IT’S PLAYOFF TIME! IT’S DOG TIME! | Kilgore opens playoffs at home
Kilgore fans, get fired up: your Bulldogs start their playoff run TONIGHT.
And they’re at HOME.
Kilgore hosts Little Cypress-Mauriceville tonight at 7 p.m., a hot ticket for everybody in the area in the first round of the UIL Class 4A, Division I playoffs.
Hear it live on KDOK 105.3-FM, and hear it streamed live, both the same, by the phenomenal Ragin’ Red Broadcasting team — click on the Kilgore helmet on the ETBlitz.com home page.
10-4A Division I race for playoff seeding (1 through 4) went to the final week of the regular football season with four teams from the Golden Triangle knotted atop the district, vying for pecking order.
When the dust settled a week ago Friday, Little Cypress-Mauriceville found its Battlin’ Bears fourth and looking squarely at a bi-district bus ride to Kilgore for a game against the third-ranked Bulldogs tonight at R.E. St. John Memorial Stadium.
The Bears, last year’s district champs, who handed this year’s district winner, Bridge City, its only loss of the season, back in Week 9 (24-16), lost to runner-up Lumberton 49-30 to close the regular season, earning the short straw and the subsequent trip to Kilgore.
‘You’ve gotta start somewhere,’ and that’s as good a motto for coach Eric Peevey’s team as any to rally his kids in this win-or-go home six-week grind that will culminate with a couple of teams playing for the 4A Division I state title at JerryWorld in Arlington the week before Christmas.
Kilgore’s only loss of the season came here on opening night, back in August, and rest assured these seniors do NOT want to look back and remember their final game at R.E. St. John as a loss.
In other bi-district games involving the three other district members from these districts, Lindale (9-1), the runner-up to Kilgore, hosts third-place Huffman Hargrave (7-3) at Eagles Stadium on Friday at 7 p.m., while third-place Pine Tree (6-4) travels to Lumberton to meet the 10-4A runner-up Raiders (7-3) at Raider Stadium and Chapel Hill, also 6-4 like Pine Tree, plays at Bridge City’s Ward Stadium against the once-beaten Cardinals, in another 7:30 p.m. contest.
This is the third meeting between the schools and the Ragin’ Red have a 2-0 edge, winning both of their previous bi-district games at Abe Martin Stadium in Lufkin in 2017, 49-0, and then again in 2022, 28-6.
“Our team is certainly grateful for the opportunity to play a home playoff game. It’s special for our seniors to play at RE one more time,” said Kilgore coach Clint Fuller earlier this week.
Don’t think his ’Dogs will be taking LC-M lightly, or anyone in the coming five weeks, for that matter, as the schedule continues toward Arlington. That’s why you shrug your shoulders, scheduling four or five games against state-ranked opponents: to be ready for just such a gauntlet in the postseason.
“They’re a good football team and we know it,” Fuller continued. “They very easily could have been the district champs and did beat the eventual district champion.”
The Bulldogs are 13-4 in the playoffs since Fuller’s arrival as the head football coach prior to the 2021 season and yes that includes reaching last year’s finals against Celina and falling short.
The Bears didn’t open the season with a flourish, but they turned it around winning five district games in a row by outscoring Vidor, Hardin-Jefferson, Livingston, Liberty and Bridge City 201 to 102. Go figure that, before closing the regular season with consecutive losses to Huffman Hargrave 35-28 and Lumberton 49-30.
The Battlin’ Bears are led offensively by junior quarterback Jakson Struwe (5-8, 165) proving more than formidable mixing his scrambling ability for more than 300 yards rushing and his passing for nearly 1,300 yards with the capable running of 5-9, 185-pound senior RB J’Lynn Morris, who just missed rushing for 1,000 yards, while scoring a dozen touchdowns. Morris rushed for more than 100 yards on five different occasions.
Struwe’s top target receiving is Khayden Reed, who has 29 receptions for 564 yards and five scores.
“They have a very efficient and explosive rushing attack and they have multiple backs that are dangerous running the football,” Fuller said when asked about LC-M’s offense.
Kilgore’s defense continues to be highlighted by the play of linebackers Isaiah Watters and Lakeyleon Graves, along with another linebacker David “Bubba” McGowan, stepping up big as well as defensive down linemen Bi’Syn Williams and Cameron Christian. Ja’Kalen Sheffield and Dre’ Sanders have also turned in strong performances in the Bulldogs’ secondary.
Through 10 games, Watters leads the way with 103 tackles to go with nine tackles for loss for minus 37 yards, and four sacks as well as 10 quarterback hurries and a forced fumble.
Graves also has impressive numbers such as 95 tackles, a TFL and a sack to go with four interceptions in which he returned one 31 yards for a touchdown against Lindale, and a fumble recovery. McGowan, meanwhile, follows with 84 stops, two TFL and a sack, as well as a recovered fumble.
Williams’ big numbers include 72 tackles, four TFL, two sacks and 16 quarterback hurries, while Christian has 51 tackles, six TFL, 2.5 sacks, three interceptions and 12 hurries.
In the secondary, Sheffield, a safety, has 92 tackles, one tackle for loss to go with two interceptions and a forced fumble, while Sanders, a corner, has 37 tackles and three interceptions.
Opponents are averaging 254.5 yards per game against Kilgore and been outscored by 282 points (393 to 111) by the Ragin’ Red.
LC-M’s DE Marek Lloyd (6-5, 250) was voted as his district’s pre-season defensive MVP by Texas Football Magazine and for good reason. Thus far, he has 38 tackles, nine tackles for loss, seven quarterback pressures, 2.5 sacks and two forced fumbles, causing opposing quarterbacks and coaches plenty of headaches.
“They play team defense very well, executing their scheme at a high level to get to the football.” Fuller added, “and that’s another thing we’re going to have to deal with.”
Other mainstays on the Bears’ defensive unit have been OLB Dystan Payne, MLB Ethan Pope and strong safety Christian Carillo. Payne has 99 tackles, seven TFL, 4.5 sacks, five fumble recoveries and an interception. Pope has 91 stops, two tackles for loss and three fumble recoveries, and Carrillo follows with 84 tackles to go with five TFL and a fumble recovery.
Kilgore quarterback Kayson Brooks continues to follow an outstanding season a year ago with possibly even a better one this fall. Through this regular season, the senior has completed 136-of-202 passes for 2,054 yards and 22 touchdowns with only four interceptions.
His numbers shouldn’t surprise you since he was selected as Texas Football’s pre-season district Offensive MVP and the fact he can scramble as well when necessary, plus the fact he has a talented and deep receiving corps at his disposal.
It is led by Graves (34-481 yds, 7 TDs), Sanders (26-275, 2), Tyler Johnigan (20-352, 5) and T.K. White (18-270, 3). Ja’Kalyn Sheffield (15-315, 2), Rayshaun Williams (10-120) and lately Brayden Williams (5-59) have stepped up with timely contributions.
In just nine games, Rayshaun Williams, only a junior RB, is on the verge of eclipsing 1,300 yards with 1,299 and 11 touchdowns. He is being spelled at times by Watters (47-200, 4), sophomore Maddox Wright (12-187, 3) and McGowan (16-180, 1).
The winner advances to face the winner of tonight’s game between Stafford (5-5) and Houston Wheatley, being played at Houston’s Barnett Stadium.
A bit of trivia, interestingly enough is this marks the 29th time in the last 31 years for Kilgore to reach the football playoffs. That includes not only the tenure of current athletic director and former head coach Mike Wood as well as former Kilgore High head coach Mike Vallery.
