It's the regular season finale. Quite amazing how quickly these 11 weeks have seem to fly by this year in comparison to other years. In the week prior to the UIL playoffs and TAPPS playoffs, we look at a triple header involving a team trying to take the top spot in the DI playoff standings, a battle between two teams in a three-battle for a district crown and TAPPS Division III matchup.
Game 1 this week is a matchup of one team playoff bound and the other...definitely not. In 6-6A, the Lewisville ISD schools dominate that district, Coppell is a bit mediocre and then the Irving schools are far behind, even the caboose.
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Day: Thursday, November 7
Location: Joy and Ralph Ellis Stadium (Irving, Texas)
Previous meetings: Flower Mound won 48-278 (2018)
Flower Mound is in the playoffs. That much we know. Where they will win up is strictly in its own hands. As we highlighted earlier this week, Flower Mound takes the W6 spot in the 6A DI playoff bracket, which would put it up against Keller. A win and it will take that W6 spot. A loss coupled with a Lewisville win and it moves to R6 in DI and a likely matchup against Southlake Carroll in the first round.
Like last year, though, Flower Mound gets to play Irving MacArthur to end the regular season. Now last year's matchup, even though the Jags won by 20, started with a 14-0 Irving MacArthur first quarter lead. And as last week is any indication, Flower Mound cannot let its guard down against anyone.
The Jags do enter having ended a two-game skid but had to a survive a high-scoring shootout against Coppell. Blake Short is the straw that stirs that Flower Mound offense, as he has passed for more than 2,500 yards and 26 touchdowns. Those yards account for 69 percent of the team's offense and he accounts for 56 percent of the team's touchdowns (26 passing, 2 rushing of 48 total).
Flower Mound is a tough team to figure out this year. It's outscoring teams on the year by an average of 14 points a game but is nearly dead even in yards per game with opponents this year. In six of its nine games this year, the defense has allowed 30 or more points, which means Flower Mound has no problem getting into shootouts.
MacArthur is a team that's won both its game this year against the other lowly Irving schools all the while being completely dominated in the other seven - the closest loss being 13 points to Garland to open the year.
MacArthur only averaged 18 points a game this year and has scored 14 or less points this year in seven games. Quarterback Dylan Frettoloso accounts for 1,388 total yards this year and nine scores. His main target has been Jose Feliciano, who had 52 catches for 520 yards and five touchdowns this year.
Defensively, Irving MacArthur gives up 34.4 points a game and over 407 yards to opposing offenses.
Coupling a lackluster offense and porous defense, the Cardinals are now four straight seasons without a playoff berth with the last coming in 2015 when the current Flower Mound coach, Brian Basil, was patrolling the MacArthur sidelines.
Don't expect Irving MacArthur to put up much resistance here - especially jumping out to a 14-point lead like last year. Even with that lead, MacArthur could not stop Short and running back Pierce Hudgins as the duo racked up a combined 516 yards and five total touchdowns.
This will be a good week for Flower Mound to work on fundamentals and fix things on the defensive side of the ball heading into playoffs all while the offense fine tunes some things and plays maybe a half.
A win for Flower Mound and they will get Keller in the first round - a much more favorable matchup than going against Southlake, in the case they lose and Lewisville wins. That'll be more than enough motivation to make sure to take care of its own business and not have to worry.
Prediction: Flower Mound 45, Irving MacArthur 10
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