No. 5 Kilgore Bulldogs (1-0)

vs.

Pine Tree Pirates (2-0)

7:30 p.m. Friday

Pirate Stadium, Longview

 

Coaches
  • Kilgore: Mike Wood
  • Pine Tree: Derek Fitzhenry

 

Last week
  • Kilgore: idle
  • Pine Tree: won 64-49 at Center

 

Next week
  • Kilgore: vs. Mount Pleasant
  • Pine Tree: idle

 

Playmakers

Kilgore

  • QB Benny Colbert, Sr., 5-10, 170 (3 of 6, 41 yards, 1 TD;
  • WR/CB Aaron Foy, Sr., 5-11, 164 (2 carries, 67 yards, 1 TD; 1 catch, 41 yards, 1 TD)
  • S Jake Brantley, Sr., 5-10, 185 (9 tackles, 1 for loss)
  • DT LaDarrin Anthony, Sr., 6-0, 257 (7 tackles, 1 for loss, 4 QB hurries)
  • DE D.Q. Scott, Sr., 6-0, 252 (2 tackles)
  • RB JuJu Brown, Sr. (12 carries, 94 yards, 1 TD)
  • RB/LB Kevrin Justice, Jr., 5-11, 169 (6 carries, 65 yards, 2 TDs; 4 tackles, 2 for loss)
  • LB Kris Haynes, Jr. (13 tackles, 1 for loss)
  • OL Clay Wiley, Sr., 6-2, 285
  • DE Chad Bornes, Sr. (5 tackles, 3 for loss, 2 sacks, 1 punt block)
  • DB Jeffrey Sanders (9 tackles, 1 INT)

Pine Tree

  • QB Dalvin Manns, Sr. (40 of 60, 920 yards, 8 TDs, 1 INT; 18 carries, 113 yards, 4 TDs)
  • WR Mason Hays, Jr. (14 catches, 474 yards, 6 TDs; 1 carry, 21 yards)
  • WR Douglas Morgan, Jr. (16 catches, 230 yards, 1 TD)
  • DB Jalin Webster, Sr. (22 tackles, 1 forced fumble)
  • DB Tre Devine, Sr. (14 tackles, 2 INTs, 1 forced fumble)
  • LB Irving Shen, Jr. (16 tackles)
  • DL Ed Paz, Sr. (13 tackles, 3 for loss, 2 sacks)
  • DB Carlos Johnson, Sr. (14 tackles)
  • RB Quay Ward, Jr. (15 carries, 72 yards, 2 TDs; 3 catches, 31 yards)
  • WR Tyler Smith, Sr. (4 catches, 100 yards, 1 TD)

 

Just the facts
  • Pine Tree won last week's game with offensive coordinator Derrick Hennigan serving as acting head coach while AD Derek Fitzhenry was on administrative leave. Pine Tree ISD announced a "conditional reinstatement" of Fitzhenry on Tuesday afternoon, so Fitzhenry will be on the sideline this Friday night.
  • Kilgore allowed only 146 total yards in the Bulldogs' season-opening 42-7 victory against Marshall.
  • Kilgore yielded 95 passing yards and 51 yards on 27 rushes in that contest.
  • The Bulldogs' accumulated 10 tackles for loss, including three sacks, against Marshall.
  • The seven points Kilgore allowed vs. Marshall were about the total the Bulldogs yielded per game during the 2012 regular season (7.4).
  • Pine Tree senior quarterback Caleb Chumley is out with a left foot injury.
  • Chumley's replacement, senior Dalvin Manns, has posted staggering numbers in Pine Tree's first two games, averaging 460 passing yards and 56.5 rushing yards per game during the Pirates' 2-0 start.
  • Pine Tree junior receiver Mason Hays enters Friday's game averaging 33.9 yards per catch and 3.0 touchdown grabs per game.Hays averaged 24.3 yards per catch as a sophomore.
  • Pine Tree scored 106 points in its first two games, but allowed 87.
  • Last season's Kilgore vs. Pine Tree game was canceled because of lightning.
  • Kilgore is 24-1-1 vs. Pine Tree since 1984.
  • Pine Tree's lone win, 45-16, came in 1990. The Pirates tied Kilgore 17-17 in 1993. Kilgore has won by double digits 20 times, including six shutouts.

 

Pine Tree QB Dalvin Manns. (Courtesy PTISD)
Pine Tree QB Dalvin Manns. (Courtesy PTISD)
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Key matchup: Pine Tree's offensive line vs. Kilgore's defensive line. Pine Tree's high-powered spread offense has posted staggering numbers in the first two seasons of the week after finishing the 2012 campaign with similar offensive production.

Dalvin Manns leads East Texas in passing yards, while Mason Hays leads the region in receiving yards. They have been the most prolific pass-catch duo in the region so far this year, but they -- along with Pine Tree's offensive line -- face their stiffest test of the young season this Friday.

Kilgore has had as suffocating a defense as there's been in East Texas since the start of last season, when the Bulldogs yielded barely 11 points per game during their 2012 run to the Class 3A Division I state semifinals. The majority of starters return from that unit, including two front-line stalwarts in LaDarrin Anthony and D.Q. Scott. That duo combined for 20 sacks a year ago and could play a pivotal role in Friday's game as Pine Tree tries to keep them and blitzing linebackers -- Chad Bornes had two sacks in the season opener vs. Marshall -- off Manns.

If Kilgore disrupts Pine Tree's timing, Manns will have a much harder time getting the ball to Hays and Douglas Morgan, who leads PT in receptions.

Kilgore DE D.Q. Scott. (Christopher Vinn, ETSN.fm)
Kilgore DE D.Q. Scott. (Christopher Vinn, ETSN.fm)
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Don't be surprised if: Each team gets in a few shots early, but Kilgore's physical, defense-oriented style separates the Bulldogs from the Pirates. In addition to the PT O-line vs. Kilgore D-line key matchup, the pairing of PT's D-line vs. Kilgore's O-line could be equally important. Kilgore's run-heavy scheme is tough to stop once it gets rolling. Pine Tree cannot allow the 'Dogs to dictate the tempo and keep the ball away from the Pirates' higher-paced spread offense.

Keep-away will undoubtedly be the Bulldogs' offensive strategy, but there's no doubt that Kilgore is well-equipped defensively to go toe-to-toe with Pine Tree's high-scoring offensive attack.

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