Similar Rushing Attacks, Defenses Meet in Longview’s Third-Round Showdown vs. Austin Westlake

Class 5A Division II Region II
Semifinal

Longview Lobos (9-3)
vs.
Austin Westlake Chaparrals (8-4)

4 p.m. Saturday
Don Floyd Field at MISD Multi-Purpose Stadium, Midlothian

Coaches
Longview: John King
Westlake: Darren Allman

Road To Regionals

Longview

• Bi-district: def. Rowlett, 27-6
• Area: def. Dallas Jesuit, 57-25

Austin Westlake

• Bi-district: def. Pflugerville Hendrickson, 33-13
• Area: def. College Station A&M Consolidated, 45-2

Next week: Winner faces Lufkin (9-3) or Plano West (8-4) in the 5A Division II Region II final.

Playmakers

Longview

• FS Corey Bartley, Sr., 5-7, 155 (127 tackles, 6 INTs, 1 forced fumble, 1 recovery, 20 pass breakups, 5 kick blocks, 1 punt block, 1 def. TD)
• LB DeMarkus Lathan, Sr., 5-9, 190 (131 tackles, 11 for loss, 2 sacks, 1 fumble recovery, 8 pass breakups, 1 kick block)
• LB Torean Sheppard, Sr., 5-10, 185 (130 tackles, 5 for loss, 2 forced fumbles, 1 recovery, 5 pass breakups)
• DT Cornelius Williams, Sr., 5-10, 290 (73 tackles, 16 for loss, 3 sacks)
• DE Tre Allen, Sr., 6-1, 230 (43 tackles, 16 for loss, 11 sacks)
• OL/DL Zaycoven Henderson, Jr., 6-3, 290 (40 tackles, 8 for loss, 2 sacks, 1 forced fumble, 1 recovery)
• DE Derodrick Alexander, Jr., 6-0, 240 (36 tackles, 4 for loss, 3 sacks, 2 forced fumbles)
• QB Dezmond Chumley, Soph., 5-11, 185 (74 of 126, 1,057 yards, 14 TDs, 1 INT)
• RB J'Mycal Hasty, Soph., 5-10, 185 (33 carries, 309 yards, 5 TDs; 7 catches, 87 yards, 1 TD)
• FB Antonius Sanders, Sr., 5-10, 180 (68 carries, 448 yards, 5 TDs; 18 catches, 145 yards, 3 TDs)

Austin Westlake

• QB Jordan Severt, Jr., 6-4, 220 (Playoffs: 15 of 31, 244 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT, 1 rush TD)
• DT Jake Mansour, Sr.
• RB Alex Chavez, Jr. (Playoffs: 36 carries, 184 yards, 4 TDs)
• WR Patrick Elliott, Sr. (Playoffs: 3 catches, 44 yards, 1 TD)
• RB Keith Carter, Sr. (Playoffs: 10 carries, 38 yards)
• WR Jon Rhoads, Jr. (Playoffs: 3 catches, 38 yards)
• WR Brandon Box, Sr. (Playoffs: 3 catches, 31 yards)
• WR Zach Dansby, Jr. (Playoffs: 2 catches, 36 yards, 1 TD)
• WR Russell Paape, Sr. (Playoffs: 67-yard TD catch)

Just the facts

• Longview averages 36.3 points per game and allows 16.8.
• Austin Westlake averages 30.8 points per game and allows 19.0.
• Longview has won five consecutive games, outscoring opponents 228-47.
• Westlake has won seven of its last eight games.
• The Chapparals have not allowed more than 14 points in a game during that stretch and have outscored eight opponents 307-55.
• Longview's play selection is 70 percent run, 30 percent pass.
• Westlake's play selection is 65 percent run, 35 percent pass.
• Longview will play without senior RB Tory White (collarbone) and senior DE Jalen Porter (left knee).
• White is Longview's leading rusher with 1,253 yards and 14 touchdowns, while Porter is second on the team with five sacks and also has 70 tackles, 14 for loss, and four forced fumbles.
• Longview has held its last five opponents to 9.4 points per game.
• Westlake has held its last eight opponents to 6.9 points per game.
• The three teams that beat Longview are a combined 30-6.
• The four teams that beat Westlake are a combined 36-9.
• Westlake's 45-2 blowout of A&M Consolidated a week ago avenged a 35-17 loss to the Tigers on Sept. 14.

Key matchup: Both line vs. line matchups. Longview coach John King loves to point out that the key matchup to every game is the battle up front, which is pretty much true. But in games like this one, the importance of the battles in the trenches cannot be emphasized enough. Both teams like to pound the rock, as evidenced by their tendencies to run the ball as much as two-thirds of their offensive snaps. Longview needs to have a big day from its offensive front, not only because Tory White is injured and won't play, but because Westlake's 3-4 base defense led by nose tackle Jake Mansour has held the Chaps' last eight opponents to less than seven points per game. That's an eye-opening statistic. Longview will rely on sophomore J'Mycal Hasty, who is the Lobos' "next big thing," so to speak. The 5-foot-10, 185-pound speedster entered last week's game with 17 carries the entire season, but ran 16 times against Dallas Jesuit for 102 yards and a touchdown to pick up the slack once White left the game with the collarbone injury. Fullback Antonius Sanders is a dependable ball carrier, too, and King won't hesitate to rotate the carries at the tailback spot between Hasty, Damion Russell (43 carries, 233 yards, 4 TDs), and L'Darrius Peterson (38 carries, 280 yards, 4 TDs). On the other side of the coin, Longview has to continue to get stellar play from its defensive line, which has been the Lobos' most consistent unit in 2012. That group is also down a player -- senior end Jalen Porter -- so tackle Cornelius Williams, tackle Zaycoven Henderson, end Tre Allen, and end Derodrick Alexander must compensate for Porter's absence to contain a physical Westlake running game.

Chalk talk

• Longview coach John King on Austin Westlake's offense: "They're very good. They've got a huge offensive line that is very physical and very similar to what our scheme is. They like to run a bunch of power and crack toss and get on the perimeter. Their quarterback sometimes is their lead blocker on the toss sweep. He's about 6-4, 220 pounds. He'll try to get his helmet on you and block you."
• King on Westlake's defense: "They're a 3-4 team. It starts with the nose guard, (Jake) Mansour. He's very active. He's a disruptive player. They do a lot of good things with him."
• King on Longview playing without senior tailback Tory White (collarbone) and senior defensive end Jalen Porter (left knee) and which position may fare better because of the depth at both spots: "Tailback more so than defensive line. We've played as many as four different kids in a game at tailback. Defensive line is a little thinner, especially with an impact guy like Jalen Porter. He's done a lot for us. He's just a guy that's made a lot of important plays throughout his career. The safety against DeSoto (in 2011), he's the one that caused that. He made some key sacks for us in the playoff run in 2010. He's gonna be missed."
• Longview defensive line coach Mark Peters on the challenges Westlake presents: "Westlake has an extremely good offensive line and is an extremely good offensive team, and defensive team, too. The rich traditions at Austin Westlake are right up there with anybody in the state and in the country. It's an honor to get a chance to play them and it's an honor to have that challenge presented to us. It's a huge challenge. Hopefully our guys will play well."

Don't be surprised if: Neither team scores as many points as it did in two lopsided wins a week ago. Westlake and Longview have won both of their playoff games rather convincingly, although the Chaps' first-round score may appear a bit misleading. Westlake beat Pflugerville Hendrickson 33-13, but needed 16 fourth-quarter points to pull away for the three-score victory margin. Westlake exploited four A&M Consolidated turnovers and blocked two kicks to fuel the 43-point revenge win. Longview has started shaky in its first two playoff games. The Lobos woke up late in the second quarter before dominating Rowlett in the 27-6 first-round win, then had to match Dallas Jesuit's early offensive outburst a week ago. Eventually, Longview's athleticism and penchant for physical play took over and the Lobos ran away with the game in the second half thanks to 30 unanswered points. Don't expect that kind of explosion again. Westlake's defensive front is significantly stronger than Jesuit's, but at the same time, the Chaps have to score points on Longview's defense. For fans who like old-school, run-first, physical football, this may be the best game involving an East Texas team this entire weekend.