Weatherford vs. Abilene

Time: 7:30 p.m., Friday

Site: Roos Stadium

Type: District 3-5A game

Last year's result: Abilene 63, Weatherford 12

Abilene Eagles (5-0, 2-0)

Last season: 10-1 overall, 6-0 in District 3-5A, DII bi-district finalist

Last week: Beat Paschal. 66-0.

Players to watch: OL Drew Carroll (6-5, 282), OL Brad Evans (6-0, 224), OL Chris Seballos (6-0, 259), TE Brent Schroeder (6-1, 184), S Karsten Goodman (6-2, 195), LB Parker McCay (6-4, 238)

Weatherford Kangaroos (3-2, 1-0)

Last season: 1-9 overall, 1-5 in District 3-5A

Last week: idle.

Players to watch: QB/FB Mitchael Rucker (5-10, 180, 4.6), S/WR Dakota Abernathy (6-3, 215, 4.5), DL Cory Matlock (6-1, 240, 5.0), MLB Derek Ogg (6-1, 200, 4.6), RB Colton Kamper (5-10, 195, 4.6).

Game notes: After a week off to get over the bumps and bruises, and soaring emotions, from the Paschal comeback allowed the Roos to get back to basics for a while, only to be hit with the flu bug this week. At least the fever and chills hit early in the week, hopeful that the boys will have sufficient time to regain some strength.

Weatherford enters the task of taking on the Abilene juggernaut with a winning record and a positive start to district play. The Kangaroos will need to draw heavily upon their mental faculties to play mistake-free and consistent, while keeping a tough nose to the grindstone to make Abilene earn every point.

A low-scoring game, perhaps spurred on by some expected inclimate weather may work in Weatherford's favor to offset some of the speed it will encounter. The Roos' defense and offense can help, by respectively preventing a rash of big plays and holding on to the pigskin to produce some clock-eating, and fruitful, scoring drives.

Abilene destroyed Paschal in a "bunch-to-nothing" result last week, and has made a habit of doing just that, with a 103-3 scoring edge in its first two district games. Behind an experienced offensive line, the brother-to-brother combination of quarterback Ronnel Sims and running back Herschel Sims, both juniors, are making a name for themselves in a hurry.

Big plays have been a constant for the Eagles' offense, with scoring plays against Paschal of 56, 68, 51, and 34 yards, through the air, on the ground and one on a punt return. With only eight completed passes, Ronnel Sims' tosses covered 220 yards, producing an average of 27.5 yards per catch.

Aledo at Azle

Time: 7:30 p.m., Friday

Site: Azle High School

1200 Boyd Road

Aze, TX.

Type: District 6-4A game

Last year's result: Aledo 42, Azle 0

Azle Hornets (1-4, 0-2)

Last season: 2-8 overall, 1-6 in District 6-4A

Last week: Lost to Brewer, 51-17.

Players to watch: RB Jordan Beall (6-0, 180, 4.5), DL Jon McGehee (6-3, 255, 5.0), DB Hayden Cole (6-2, 180, 4.6), OL Skylar Broom (6-2, 270), LB Bo Wyble (6-0, 170, 4.6), WR Anthony Roquemore (5-10, 170, 4.5), K/P Curtis Hamilton

Aledo Bearcats (4-1, 2-0)

Last season: 11-1 overall, 7-0 in District 8-4A (DII area finalists)

Last week: Beat Boswell, 38-12.

Players to watch: MLB Danny Heiss (6-1, 190, 4.5), DE Cy Wilson (6-1, 205, 4.4), CB Rylan Reiney (5-11, 165, 4.7), SS Rob Blowers (5-10, 165, 4.6).

Game notes: Coaches and players endeavor to always take contests one game at a time, and rightfully so. But the Aledo's district-race radar mandates it stay alert and vigilant to avoid a "trap" game while on its way to a crucial and inevitable matchup against Birdville at the end of the regular-season schedule.

Of course, a great deal also depends on the Bearcats' good fortune to get, and stay, healthy. Thus far, for the offensive line anyway, fortunes have been illusive.

Dispatching Boswell in an efficient manner, while not adding significantly to the injury list, helps a great deal as Aledo travels to take on an Azle team looking for its first district win.

Sophomores Johnathan Gray at running back, and Matthew Bishop at quarterback, have provided the necessary spark for the Bearcats' offense, which is averaging just under 40 points per game. Gray increases his lead on the area's runners every time he puts on the pads. The Aledo defense seems to improve with each passing week, no pun intended, holding toss-happy district opponents Brewer and Boswell to 13 and 12 points, respectively, over the past two games.

Azle will likely not test Aledo's pass defense, but counters Aledo's Gray with a pretty fair runner of its own, in Jordan Beall, who has rushed for more than 600 yards in five games. Second in yardage of area runners, Beall leads in rushing attempts, averaging 21 carries per game.

Azle's defense, giving up a modest 100 yards per game on the ground, will still have to find a way to slow Gray, but has been most vulnerable in the secondary, yielding almost 250 yards per contest.





Springtown vs. Birdville

Time: 7:30 p.m., Friday

Site: Porcupine Stadium

Type: District 6-4 game, Homecoming

Last year's result: Birdville 38, Springtown 21

Birdville Hawks (5-0, 2-0)

Last season: 7-4 overall, 6-1 in District 6-4A, bi-district finalist

Last week: Beat Saginaw, 62-35

Players to watch: QB Josh Dorman (6-1, 170, 4.9), OL Gary Aguilar (6-3, 305, 5.4), WR Cory Hines (5-11, 180, 4.5), WR Clarke Renfro (5-10, 185, 4.6), WR Jonathan Dents (6-1, 195, 4.6)

Springtown Porcupines (3-2, 0-2)

Last season: 6-5 overall, 3-4 in District 6-4A (DII bi-district finalists)

Last week: Lost to Mineral Wells, 37-33

Players to watch: WR Clayton Cooper (6-2, 190, 4.6), DB Roger Kubrak (6-0, 170, 4.4), K/CB Montana Marsh (5-8, 160, 4.5), RB Xavier Sanchez (5-8, 185, 4.5), WR Dalton Gentry (5-7, 165, 4.6), OL Cody Horton (6-1, 240, 4.9).

Game notes: The Porcupines' 2009 won-lost sequence, and resulting record through five games, is a carbon copy of a 2008 season that saw another loss in their sixth game. But Springtown looks to depart from the trend this week, as the high-flying, undefeated Hawks come to town.

Springtown held Mineral Wells' passing attack to 62 yards last week. Double, or perhaps triple, that yardage will be a big success for Pojo's defense, who face the top passer and receiving corps in the area.

Offensively, Springtown rushed for more than 100 yards in team stats and threw for more than 300, mostly out of necessity, after falling far behind the Rams in the third quarter. The Porcupines will look for the right mix against Birdville.

Birdville's stats make them look like the Texas Tech of District 6-4A, producing 400 yards of passing yardage per game while giving up more than 350 yards of total defense. The Hawks simply try to put up bigger numbers than they allow, evidenced by an average score per game of 52-27.

Birdville senior quarterback Josh Dorman, actively recruited by a handful of universities, has already thrown for nearly 2,000 yards and 28 touchdowns (more than the next two area leaders combined). And all this, while just throwing two interceptions on the year.

Understandably, three Hawks' receivers are in the top half-dozen leading the area. The trio averages more than 17 yards per catch and has a combined 23 touchdowns.

Birdville is vulnerable to a ground game, but putting up the numbers they have thus far, even a fast-paced rushing game will be hard-pressed to keep up.



Millsap at Alvord

Time: 7:30 p.m., Friday

Site: Bulldogs Stadium

U.S. 287 at W. State Street

Alvord, TX.

Type: District 9-2A opener

Last year's result: Alvord 27, Millsap 14

Alvord Bulldogs (3-2, 0-0)

Last Season: 6-4 overall, 2-3 in District 9-2A

Last week: Beat Sacred Heart, 26-14

Players to watch: QB Trevor Hartfield (6-0, 185, 4.7), LB T.J. Houston - junior.

Millsap Bulldogs (5-0, 0-0)

Last season: 5-5 overall, 1-4 in District 9-2A

Last week: Beat Era, 26-20

Players to watch: RB/WR Chris Hicks (5-11, 170, 4.6), DE Robert Martinez (5-11, 225, 4.9), RB Mat Callan (5-10, 170, 4.6), OT/DE Kyle Gooch (6-2, 225, 4.9).

Game notes: Despite the pre-season predictions from Texas Football magazine, Millsap heads into District 9-2A play looking like it may be the team to beat.

The difference thus far has been dominating line play, nicely complimenting the running-back tandem of senior Chris Hicks and junior Mat Callan.

The defensive squad has the Bulldogs ahead in the takeaway game, while producing points on its own.

A pre-season schedule including a mix of Class 3A, 2A and 1A schools may be a fitting prequel to Millsap's district season, as they begin with a challenging Alvord team on the road. If Millsap maintains the level of execution it has shown thus far, and the defense just continues to do what they do, it should make for an interesting, and hopefully prosperous season.

It's the battle of the Bulldogs, as Alvord looks to be one of the top three teams in the district, led by returning quarterback Trevor Hartfield.

The senior signal caller is a dual threat, running for nearly 850 yards last season while passing for more than 900 more. Not particularly speedy, but plenty big, as Hartfield goes, so usually goes the Alvord offense.

Returning five starters on defense, Alvord boasts a savvy linebacking corps, with backers T.J. Houston, Tanner Bowen and Luke Haak all receiving kudos in last year's all-district selections.