Carlisle Gets Second Opportunity Against San Augustine In Regional Semifinal Round

CLASS 2A DIVISION I
Region III Semifinal

San Augustine Wolves (8-4)

vs.

Carlisle Indians (11-1)

6:30 p.m. Friday

Maverick Stadium, Marshall

Coaches

San Augustine: Marty Murr
Carlisle: Rocky Baker

Last week

San Augustine: def. Big Sandy, 50-47
Carlisle: def. Cayuga, 42-14

Next week

Winner plays Centerville or Lovelady, Class 2A Division I, Region III championship game

Playmakers

San Augsustine

RB K.J. Davis, Jr., 5-8, 175
QB/DB Gavin Murr, Jr., 5-11, 175
WR/DB QuenTyvian Borders, Jr., 6-2, 180
LB DeSavion Crane, Sr., 5-11, 230
LB Oscar Cordova, Sr., 5-8, 180
LB/WR Quay Johnson, Jr., 5-6, 170

Carlisle

QB/DB Tristan Craig, Jr., 6-2, 175
FB/LB Mason Pendleton, Jr.
WR/DB Jay Price, Soph.
RB/DB Jose Servin, Sr., 5-11, 170
OL/LB Rueben Carreon, Sr.

Just the facts

Friday's game is a rematch of a District 11-2A Division I contest played just three weeks ago. San Augustine won that game, 42-28, at home to spoil Carlisle's bid to win the district championship outright.
The Indians were mourning the loss of teammate Taylor Chote. The offensive lineman died in a car accident the day before the game.
San Augustine has another rematch game already under its belt. It defeated Groveton, a first-place seed, in the bi-district round after defeating Groveton in non-district play.
Wolves running back K.J. Davis is the area's fifth-leading rusher with 1,792 yards on 256 carries. He has scored 23 touchdowns, third-best among the top five.
San Augustine receiver QuenTyvian Borders is East Texas' third-leading receiver with 1,363 yards on 55 catches. He has scored 16 times in 12 games.
The Wolves will travel 75 miles to Marshall's Maverick Stadium. Carlisle has a 49-mile trip to make.

Key matchup: Carlisle's defense versus San Augustine's big three on offense.

The Wolves handed the Indians their sole loss of the season in extremely convincing fashion. They scored a season-high 42 points against Carlisle in their 42-28 win just three weeks ago.

Carlisle's defense had never given up more than 27 points beforehand.

Of course, emotion may have played a factor. The Indians had been stunned by teammate Taylor Chote's death the day before, kept their commitment to play the game on its scheduled date and had to play on the road.

San Augustine is top heavy in terms of offensive production. QuenTyvian Borders is the area's third-leading receiver, running back K.J. Davis is the region's fifth-most productive runner and quarterback Gavin Murr is a run threat in addition to a strong passer.

The rest of the Wolves' offensive players have supporting role jobs.

Carlisle can win this game with a good push up front. If it can rattle Murr, it takes away the pass. If it gets good penetration against Carlisle's offensive line, it has opportunities to keep Davis in check.

Expect the Indians to play much better defensively. It is a unit averaging just 13.1 points against despite the 42 points it allowed to San Augustine the evening after a tragedy.

Still, a 14-point win is a 14-point win.

The Wolves should have plenty of confidence after the head-to-head win in addition to already having the experience of playing Groveton in a rematch game.

Don't be surprised if: The game is much closer than the first meeting.

Carlisle slipped against San Augustine and then struggled to put away West Sabine in the bi-district round of the playoffs in its next game, but it get its hand on a quality Cayuga team early in last week's area-round victory.

The Indians also own a film advantage. Whereas San Augustine feels good about already having downed Carlisle, head coach Rocky Baker's crew has the film to see exactly what it did wrong against the Wolves.