In another great weekend of football for the 806, we had four teams advance and we had four teams that went home. Now we have Lubbock-Cooper, Post, Stratford and Canadian alive for a shot at making it to AT&T Stadium to play for a State Title. Let's take a look at the four games coming this weekend!
5A DII
LUBBOCK-COOPER VS ALEDO
SATURDAY 3:00PM WILDCAT STADIUM
(ABILENE CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY)
There wasn't going to be an earlier than expected loss for the Pirates this year as WF Rider did jump ahead, 17-7 early in the second quarter before the Pirates exploded for 31-straight points en route to a 38-17 win to set up the game we have all been waiting for the two years; LCP vs Aledo. The Bearcats have won a plethora of titles and come off an exciting State Quarterfinal game against Ennis that saw Aledo win 43-36 in overtime. The Pirates will have to establish the ground attack and pass with precision in this contest and make sure not to make mistakes, Defensively, the Pirates have a lot of primetime players including Garrison Smitherman, who had two sacks and a forced fumble against Rider in an epic performance, Lubbock-Cooper can win this game, they just have to believe and then go execute.
3A DII
CANADIAN VS GUNTER
FRIDAY 7:00PM LIONS STADIUM
VERNON, TX
Canadian is coming off one of the best playoff performances in a while with their 35-31 win over Abernathy on Friday. Grant McCook and Hufstedler were making big plays all night and had just enough to take down the Antelopes who fought valiantly in defeat. So, here comes Gunter for the fourth-consecutive time in the State Semifinals. Josh Culwell may be the starter for Canadian, if healthy, or McCook will giver it a go for the Wildcats. Their defense is so good they can afford to figure things out on offense as I see Canadian back to the title game again, and this time for another title.
2A DI
POST VS VALLEY VIEW
THURSDAY 7:00PM
BRONWOOD, TX
Post outlasted another great opponent in Hawley, 52-42 to advance to the State Semifinals where they will meet Valley View who defeated San Saba to be here, 14-12 in what most call one of the biggest upsets in recent memory. Post won't take the Eagles lightly and I fully expect a grind out game. With that being said, Post should win this game by a couple of scores as they are ready for their moment.
2A DII
STRATFORD VS HAMLIN
THURSDAY 6:00PM
GREG SHERWOOD MEMORIAL STADIUM
PLAINVIEW, TX
Stratford really put it to Hamlin the last time they played in week three, so what has changed since that game for both teams? Both teams have gotten better and both have really separated themselves from the pack as well. Can the Elks do it again and dominate the Pied-Pipers? Hamlin's win over Wellington, 43-22 really showed me that they can hang with any team they line up against, but Stratford is another animal.The Elks can do it all and really get stingy on defense in the red zone. I think the machine keeps rolling and wins by at least 17.