Bastrop is hoping not to get caught in a trap. With a date with district-leading Hutto lurking on the horizon, head coach Gerald Perry is hoping to keep his team from overlooking this week’s opponent — Elgin.
Coming off a big win last week against Connally, Perry said that his team isn’t overlooking anyone.
“I don’t expect a hangover from (Connally),” he said. “For one, all of our kids know the Elgin kids and they don’t want to get beat by them. Second, we have to win this game to win the district championship.”
Bastrop (6-2, 3-1 District 16-4A) cannot clinch the district title this week with a win over Elgin. However, a loss to the Wildcats would certainly hurt the Bears’ chances. Especially if Connally doesn’t lose again.
“This is a big game for Elgin,” Perry said. “They get off to a great start in every game and those kids will be ready for us. It would be a big deal for them to come in here and beat us.”
But can the Wildcats really beat Bastrop?
Elgin hasn’t defeated Bastrop since 1982, but the two teams haven’t met since 1989 — a game in which Bastrop won 27-0.
The Wildcats have scored just 41 points against Bastrop in three decades, but again, the two teams haven’t met in 21 years.
Bastrop cornerback Justin Froncek, who has came up big for Bastrop in each of the last two games, thinks Elgin could surprise the Bears.
“They have a good running back (Da’Rick Nolan) and their quartebrack (Dylan Scott) can run as well,” Froncek said. “This is a good rivalry because the two teams are so close to each other. It’s a big game.”
Bastrop isn’t fooled by Elgin’s 2-6 record, nor are they expecting the Wildcats to lay down for them.
Wide receiver Mason Foytik said he thinks Elgin is going to come at them from the start.
“It will be different coverage than what we have seen lately,” Foytik said. “We are going to have to run our routes and execute our game plan.”
Since falling to Rudder on Oct. 1, a game in which the Rangers held Bastrop’s explosive offense to a season-low 189 yards, the Bears have averaged 483 yards and 45.3 points per game.
Overshadowed by the high scoring offense, the defense has came on as of late.
While the defense has only given up fewer than 20 points once all season, the Bears defense has still only given up 30-or-more points twice.
Bastrop will be tested again against the run today if Nolan plays.
Perry expects Nolan to be key in Elgin’s game plan.
“We have seen two good running backs the last two weeks,” Perry said. “Our key on defense is to stop the run and force them to pass the ball.”