will wrap up the 2023 regular season at home against the Rochelle Hornets Friday night, who will also miss out on the postseason.

Brookesmith this season has tallied victories over Lohn (60-12), Gustine (38-18), the Veribest JV (54-12) and Mullin by forfeit.

In Brookesmith’s 60-12 district win over Lohn, 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.

On the defensive end, Jace Moreno and Vegas Gilliam each intercepted a pass for the Mustangs.

Players to watch for Rochelle are Sean Estes, Dylan Rimer, Kelton Williams, Merek Howell, Justin Lopez, Tamos Palacio, Bobby Williams, and Bobby Cole Estes.

According to sixmanfootball.com, Brookesmith is a 45-point underdog.

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Comanche (5-4, 2-2) at Eastland (3-6, 2-2)

7 p.m. Friday

The third and fourth playoff seeds from District 5-3A Division II will be determined when the Comanche Indians visit the Eastland Mavericks Friday night.

Comanche is coming off its second win in a row, a 48-0 shutout over Merkel.

The Indians finished with 436 yards of total offense – 330 rushing and 106 passing.

Sawyer Wilkerson led the way with 139 yards and two touchdowns on the ground while Colt Schwertner chipped in 102 yards and a score. Quarterback Layden Welch tacked on 46 yards and Kazdon Thedford rushed for 34 yards and scored twice.

Through the air, Welch connected on 4 of 11 passes for 106 yards with a touchdown to CT Buford, who finished with two grabs for 66 yards. JJ Davis and Caden Davis added receptions of 30 and 10 yards, respectively.

Defensively for Comanche, Diego Gutierrez led the charge with 16 tackles while Welch contributed 11 tackles, a sack and an interception. Chance Boswell added eight tackles and Kyler Beaty finished with seven. Schwertner also intercepted a pass and Cayden Davis recovered a fumble.

Eastland chalked up a 62-7 win over Dublin last week as Isaiah Hays completed 19 of 22 passes for 272 yards with four touchdowns and one interception. Laike Kennedy caught six passes for 100 yards and two touchdowns and Preston Rose added five receptions for 107 yards and scored twice. Griffin Beard led the ground game with 125 yards and two touchdowns while Kye Herrington and Isaac Castro also chipped in rushing touchdowns.

Eddie Medina led the defense with 14 tackles followed by Cayden Alford with 12. Herrington, Alford, Beard and Jiovani each intercepted a pass.

According to Harris Ratings Weekly, Comanche is a 20-point favorite.

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Goldthwaite (3-6, 1-4) at Hamilton (5-4, 2-3)

7 p.m. Friday

The Goldthwaite Eagles’ playoff hopes rest on defeating Hamilton, which can lock up the No. 3 playoff seed in District 5-2A Division I with a victory Friday night.

Goldthwaite is coming off a 61-6 loss to No. 2 Tolar in which the Eagles mustered just 197 yards of total offense – 148 rushing and 49 passing – with four turnovers. Meanwhile, the Goldthwaite defense yielded 377 yards – 218 through the air and 159 on the ground – and forced one turnover.

Luke Sanderson rushed for 60 yards and a touchdown to pace Goldthwaite, and also caught two passes for 14 yards. Marcus Stevens chipped in 23 yards on the ground and caught two passes for a team-high 23 yards. Colin Gardner added a 12-yard reception as Ethan Deeds connected on 5 of 13 passes with two interceptions.

Since dropping its first three league games, Hamilton is coming off back-to-back district wins over De Leon (27-20) and Bangs (38-0). In last week’s victory over the Dragons, the Bulldogs allowed just 86 yards of total offense.

Earlier this year in a 40-0 win over Early, Hamilton allowed just 170 yards of total offense – 92 rushing and 78 passing – and forced four turnovers. Meanwhile, the Bulldog offense amassed 333 yards, with 264 coming on the ground, and only one turnover.

Izaac Wood led Hamilton with 133 yards on the ground, while quarterback Jaxon Edwards chipped in 38 yards rushing and a score, and Erich Eilers finished with 34 yards and reached the end zone once.

Through the air, Edwards connected on 4 of 7 passes with a pair of scoring strikes to Eilers and Cooper LeGrande.

According to Harris Ratings Weekly, Goldthwaite is a 20-point underdog.

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San Saba (3-6, 2-3) at Tolar (8-1, 5-0)

7 p.m. Friday

The San Saba Armadillos are the latest District 5-2A Division I foe to attempt to derail the league champion and second-ranked Tolar Rattlers, and their postseason life could depend on the outcome.

The Armadillos would likely be assured of a playoff berth in any tiebreaker situation with a win Friday night, however, the Rattlers are allowing just 11 points per game while scoring 43.

San Saba, which had its bye last week, is coming off a 40-35 victory over rival Goldthwaite as the Armadillos took the lead in the final minute on a 52-yard touchdown pass from Lane Miller to Skylar Romero.

Ethan Gonzales rushed for 139 yards and two touchdowns and also returned a kickoff 87 yards for a touchdown midway through the fourth quarter that brought San Saba within a point, 35-34. Miller added 85 yards and two touchdowns on the ground and completed 5 of 13 passes for 92 yards with the go-ahead score. Levi Glover led the Armadillos with three catches for 35 yards.

In Tolar’s 61-6 victory over Goldthwaite last week, quarterback Isaac Blessing completed 8 of 9 passes for 194 yards and two touchdowns and added 43 rushing yards and three more scores.

According to Harris Ratings Weekly, there is no line for this game. Tolar is ranked 53 points higher than San Saba this week.

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Cross Plains (4-5, 2-2) at Miles (6-3, 2-2)

7 p.m. Friday

A battle to determine the third and fourth playoff seeds from District 6-2A Division II goes down Friday night as the Cross Plains Buffaloes visit the Miles Bulldogs.

Cross Plains picked up a 49-13 victory over Abilene TLCA last week, while Miles dropped a 34-33 heart breaker to Roscoe.

In last week’s 36-point victory, Cross Plains finished with 504 yards of total offense, including 450 rushing, while yielding just 98 yards – with 84 coming on the ground – with a pair of turnovers.

Theron Albrecht rushed for 173 yards and three touchdowns for the Buffaloes, Dusty Wyatt added 133 yards and two scores and Alex Parker tacked on a touchdown and 60 yards on the ground. Coltyn Barron rushed for 64 yards with Ian Norris and Caleb Blue notching 23 yards apiece.

Wyatt also completed 5 of 8 passes for 54 yards with a touchdown as Blue caught an 18-yard scoring toss. Gray Albrecht finished with two grabs for 21 yards and Barron added two catches for 15 yards.

Miles quarterback Hayven Book has completed 112 of 190 passes for 1,743 yards with 24 touchdowns and nine interceptions, while rushing for 637 yards and eight scores. Tevin Meade leads the Bulldogs with 715 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns while Dillon Medina has chipped in 578 yards on the ground and three scores. Cooper Ellison leads all receivers with 50 grabs for 785 yards and 12 touchdowns trailed by Medina with 22 for 353 and four scores, Jaylen Torres with 18 for 250 and three touchdowns and Manuel Torres with 13 for 198 and six trips to the end zone.

According to Harris Ratings Weekly, Cross Plains is a 17-point underdog.