It is the final road contest of the season, and Livingston (0-8, 0-3) can play spoiler for a team still in the playoff hunt. Lumberton (2-3, 2-6) currently sits tied for fourth place with Vidor, but lost to the Pirates a few weeks ago.
There was only seven yards of difference between Livingston and Hargrave last week, despite a blowout loss. The problems the Lions faced were turnovers and the continuing difficulty of converting yardage into points.
“In the big picture of things, we have to show our team that we did extremely well in there. There was seven yards difference,” Livingston coach Finis Vanover said. “We averaged 11 yards per catch with seven different receivers. We averaged over six yards per run with six different running backs. That is pretty good. When we didn't do that, we turned it over. We are down to a 30-man roster and that is what we've got. We've had some grades, we've had some discipline, and we've had some injuries.”
The Raiders started the regular season’s first half 0-5, but have gone 2-1 the past three weeks. The victories over Liberty and Hardin-Jefferson have kept the team in playoff contention, but they will likely need some help. A victory over the Lions would be a step toward their goals.
“Lumberton has looked a little similar to the last four years these last two weeks. There were almost 40 seniors last year,” Vanover said. “They have improved drastically from where they started. They are battling and competitive and building back.”
On defense, the Raiders give up 343 yards per game, about 23 more than the Lions. Only Hardin-Jefferson has given up more rushing yards than the Raiders’ 1,916. Jacob Marchuk, Collin Courts and Gage Grimmer are among the top seven tacklers in 10-4A. Colton Deters has six pass breakups, while three Raiders have an interception.
“It is exactly the same defense. It is an odd front, and they align to your strength. One of the tackles will become the nose. It is a 5-3 defense and they will use those three linebackers and bring a safety up. They gave us a bunch of seven-man stuff last year. We will work against both and have seen each version.”
Lumberton is last in offense in District 10-4A. Averaging just under 240 yards, they throw for around 60% of their yardage. Chase Williams is the team’s leading rusher, who is 15 yards behind Livingston’s Trenden Williams at 437 yards. He is a pass-catching threat out of the backfield. The quarterback, junior Will Wright, has thrown for about the same amount, completing 51% of his attempts. The backup is Nolan Mitchell, a sophomore. At receiver, Ty Reyes is the district’s leader with 35 receptions. He has 545 yards on those grabs with five touchdowns. Tyler Breeden is also a weapon with 22 catches for 315 yards.
“They are still in the spread and have good receivers. They have a single setback and every once in a while they will take the slot and use him as a lead blocker. All of the things that we saw last Friday and the Friday night before – one playbook fits all. If repetition is the key to learning, we ought to have it down now. Their run game has become much better. The offensive line are big boys and they will lean on you a bunch.”
The Livingston junior varsity has impressed, and the Lions are undefeated through eight games on that level. Future varsity players are getting plenty of experience and playing well together, according to the coach.
“Half of the day they are the scout team versus the varsity. They are just getting tougher. We give them two days where the team gets polished together and then they go play. There is a freshman that is a true quarterback and has great decision-making skills. We have another kid that has played like one of the best in our program.
“We have some linemen that are toughing up and getting better and the defense is getting a ton of turnovers. They have learned how to win and they believe in it. They have only been down three times. One time was with 30 seconds left and they had to drive 70 yards. They are really a special group.
“The eighth-grade bunch is almost identical. They are 8-1. They are a fun-loving group and a huge bunch with 66 players.”
The junior varsity plays its final home game Thursday at 6:30 p.m. versus Lumberton.
