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By Tommy Mann Jr.

Special to The Orange Leader

 

The regular season of the 2024 high school football season has come to an end and now it is time for the playoffs. All five Orange County teams have qualified for the post-season and are set for the bi-district round.

An interesting note for this year’s playoff games featuring Bridge City, LC-M and Vidor is that its district, which is District 10-4A Division 1, made an agreement with District 9-4A D1 at the start of the season to allow first place and second place teams to host bi-district round playoff games, while the third and fourth place teams must travel. Class 6A and Class 5A teams already do this every year under UIL guidelines, but the majority of Class 4A and lower classifications play at neutral site locations.

 

Bridge City (8-2) at Longview Pine Tree (9-1)

The Bridge City Cardinals are rolling into the playoffs as the No.3 seed from District 10-4A D1 and will play the No. 7 state-ranked Longview Pine Tree Pirates at 7:30 p.m., Friday, Nov. 15 at Pirate Stadium in Longview.

The Cardinals high-powered offense is led by quarterback Hutch Bearden and running back Ashton Sumrall. Whether through the air or on the ground, the Bridge City offense has been one of the most physical units in the district and can score a lot of points.

Coach Josh Smalley and his staff have the Cardinals offense humming this season as the squad has averaged nearly 33 points per game. However, BC has been held to 18 points per game in each of its two losses.

What has made the Cardinals dangerous for opponents this year is that the defense and special teams units have been very opportunistic, as each group has scored multiple touchdowns this season to help in its victories whether capitalizing on fumble returns or kickoff returns.

The Cards defense has been one of the best in Southeast Texas this season, as it has limiting opponents to just 13 points per game on average.

Longview Pine Tree may be the new team in District 9-4A D1, but these Pirates have come to play in 2024.

The Pine Tree Pirates dropped from Class 5-A Division 2 last year to Class 4A Division 1 this year and have made the most of the opportunity. A strong non-district schedule saw the Pirates defeat powerhouse teams such as No. 7 state ranked Gilmer and playoff-regular Van, while the team’s only loss was to No. 6 state ranked Kilgore, 17-6, to start district play several weeks ago, which makes them the No. 2 seed in their district.

The Pirates are averaging 25 points per game, while its defense is allowing 15 points per game. Its defense also held Kilgore to its lowest offensive point output on the season.