Week 6 Preview

On The Road Again

By Chris Boothe
Messenger Sports

We have passed the midway point of the regular season and to quote former Arizona Cardinals Head Coach Dennis Green, “They are who we thought they were.”

Area teams have rounded into form, and just in time with district play under way. All of the area teams kicked off district play in the win column, giving themselves a leg up in the playoff race. Now it is up to those teams to keep pace with another district game looming this week. Palestine and Westwood have the week off, b

ut everyone else is in play, and here is a look at those games.

#9 Grapeland Sandies (4-1, 1-0) vs. Burkeville Mustangs (1-4, 0-1)
Friday, October 5, 7:00 pm
Mustang Stadium, Burkeville, TX

The Grapeland Sandies started district play on the right foot, throttling an Evadale team that reached the Area Championship a year ago. Now the Sandies will look to improve to 2-0 in district play with they travel to face the Burkeville Mustangs.

Burkeville is coming off a 67-0 loss to Lovelady, and more impressively found themselves trailing 32-0 just 58 seconds into play. Things don’t look to be any easier this week for the Mustangs, as the Sandies have been red-hot since their lone loss this season.

Crockett Bulldogs (4-1, 1-0) vs. Diboll Lumberjacks (4-0, 0-0)
Friday, October 5, 7:30 pm
Lumberjack Stadium, Diboll, TX

Crockett looked solid in their 57-21 win over Trinity on Friday night. Now they will up the ante when they hit the road to face the Diboll Lumberjacks. The longtime rivals make the drop down to class 3A, and have been reunited with the Bulldogs.

This will mark the fifth consecutive meeting between the two teams, with Crockett and Diboll splitting the previous four meetings. The teams have actually alternated wins the last four years with Diboll winning last year’s meeting 54-16. None of the previous four meetings have been decided by less than 10 points.
So far this year the Lumberjacks have been on a roll, outscoring opponents 148-13 through four games played, averaging a score of 37-3. Diboll opened the season with a 42-7 win over Bridge City before back-to-back shutouts over Huntington (55-0) and Cleveland (42-0) respectively. Most recently the Lumberjacks picked up a thrilling 9-6 win over Liberty in overtime.

 

#7 Lovelady Lions (4-1, 1-0) vs. Colmesneil Bulldogs (1-3, 0-0)

Friday, October 5, 7:00 pm
Taylor Stadium, Colmesneil, TX

Lovelady wasted no time putting away the Burkeville Mustangs last week. The Lions scored 32 points in the first minute of the game, on their way to a 67-0 thrashing of the Mustangs. Next up is a Colmesneil team that has seen their share of struggles this year, and will look to right the ship against a scorching hot Lion squad.

The Bulldogs have seen a variety of situations this year from blowout wins to blowout losses. In their most recent contest, the Bulldogs dropped a brutal 42-0 decision to Rosehill Christian out of Tomball. Just a week before that the Bulldogs took down KIPP Houston 55-0, so Colmesneil has the ability to shock a few teams along the way. Key players for the Bulldogs will be Ethan Eveland, Skyler Tompkins, and Logan Nelson.

Elkhart Elks (2-3, 1-0) vs. #7 Franklin Lions (3-1, 1-0)
Friday, October 5, 7:30 pm
Hedrick Field, Franklin, TX

The Elkhart Elks opened a few eyes on Friday night with their convincing win over the Westwood Panthers. That makes Elkhart a perfect 2-0 in Anderson County, but more importantly 1-0 in district play. The level of difficulty increases dramatically this week as the Elks will hit the road to face the state-ranked Franklin Lions on Friday night.

Franklin has been dominant all season long. In their three wins, the Lions have allowed a total of six points, defeating Hearne (50-6), Mart (21-0), and Coldspring (61-0) along the way. The Lions lone loss came at the hands of undefeated and fifth ranked Lorena (4A-DII) by a score of 30-20. Franklin, long known for their ground attack, will bring a physical running game to the table on Friday night. A rough line and speedy backs highlight an offense that hasn’t struggled to score this year. The Elks defense will be tested, while the offense will have their work cut out for them.