Armando’s 5A/6A Week 2 Matchup Preview: Denton Guyer vs Denton Ryan

By Armando Barry•October 1, 2020•6 Minutes

When you hear that a No. 1 ranked 5A football team is set to face the No. 5 ranked 6A team, you expect the game to be an interesting matchup.

However in this case, the game is a reunion of two juggernaut squads who have shared a city, but not their own football field, since 2015.

This Friday, on Oct. 2, the No. 1 ranked Denton Ryan Raiders will play against the No. 5 ranked Denton Guyer Wildcats at C.H. Collins Athletic Complex.

This game has all the makings of a dog fight because both teams have reasons to seek vengeance this year.

They both came so close to the goal every team dreams of every season; a state title.

Both teams finished last season in second place in their respective state championship games, with the Raiders losing to Shadow Creek, in 5A Division 1, and the Wildcats defeated by Austin Westlake, in 6A Division 2.

They still feel the pain from last season’s playoff run…and it shows.

Starting with the Ryan Raiders first game of the season, I was at that game. Ryan showed exactly why they are ranked No.1 in their overpowering, 47-24 victory over Arlington Martin.

The Raiders looked physical and dominating, but their defense was what came emphatically evident as just special.

Their defense wreaked pure havoc in a performance that featured multiple forced fumbles, interceptions, and sacks. They only allowed two first downs in the first half, with one coming from their lone penalty mistake.

While you see 24 points as their opponent’s final score, Martin only had 8 points coming into the fourth quarter. Let me remind you this wasn’t just an early season scrub matchup at the beginning of the season, Martin went three rounds deep into last year’s postseason.

Ryan’s leader of last week’s bloodbath was the No. 2 nationally ranked 2021 Texas commit WR/DE Ja’Tavion Sanders.

Sanders starred on both sides of the ball scoring three touchdowns as a wideout and then turning around and grabbed a one-handed pick six!

Having a player like Sanders a part of such a talented and well-coached group of athletes on both sides of the ball makes this team deadly.

Nonetheless, the Wildcats won’t be coming into this matchup with their tails down as they have a reason to puff their chest out too.

Guyer has their own star-studded roster with their four star recruit, 2021 Texas A&M commit QB Eli Stowers. Along with the weight of a state championship loss, Stowers came into this season with a little extra motivation.

In their 6A Division 2 state title game, Stowers suffered a torn PCL in his left knee in the first quarter.

The multi-sport athlete didn’t just miss out on that championship game, but basketball and track season as well.

In his first game back in a Wildcat uniform, he showed he’s still the star quarterback Guyer knows him to be. He threw the ball for nearly 200 yards at a 72% clip.

His performance led to the Wildcat’s 56-33 victory over Hebron.

Amongst this star-studded, cross-town rivalry game, you got to fall in love with this matchup that is headed by a comeback kid and a star that defies the x’s and o’s.

Denton, Texas is in for a great one Friday night.

With that being said, here are my impact players of the game:

RYAN

WR/DB Ja’Tavion Sanders
- If Sanders impacts the game on both sides of the ball the way he did last week, the Wildcats have a big problem. The factor of if Sanders and the Raider defense can create problems for Stowers in the pocket will be the deciding factor in this game.
QB Seth Henigan
- He really showed how capable he is of getting the ball downfield to his receivers against Martin. The challenge of what that may look like against Guyer will be interesting.

GUYER

QB Eli Stowers
- He’s an athletic, dual-threat quarterback that got the ball to his receivers with EASE last week. This may be one of the best defenses Stowers will see during the regular season.
Guyer Defense
- While the offense got a lot of points on the board, the defense did too..which is not good. 33 points allowed in a game that did not feature the number 2 recruit in the country could make things a lot more difficult for them Friday night.