No. 2 Gilmer Looking Unstoppable Heading Into Friday’s Meeting With Daingerfield

Daingerfield Tigers (1-2)

vs.

No. 2 Gilmer Buckeyes (3-0)

7:30 p.m. Friday

Buckeye Stadium, Gilmer

Coaches

• Daingerfield: Aric Sardinea
• Gilmer: Jeff Traylor

Last week

• Daingerfield: won 61-0 vs. Clarksville
• Gilmer: won 60-20 at Jacksonville

Next week

• Daingerfield: at Redwater
• Gilmer: vs. Gladewater

Playmakers

Daingerfield

• QB Keris Alexander, Sr., 6-0, 166 (33-of-53, 378 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT)
• ATH Kenyon Whetstone, Sr., 6-0, 170 (8 carries, 203 yards, 4 TD)
• RB Cordarius Anderson, Sr., 5-6, 160 (36 carries, 173 yards, 3 TD)
• LB Calvin Bryant, Sr., 5-10, 175
• OL Willie Evans, Sr., 6-4, 335
• WR Denzel Mims, Soph., 6-1, 160 (12 catches, 132 yards, 1 TD)
• WR Keaton Key, Sr., 5-10, 155 (17 catches, 244 yards, 4 TD)
• DB Cory Smith, Sr., 5-9, 155

Gilmer

• RB/LB Josh Walker, Sr., 6-1, 220 (committed to Texas A&M; 3 carries, 42 yards; 16 tackles, 2 sacks, 7 QB pressures)
• RB/DB Kris Boyd, Jr., 6-0, 175 (18 carries, 216 yards, 3 TD; 3 catches, 43 yards; 8 tackles)
• QB Tanner Barr, Sr., 6-1, 180 (59-of-76, 1,027 yards, 15 TD, 2 INT; 25 carries, 103 yards, 1 TD)
• LB Demarco Boyd, Soph., 6-0, 205 (19 tackles, 11 for loss, 4 sacks, 1 forced fumble, 1 recovery)
• ATH Devondrick Dixon, Sr., 5-9, 180 (committed to Texas State; 5 carries, 43 yards, 1 TD; 3 catches, 51 yards, 1 TD; 7 tackles, 1 pass break-up)
• RB Jamel Jackson, Jr., 5-8, 170 (27 carries, 246 yards, 4 TD)
• WR Desmond Pollard, Jr., 6-1, 180 (15 catches, 337 yards, 6 TD
• HB Jaidon Parrish, Sr., 6-0, 185 (16 catches, 233 yards, 1 TD)

Just the facts

• Gilmer and Daingerfield have met every year since 2000 with the Buckeyes sporting a 10-3 record. Daingerfield leads the all-time series, 29-26.
• Daingerfield is in danger of beginning the season 1-3. The last time the Tigers had one win or fewer in their first four games was in 2006 when Daingerfield began 0-4.
• Daingerfield leads all of East Texas with six state championships and nine title-game appearances.
• From 2008-12, Daingerfield went 66-11, which was its best five-year stretch since 1982-86 when the Tigers were 69-3-2.
• Gilmer has scored 183 points through its first three games of the season, which is the most to begin a season in the Jeff Traylor era.
• The Buckeyes have run 178 plays for 1,893 yards on the year, which equals an average of 10.63 yards per snap.
• Daingerfield is one of only six teams to defeat Gilmer in the regular season since 2003.
• If Gilmer plays 16 games this season, quarterback Tanner Barr is on pace for 5,477 passing yards and 80 touchdowns and the Buckeyes are on pace to score 976 points.

Key matchup: Gilmer receivers vs. Daingerfield secondary. Barr's 15 touchdown passes have gone to eight different Buckeyes, meaning it's a tough task for any defense to keep Gilmer's receiving corps in check. Six of those scoring receptions belong to Desmond Pollard, who leads the team in receiving yards and is second in yards per catch (22.5). Jaidon Parrish leads the Buckeyes in catches, while Chase Tate's 24.9 yards per catch average is tops on the team. Only four of Gilmer's 61 receptions have been made by running backs, so expect Daingerfield to pay extra attention to Gilmer's players on the perimeter.

Daingerfield will be the smallest and thinnest defense Gilmer has faced thus far. The Buckeyes defeated Class 3A Atlanta, TAPPS Division I Plano Prestonwood and Class 4A Jacksonville, handling all three defenses with ease. The one thing that stands out about Daingerfield's personnel is that it's similar in size and athleticism to Gilmer, just not as deep. The Tigers have will more chances to make plays in the secondary than the other three teams Gilmer has faced so far based solely on their players' ability to keep up with the speed Gilmer brings to the table. The only sticking point is that Daingerfield plays several skill-position players on both sides of the ball, which could be troublesome as the game progresses.

Don't be surprised if: Gilmer continues to put up offensive numbers at an incredible pace. Daingerfield lost to Atlanta 48-35, a week after Gilmer opened the year with a 57-7 rout of Atlanta. As long as the Buckeyes don't hurt themselves with turnovers and penalties, Gilmer should be able to score as many points as it wants. No disrespect is meant to Daingerfield, but right now Gilmer is operating at a completely different level than everyone else. Gilmer put up 66 points against Plano Prestonwood two weeks ago despite five turnovers and 12 penalties and scored on nine straight possessions in another dominant performance against Jacksonville last week.