PREVIEW: Pittsburg + Pleasant Grove Prepare for District Rematch

CLASS 4A DIVISION II
State Quarterfinal

Pleasant Grove Hawks (11-2)

vs.

Pittsburg Pirates (10-3)

8:30 p.m. Friday
Ford Center, Frisco

Coaches

Pleasant Grove: Josh Gibson
Pittsburg: Brad Baca

Last week

Pleasant Grove: def. Gilmer, 56-28
Pittsburg: def. Lorena, 34-28

Next week

Winner vs. Iowa Park or Glen Rose, 4A Division II state semifinal

Players to watch

Pleasant Grove

RB Bruce Garrett, Jr., 5-11, 187 (201 carries, 1,470 yards, 14 TDs; 3 catches, 84 yards, 1 TD)
DT Marcus Burris, Soph., 6-5, 253 (62 tackles, 12 for loss, 5 sacks, 19 QB pressures, 8 PBUs, 3 forced fumbles, 1 recovery)
RB James Wiggins, Sr., 5-10, 185 (171 carries, 1,123 yards, 10 TDs; 2 catches, 47 yards, 1 TD)
QB Ben Harmon, Jr., 6-1, 185 (77-of-138, 1,717 yards, 26 TDs, 2 INTs; 81 carries, 340 yards, 9 TDs)
LB Bladen Reaves, Sr., 6-0, 195 (112 tackles, 10 for loss, 6 sacks, 6 QB pressures, 2 forced fumbles)
WR Jackson Cobb, Jr., 5-11, 160 (20 catches, 402 yards, 5 TDs; 8 carries, 35 yards)
FS Tyler Kelley, Sr., 5-7, 160 (80 tackles, 1 for loss, 1 QB pressure, 5 INTs, 4 PBUs, 1 fumble recovery, 2 defensive TDs)
WR Brett Walker, Sr., 6-0, 155 (17 catches, 384 yards, 8 TDs)
LB Nick Martin, Soph., 5-10, 178 (106 tackles, 6.5 for loss, 6.5 sacks, 16 QB pressures, 2 PBUs, 1 forced fumble, 1 recovery)
SS Ryan Pickelman, Sr. (65 tackles, 3 for loss, 1 sack, 4 INTs, 3 PBUs, 2 forced fumbles)

Pittsburg

WR/S Keontae Burns, Sr., 6-3, 175 (53 catches, 622 yards, 4 TDs; 24 carries, 123 yards, 1 TD; 36 tackles, 6 for loss, 3 INTs, 10 PBUs, 1 blocked punt)
QB/CB Jaylon Jimmerson, Sr., 6-0, 190 (186-of-300, 2,371 yards, 21 TDs, 8 INTs; 155 carries, 1,197 yards, 21 TDs; 87 tackles, 1 for loss, 6 INTs, 10 PBUs, 1 forced fumble, 1 recovery)
WR/CB Keithlen Griffin, Sr., 6-0, 160 (70 catches, 1,073 yards, 10 TDs; 23 tackles, 2 INTs, 10 PBUs, 1 fumble recovery, 1 forced fumble)
RB/DE Desmond Allen, Sr., 5-10, 210 (214 carries, 1,095 yards, 14 TDs)
LB Camryn Edney, Sr., 6-0, 208 (150 tackles, 27 for loss, 4 sacks, 11 QB pressures, 3 forced fumbles, 1 recovery)
LB Mason Monts, Jr., 5-10, 175 (130 tackles, 13 for loss, 1 sack, 10 QB pressures, 3 forced fumbles)

Just the facts

Pleasant Grove leads the series, 10-9. The Hawks won the most recent contest, 45-20 earlier this season.
Pittsburg is averaging 404.7 yards per game (181.9 passing and 222.8 rushing).
Keontae Burns and Jaylon Jimmerson have combined for nine of the Pirates' 12 interceptions this season.
Pittsburg receiver Keithlen Griffin is averaging 15.3 yards per reception.
Pleasant Grove quarterback Ben Harmon is averaging 22.3 yards per completion.
Three teams from Pleasant Grove's regular season schedule are still in the playoffs (Atlanta, Henderson, Pittsburg). The Hawks went 3-0 against these teams.
The Hawks are averaging 37.7 points per game and giving up 18.1.

Key matchup: Pleasant Grove rushing attack against the Pittsburg defense. The Hawks run a Wing-T offense that features running backs Bruce Garrett and James Wiggins. The two have combined for more than 2,500 yards rushing and 24 touchdowns this season. Containing them has been a difficult task only made harder by the presence of Ben Harmon. Pittsburg can't afford to commit too much to the run and risk being burned downfield by Harmon.

The Pirates will look to contain PG with the linebacker duo of Camryn Edney and Mason Monts. They have combined for 40 tackles for loss and six forced fumbles this season. Their ability to get into the backfield and force turnovers this season has been critical and the Pirates will need it on Friday.

Don't be surprised if: Keithlen Griffin has a big game. The Pirate receiver leads the team after surpassing 1,000 yards receiving during the playoffs. He has been the favorite target of Jalyon Jimmerson as teams focus on Keontae Burns. If the field is open for him, expect an outing in which he finished with 100 yards or more.