Lufkin Looks to Shake Off Tough Loss in 14-5A Opener Against Giant Slayer A&M Consolidated

LUFKIN PANTHERS (2-2)
AT
A&M CONSOLIDATED TIGERS (3-1)

7:30 p.m. Friday
Tiger Stadium, College Station. Radio: KYKS 105.1-FM, Lufkin

Coaches
Lufkin: Todd Quick
A&M Consolidated: David Raffield

Last week
Lufkin: lost to Longview, 45-14
A&M Consolidated: def. Lake Travis, 30-28

Next week
Lufkin: Idle
A&M Consolidated: at The Woodlands (Thursday, Oct. 4)

Playmakers
Lufkin

• RB Kendrick Mapp, Sr., 5-10, 175 (39 carries, 289 yards, 3 TDs)
• QB Tyler Stubblefield, Sr., 6-4, 205 (51 of 98, 616 yards, 5 TDs, 5 INTs; 42 carries, 135 yards, 5 TDs)
• WR Key'vantanie Coutee, Soph., 5-10, 170 (21 catches, 258 yards, 3 TDs)
• WR Jamal Jeffery, Jr., 5-10, 170 (3 carries, 92 yards, 1 TD)
• WR JaBryce Taylor, Sr., 6-2, 185 (21 catches, 275 yards, 2 TDs; committed to SMU)
• DE Demontrai Lewis, Sr, 6-2, 225
• DT D'Vante Botley, Sr., 6-4, 270

A&M Consoldiated

• QB Jaylan Cheshire, Sr., 6-1, 190 (61 of 113, 896 yards, 9 TDs, 5 INTs; 44 carries, 123 yards, 3 TDs)
• RB Xavier Jones, Sr., 5-8, 190 (66 carries, 468 yards, 3 TDs)
• WR Josh Stewart, Sr., 6-5, 180 (11 catches, 217 yards)
• RB/WR Derrick Dick, Soph., 5-8, 165 (15 carries, 59 yards, 1 TD; 9 catches, 153 yards, 1 TD)
• WR Daniel Hulse, Sr., 5-10, 165 (9 catches, 134 yards)
• DE Christian Lacouture, Sr., 6-5, 270 (committed to Nebraska)
• OLB Jimmie Gilbert, Sr., 6-4, 205

Just the facts

• Lufkin is coming off a 45-14 home loss to Longview, the Panthers' first loss to Longview at Abe Martin Stadium since 1997.
• The Panthers are 2-2 to begin a season for the first time since 2008. Lufkin went on to finish 7-5 that year, advancing to the second round of the playoffs.
• Lufkin got off to a 14-7 lead on the Lobos less than four minutes into last week's game, but allowed Longview to score the game's final 38 points.
• The Panthers were held to just 236 total yards, their lowest output of the season by far.
• A&M Consolidated took down a giant last Friday, snapping the five-time defending state champion Lake Travis Cavaliers' 25-game winning streak. The Tigers also have impressive wins over Copperas Cove and Austin Westlake, coupled with a seven-point loss to defending 4A Division I finalist Hewitt Midway.
• Lufkin and A&M Consolidated have not met since 1997, a 48-7 Panthers win.

Key matchup: A&M Consolidated passing game vs. Lufkin secondary. The Panthers' DBs really haven't been tested the way they will be Friday since their 35-21 season-opening loss to John Tyler. In that game, Lufkin was able to hold the normally accurate Greg Ward to just eight completions in 21 attempts. However, those eight completions went for 298 yards and four touchdowns -- an average of more than 37 yards per completion. A&M Consolidated presents a similar challenge with its passing game. More than 58 percent of the Tigers' offense comes from their passing attack. The pass-rushing combo of Demontrai Lewis and D'Vante Botley could use some help from the Lufkin secondary to get to the Tigers quarterback Jaylan Cheshire, who is averaging 224 yards per game.