By SCOTT TYLER
Sports Editor
BETHEL — The Cayuga Wildcats are not looking ahead or behind them.
The Wildcats are one more step towards returning to the state championship game and the team standing in their way is the same team they defeated last year.
But the Wildcats are not thinking ahead about the possibility of the state championship and they are not thinking about the rout over Ganado last year.
“We realize that we are in the state semifinals and when you get here all three of the other times are very good,” Cayuga head coach Tommy Allison said. “The kids have done a good job this season not looking back and not looking forward, but staying on one game at a time.”
Cayuga and Ganado square off in the Class A, Division II state semifinals at 5 p.m. Saturday at Woodforest Bank Stadium in Shenadoah, which is just south of Conroe on I-45.
The Wildcats (12-1) are not thinking about last year’s 42-7 win over Ganado when Cayuga dominated from the beginning.
“We know these guys are a good football team,” Allison said. “We are going to have to play our best to beat them.”
The Indians (9-4) have some familiar faces from last year, including quarterback Donavon Foster and running back Kevin Smith. Foster has rushed for nearly 900 yards and nine touchdowns. He also threw three touchdown passes in Ganado’s quarterfinal win last week.
Smith, who rushed for over 2,000 yards last year, has gained 832 yards and scored 12 touchdowns this season.
A new face on the Ganado offense is sophomore Josh Labay, who played on the varsity as a freshman, but only on defense. Labay leads the Indians with over 1,700 yards and 17 touchdowns.
“Offensively, they do a good job running the team,” Allison said. “They put three good running backs together in the backfield that can present a problem.”
Ganado also likes to use a lot of misdirection and trick plays in its offense. The Indians used a pair of trick plays on critical two-point conversion scores in their last two wins.
“On defense, we can’t guess where the ball is,” Allison said. “We have to trust our responsibilities and trust each other to do their jobs.”
Ganado has had a knack for the dramatic comeback the last two weeks. Two weeks ago, the Indians rallied to defeat La Pryor 29-28 in overtime. The Indians scored a touchdown and converted a two-point conversion in the fourth quarter to tie the game.
Then after La Pryor scored a touchdown to go ahead by seven in overtime, Ganado scored a touchdown and then scored on a two-point conversion on a trick play to win the game.
Last week, the Indians trailed by 14 points to undefeated Falls City with less than four minutes to play. Ganado scored two touchdowns to tie the game and then after a Falls City turnover, the Indians made a game-winning 29-yard field goal with six seconds left.
“They know how to win,” Allison said. “They finds ways to win in the playoffs and that is the most important thing you have to do in the playoffs.”
While Ganado has had a flare for the dramatics, Cayuga has gotten off to strong starts in the last two weeks. The Wildcats have jumped out to 25-14 lead over Lovelady and 28-7 against Mart at halftime.
“Getting out to a lead is something these kids have done well this season,” Allison said. “The offense moves the ball well and the defense makes some big stops early on.”
Despite the big leads the last two weeks, both times Cayuga’s opponents have made a comeback in the third quarter getting within a score in each game. But both times, Cayuga has held off the attempted rallies.
“It shows the character of the kids,” Allison said. “They have shown they are going to respond to whatever situations come up.
“They are never going to quit.”
Notes: Cayuga running back Traylon Shead in closing in on 10,000 career rushing yards. He needs 71 yards to reach that milestone. After two touchdowns last week against Mart, Shead increased his career touchdown total to 139. ...Quarterback Malcome Kennedy is 77 rushing yards away from 2,000 yards this season. That would give Cayuga a pair of 2,000-yard rushers. ...The Cayuga defense had three interceptions against Mart to increase its team total to 28 interceptions. ...Cayuga has won 12 straight games since starting the season with a loss to Frankston. ...Ganado went 3-2 in District 27-A but the Indians have won four straight.
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Scott Tyler may be contacted via e-mail at styler@palestineherald.com
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Discussion
Wildcats staying focused
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