AUBREY CHAPARRALS
Coming off their bye week, the 0-3 Aubrey Chaparrals varsity football team returns to the gridiron for their first district matchup against the 2-1 River Oaks Castleberry Lions on Friday.
The Chaps will travel to W.O. Barnes Memorial Stadium to meet a well-rested Lions team fresh off a bye, with their last game ending in a 50-49 win over Benbrook on Sept. 11.
“They’re a talented team,” said Keith Ivy, Aubrey athletic director and head football coach. “They’re quarterback throws the ball well enough to keep you honest, and he’s a good runner, and their running back has a lot of juice, with some speed and quickness, so we’re certainly going to have to keep those guys in check.”
The Lions offense is led by quarterback David Duron, who has posted 343 yards and 4 touchdowns through the air and 205 yards and 1 TD on the ground, and running back Anthony Duron, who has added over 450 yards of total offense and 7 TDs.
Ivy emphasized that stopping explosive plays and making the Lions sustain longer drives will be key for the Chaps defense.
“They’re talented, so our big point of emphasis is continuing to get better in our fits, especially against the run, which is something our defense coordinator, Coach [Dana] Bloedel and his staff have done a good job with last week,” he said. “In our last game against Sanger, there were four or five plays where our fits weren’t right, and those cost us. If we fit properly, building a wall with the defensive line and our linebackers and secondary, we’ll be in a good position.”
On the other side of the ball, the Chaps’ offense will look to get things back on track after being held to 21 points in Week 3 against a Lions defense that has allowed opponents to average over 40 points per game so far this season.
“We’ve implemented a few new wrinkles going into district play that we think are going to fit out personnel well,” Ivy said. “We’ve been doing well with the things we were already doing, but we’ve been inconsistent at times, and we need to start fast and finish strong and be the best version of ourselves that we can be. Everyone just needs to do their jobs; play hard, protect the football and execute with a higher level of consistency for four quarters.”
Despite Aubrey’s lessthan- ideal start to the season, Ivy said the Chaps are looking forward to kicking off district play on Friday and still have all their goals for the season within reach.
“Outside of Lake Dallas, who was in our district before, we’ve never played most of these teams, so it's exciting to face some new teams, including Castleberry,” he said. “… We’ve had a week off to rest up and reevaluate some things, and we’re just excited to show some improvement this week and get that first win. One-zero is our motto for this week, and it starts Friday.”
Aubrey and Castleberry will get things underway at 7 p.m. Friday at W.O. Barnes Memorial Stadium in River Oaks.
