STORY BY: JORDAN MESEROLE
– BRYAN – For the second week in a row, the Rudder Rangers will face a Pflugerville ISD football team, this time squaring off against the Connally Cougars on Friday night in Pflugerville.
And the Rangers’ (1-6-1, 0-4) task of getting back into the win column will be just as tough as last week, as Connally (6-2, 2-2) has only dropped games this season against district foes Pflugerville Hendrickson and Hutto who are standing first and second in district 16-4A respectively as of week eight.
The Cougars are looking to stay in the tight race for the final playoff spot in the district, and will be carrying a lot of energy forward from last week’s victory over Bastrop.
Leading the charge for Connally will be junior quarterback Dajon Williams, who threw four touchdown passes on just 178 yards in last week’s win. Williams has also connected on passing scores of more than 50-yards four times this season, and is averaging two scores a game. In the backfield with Williams will be running back Dae Payton, who has multiple touchdown games this season, including single game performances of five and four touchdowns earlier this season.
Despite the 25-18 loss last week, Rudder’s offense will look to continue its marked improvements that started with their almost upset-defeat of first place ranked Hendrickson. Ranger junior running back Tre Guyton has been a bright spot for Rudder’s offense this season, racking up 757 rushing yards and nine touchdowns. He has hit the century mark in rushing yards in four games this season, including a 153-yard performance last week. Senior quarterback Jamarcus Davenport will also look to continue his improvements, who came into last week only averaging 3.5 completions per game. Davenport was 8-for-11 on passing attempts, and also had a rushing touchdown last Friday.
Defensively, the Rangers’ secondary also showed improvement last week, breaking up several pass attempts and recording numerous tackles. Seniors Austin Baron and Brenden Steptoe each had seven tackles, and the front line helped with the pressure as senior Kendall Lewis recorded two sacks. Senior linebacker Kody Burton has also been a constant figure in the game plan for Rudder, and leads the team with 55 tackles on the season.
Most importantly for the Rangers, they will look to notch their first district victory this season, and avoid going winless in district for the third time in four seasons.
Kickoff is set for 7:30 in Pflugerville.