FOCUSED AND READY | Kilgore takes aim at Athens

Oct. 27—The definition of a trap game, according to Pro Football Focus: "A high-ranked team playing in a game that everyone expects them to win against a far lesser opponent (not necessarily a losing team)."

The Kilgore Bulldogs, you can be sure, are being reminded of this definition this week by coach Clint Fuller and the coaching staff, as Kilgore hosts Athens on Friday night at 7:30 p.m., here at R.E. St. John Memorial Stadium, a team long out of the District 9-4A, Division I playoff hunt.

Kilgore, fresh off an emotional, hard-fought, come-from-behind win over its biggest rival in Henderson, is now 7-1 on the season. The Bulldogs' only loss was non-district, a head-scratcher against Pine Tree. Kilgore has won five straight games since then, and is now 4-0 in district play, matching the district record of defending district champ Lindale — whom the Bulldogs will play in a road game next week.

Athens is 0-4 in district play, at the very bottom of the district standings, is completely out of the playoff scenario and hasn't won a game in over a month.

If ever there was a trap game, Kilgore faces one this Friday, ahead of a game that will definitely decide the district champion next week.

The Ragin' Red found themselves in a battle in Henderson last week, a Lions team that scratched and clawed and fought hard, and Kilgore did the same.

It boiled down to this: Kilgore trailed by 13 points, 34-21, with just over 10 minutes left in the game. Anyone who wasn't there missed a spectacular finish — if they would've been rooting for KHS.

Kilgore quarterback Da'Marion Van Zandt connected twice with Jermaine Roney, and then twice more with Corey Rider for a pair of touchdowns: the final one a 15-yarder that Rider had to dive for, then caught, with 2:40 left.

Henderson trailed by only one, 35-34, with that exact time left on the clock. And the Lions did manage to move the ball into scoring position, but the field goal would have been a very long one even for a college kicker (50-plus yards).

The Lions got the benefit of a pass interference penalty against Kilgore, but still wound up in fourth down and 10, right around the Kilgore 30-yard-line, still a 47-yard field goal at least.

Henderson elected to go for it, rather than kick the field goal, but with 11 seconds left, the ball was snapped away from quarterback Jacobe Robinson. Henderson players scrambled to get it, and it was picked up, but Kilgore tackled the ball carrier and took over on downs, with seemingly everyone in the stadium alarmed at the turn of events — Henderson fans, players and coaches were stunned with disappointment, and Kilgore's sideline and crowd exploded in jubilation as the time expired.

It was emotional, to say the least, and Kilgore has to keep its focus now and come back down to earth a bit and face the Athens Hornets, who haven't had anything close to that experience in the 2021 football season.

The Hornets are 4-4, and won their four non-district games, but since then, 2021's football season has been one to forget. The Hornets were loving life in August and September. They opened the season with four straight wins: Brownsboro (41-7), Waxahachie Life (40-7), Fairfield (43-14), and Wills Point (41-0).

Athens couldn't be touched by any of them, although their combined record is 9-24 (and Brownsboro has five of those wins).

Then District 9-4A play started. And the bottom fell out. Losses to Chapel Hill (57-21), Henderson (58-41), Lindale (64-29) and most recently Palestine (46-29) last week have Athens reeling.

Still, one thing is for sure: they will compete, and their backs are against the wall.

Athens' quarterback is Tivon Arroyo, a junior who has completed a little over half of his passes (122-of-207) for 1,719 yards, 19 touchdowns and eight interceptions. Athens has rushed for almost the same amount of yards (1,741), led by senior Jecorey Roberts, who has 839 yards and eight touchdowns on 132 carries. Arroyo has 628 yards rushing and also has eight touchdowns.

When the Hornets throw the ball, Jaden Crane is normally on the receiving end. Crane, a junior, has 492 yards and nine scores on 47 catches. No other Athens receiver has more than eight.

Defensively, look out for linebackers Cody McMichael and Timber Crouch. McMichael leads the team with 64 tackles; Crouch has 57. As a team, the Hornets have only six sacks, though, and 21 hurries all season. They have only two interceptions and 12 fumble recoveries in the entirety of the '21 season, to date.

Coming into the season, one of the biggest question marks for Kilgore was the offensive line. But starters Alex Cervantes, McCabe Wheeler, Justin Flores, Jared Rich, and Taylor Hill have answered that criticism and risen above it. Even though Van Zandt hasn't had a completely clean pocket and has been taken down a few times, the Bulldogs' O-line has kept him standing upright for the most part — and they've helped the offense produce, both on the ground and through the air.

Kilgore has, as a team, rushed for 1,658 yards and 26 touchdowns on 212 carries, much of that by Davin Rider (1,197 yards, 17 touchdowns on 114 carries — about 10 1/2 yards a carry). Isaiah Ross has 346 yards and three touchdowns on 53 carries, and Matthew Hardy, 34 carries for 206 yards and a score.

Van Zandt and the passing game have brought balance, just as Kilgore's passing game did a year ago. Van Zandt has completed 80-of-135 passes for 1,305 yards, 13 touchdowns and two interceptions.

Roney leads the team in catches (24) and has 340 yards and six touchdowns (also leads the team). Corey Rider and Dadrian Franklin each have 13 catches — Rider for 389 yards and five scores, and Franklin for 166 yards and a touchdown; and Matthew Tyeskie, who has 10 catches for 114 yards.

If the game comes down to special teams, Kilgore looks to be in great shape. Jose Jaime, the Bulldogs' punter, has kicked 18 times for 657 yards, and averages 36 1 / 2 yards a punt. Kicker Chris Baldazo has made 37-of-41 extra points and 3-of-5 field goals, two of them long (41, 40).

Defensively, Kilgore has faced 82 opponents' possessions and forced them to punt after three downs (three and outs) on 22 of those. The Bulldogs have allowed 1,529 rushing yards this year, 1,212 passing yards, and 2,741 total yards.

Chris Ervin leads the team in tackles (60), and tackles for loss (five). Kilgore has three interceptions this season (one each by Corey Rider, Ervin and Daverion Franklin), and 10 fumble recoveries, three of them by Ervin.

The Bulldogs have 15 sacks this season; Zaelen Matthews leads with 2 1/2. He has five hurries; Jackson Harris has four; and defensive end Alex Chavez has 10 to lead the team.

Hear the game through the call of the Ragin' Red Broadcasting team on KDOK 105.3-FM, and online on kdokradio.com, and there's also a live streaming audio cast; see Kilgore High School Facebook to locate that.

Kilgore, in the first season under Fuller, are ranked sixth in the Associated Press / Dave Campbell's Texas Football poll of UIL Class 4A, and also ranked sixth in the #bEASTTexas Fabulous 15 football poll.