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| LONGVIEW - One more.
That's all that stands in the way of Longview grabbing that second state title that has eluded them in the past 81 years. One more against a familiar face in the high-flying Bruins of Beaumont West Brook. Longview (15-0) is back for its fourth shot at No. 2. The Bruins (13-2) are also in the hunt its second title. This isn't Dallas, Houston or Austin. This is East Texas vs. Southeast Texas, a showdown between two athletic, physical and more-than-hungry teams. One more. Here's a look at the Class 6A, Division II state championship: LONGVIEW (15-0) VS. BEAUMONT WEST BROOK (13-2) Time: 3 p.m., Saturday Stadium: AT&T Stadium, Arlington Live: Fox Sports Southwest On the Air: 106.5 JACK FM Coaches West Brook: Eric Peevey (2nd season, 20-5) Longview: John King (15th season, 167-36) Last week: West Brook 35, Austin Westlake 30; Longview 45, Amarillo Tascosa 42 WHEN WEST BROOK HAS THE BALL West Brook: QB L'Ravien Elia (6-0, 182; 124-222-6, 2,108 yards, 22 TDs; 143 carries, 738 yards, 6 TDs) ... RB Robert McGrue (5-7, 165; 205 carries, 1,929 yards, 33 TDs) ... WR Thaddeaus Johnson (6-2, 190; 56 catches, 1,181 yards, 11 TDs) ... WR Deonte Simpson (6-0, 192; 50 catches, 839 yards, 10 TDs; 4-4-0, 156 passing yards, 2 TDs) ... RB Ja'Kobi Holland (5-9, 185) ... RB Robert Meadows (5-7, 160) ... OL Donovan Edwards (6-2, 285) ... OL Chris Thomas (6-0, 287) ... OL Thomas Worley (6-3, 250) Longview: S Jephaniah Lister (121 tackles, 8 TFL, sack, FF, FR, 5 PBU) ... DL Jaylon Allen (49 tackles, 16 TFL, 7 sacks) ... DL Sawyer Goram-Welch (62 tackles, 15 TFL, 5 sacks, 3 FF) ... DL Jared Reese (37 tackles, 7 TFL) ... DL Jordan Wallace (10 TFL, 2 sacks) ... LB Ja'Vontae Writt (119 tackles, 15 TFL, 3 sacks, 2 FF, 3 FR) ... LB Tyshawn Taylor (111 tackles, 11 TFL, 2 sacks, FF, FR, PBU) ... LB Robert Pierce (51 tackles, 6 INTs, 2 PBU, 3 TFL, sack) ... LB Michael Martin (55 tackles, 7 TFL, 2 sacks, 2 FF, 2 FR, PBU, INT) ... S Jacob Johnson (5 PBU, 2 INTs) ... DB Isiah Rodgers (54 tackles, 9 PBU, INT, TFL, FF, FR) ... DB Dakirin Buchanan (48 tackles, 9 PBU, 2 TFL) By the numbers: West Brook is averaging 44.7 points and 459.2 yards (206.2 passing/253 rushing) per game ... QB Elia is averaging 10.7 yards per play with three 100-yard rushing games this season ... McGrue is averaging 9.4 yards per carry with eight 100-yard games this season ... Longview's defense is allowing an average of 18.7 points and 296.5 yards (151.2 passing/145.3 rushing) per game ... The Lobo defense is holding opponents to 4.2 yards per carry, 66-of-190 on third-down conversions and 17-of-37 on fourth down this season ... The Lobos have 105 tackles for loss, 30 sacks on the season and have come away with 27 turnovers on the season (15 fumble recoveries/12 interceptions) ... Longview has allowed 25 plays of more than 30 yards this season in 882 plays Keys: There's a few in this one and they all revolve around and start with QB Elia, a dynamic, dual-threat play maker with the ability to extend plays with the best of them. Elia can run or pass it and has plenty of playmakers around him to hit in West Brook's big-play offense. WR Johnson is a smooth operator with awareness and the ability to play the ball in the air. Look out when Simpson has the ball in his hands because that's when the trick play comes out whether it's a double pass off a screen or reverse. McGrue is a shifty and slippery back with elusive quickness and speed. Getting pressure on Elia from the start will be big for the Lobo defense, who is coming in off a 14 tackle for loss, 2-sack night in the semifinals against Tascosa. The Lobos have 12 players with at least three tackles for loss on the season and have used their rotation up front well throughout the postseason. Allen has been steady throughout the season while Reese and Wallace have come on strong. Junior Goram-Welch has 27 tackles, seven tackles for loss and three sacks in the playoffs. That depth up front will be key for the Lobos to get the pressure going. This will be a game of tackling well in space and having great eyes, which the Lobos should benefit from after seeing Tascosa's flexbone offense a week ago. Pressure and trust is the one-two punch for the Lobo defense. They said it: "We're going to have to play physical just like they are. We're going to have to execute the plays we have called offensively, hit some big plays and avoid turnovers and silly mistakes. At this point in the season, it's always a couple of big plays here or there and whoever turns the ball over less that comes away with a win. We've got to keep a level head, go out there and play our game." -- Peevey "We've got to limit the explosive plays. They've got more than the quarterback but it starts with him. Johnson and McGrue are home-run guys and there are more of them but those two have been the big-play guys throughout the postseason. Running it, catching it, double passes, trickery -- they do it all and have a bag of tricks. They're going to try to get out out of formation, get you out-leveraged and work the perimeter. When you start loosening up, they can hit you up the gut with McGrue. You've got to be ready for everything." -- King WHEN LONGVIEW HAS THE BALL West Brook: DL Markel Clark (5-11, 190; 64 tackles, 8 sacks, 3 FF, FR, 9 TFL) ... DL Aric Haynes (6-2, 280; 42 tackles, 8 sacks, 3 FF, FR, 9 TFL) ... DL Ryan Greenwood (6-1, 260; 70 tackles, 3 sacks, 4 TFL) ... DL Jay Bell (6-3, 190; 25 tackles, 10 sacks, 12 TFL) ... S Darrel Hawkins (5-11, 183; 158 tackles, 2 INTs) ... S Daniel Coleman (5-10, 170; 125 tackles, 4 FF, 6 FR, 7 TFL) ... LB Desmond Jackson (83 tackles, 3 sacks, 2 FF, 4 FR, 5 TFL) ... DB Drew Rawls (5-10, 170; 42 tackles, 2 INTs) Longview: OL Marcus Harry ... OL Kaylon Allen ... OL Parker Cox ... OL Joaquin Tovar ... OL Marcus Williams ... WR Kamden Perry (79 catches, 1,644 yards, 17 TDs) ... RB/FB Jessie Anderson (141 carries, 1,047 yards, 24 TDs; 14 catches, 200 yards, 2 TDs) ... RB Keilyn Williams (199 carries, 1,449 yards, 13 TDs; 21 catches, 480 yards, 6 TDs) ... WR Kaden Kearbey (25 catches, 466 yards, 4 TDs) ... QB Haynes King (167-246-4, 3,240 yards, 39 TDs; 59 carries, 503 yards, 7 TDs) ... ATH JD Williams (20 catches, 121 yards, 2 TDs) ... TE Daquavion Randall (5 catches, 50 yards, 3 TDs) ... TE Logan Peters (2 catches, 26 yards, TD) ... TE Jhailon Braden (5 catches, 80 yards, 2 TDs) ... RB Kaden Meredith (71 carries, 628 yards, 11 TDs; 18 kickoff returns, 616 yards, TD) ... DS Brady Miller ... P/K JK Martin (37 touchbacks; 6-8 FGs, 40 punt average) By the numbers: West Brook's defense allows an average of 24.9 points per game against opponents with a combined 106-69 record ... The Bruins have 31 takeaways on the season, 10 interceptions and 21 fumble recoveries ... Longview is averaging 50.7 points and 497.5 yards (221.7 passing/275.8) per game ... The Lobos have rushed for 250-plus yards 12 times this season with a high of 392 ... Longview has 181 passing yards in the past two games combined. In the previous 13 games, the Lobos averaged 241.8 passing yards per game ... Longview has four rushers with at least four touchdowns and 12 players with at least one receiving touchdown ... Longview is 76-of-119 on third down with an average of seven yards. 14-of-20 on fourth down and 4-for-4 on 2-point attempts ... The Lobos have 19 turnovers on the season -- 15 lost fumbles and four interceptions -- with six of those turnovers leading to points for opponents ... Longview has 35 plays of 30-plus yards in a 809 snaps on the season ... The Lobos have a 377:21 to 342:39 advantage in time of possession on the season ... Longview has been penalized 39 times in the playoffs Keys: Find a rhythm and stay balanced. The Lobos have been balanced throughout the season, aside from the past two games. Conditions played a factor against Westfield in a 286-yard night outing. Longview jumped to a 28-point lead only to see the offense sputter in the second half against Tascosa, where the Lobos have a season-low nine pass attempts. The ground game, which averages 7.4 yards per carry, has been steady but Longview needs both facets of its offense to keep the pedal down against the Bruin defense. Turnovers will be killers in this one with the two high-flying offense and the Lobos have turned the ball over nine times in the playoffs. The West Brook defense is anchored by the interior of the line with ball hawks in the secondary that thrive in close quarters. This is it so look for the Lobo offense to pull out all the stops. They said it: "We've got to try to slow down that run game that they have. When Haynes gets back there, we've got to keep pressure on him. He's an unbelievable quarterback that does a great job of controlling their offense and the weapons he has around him. You can tell he checks the play at the line of scrimmage to put them in the right situation at all times. When you have a coaches son, it always makes you nervous because that is a coach on the field. We've got to make sure to keep them off balance and keep some pressure on him." -- Peevey "Their interior guys are very athletic and disruptive, I'm taking 260-270 pound guys that can move. That's what we're looking at so we have to be steady up front. The speed at linebacker and safety is as good as anyone that we've played. We've got to stay out of negative plays and win on first down. If we get a third and long, that's when they pin their ears back and come at you. We have to be consistent. If it calls for running the ball to rest our defense or give them a break, we've got to be able to do that and run some block. If it means we've got to match score-for-score, we've got to be able to do that. We're going to load the wagon and be ready for whatever it calls for." -- King Did you know: This is the third meeting between the two teams. West Brook won, 34-33, in 2016 in Beaumont. Longview took a 42-21 win in 2017 at Lobo Stadium ... West Brook is in the state final for the second time in program history with a state title in 1982 ... Longview is in the championship for the fifth time with a state title in 1937 ... The Lobos have 15 wins for the first time in program history Twitter-sized preview: A grudge match between two high-flying offense. This one comes down to whoever turns the ball over less and whichever defense can come up with a few key stops. Look for both teams to empty the playbook in a game that promises to be full of fireworks. |