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Bucs to face Ball before beginning playoffs
Published November 6, 2009
CLUTE — With three straight wins, the Brazoswood football team already has their playoff ticket in hand, but there is still a lot to be determined in its District 24-5A finale.
The Buccaneers (4-2 district, 6-3 overall) will wrap up the regular season at 7 p.m. today at Hopper Field against the Galveston Ball Tors (4-2, 5-4) where Brazoswood can secure up a No. 1 seed in the Class 5A Division I playoffs with a victory.
“It’s always a great situation to be in when you’re going into the final week and you know you’re already in the playoffs,” Brazoswood head coach Dean DeAtley. “But this isn’t a situation where the last game doesn’t matter.
“We want to win, as always, and a win here will give us the top seed in Division I,” DeAtley said. “The playoffs are never an easy road, but that side of the bracket is probably the lesser of two evils. You always want to put yourself in the best situation, and a win will be that.”
The Buccaneers are playing their best football of the year at the right time and hope to continue that trend against the Tors. Brazoswood has scored three straight wins — over Dickinson, 16-13, Clear Creek, 49-35, and Clear Lake, 61-0 — after dropping two of their first three contests to open 24-5A play.
“There’s no doubt we’re playing well,” DeAtley said. “I think we are playing very well and up to our capabilities on offense and defense and with our special teams unit.
“You always want to peak at the right time — late in the season and heading into the playoffs,” DeAtley said. “We’d much rather by clicking right now than any other time of the year.”
As the Buccaneers have been climbing the 24-5A standing, the Tors have been slipping down.
Ball was tied for the district lead three weeks ago but has lost two straight games and suddenly are fighting for a playoff berth. Five of the Tors’ six district games have been decided by one score.
“Ball has a lot on the line, and we already expected a fight,” DeAtley said. “That’s a very good football team and they’re going to come out determined.”
The Tors would clinch a playoff berth with a win over the Buccaneers or if Clear Creek (3-3, 4-5) loses to Clear Lake (1-5, 2-7).
Galveston has the lowest rated offense in 24-5A but is still averaging 291.4 yards a game. The Tors’ modified triple-option attack is focused on the run but does have big-play potential.
“It’s not you’re average option,” DeAtley said. “It’s a much more explosive offense that’s been tweaked. They have different looks with twins in more of a spread look, they line up in the shotgun and under center and can overload one side and have eligible receivers on the line.
“We have to play assignment football and recognize what they’re doing right away. We’ve worked all week on making those reads and executing our game plan.”
Senior Dominique Brown leads the Ball rushing attack with 595 yards on 90 carries and seven touchdowns. Quarterback Rodney Artmore has ran for 521 yards and 11 scores and has passed for 792 yards with four touchdowns and nine interceptions.
DeAtley said the battle at the line of scrimmage will be important to win on both sides of the ball. Brazoswood defensive ends Dartwan Bush and Scott Bailey along with tackles Kevin Gatti and Chad Rousseau will be key against the Tors at their point of attack.
The Buccaneers are ranked second in the district in offense (366.9 yards a game) and defense (279.6 yards a game).
Brazoswood’s senior-laden offensive line has led the team to 2,380 yards rushing. Junior tailbacks Ricky Lunford (137 carries, 877 yards, 12 touchdowns) and Marqualle Davis (101 carries, 718 yards, eight touchdowns) have handled much of the offensive load with a potent one-two punch.
The Buccaneers’ passing game has improved, and senior quarterback Chase Matzke (61-102 passing, 922 yards, six touchdowns, nine interceptions) threw for a season-high three scores last week with two touchdown passes to senior tight end Bradley Peters (23 catches, 346 yards, four touchdowns).
“I’m happy with the way the defensive and offensive line have played,” DeAtley said. “Those guys up front do a lot of things for us, and when they can dominate a game we win.”
NOTES: It will be Brazoswood’s third annual Blackout Night at Hopper Field and fans are encouraged to dress in black. The student council will be selling Blackout T-shirts for $10. An audio broadcast of the game will be on Comcast channel 19.
Jim Levesque is a sports writer for The Facts. Contact him at 979-237-0161.
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