HS Football Playoffs: Meadow Bridge aims to slay the Dragons

Wildcats looking for their for their first playoff win since 2010

Meadow Bridge came roaring out of the gate winning its first four games of the football season.

Now the Wildcats (7-3) find themselves in the playoffs for the second straight year.

Saturday afternoon, No. 10-seed Meadow Bridge will enter Dragon Stadium hoping to knock off No. 7-seed Cameron.

"Everybody is excited, that's for sure," Meadow Bridge head coach Brandon Wickline said. "The kids feel like they can compete with anybody. I think that is good because if we do what we are supposed to do, we can compete with anybody."

The Dragons have been a Class A playoff mainstay and made a run to the championship game a year ago, losing a tight battle to Wahama.

The names to watch for Cameron on quarterback Kason Angel and running back Marshall Holland.

Angel has thrown for 821 yards and 10 touchdowns and has ran for over 750 yards and two more scores.

Holland has rushed for 1,166 yards and 10 touchdowns. The junior tailback also has caught seven passes for 126 yards and three end zone trips.

The speed of the Dragons will be a concern for Meadow Bridge.

"They are not real big, but everyone of the players are fast," Wickline said. "They get off of the ball quick and they have a ton of speed."

The boys from Fayette County will counter with some power football led by perennial 1,000-yard rusher Kaiden Sims and Bo Wykle to hopefully control the ball.

"Their defensive line is not very big, maybe 200 pounds or so, but they are just so fast off of the ball," Wickline said. "If we can keep them out of the backfield. I think Sims and Wykle are going to be hard for them to tackle."

If the Dragons choose to pack the box, the Wildcats can counter through the air with quarterback Trip Roles, as well as Sims who have shown some prowess through the air all season.

Passing has not been a staple for the run-oriented Wildcats over the years.

"Earlier in the year, teams stacked the box making us throw the ball to beat them. Now we are not seeing as many loaded boxes," Wickline said. "I feel like we are doing something right when we are in 3rd-and-3 and I hear other coaches saying watch the pass."

Wickline talked about the key to the game for his team to be successful.

"We have one lineman a little dinged up from last week, other than that, we are fully healthy. The kids are ready for the task at hand," Wickline said. "We have to win at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. Win the offensive and defensive front on Saturday."

The winner of Saturday's game will advance to meet the winner of No. 2 Wahama and No. 15 Man in the quarterfinals.