DAVID BARBER
Sports Correspondent
With their 38-30 bi-district victory Nov. 15 over the Athens Hornets, the Van Vandals have earned the right to move on to the Area round of the Class 4A, Division 2 state football playoffs as they will face an unknown opponent, the Van Alstyne Panthers.
Kickoff for the Area round matchup is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 22 at Mesquite Memorial Stadium. The Vandals and the Panthers are both 8-3 entering the contest.
Van Alstyne, the District 5-4A, Division 2 champion, captured their seventh consecutive win Nov. 15 with a dominating 56-15 victory over the Ferris Yellowjackets.
“They lost three games in a row early in the season to Alvarado, Aubrey, and Paris,” pointed out Vandal Head Football Coach Jared Moffatt. “None of those teams are chumps. They are playing with a ton of confidence right now. They have scored a lot of points. They have not scored less than 32 points in any game this season. They have scored over 40 points in half of their games.
“Their quarterback is a really good player,” continued Moffatt. “He is a dang good athlete. He is such a good runner. They have good receivers. We will have to play really well defensively against them.”
Van Alstyne will run an ‘odd-front’ defense, according to Moffatt. “They have given up some points, so it is important for us to score points in this game,” emphasized Moffatt. “This is a really good matchup. They look a lot like us. They are dangerous because they are playing with a lot of confidence. This should be a great Texas high school playoff game with a lot on the line.”
The Panthers operate out of the ‘spread’ formation offensively as they will show multiple looks, according to the Vandal head coach.
“They will show a lot of quarterback-designed runs in their offense,” pointed out Moffatt. “He is the key to their offense. He presents a great challenge to our defense trying to contain him.”
The winner of the Van/Van Alstyne matchup will draw the winner of the Nov. 21 contest between Gilmer and Sunnyvale, two teams that the Vandals have already faced this season.
A potential Van/Gilmer matchup could be played in Tyler at Christus Mother Frances Rose Stadium in an afternoon game Friday, Nov. 29.
For results of the Vandals’ Area round playoff game against Van Alstyne, check out www.vanzandtnews.com.