4B
Friday, December 19, 2014
Denton Record-Chronicle
ARGYLE GAMEDAY Argyle (15-0) vs. Navasota (15-0), 4 p.m., Arlington’s AT&T Stadium, FSSW By Steve Gamel and Adam Boedeker/Staff Writers
ARGYLE RESULTS
NAVASOTA RESULTS
W, 34-28 vs. Abilene Wylie at Denison W, 42-35 W, 41-29 vs. Celina at Graham W, 35-27 W, 38-14 at Paris at Carrollton Ranchview* W, 72-42 W, 65-7 vs. Wilmer-Hutchins* at Dallas Carter * W, 56-14 W, 65-14 vs. Dallas Pinkston* at Sanger* W, 44-7 Bi-district round vs. Lake Worth W, 70-7 Area round vs. Kaufman W, 49-13 Regional semifinals vs. Kennedale W, 52-48 Regional final vs. Texarkana Liberty-Eylau W, 45-42 State semifinals vs. Graham W, 23-20 *-District 6-4A (Division I)
W, 62-0 vs. Nuevo Leon (Mexico) at Houston Yates W, 66-13 W, 35-14 vs. Coldspring-Oakhurst vs. Rogers (Ark.) Heritage W, 49-10 at Fort Worth Castleberry W, 56-3 at Houston Sterling* W, 87-12 W, 65-6 at Sealy* vs. Houston Furr* W, 85-0 W, 56-0 at Houston Wheatley* vs. Houston Washington* W, 77-0 Bi-district round vs. Needville W, 55-15 Area round vs. Tyler Chapel Hill W, 49-28 Regional semifinals vs. El Campo W, 54-36 Regional final vs. Henderson W, 34-14 State semifinals vs. Liberty Hill W, 49-26 *-District 11-4A (Division I)
SCOUTING ARGYLE
SCOUTING NAVASOTA
Offense There’s no question about what drives the Eagles’ offense this year, but they’re becoming increasingly balanced. Running back Nick Ralston has 2,546 yards and 43 touchdowns — 16 in the playoffs. Ralston has verbally committed to Arizona State. Quarterback Cooper Rodgers, who has 2,601 passing yards and 33 touchdowns and has improved steadily throughout the season, provides balance and has multiple targets to work with. Wide receiver Drew Estrada leads the team with 1,108 yards and 14 touchdowns. Defense After several months of lopsided wins, the Argyle defense found itself giving up a combined 90 points in playoff wins over Kennedale and Texarkana Liberty-Eylau. The Eagles found ways to win both, then rebounded to hold off Graham for a 23-20 win in last week’s Class 4A Division I semifinals. This is a unit that can’t be taken lightly and has made key stops to give its offense a chance to win. Junior linebacker Taylor Sweatt leads the team with 180 tackles.
Offense The Rattlers sport several marquee players in head coach Lee Fedora’s up-tempo, quick-strike offense, but the two biggest stars are junior quarterback Shelton Eppler and his top pass catcher, junior wide receiver Tren’Davian Dickson. Eppler is one touchdown pass shy of tying former Refugio quarterback Travis Quintanilla’s single-season Texas record for touchdown passes (68), while Dickson, a Baylor pledge, broke the national high school record for singleseason touchdown receptions with his 35th of the season in last week’s win over Liberty Hill. The Rattlers have plenty of other weapons, including running back Lamarquis Jefferson (671 rushing yards, 11 touchdowns), who replaced starter Derrion Randle after he was lost for the season with a broken leg. Defense Much like on offense, the Rattlers are loaded with athletes on the defensive side of the ball and have several capable playmakers. One of their most dangerous players is linebacker Coy Imhoff, who enters the game with 156 tackles this season, which is good for second on the team behind Taylor Soto’s 165 stops. The Rattlers have a dangerous force out wide in cornerback Jerbrell Lipscomb, a North Texas pledge who doubles as one of the team’s top wide receivers. Up front, the Argyle offensive front will have its hands full with Jabril Hunter and Christion Jones.
Matt Garnett/For the DRC
Argyle quarterback Cooper Rodgers, right, throws a pass during a regional semifinal playoff game against Kennedale on Nov. 28 in Mesquite.
Rodgers ready for last job By Steve Gamel
Class 4A Div. I final
Staff Writer sgamel@dentonrc.com
Matt Garnett/For the DRC
Argyle running back Nick Ralston carries the ball during a first-round playoff game against Lake Worth on Nov. 14 in Saginaw.
ARGYLE PLAYER TO WATCH Nick Ralston, RB, Sr. Ralston is competing in his third state title game and will be looking for his second ring. There was plenty of hype surrounding Argyle’s big back entering the season, and he’s done everything to live up to that while not missing a start. Ralston is averaging 7.49 yards per carry and has scored 43 touchdowns. If Navasota focuses on trying to shut Ralston down, it could open up opportunities in the passing game.
ARGYLE STATISTICS Individual statistics Rushing Carries-Yds-TDs Nick Ralston, 340-2,546-43 Gage McCook, 59-322-5 Erik Ramon, 23-249-6 Passing Comp-Att-Int Cooper Rodgers, 155-253-11; 2,601 yards, 33 touchdowns Receiving Rec-Yds-TDs Drew Estrada, 59-1,108-14 J.C. Chalk, 30-427-7 Gage McCook, 28-329-5 Hunter Markwardt, 11-292-4 Team statistics Points per game 48.7 Rushes-yards 546-3,570 Passing yards 2,733 Comp-att.-int. 162-269-12 Yards per game 420.2 Yards allowed per game 343.5 Points allowed per game 23.1 Rushing allowed per game 236.5 Passing allowed per game 107.1
ARGYLE — When Argyle senior Cooper Rodgers steps onto the field today at Arlington’s AT&T Stadium, he’ll have a chance to do something most former ball boys could only dream of: starting at quarterback in a state title game. That’s really the only task left for him to check off. As the son of longtime coach Todd Rodgers, Cooper — a backup during last year’s run to the Class 3A Division II title — has been working his way up the Eagles’ ladder since he was knee-high to a grasshopper. That includes being the ball boy for five years before moving on to write down offensive plays on the sideline as a freshman. A win today, this time as the clear-cut starter under center, would bring everything full circle. “It was still very special to have won a state title last year, but it would be a big deal to do it again, this time with me being able to contribute the way I have this year,” Cooper Rodgers said.
Notebook
Rodgers, who has thrown for 2,601 yards and 33 touchdowns, has always appreciated his roots. He was the team’s ball boy in fourth grade and kept that position through his eighth-grade year before transitioning to charting plays as a freshman. He was on varsity as a sophomore, and perhaps a part of him felt that he was capable of starting the next year as a junior, but he patiently waited his turn, as last year’s team had a loaded roster of 29 seniors. He broke through this year and has provided some much-needed balance on offense. “I’ve loved contributing at all levels with this program, and when I see these ball boys now, it makes me realize how important they really are and how hard they work,” he said. “Maybe I didn’t feel like I was as big a part of the team in the past, but as it turns out, I now see just how much I did contribute.”
Ramon going for three-peat To say Erik Ramon is no
stranger to championship weekend would be an understatement. The Eagles’ senior defensive back/running back will suit up for his third title game in a row — his first at Argyle. Ramon was with Guyer during its back-to-back Class 4A state title seasons in 2012 and 2013 before transferring to Argyle last offseason. He was suited up for the Wildcats’ 48-37 win over Georgetown as a sophomore but didn’t get a chance to play. Last year, he caught one pass for five yards as Guyer beat San Antonio Brennan 31-14. “It’s been a crazy ride,” said Ramon, who played receiver at Guyer. “I’m pretty sure there aren’t many people out there that can say they’ve gone to three of these with two teams, much less be able to say they won all three. Hopefully that will be the case this year.”
Got ice? He may have smirked when he said it, but senior running back Nick Ralston wasn’t kidding when he said following Argyle’s 23-20 win over Graham last week that he would likely
take up to three ice baths a day to prepare his body for today’s state title game. The Arizona State pledge has averaged 12 of those cold therapy sessions per week during a season in which he’s amassed 2,546 yards and 43 touchdowns. He said he started the ritual last year, though he’s much more dilligent about it now. “It really does help a ton,” Ralston said. “It’s a gradual process, but after the first two or three you are really feeling a lot better. I didn’t worry about taking care of my body as much when I was younger, but I’ve realized just how important it is.” Ralston has 340 carries entering today’s game, and said he feels as fresh as he did in August. Some of Ralston’s other rituals include drinking more than a gallon of water every day and eating right, while adding protein shakes and lots of stretching. STEVE GAMEL can be reached at 940-566-6869 and via Twitter at @Newspaper Steve.
KEY MATCHUP Argyle offensive line vs. Navasota defensive line
Argyle will run the football with running back Nick Ralston, but his success will be determined by whether the Eagles’ offensive line can control the line of scrimmage against a Navasota front that’s as tough as they come. Argyle’s playoff opponents — most recently Graham — have been able to slow the Eagles’ run game at times but not for a full
four quarters. Against Graham, veteran linemen such as Matt Hiter and Matt Waggoner helped pave the way against the Steers late in the fourth quarter, and the result was a clock-chewing drive to set up what proved to be the game-winning field goal with just over a minute left. Ralston busted off runs of 15, 30 and 9 yards on that
drive. He finished with 150 yards and a score after being held to 48 yards in the first half. The Rattlers have athletes everywhere on defense, evidenced by the fact that they’ve given up just under 12 points per game and have pitched four shutouts. Defensive end Jabril Hunter has 86 tackles with 22 behind the line of scrimmage and nine sacks.
Christion Jones has 89 tackles, 15 of which went for a loss. While he’s not a lineman, linebacker Coy Imhoff has been an absolute nightmare for opposing offenses all year. He heads to Arlington with 156 tackles. As a unit, Navasota’s defense has given up an average of 197.3 yards per game.
FOUR DOWNS: KEYS TO TODAY’S GAME
1
Win the battle of the turnover margin
Argyle has forced 10 turnovers in its five playoff games, and coach Todd Rodgers stressed the need to keep it going against a Navasota offense that doesn’t make a lot of mistakes. In 15 games, the Rattlers have committed just 19 turnovers. Quarterback Shelton Eppler has 67 touchdowns against 11 interceptions. Conversely, Argyle has thrown five interceptions in its last three games.
2
Establish long scoring drives
The best way to slow down Tren’Davian Dickson and Shelton Eppler is to keep them off the field. Navasota is averaging 541 yards per game compared with the Eagles’ 420.2, but Argyle isn’t interested in a quick-strike offense. Look for Argyle to set up slow, methodical drives to control the clock and wear down the Rattler defense.
3
Utilize as many defensive looks as possible
Argyle isn’t going to change the way it plays defense, but Rodgers said it will be important to confuse Eppler as much as possible with various shifts and blitzes while eliminating the chance for a big play. Argyle has struggled defensively in the playoffs, but when the Eagles need a stop they typically get it.
4
Minimize big plays in the kicking game
This is easier said than done, but the Eagles have been pretty good all year at making sure there are no huge returns to give an opponent momentum. Navasota is a big-play machine waiting to capitalize on an Argyle mistake, and the last thing the Eagles want to do is give the Rattlers a short field to work with.
Sam Craft/The Eagle
Navasota quarterback Shelton Eppler throws a touchdown pass during the fourth quarter of the Rattlers’ 4926 state semifinal win over Liberty Hill last Friday in Waco.
NAVASOTA PLAYER TO WATCH Shelton Eppler, QB, Jr. The headlines go to Eppler’s top receiver, Tren’Davian Dickson, and with good reason. However, Eppler is the one getting him the ball on his 35 touchdown receptions, and he likes to spread the ball around to any number of dangerous weapons while completing 68.5 percent of his pass attempts. The Rattlers have four receivers with at least 25 catches, and Eppler is comfortable throwing the ball to any of them.
NAVASOTA STATISTICS Individual statistics Rushing Carries-Yds-TDs Derrion Randle, 101-1,104-14 Lamarquis Jefferson, 93-671-11 Jarvis Norman, 61-559-6 Kyondrick Philio, 37-398-6 Passing Comp-Att-Int Shelton Eppler, 257-375-11; 4,967 yards, 67 touchdowns Receiving Rec-Yds-TDs Tren’Davian Dickson, 78-1,988-35 Jerbrell Lipscomb, 55-947-6 Sammy Blair, 34-559-8 Davon Jernigan, 25-434-6 Team statistics Points per game 58.6 Rushes-yards 378-3,311 Passing yards 5,069 Comp-att.-int. 267-387-11 Yards per game 541.0 Yards allowed per game 197.3 Points allowed per game 11.8 Rushing allowed per game 139.1 Passing allowed per game 58.3