Tyler Lee Heads To Baylor For Battle With Hewitt Midway

Class 6A Division II

Bi-District Playoff

Tyler Lee Red Raiders (5-5)

Vs.

Hewitt Midway Panthers (10-0)

7:30 p.m. Friday

Baylor's McLane Stadium, Waco

Coaches

• Tyler Lee: Darrell Piske
• Hewitt Midway: Terry Gamble

Last week

• Tyler Lee: defeated Naaman Forest, 75-27
• Hewitt Midway: defeated Killeen Ellison, 43-0

Next week

• Winner plays Highland Park-Irving Nimitz winner in the Class 6A Division II area round.

Playmakers

Tyler Lee

• LB Brandon Durman, Sr., 6-2, 230 (108 tackles; committed to Louisiana Tech)
• QB Zach Hall, Jr., 5-11, 170 (146 of 218, 1,846 passing yards, 16 passing TDs, 3 INTs, 164 carries, 1,274 rushing yards, 17 rushing TDs; offer from Texas Tech)
• RB Tavon Wesley, Jr., 6-1, 190 (117 carries, 677 yards, 3 TDs)
• RB Devonte Craver, Jr., 6-1, 173 (71 carries, 539 yards, 6 TDs)
• OL Matthew Weeks, Sr., 6-6, 275
• OL Justin Willoughby, Sr., 6-3, 285
• WR/S Isjuwan Barker, Jr., 6-1, 195 (37 catches, 700 yards, 10 TDs)
• S Patrick Udofia, Sr., 5-10, 165 (51 tackles, 3 PBU, 2 INTs, 1 FF)

Hewitt Midway

• QB Ben Hicks, Sr., 6-2, 195 (171 of 248, 2,641 passing yards, 22 TDs, 5 INTs; committed to Houston)
• RB  Eric Clayburn, Jr., 6-0, 180 (191 carries, 1,248 yards, 14 TDs)
• WR Devontre Stricklin, Sr., 6-3, 160 (47 catches, 996 yards, 8 TDs; committed to Baylod)
• WR  Joseph Ward, Jr., 5-10, 157 (34 catches, 513 yards, 7 TDs)
• MLB Lenoy Jones, Sr., 6-0, 210 (128 tackles; committed to Houston)
• LB Logan Paschal, Sr., 6-2, 210 (111 tackles, 5 sacks)
• S Khalil Haughton, Sr., 6-2, 180 (4 INTs)
• CB Dae-Dae Walker, Jr., 5-19, 143 (4 INTs)

Just the facts

• Lee is in the playoffs for the first time in four seasons.
• Quarterback Zach Hall eclisped 3,000 total offensive yards in last week's 75-27 win against Naaman Forest. The Red Raiders needed the win and Rowlett's Week 11 victory against Sachshe to clinch a playoff berth.
• Lee is District 11-6A's No. 2 seed in the Class 6A Division II playoffs. Hewitt Midway is the No. 1 seed from District 12-6A.
• Midway is a perfect 10-0 this season with a high-profile season opening win against Lake Travis under its belt.
• Lee's trip to Waco on Friday will be its first to play in Baylor's new stadium. Midway played Lake Travis at the venue.
• Midway's campus is about nine miles from McLane Stadium. Lee is 128 miles to the east of Baylor's campus.
• Midway is loaded with college talent. Receiver Devontre Strickland is a Baylor commitment, quarterback Ben Hicks and linebacker Lenoy Jones are slated to go to Houston and defensive back Brenndan Johnson will attend Navy.
• Lee linebacker Brandon Jones is committed to Navy and quarterback Zach Hall, a junior, has an offer from Texas Tech as a skill player.

Key matchup: Lee's offense versus Midway's defense. The Red Raiders definitely could use some stops against the Midway Panthers, but stops have been hard to come by for the unit. Lee averaged 38.4 points against per game through its 10-game regular season and District 11-6A's top-tier running backs had a field day against the group whether their teams won or loss.

Lee's best chance in Friday's game is matching Midway point-for-point. Quarterback Zach Hall has really progressed through the season and eclipsed 3,000 total yards of offense last week in the win against Naaman Forest. He's a true dual-threat quarterback surrounded by junior skill players and a very good, senior-heavy offensive line.

Isjuwan Barker will give the Midway defense something to think about. He reached 700 receiving yards last week. If the Panthers try to take him out of the game, Hall can turn to Jordan Devers. Devers could reach 500 receiving yards this season in the playoff game.

Tavon Wesley has emerged as the Red Raiders' primary running back with 677 rushing yards, behind Hall's 1,274 yards on the ground, but Devonte Craver is a great second option in the run game with 539 yards on 46 carries less than Wesley.

Lee should be comfortable giving up some points. Midway is an offensive juggernaut with a handful of Division I college football players on its roster. Receiver Devontre Stricklin headlines the group as a Baylor commitment.

At the same time, all stops are helpful. Especially with the Red Raiders offense backing up the effort. If Lee's offense clicks early, the magic number for stops in the game probably ranges from three to five. That's doable.

Don't be surprised if: McLane Stadium sees another firework show. Baylor occupies the stadium and has lit up opposing defenses at home all season. Think of this game as a match between Baylor and TCU. Both teams are very strong offensively.

Stopping Midway, even sporadically, could swing the game in favor of Lee.