Leopards to battle dominant Lorena
ROYSE CITY, Texas—The bright lights of Royse City ISD Stadium aren’t too bright for Liberty-Eylau.
The Leopards (4-7) will take on Lorena (10-1) in a Class 4A, Division II area playoff game at 6 p.m. today at the stadium.
“We’re very familiar with playing at Royse City Stadium,” Liberty-Eylau head coach Steve Wells said. “We’ve played there the last four years a lot. It’s a great stadium.
“Lorena is a good ball club. I actually watched them play in person the other night in Corsicana. Their quarterback seemed to be pretty accurate. He’s also a really good runner. I think he threw for 1,500 yards last year, so we’re going to have to contain him.”
Bradley Lina will lead the Lorena Leopards offensively from under center. Lina has completed 137 of 219 passes for 2,306 yards and 24 touchdowns this season.
Liberty-Eylau is lead by a quartet of seniors offensively in, who will share a bevy of the offensive production.
Marzavin Riles has caused fits for opposing defenses the past few weeks. Last week, he gashed Caddo Mills for 107 yards on seven totes and three touchdowns.
Isaiah Cross will guide the Leopards from his quarterback position but also will burn the field with his legs, if given the opportunity. Cross leads LibertyEylau’s ground attack, rushing 125 times for 747 yards and seven touchdowns this season. He also has completed 88 of 182 passes for 1,338 yards and 16 touchdowns.
El-Amin Greer is a two-way player for L-E who can change the game offensively or defensively for the Leopards. Greer has 14 grabs for 302 yards and three touchdowns, while also collecting four interceptions on defense.
Shayne Porche is another two-way athlete for the Leopards who could also take one back on special teams at any moment. Porche took a Caddo Mills kick 65 yards to seal the victory for Liberty-Eylau in the bi-district round.
“Lorena has four or five really good receivers we will have to matchup with” Wells said. “Their running backs also are good catching the ball out of the backfield. They don’t run anything that we haven’t seen. If we play well, we have a good shot.
“We have no room to be overconfident,” Wells said. “I don’t see this team having that problem. We played a really tough non-district schedule, but like I told them in practice, iron sharpens iron. We played the best teams in the state in a division above us. Now we’re playing in Division II.”
Opponents are averaging 15.7 points per game this season against Lorena, while Liberty-Eylau is giving up an average of 35.0 points per game.
“When it comes to getting that gold ball, it matters about your schedule,” Wells said. “It doesn’t always look pretty, but we’ve always played a tough schedule. It prepares us for this time of the year. Our kids are excited for the opportunity they have in front of them.”
The winner will take on Rusk (5-6) or Pittsburg (8-3) next week in the regional round.