When: Friday, November 27th
Where: Birdville Fine Arts/Athletic Complex
Listen: Pregame show at 1:30pm

AP #6 Abilene Eagles (11-0 / 6-0 in 3-5A) – The Eagles are coming off an enormous 45-7 playoff victory over the 1-5A district champs, El Paso Coronado. Abilene handed the Thunderbirds their first loss of the season thanks to the remarkable effort from QB Ronnell Sims and his cousin, RB Herschel Sims. The two talented athletes combined for 171 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground to help propel Abilene into the third round. Although the Eagles primarily run the ball, Ronnell Sims helps add another dimension as he has completed 63% of his passes this season and has thrown for over 1300 yards along with 18 passing touchdowns. Herschel Sims has helped his cousin’s passing numbers with 22 catches out of the backfield for 372 yards and five touchdowns. The Eagle defense surrendered 290 yards of total offense to the Thunderbirds but clamped down when it mattered most giving up only seven points. Abilene continues to put forth a solid effort on the defensive side of the ball as it gives up an average of just 11.5 points per game. In order to keep their 2009 season alive, it is imperative that the Eagles take care of the football and avoid mental mistakes because the Longhorns thrive on transforming turnovers into points.

AP #1 Cedar Hill Longhorns (12-0 / 6-0 in 7-5A) – The Longhorns have faced two different styles of offense to begin the 2009 postseason. In the opening round, Cedar Hill’s defense held one of the area’s top passers in Plano West’s Michael Pruneau to just 177 yards and a touchdown. Last week, the Horns were faced with the tall task of stopping the incredible ground attack of the Marcus Marauders. Cedar Hill not only held Marcus to 167 rushing yards but also recovered three Marauder fumbles, and heading into the game, Marcus had not lost a fumble all season. The Longhorn offense was powered once again by RB Mason Hayes who ran for 125 yards on just 12 carries including three rushing touchdowns. The Marcus defense forced QB Driphus Jackson to make quick decisions throughout the contest, specifically with his feet, and Head Coach Joey Maguire was extremely pleased with Jackson’s decision making on third downs as his signal caller finished the game with nine carries for 69 yards. Coach Maguire was quoted after the game stating that Jackson was “really special and made all the right reads.” The Longhorns will face another explosive running game this week when they square off against the talented Abilene Eagles. With two great running attacks going head-to-head, the Longhorns will need to dominate time of possession to secure their 13th victory of the season.