Bullard Brook Hill + Tyler Grace Fight for TAPPS Division II District 2 Playoff Positioning Friday Night

TAPPS Division II District 2

Bullard Brook Hill Guard (4-4, 3-2)

vs.

Tyler Grace Cougars (7-1, 4-1)

7:30 p.m. Friday

Clyde-Perkins Stadium, Tyler

Coaches

• Brook Hill: Bobby Brasher
• Tyler Grace: Mike Maddox

Last week

• Brook Hill: lost
• Tyler Grace: won via forfeit vs. Carrollton Prince of Peace

Next week

• Brook Hill: idle (forfeit win vs. Carrollton Prince of Peace)
• Tyler Grace: at Dallas Parish Episcopal

Playmakers

Brook Hill

• QB Grant Hanks, Jr. (108 of 180, 1,420 yards, 14 TDs, 11 INTs; 47 carries, 148 yards, 3 TDs)
• WR Seth Brasher, Soph., 6-2, 175 (41 catches, 615 yards, 5 TDs)
• RB Gabe Lucio, Jr. (113 carries, 721 yards, 5 TDs; 11 catches, 110 yards, 2 TDs)
• WR Jacob Dumesnil, Soph. (21 catches, 231 yards, 3 TDs)
• DL Edmund Briggs, Jr.
• WR/DB Alex Hale, Soph. (15 catches, 270 yards, 3 TDs; 5 INTs)
• LB Blake Maddox, Jr.

Tyler Grace

• QB Chandler Nutt, Jr., 6-1, 185 (43 of 85, 601 yards, 8 TDs, 4 INTs; 130 carries, 825 yards, 14 TDs)
• DL Andrew McCarty, Sr., 6-2, 185 (68 tackles, 12 sacks)
• RB Zach Tatman, Jr., 6-0, 195 (66 carries, 390 yards, 5 TDs)
• WR Johnny Spitzer, Jr., 5-11, 165 (26 catches, 319 yards, 6 TDs; 23 carries, 182 yards, 1 TD)
• LB Michael Fedell, Sr., 6-0, 200 (60 tackles)
• DL Levi Crozier, Sr. (40 tackles, 4 sacks)
• DL Landon Ashbreck, Sr., 5-10, 200 (49 tackles, 3 1/2 sacks, 2 forced fumbles)

Just the facts

• Both teams have already clinched playoff berths, but district seeding remains on the line during the final two weeks of the season.
• Tyler Grace won last year's meeting 48-14.
• Brook Hill averages 25.9 points per game and allows 26.5.
• Grace averages 33.3 points per game and yields 21.7 (neither figure includes 2-0 forfeit win vs. Carrollton Prince of Peace).
• Grace's lone loss is a 50-6 decision to Dallas Christian on Sept. 27.
• Outside of that one loss, Grace has outscored its other six opponents that it has played on the field 227-102 and gone 6-0 in those contests.
• Brook Hill lost its last two games after starting district play 3-0. The combined record of the two teams that beat Brook Hill -- Dallas Christian and Dallas Parish Episcopal -- is 13-3.
• Brook Hill and Grace have three common opponents: Dallas Shelton, Cedar Hill Trinity Christian, and Dallas Christian.
• Brook Hill is 2-1 against those teams (W 42-0 vs. Shelton, W 47-27 vs. Trinity Christian, L 34-12 vs. Dallas Christian).
• Grace is also 2-1 against those teams (W 48-0 vs. Shelton, W 49-25 vs. Trinity Christian, L 50-6 vs. Dallas Christian).
• Carrollton Prince of Peace canceled the remainder of its schedule, resulting in forfeit wins for Grace (Oct. 25) and Brook Hill (Nov. 8).

Key matchup: Brook Hill's defensive front vs. Grace's ground game. Tyler Grace has leaned on its rushing attack all season, and for good reason.

Grace averages 256.1 rushing yards per game to 90.7 passing. Almost half of Grace's rushing yardage comes from quarterback Chandler Nutt, who gives the Cougars 117.9 per game on the ground.

Nutt's big season has come in handy for the Cougars, who have been successful offensively despite a season-ending knee injury to versatile standout Kade Clayton in the second game of the season. Running back Zach Tatman has also picked up the slack, rushing for 263 yards in Grace's last three contests.

Brook Hill needs a strong performance from its players in the box to contain Grace's rushing attack. Edmund Briggs has more than a dozen tackles for loss, while linebacker Blake Maddox is enjoying a solid season.

Don't be surprised if: This year's contest is a lot closer than last season's. The results from the games involving Grace and Brook Hill's three common opponents show strikingly similar results. Both teams won by 40-plus points against Dallas Shelton in shutouts and beat Trinity Christian by at least 20 points. They also lost in lopsided contests to Dallas Christian.

While Grace's running game could be a huge factor, so could Brook Hill's. The Guard's offense may get more attention for its passing prowess thanks to Grant Hanks' 177.5 yards per game and sophomore standout Seth Brasher's 76.9 receiving yards per contest, but running back Gabe Lucio and the Brook Hill running game have improved lately. Lucio has 516 yards in Brook Hill's last four games to account for 71.5 percent of his season rushing total.

In other words, the team that runs the ball better Friday night should have the upper hand in the ETSN.fm/Dairy Queen Game of the Week.