Week 8/12 Picks 2020

The last week of the regular season is here. The latest any TAPPS season has ended will lead to the longest playoffs TAPPS has ever held. Good luck and stay safe and we'll see you next week for the postseason. 

This Week: (Season: 37-13)

Dallas Christian @ Bullard Brook Hill -- The Chargers started slowly against Legacy and it looked like it could be close to the end. The big plays put DC ahead by a bunch in the 3rd and led to another 40 point win. At 6-0, 5 wins have been by 40+ with the other by 36. The Guard disappointing offensively against Grace, locking them into the 3rd place position in District 2 unless they can spring the upset. Both losses for Brook Hill have been shutouts. While a 4-2 campaign is hardly a poor one, the opening win over FWC had to lead to some increased expectations and they haven't really delivered on those. The common opponents just doesn't bode well for the Guard here. DC scored 9 touchdowns against Grace and Brook Hill failed to score. The Chargers posted 76 at McKinney Christian while the Guard scored just 35 at home against the same squad. The upset is hard to imagine here, but road games when you've only played 1 all year to this point would how it would happen. Chargers just too much, DC wins 45-12. (Cancelled)

Frisco Legacy Christian @ Fort Worth Christian -- The Eagles looked game for the 1st half at DC. Leading 3-0 deep into the 1st and trailing just 11 at the half it seemed they would be in it to the end. A 21-0 3rd quarter got the game out of reach and they ultimately fell by 40. 16 was the most scored on DC this year and I think Legacy would be better in a rematch. The Cardinals had a rocky start to the year with late defeats and cancelled games. FWC was finally able to reach the win column over Coram Deo and had a lead late last week against Faith. Faith squeaked by 21-20 positioning this as a possible 3rd place game. Legacy lost to Faith 49-35 after leading much of the way. With this being the last game of the district season, depending on the tiebreakers, its possible a win vaults Legacy to 1st and a loss drops them to 4th. FWC can only reach 3rd place given they already have 2 losses in district play. If Legacy avoids the turnover bug that can plague option teams from time to time they should be in position to win this. Road wins are always tough and despite being 1-4, FWC is no easy out. FWC finds a way at home, 28-26.

Dallas Parish Episcopal @ Fort Worth Nolan -- The much anticipated District 1 showdown will finally happen (he says hoping not to jinx things). The Panthers have started 6-0, but not without some bumps. Both MCS and JP2 largely controlled games and had late leads. Its a point in Parish's favor that they are never out, but it certainly leaves room for doubt. The Vikings 5-0 start included a dominant 2nd half against Midl Christian, but they didn't have to see John Paul in the regular season. Nolan struggled a little more with Prestonwood, but still won handily. I think these may be the best defenses the teams see and with a week off to prepare I think we get a big of a slug fest here. Given the late heroics of the Panthers thus far and their status as the champs I'll have to lean that direction. Panthers win the district title, 22-20.

Plano John Paul II @ Plano Prestonwood Christian -- The Lions have suffered as many schedule changes as anyone, this week is no exception. MaxPreps actually still doesn't have this one right. Especially by Prestonwood standards its been a struggle of a year. They haven't really been close in the "big" games. Though they did only lose to Nolan by 14. The Cardinals have been close on the other hand. Last we saw the Cardinals, they took Parish to OT. Its just a 2-2 season so far for JP2. They suffocated the MCS offense before that in a 24-13 win. Given the Parish blowout of Prestonwood, I feel like I should lean toward John Paul. It just doesn't feel like a game that sets up well for either team. When I don't feel good either way, just take the home team. Prestonwood wins 35-31.

Episcopal School of Dallas @ Addison Trinity Christian -- Will work the Trojans in to finish off their regular season. TCA was on a 21 game losing streak to start 2020, but have gone 3-1 on the season. Its been a while since we've seen the Trojans, who last shut out Brook Hill on Oct. 23. The Eagles are 2-0 onthis renegade SPC season, having held Trinity Valley and St. Marks to just 9 points combined. The loss to Legacy seems a bit odd for TCA at this point of the season given wins over FWC and blowing out Brook Hill. This should be an interesting game, even if the stakes are pretty low. I think TCA gets another win to close out the season. The Trojan offense should be the best ESD has seen this year. Trojans win at home, 28-21.

San Antonio Holy Cross @ Schertz John Paul II -- The Knights have been a contender for Division II in recent years, but find themselves in Division III in this odd season. After a couple of nice wins over the always strong pair of Shiner St. Paul and Hallettsville Sacred Heart, the Knights were absolutely demolished by Central Texas Christian. A strange trio of results. Giving up 26 to Hyde Park who only matched that total once in their next 6 game doesn't bode well either. So why does this game make the list? Well it will decide the playoff seeding on the Division III side of the district with the winner avoiding a district champion opponent in the area round. Also, Knights vs. Guardians is a great pairing. The Guardians were also blown out by Central Texas Christian. They were also dominated by Shiner St. Paul. No shame in that, but Holy Cross wins that common opponent. This seems to be a close game. I think the Guardians will struggle to score, but that has been a problem for the Knights in big game in the recent past. Knights have enough here I think. Holy Cross wins 28-21.

San Antonio Antonian @ San Antonio Central Catholic -- The Apaches have followed up last year's surprise semifinal appearance with a good season. By far the closest district opponent to St. Thomas, Antonian fell by 7 in OT for their only loss of the season. The Buttons are just 4-1, being limited by the schedule changes of 2020, but haven't been as dominant against the common opponents. That said they weren't blown out by St. Thomas and there is no reason to think they won't be competitive here. The Apaches look to be the better team and the offense has posted 40+ in 5 of 7 outings this year. Antonian should have enough, but this space does love a mascot of Buttons. Apaches win 42-29. (Cancelled)

Shiner St. Paul @ Austin St. Michaels -- We'll add this one to make up for the cancelled DC game. The Cardinals will travel to Austin for a interdivision game that cross two divisions. The Cardinals are 5-1 on the season and rarely lose inside of Division IV. However,  the Crusaders are a Division II squad. St. Paul has never been scared off by numbers, playing 11-man with fewer students that at least 10 TAPPS 6-man programs. Dominant wins over Central Texas Christian and Hallettsville Sacred Heart speak well for the Cardinals chances in this tough road game. Its a tough one given the Crusaders 5-1 record. Only dropping the opener to Regents and have been stingy defensively with only Regents managing more than 20 points. The Crusaders struggled a bit with a 1-6 Hyde Park team and will need to better from the jump against St. Paul. Always enjoy seeing these cross division games to make some comparisons. I'm going to go with St. Mikes, because I think they are better than SA Holy Cross and they defeated St. Paul this year. Crusaders win 28-22. (Cancelled)

Quick Hits: (Season: 52-16)

Tyler Grace over Dallas Bishop Dunne
Flower Mound Coram Deo over McKinney Christian
Argyle Liberty Christian over Dallas Bishop Lynch
Austin Brentwood Christian over Austin Hyde Park
Brownsville St. Joseph over San Antonio St. Anthony's
Corpus Christi John Paul II over Boerne Geneva
Houston Second Baptist over Victoria St. Joseph
Sugar Land Fort Bend Christian over Houston Cypress Christian
Arlington Pantego Christian over Tyler T.K. Gorman
Lubbock Christian over Fort Worth Lake Country Christian
Lubbock Trinity Christian over Muenster Sacred Heart