Abilene Wylie battles No. 1 Argyle for Region I-5A DII football title

WYLIE (10-3) VS. ARGYLE (13-0)

7 p.m. Friday ✮ Memorial Stadium, Stephenville ✮ 101.7 KTJK-FM

What’s riding on the game: The winner plays the South Oak Cliff (10-3)/Melissa (11-2) winner in the Class 5A Division II state semifinals next week. South Oak Cliff is the defending Class 5A DII state champion.

The series: Argyle is 5-2 against Wylie since 2012. Argyle won the last meeting 56-7 in 2017. Wylie beat the Eagles 35-14 in the 4A DI region semifinals en route to reaching the title game in 2016. Argyle beat Wylie twice in 2015 – 20-10 in Week 1 and 24-7 in the state semifinals. Argyle won 34-28 and 38-0 in the 2014 and 2013 season openers, while Wylie won the 2012 opener 31-14.

Last week: John Gailey threw for 221 yards and two TDs, while Landon Farris ran for two more as No. 1 Argyle outscored No. 4 Grapevine 44-27. K.J. Long ran 8 yards for a TD with 7:00 left in the game to lift Wylie over Canutillo 21-18 in Fort Stockton.

Scouting Argyle: The Eagles this year are playing in Class 5A after moving up from 4A, where they won a DI state title in 2020. Argyle also won a 3A DII state title in 2013, while being a state runner-up in 2015, ’14, ’11 and ’05. The Eagles picked off three passes, including a 35-yard pick-six by Devon Owen, and forced four turnovers overall in beating Grapevine for the second time this season. It was the Mustangs’ only two losses. Argyle opened the season with a 37-18 win over Melissa, a potential state semifinal opponent. Junior QB Gailey (70-136-3) has thrown for 1,308 yards and 13 TDs. Senior running back R.J. Bunnell (192-1,424, 18 TDs) and senior RB Farris (168-1,073, 14 TDs) are the leading rushers. Junior WR Will Hodson (27-557, 5 TDs) and sophomore WR Will Krzysiak (18-478, 5 TDs) are the leading receivers. Senior DB Jaaqwan Felton has five of the Eagles’ 16 interceptions this season. Senior LB Grant Mirabel (107, 69 solo), senior DB Dax Horany (87, 55 solo) and junior LB Bud Petter (85, 51 solo) are the leading tacklers. Mirabel has committed to Oklahoma State, while Horany is committed to Sam Houston. Riley Van Poppel, a 6-4, 240-pound defensive tackle/tight end, has committed to Nebraska, while 6-5, 270-pound tackle Wes Tucker (Baylor) and 6-4, 225-pound defensive tackle Michael Madrie (Boise State) also are DI commits.

Bulldogs update: Wylie is making its deepest playoff run since reaching the Class 4A Division I title game in 2016. The Bulldogs are averaging 436.8 yards (204.7 rushing/232 passing) and 37.7 points per game, while giving up 361.7 yards (190 rushing/171.6 passing) and 25.7 points. QB Long (184-269-8) has thrown for 3,016 yards and 34 TDs. Braden Regala (84-1,300, 11 TDs), Harrison Heighten (35-670, 9 TDs) and Hunter Hood (14-346, 3 TDs) are the leading receivers. Landy Carlton (191-1,011, 8 TDs), Long (113-639, 6 TDs), Malachi Daniels (92-400, 7 TDs) and Julius Laine (66-399, 5 TDs) are the leading rushers. Hayden Wright, a sophomore defensive back, leads Wylie with seven interceptions

What the Bulldogs need to do to win: Wylie must win the turnover battle and make the Eagles earn every yard. The Bulldogs need to be tenacious, play smart and make Argyle realize from the start it’s going to be a four-quarter war.

Joey D. Richards’ prediction: Argyle 34, Wylie 31

This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: Abilene Wylie faces No. 1 Argyle for Region I-5A DII football crown