Allen’s Eagle Stadium will play host to one of the best matchups that high school football in Texas can provide as Cedar Hill and Allen will be headlining the 2017 Tom Landry Classic come Friday night.
Both programs have combined for 7 state titles in the past 11 years and expect this game to be nothing short of spectacular as the level of football to be witnessed and played by these teams will provide an electric atmosphere that will be identical to playoff game in December.
Expect both teams to be fast and aggressive and for several key matchups to definitely be worth watching.
The defensive line for Cedar Hill is a hornet’s nest waiting to swarm to any location on the field. The defensive line has incredible pursuit ability and it will be noticeable from the get go especially in players such as Shabazz Dotson. The secondary led by Donnavan Collins and Courtney Ogilvie is a prime example of blanket coverage.
Cedar Hill has tremendous size along the offensive line especially at the tackle positions which has definitely allowed Cedar Hill offensively to spread out their opponent knowing that the front line has the athleticism to uphold their blocking assignments.
Though the talent along the frontlines is exceptional, they will have their work cut out for them as Allen can and will counter the speed and athleticism of Cedar Hill with their strength and gap pluggers in defensive end Deondre Davis and defensive tackle Jayden Jernigan. Davis, whose edge rush gives tackles the task of moving their feet quickly to maintain him is the perfect combination to Jernigan’s ability to bull rush his opponent and physically dominate the interior of the line.
Photo via Rick Castillo, TexasHSFootball.com
But Cedar Hill has speed and it is dangerous. Cedar Hill is a nightmare in open space and will definitely beat you out on the edges if you give them the ability to do so. Running back Cameron Fleming has phenomenal speed yet even more impressive has tremendously quick and powerful feet that allow him to maneuver in-and-out of traffic with ease and containing him from going to the mid and secondary levels will have to be a priority for Allen.
Josh Fleeks is one player that can shift the momentum of the game at a second’s notice and whether it’s posing a deep threat or taking a quick pass up the field for a huge gain, Fleeks has that “go-to” factor when a play is needed to be made.
Quarterbacks Shayne Lawrence and Yizalle Whitfield have been splitting time at the quarterback position with Lawrence starting the first couple of series in Cedar Hill’s last scrimmage. Lawrence has the ability to uncork the ball downfield with his exceptional arm and can provide that home run play with his arm at will. Whitfield on the other hand seems to have a good chemistry and rhythm with the receivers and in the last scrimmage for Cedar Hill, it was Whitfield who got the offense going and conducted a good amount of the scoring to with his quick reads and passes.
Photo via Joseph Nguyen, TexasHSFootball.com
Allen’s Grant Tisdale played sparingly last year but has the physical attributes to be a productive signal caller especially with the likes of the agile and quick running back Brock Sturges and their playmaking receiver in Theo Wease.
Sturges produced a remarkable year last season as he split time in the back field and now that he is the biggest weapon in the backfield, his season could be an even more special one.
Allen does a great job at controlling the game tempo and physically exhausting their opponents and it will definitely help fend off the speed that Cedar Hill has. Allen is very balanced and is methodical in their ball movement but has the weapons offensively to match Cedar Hill.
Allen has an exceptional secondary that is flooded with talent. Players such as Jevon Jones, Colton Manning, Devyn Butler and C.J. Johnson compose a secondary that would make any quarterback think twice before testing them.
All that remains at this point is kickoff. This game is chop full of talent in both the players and coaches that will be in this game and it surely to be a spectacle to behold as the 2017 season begins.
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