Jump to content

Area Round: Athens vs. Kennedale


AthenianDem83

Athens vs Kennedale  

15 members have voted

  1. 1. Who wins?



Recommended Posts

Will be interesting ... following an interesting matchup last year .... I think it will boil down to defense ... or who has the ball last like last year ....

 

Kennedale and Athens feature similar backs who run with different styles:

 

Wadley, Kennedale ............. 195 carries .... 2,267 yards ... 11.6 ave ... 42 TDs

L. Fuller, Athens ................. 277 carries .... 2,006 yards ... 7.2 ave ..... 31 TDs

 

Kennedale also features another back with over 1,000 yards ... Wells has 1,198 yards for a 12 yard average with 17 TDs ... Travon Fuller of Athens can't be far below the 1,000 yard mark and provides his share of big plays ....

 

Kennedale's defense is the region's leader in least points allowed per game, but Kaufman gained over 500 yards total offense in their matchup ...

 

Kennedale is the favorite .... but I'm backing the Hornets .....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This should be a great matchup for both teams. I believe Kennedale is suspect against a balanced offense that runs and passes well. They may do better against a team that is run heavy like Athens. It will be tough to stop Kennedale's offense.....they will get their yards and scores. So it should come down to which defense plays better. I think both offenses will get plenty of yards and look for a high scoring game. It could come down to which team has the ball with 4 minutes left in the game.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My 8-4A homer pick:

Athens. I think Athens will be the best team that Kennedale has faced since they played Kaufman. I also believe that by virtue of games played against stiffer competition, Athens defensive and offensive lines may be better prepared to handle Kennedale's. Get a turn over here and there and who knows?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My Two Cents Worth ....

 

Just like last year, Kennedale has played a rather soft schedule, with only Alvarado and Kaufman, as opponents, having a winning record for the season. Offensively, they certainly have the firepower to score quickly and score often, averaging 61 points a game. Defensively, they have one of the top defenses in the region in stats, but most of their opponents have not been offensive powers. Regardless, they are held five teams to under 104 yards in total offense.

 

To me, the Kennedale defense appears to be a bit of a hybrid cross between a Celina 10-1 and a Gap Mirror 10-1. They average giving up only 14.3 points per game and 195 yards per game – 107 per game on the ground and 88 through the air. And although watching them in the secondary, they appear to be somewhat suspect with their unorthodoxed alignment, coverage, and design, they have been successful in holding opponents to a completion rate of only about 25%. Of the big plays I have seen them yield, most were misdirectional runs and passes.

 

Crowley, Kaufman, Alvarado, FW Dunbar, and Dallas Carter (the 2nd time) were the only teams that exceeded a total offense of over 140 yards:

Kaufman at 514 (264 yds rushing, 250 yds passing), Alvarado at 375 (176 rushing, 199 passing), Crowley at 276 (131 rushing, 145 passing), Dallas Carter at 238 (185 rushing, 53 passing), and FW Dunbar at 245 (136 rushing, 109 passing).

 

Kaufman scored 35, Dallas Carter 27 and 26 (although of the 27 DC scored in the first meeting came off of three kickoff returns for Tds – which I had never heard of before), Crowley scored 24, and Alvarado scored 21 (although all of the 21 came in the 4th Qtr after Kennedale had amassed at 42-0 lead by the end of the 3rd).

 

Then the question that needs an answer – Is Kennedale beatable? Is all of this information above meaningful? Maybe; maybe not. Maybe it means that Athens needs to play keep away, run the clock, score on each drive, limit giving up the big play and make them earn every yard, and most of all force Kennedale to have to play with intensity for 48 full minutes – something they have seldom had to do. Can Athens do that … I never count out a team with a good runningback. Especially one that has the potential of carrying the load for his team on his back. However, he can't do it alone. Defensively, I am thinking that Athens just can't line up in their basic 5-2 package and combat what Kennedale's offense does. It's going to take something more.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I agree....I think the key to how good Kennedale may be is their defense. It's very obvious their offense is powerful and WILL break some long runs for scores. That's why I say a good balanced offense will give them more trouble than a run-heavy team like they are. Their starting D practices against their starting O. Their entire program from grade school is based on the run and stopping the run. Their district is just not very competitive, so it's difficult to accurately assess this team. If Athens could effectively throw the ball, then I think we could see a possible upset here. But I have a feeling Kennedale will limit the Athens running attack and will not have to be concerned with a passing game. Kennedale can and will score lots of points on offense. They are a very, very good running team.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Doesn't Kennedale run a wing T style offense? What style of offense does Athens run?

 

They are similar in that they both mix the Wing and Slot T .... however, it kinda ends there if you look below the surface.

 

In the Wing, Athens uses two tights ... while Kennedale uses 1 tight and 1 split.

In the Slot, Athens uses the "Nasty" Slot ... while Kennedale uses the more conventional slot and split end.

 

Athens' attack is more FB-based, while Kennedale's is more TB-based.

 

In blocking schemes and play patterns, Athens is more aligned with the Texas-New Mexico Slot T, while Kennedale is more along the lines of the West Texas Wing-T.

 

Both use motion, but Athens prefers motioning with the slot while Kennedale uses more wing motion.

 

Athens throws more often that Kennedale, but usually has to break the Wing/Slot to do so.

 

Athens uses a lot more unbalanced and end-over sets than Kennedale ... Kennedale prefers to motion to try and create similar mismatches in alignment.

 

Athens also uses a Wing-Slot Combo with "jet" motion to create fly sweep opportunities for the "other" Fuller ... as the year has gone along, Kennedale has also added some one back (mostly used for QB keepers)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Will be interesting ... following an interesting matchup last year .... I think it will boil down to defense ... or who has the ball last like last year ....

 

Kennedale and Athens feature similar backs who run with different styles:

 

Wadley, Kennedale ............. 195 carries .... 2,267 yards ... 11.6 ave ... 42 TDs

L. Fuller, Athens ................. 277 carries .... 2,006 yards ... 7.2 ave ..... 31 TDs

 

Kennedale also features another back with over 1,000 yards ... Wells has 1,198 yards for a 12 yard average with 17 TDs ... Travon Fuller of Athens can't be far below the 1,000 yard mark and provides his share of big plays ....

 

Kennedale's defense is the region's leader in least points allowed per game, but Kaufman gained over 500 yards total offense in their matchup ...

 

Kennedale is the favorite .... but I'm backing the Hornets .....

 

Noticed where the FW Star-Teleg reported that Wadley ended up the game last Friday on crutches ...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...