For the Kennedale Wildcat football team the hope is that the pre-district schedule is more like Sherman?s March to the Sea and not The Charge of the Light Brigade.
Kennedale does have a dangerous five game schedule with three solid 4A teams and two tough 3A teams. Two of the five did not make the playoffs but are good shots to make it this year. Another was an area finalist. {{more}}Another was a regional semifinalist and is currently ranked #5 in the AP preseason 3A high school football poll.
The stretch this year starts Friday night with the Crowley Eagles (8-4A) at home. This is followed by two away games, Mansfield Legacy Broncos (15-4A) and Dallas Wilmer-Hutchinson (11-3A). For homecoming the following week, the Wildcats play Argyle (10-3A) and end pre-district play with Texarkana Texas High Tigers (14-4A) at home.
Coach Barrett was not satisfied with last week?s scrimmage against Crandall (14-3A). The scrimmage was called five minutes in the first quarter because of lightning in the area.
?We scored the first two times we had the ball in those five minutes. But we did get quite the work in that I had hoped.?
The Wildcats did lose one player with a major injury, Troy Austin. Austin is a new student this year. He had a serious arm break and will be out for the season.
Under the lights this week, the Wildcats lineup against Crowley, a team that they surprised last year. In a wild game, Kennedale struggled to keep up with the Eagles in the first quarter but came back to score 28 points in the second and then took control of the game in the fourth to win 42-38.
That would be the only loss for Crowley as they swept through district play and made it into the playoffs to become an area finalist. They ended with a 10-2 season.
Crowley did lose a huge senior class last year and is predicted to finish 4th in their district. But this is a tough 4A district that includes teams from Waco, Burleson, Everman, Cleburne and Joshua.
One player that did not graduate and was a serious threat every time he was on the field was QB Matt Marner (Sr.). He finished the year throwing for nearly 1600 yards. Five starters are back on the defensive side and the team is said to have the same type of speed and quickest they had last year.
Game time is 7:30 p.m. at Wildcat Stadium, 901 Wildcat Way.
