East Lake (11-0) at Braden River (10-0)
When: Friday at 7:30pm
Where: Pirate Stadium-Bradenton, Florida
TV: Channel 47 and HD 1147
Live streaming: log onto bhsnlive.com to watch the game LIVE and on demand
Coaches: Bob Hudson is in his 12th season as East Lake Head Coach with a 89-47 record while Curt Bradley is in his 3rd season at Braden River with a 16-13 overall mark.
How they match up: For the second straight year, East Lake marches into the postseason undefeated. Last season, the Eagles were able to take it one step further and earn a berth in the state semifinals. To get there and beyond again, they will need a few things to happen.
The first is George Campbell needs to continue to be a dominant force. Earlier in the season against Tarpon Springs, he took over that game unlike any athlete we saw this year on the GOW. He is also the player in these playoffs who can hurt you without touching the ball because he commands so much attention. RBs Drew Couto and Cedric Frierson need to take advantage of that and run free. Meanwhile, QB Jake Hudson can relax, make extra plays with guys like Sophomore WR Bryce Miller, and know that when in doubt, throw it to Campbell!
Defensively, the Eagles are intimidating and championship caliber. Senior OLB Carson Lydon needs to elevate his game for the next month like Mike Mirabella (Plant) and Ramik Wilson (Jefferson) did during the last two bay area public school title runs. Seniors Christian Panduro and Regis Steighner give the Eagles all the beef they need up front. And when they need a stop on third down, Campbell comes off the bench to provide a nice pass rush on the edge. If most of these things happen Friday, Braden River will not have much of a chance.
At the same time, the Pirates have to force East Lake to play their game. That style is spreading things out, getting the ball to players like RBs Carlos Crawford and Raymond Thomas in space and letting them find the creases. Pinellas Park was able to take the Pirates out of that style for about a half
last week. But too many turnovers and too much time on the field took their defense out of system and the Pirates capitalized. Junior QB Jacob Huesman is impressive to watch because he can make any throw. Altogether, the Pirates must have a near perfect offensive effort with Huesman distributing, the line
protecting and the receivers catching the football. WR Justin Ross was rather quiet last week. He should be able get deep on the East Lake secondary.
Defensively, Braden River will be at a huge size disadvantage. East Lake will score points but where the Pirates can win is in the turnover battle. They forced five last week against Pinellas Park. They've forced a remarkable 25 all season and are skilled at stripping the football and forcing INTs. So the plan will be the
same...turn East Lake over! If they can't do that, the defense must get off the field on 3rd down and stay fresh because from a depth perspective, the Eagles will have more fresh bodies in the 4th qtr.
Things to know:
1.) This is the only playoff game in the Tampa Bay area this week featuring two unbeaten teams.
2.) East Lake continues a pipeline of players into College Football. Last year's seniors Artavis Scott (Clemson), Mason Cole (Michigan) and Devin Abraham (USF) have all settled in as freshmen starters for their respective teams.
3.) Both teams have been dominant this season by an almost identical margin over the opposition. East Lake is beating opponents by an average of 25.7 points while Braden River has been 25.9 points better.
4.) Braden River coach Curt Bradley is the son of former MLB player Phil Bradley. Phil can be seen on top of the home side wearing a headset and working as an offensive assistant.