The Aubrey Chaparrals football team will host the No. 1 ranked and reigning 4A Division I State Champion Celina Bobcats at Chaparral Memorial Stadium on Friday.
The Bobcats come into the contest riding a fivegame winning streak, with their most recent win being a 35-28 win over the No. 7 ranked Frisco Panther Creek Panthers on Sept. 26.
“They’re an outstanding team, and they’re playing very similar to where they were a year ago,” said Keith Ivy, Aubrey athletic director and head football coach. “… We know them well, and they know us. We see each other year-round, so they know our system, and we know theirs. That's no secret. It just comes down to who can execute better, so it'll be a hard-fought game on both sides.”
The familiar foes last met in the regional semifi nal round of last year’s playoffs, with Celina surviving a second-half comeback from Aubrey to take the win 63-49.
Quarterback Bowe Bentley, who totaled over 4,500 yards and 63 touchdowns last season, spearheads Celina’s offense along with running back Logan Gutierrez, who had 1,585 yards and 21 touchdowns in 2024.
“They’re led by one of the best quarterbacks in the state,” Ivy said. “[Bentley] could very well be the best we face all year. What makes him unique is not only is he extremely accurate with the ball, but he gets the ball out quick, and he’s an exceptional runner. … He can kill you with his feet and his arm so that gives us quite a challenge defensively for sure.”
Despite the Bobcats’ talent at the skill positions, Ivy hopes the Chaps can take advantage of the new faces along Celina’s offensive line to slow down their attack.
“We might have a little bit of advantage right there with the experience of those guys and how they’re playing right now,” he said. “One of their tackles, he's huge, but he's a sophomore, and he does tend to get beat from time to time on certain plays, so we're hoping we can capitalize there with our defensive front and get after them.”
The longtime rivals will kick things off at 7:30 p.m. Friday, and Ivy said the Chaps will be ready to defend Chaparral Memorial Stadium.
“Our kids are very proud, so we have to protect our home turf regardless of who is coming into town, but we do know their players and coaches very well, so that does bring a little more to the game,” he said. “We compete extremely hard against one another, and both sides hate to lose to the other, so it certainly brings a little more juice to the game. I know our guys will be ready, and they'll play as hard as they can. … We all look forward to it on Friday. It’ll be a great atmosphere.”
