DISTRICT 11-6A

Rowlett Eagles (3-1, 1-0)

vs.

Tyler Lee Red Raiders (1-3, 0-1)

7 p.m. Thursday

Trinity Mother Frances Rose Stadium, Tyler

Coaches
  • Rowlett: Doug Stephens
  • Tyler Lee: Darrell Piske

 

Last week

 

Next week
  • Rowlett: vs. Garland, Oct. 2
  • Tyler Lee: vs. Garland Lakeview Centennial, Oct. 1

 

Playmakers

Rowlett

  • QB Logan Bonner, Sr., 6-2, 200 (83 of 148, 1,250 yards, 13 TDs, 0 INTs; 16 carries, 24 yards, 1 TD; committed to Arkansas State)
  • LB Jarrod Elmore, Sr., 5-11, 210
  • OL Andre Henderson, Sr., 5-11, 290
  • RB Kobe Morrow, Jr., 5-10, 185 (78 carries, 483 yards, 7 TDs; 13 catches, 80 yards)
  • WR LaDarius Dickens, Jr., 5-9, 190 (27 catches, 427 yards, 7 TDs; 13 carries, 77 yards, 1 TD)
  • WR Dylan Watts, Jr., 5-9, 165 (9 catches, 220 yards, 3 TDs; 2 carries, 6 yards, 1 TD)
  • WR Quinton Stinson, Sr., 5-8, 170 (15 catches, 166 yards, 1 TD)

 

Tyler Lee

  • QB Chance Amie, Soph., 6-3, 185 (19 of 29, 385 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs; 26 carries, 174 yards, 2 TDs)
  • RB Tavon Wesley, Sr., 5-11, 190 (44 carries, 378 yards, 7 TDs; 4 catches, 70 yards)
  • RB/WR Datavion Thacker, Sr., 5-9, 180 (5 catches, 291 yards, 4 TDs; 30 carries, 300 yards, 1 TD)
  • WR Isjuwan Barker, Sr., 6-2, 180 (13 catches, 195 yards, 4 TDs)
  • WR Tyrec Grayson, Sr., 5-8, 145 (11 catches, 329 yards, 2 TDs; 15 carries, 220 yards, 3 TDs)
  • WR Mason Parker, Sr., 5-10, 165 (7 catches, 33 yards; 13 carries, 100 yards)
  • LB Campbell Miller, Jr., 6-2, 245
  • DL John Samples III, Sr., 6-3, 250

 

Just the facts
  • This is the second meeting all-time between Rowlett and Tyler Lee. Rowlett won last year's matchup, 35-30.
  • This week's game is the second of four Thursday games for Tyler Lee.
  • Rowlett is averaging 42.3 points and 481 yards per game -- 312.5 passing and 168.5 rushing.
  • The Eagles have scored at least 38 points in all four games this season.
  • Rowlett quarterback Logan Bonner has attempted 148 passes without throwing an interception this year.
  • Tyler Lee is averaging 48.5 points and 629.3 yards per game -- 260.3 passing and 369 rushing.
  • The Red Raiders are allowing 53.4 points and 625 yards per game -- 390.7 passing and 234.3 rushing.
  • Tyler Lee has been outscored 108-21 in the second half of its three losses this season.

 

Tyler Lee WR Isjuwan Barker. (Rob Graham, ETSN.fm)
Tyler Lee WR Isjuwan Barker. (Rob Graham, ETSN.fm)
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Key matchup: Rowlett passing attack vs. Lee secondary. The Eagles' offense has been flying high through the first four weeks of the season, and its quarterback and his compliment of receivers have been the primary catalyst. Senior signal-caller Logan Bonner, an Arkansas State commit, has been lethal against opposing defenses this season. Aside from not throwing an interception so far on the year, Bonner has passed for 1,250 yards -- 312.5 per game -- with 13 touchdowns. Five different receivers have caught scoring passes from Bonner, but one pass-catcher in particular has stood out above the rest in the early going. Junior LaDarius Dickens leads Rowlett in catches, yards, and touchdowns by a wide margin. While Dickens does get most of the targets in the Eagles' offense, perhaps Rowlett's best big-play wideout is junior Dylan Watts, who is averaging more than 24 yards on nine receptions with three touchdowns.

This does not appear to be a favorable matchup for the Tyler Lee defense, which has struggled mightily all season, but especially with pass defense. In last week's district-opening loss to Sachse, the Red Raiders were torched by sophomore quarterback Jalen Mayden, who passed for 540 yards and six touchdowns. Mayden is not the first quarterback to victimize Lee through the air this season. Lufkin's Kordell Rodgers passed for a season-best 444 yards in the Red Raiders' Week 2 overtime loss. Through four weeks, Lee's defense is allowing almost 400 passing yards per game.

Tyler Lee WR Tyrec Grayson. (Rob Graham, ETSN.fm)
Tyler Lee WR Tyrec Grayson. (Rob Graham, ETSN.fm)
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Lee's defensive play, especially in the second half of games this year, is on a disturbing trend. In the Red Raiders' three losses this season -- in which Lee has allowed an average of 59 points per game -- Lee has been outscored 108-21 after halftime. Making the defeats more difficult to absorb is the fact that the Red Raiders have led at halftime in two of those losses. If the Red Raiders wish turn their negative fortune around, Thursday's game would be as good a time as any. Lee reached the postseason last year as the fourth-place finisher from 11-6A, behind Rockwall, Rowlett, and Garland, and tied with Sachse, which it defeated last season to gain the tiebreaker edge. Now, that the Red Raiders have opened district with a loss to Sachse, they most likely need a win over at least one of the top-three finishers from 2014 in order to make the playoffs.

Don't be surprised if: Lee sophomore quarterback Chance Amie continues to improve. Amie has started just one game and played in two since coming in for the injured Zach Hall, but the 2018 prospect has looked good in doing so. In his debut as a starter last Thursday night, Amie completed 15 of 23 passes for 313 yards and two touchdowns, adding 73 yards and a touchdown on 13 rushing attempts. When summoned from the bench two weeks ago in Lee's win over crosstown rival John Tyler, Amie connected on both of throws -- one for a touchdown -- and ran for 75 yards and a score on nine carries. After playing well the first two weeks of the season, Rowlett's defense has allowed a combined 104 points in its last two games. The Eagles have surrendered an average of 516 yards per in those two games, so Lee could find itself in yet another shootout this week.

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