For the third season in a row the West Orange-Stark Mustangs will be playing in the semi-finals of the state playoffs. Coach Cornel Thompson indicates the knee injury to starting linebacker Cory Skinner was just a bruise, and he will be available for this week’s game. The other linebacker position is looking good too as Justin Brown actually played 20 snaps last week and will be ready for Friday’s semi-final contest too.
The Navarro Panthers are the third different opponent the Mustangs will face in three semi-finals. Thompson says the Panthers run that old school Slot T Offense. Each team is a little different in running the Slot T, but this will be the tenth time West Orange-Stark has faced it this season. Navarro is a power football team running isolations, buck sweeps, power-off tackle runs, and bootleg passes. Thompson informs, “They’ve got three thousand-yard rushers in their offensive alignment.”
Their fullback is Jake Wright a three-year starter for the Panthers. He has rushed for a thousand yards. Jared Leal at halfback is also a thousand-yard rusher. At slotback is Tyler Law who is right at a thousand yards for the season. Junior quarterback Will Eveld can tote the ball as well for Navarro.
The Navarro offensive line reminds Thompson of the one at Vidor as they will get on you and after you. Their best two linemen are strong side tackle Colton Barnett and center Garrett Dietert who is back from an injury. The Panthers’ two pulling guards Marshall Crabb and Tyler Howard are also good.
The Panthers use a stunting defense with a lot of movement according to Coach Thompson. Navarro lines up in a 3-3 or a 5-3, but will send one or two linebackers with its three downed linemen on every snap. “They’re a swarming type, pressure type defense.” Thompson analyzes.
Just like he is on offense, Wright is a standout on the defensive side of the ball being named the District Defensive MVP two years running at outside linebacker. Strong safety Leal and cornerback Eveld are key Panther performers in the secondary. Another standout on defense and a two-way starter is defensive end or tackle Tanner Whitson.
The keys for West Orange-Stark to advance against Navarro to its third straight state championship game are provided by Coach Thompson. First, the Mustangs’ offense must take care of every scoring opportunity they get. WO-S may not get many snaps because of the offense Navarro runs so the Mustangs must execute their offense while taking advantage of each chance they receive. Thompson was not pleased with the play of the Mustangs’ offensive guards in the Giddings game and they must improve for the Mustangs to be successful against Navarro.
Next the Chain Gang of West Orange-Stark must stop the run against the Panthers’ offense. Navarro against Cuero took the opening kickoff then marched down the field running 17 or 18 plays and taking eight minutes off the clock. The Panthers do not make mistakes on offense, they don’t turn it over, and they are happy killing you with three and four yards Thompson points out. “We can’t let them control the football,” Thompson emphasizes.
Last is the kicking game for West Orange-Stark. Navarro kicks off a lot because they score so well, and their kick coverage has been good. The Panthers do not punt much and will go for it many times on fourth down-and-short. The Mustangs continue to cover kicks well. Chad Dallas did a good job in kicking point afters against Giddings last week and provided strong kickoffs for the Mustangs to prevent any long returns. In regards to the kicking phase going into the Navarro game Thompson concedes, “We were happy with that.”
The West Orange-Stark Mustangs and the Navarro Panthers play Friday night at 7:30 in Houston’s NRG Stadium. KOGT will carry the game live Friday night with a rebroadcast of the contest at 7:00 AM Saturday.
-Dan Perrine, KOGT-
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