Local teams ready for bi-district

It was a great end to the regular season of high school football as four of our five Orange County schools booked trips for the post-season and three of those teams earning outright or shares of district titles. Deweyville also clinched a playoff spot, and now the real fun starts.

The No. 4 state-ranked West Orange-Stark Mustangs (8-1, 6-0) earned a 12th straight district title this past Friday night with a 42-0 victory over the Bridge City Cardinals. It was also the Mustangs 61st consecutive district win and the team's first shutout of the 2021 season. Now the District 11-4A Div. II champion Mustangs will face a familiar foe in the Bi-District matchup, the La Marque Cougars (5-4), the fourth seed from District 12-4A, at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, at Randall Reed Stadium in New Caney. The two teams last met in 2014 with WO-S claiming a 34-0 win. La Marque's offense has been shut out in its last two district matches and averages a paltry 14.8 points a game, while its defense allows an average of 22.6 points per game. By comparison, the Mustangs offense averages 38.8 points per game and its defense only allows 12.1 points per game. Weather could be a factor on Thursday night as a cool front pushes through the region, but Coach Cornel Thompson will have WO-S ready for the challenge.

The Bridge City Cardinals (4-6, 2-4) season came to an end this past Friday following the 42-0 loss to the WO-S Mustangs. The Bridge City defense did its best to hold down a powerful WO-S offense, but the Cardinals offense could not get any traction on the night and was held to negative total yardage for the game. Despite the loss and ending of the season, the young Cardinals surpassed several expectations this year and finished in fifth place in a strong seven-team district. Coach Cody McGuire has set a strong foundation for coming seasons.

The Orangefield Bobcats (7-3, 4-2) handled business this past Friday with a 27-13 victory over the Hardin-Jefferson Hawks to finish in a three-way tie for second place in District 11-4A Div. II with Silsbee and Hamshire-Fannett. However, due to a point tie-breaker system, the Bobcats will represent the district as the fourth seed and now must face the No. 6 state ranked Bellville Brahmas (10-0) at 7:30 p.m., Friday, at Wildcat Stadium in Splendora. The teams have met twice in the post-season with Bellville winning both, including a 35-14 contest in 2017. The Bobcats offense averages 27.0 points per game, while the Orangefield defense allows just 16.7 points per game, which is the second best in District 11-4A. However, the Brahmas are loaded this year on both sides of the ball as its offense averages 50.8 points per contest and has only been held under 40 points once all season. Meanwhile, its defense allows a mere 8.2 points per game and has pitched four shutouts in 2021. The Bobcats have a tall task ahead of them this week, but if Orangefield is firing on all cylinders on both sides of the ball, then Coach Josh Smalley and the Bobcats may have a surprise waiting for the Brahmas this Friday night.

The Little Cypress-Mauriceville Battlin' Bears (8-2, 4-1) went on the road and beat Splendora 41-7 this past Friday night and came home with a share of the District 10-4A Div. II title and the second seed in the playoffs. LC-M has had a spectacular turn around under first-year coach Eric Peevey and the Bears are not done yet, as the team goes into the post-season looking to make some real noise. The Battlin' Bears will face the Palestine Wildcats (5-5), the third seed from District 9-4A, at 7:30 p.m., Friday, at Berton Yates Stadium in Willis. The LC-M offense averages 32.5 points per game, the best in District 10-4A, while its defense only allows 21.2 points per contest. Meanwhile, the Wildcats come from a district with a lot of firepower. How much firepower? Well, Palestine averages 28.9 points per game, which is fourth out of its district's four playoff teams. Its defense gives up 32.0 points per game, so a high scoring game might be on tap this Friday.

The Vidor Pirates (8-1, 4-1) had a game for the ages this past Friday night as the Pirates overcame a 27-7 deficit in the third quarter and scored 21 straight points for a 28-27 come-from-behind win over the Lumberton Raiders and, in the process, a share of the District 10-4A Div. I title and the district's first seed in the playoffs. Now the Pirates look to continue a successful season as they face the Chapel Hill Bulldogs (7-3), the fourth seed from District 9-4A, at 7 p.m., Friday, at Turner Stadium in Humble. Vidor's run-heavy offense averages 28.4 points per game, while its defense has been stingy all season allowing 18.8 points per game, second best in District 10-4A. Chapel Hill's offense has been held to less than 35 points per game only three times this season and averages 39.2 points per game. Its defense allows 25.2 per game. Both teams have one common opponent from the 2021 schedule in Livingston. The Bulldogs beat Livingston 35-15 in the second game of the season, while Vidor beat Livingston 40-7 in a week 9 matchup.

The Deweyville Pirates (5-4, 4-1) handily beat High Island this past Friday by a score of 68-0 and will now represent District 12-2A Div. II in the playoffs as the second seed. The Pirates will now face the West Sabine Tigers (3-6), the third seed from District 11-2A, at 7 p.m., Friday, at Bulldog Field in Jasper. The Deweyville offense averages 31.5 points per game this season, while its defense allows 19.5 points per game. The Tigers offense averages 28.5 points per game, but its defense has been allowing 32.8 points per game. Both teams have a common opponent from the 2021 season in Colmesneil. Colmesneil defeated Deweyville 30-22 in the second game of the season, while Colmesneil beat West Sabine 40-28 in the ninth week of the season. West Sabine and Deweyville have met several times over the years with Deweyville winning the most recent meeting in 2019 by a score of 42-14.