Preview: Central Texas Players to Watch – Week 9
There are some tough matchups slated for this week where it might come down to the last team with the ball. These are the players to keep an eye on in key moments this week!
1. <strong>Nick Grullon (SR-WR) - Cedar Park High School (Cedar Park, TX)</strong>
2021 Season: 33 receptions, 540 receiving yards, 7 receiving touchdowns
Cedar Park comes off of a dominant win over Leander but the Timberwolves now face a challenge in Pflugerville. Although Pflugerville has faced a couple of tough losses, the Panther offense is always capable of exploding which means Cedar Park will need to be prepared to use its stars as much as possible and for the Timberwolves that is Grullon, who has been a scoring machine and one of senior quarterback Josh Pell's favorite targets so far.
2. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="131369" first="Elijah" last="Oakmon"] (SR-RB) - Pflugerville High School (Pflugerville, TX)</strong>
2021 Season: 817 rushing yards, 11 rushing touchdowns, 12 receptions, 93 receiving yards, 2 receiving touchdowns
On the other hand, Pflugerville will need to rely on the consistency of Oakmon, who has scored in almost every game this season and has nearly rushed for over 100 yards every game. Oakmon is arguably the top star for Pflugerville and games such as these where it can turn into a shootout, the Panther offense will need to be prepared to use its entire arsenal.
3. <strong>Ryker Purdy (SR-RB) - New Braunfels High School (New Braunfels, TX)</strong>
2021 Season: 776 rushing yards, 6 rushing touchdowns
The Unicorns have been especially dominant this season with just a couple of losses. Next up is East Central, which is in the exact same boat and much like the Cedar Park/Pflugerville game, this game could also turn into a shootout where the best players will have to play their best. For New Braunfels, that is Purdy, who had a slow start to scoring this season but since then has been consistent. Much like Oakmon he has been a consistent threat on the ground and the Unicorns will look to him especially if East Central shuts down the passing game.
4. <strong>Reggie Stewart (SR-WR) - East Central High School (San Antonio, TX)</strong>
2021 Season: 21 receptions, 408 receiving yards, 8 receiving touchdowns
For the Hornets, Stewart has been a scoring machine this season including when he scored four receiving touchdowns against South San Antonio. With the how the game could play out, Stewart will be the most sought after player for the East Central offense especially in scoring position.
5. <strong>Dior Bradfield (SR-QB) - Weiss High School (Pflugerville, TX)</strong>
2021 Season: 1,747 passing yards, 20 passing touchdowns, 3 interceptions
Weiss faces the incredible challenge of facing what has been a dominant offense in Manor, especially the rushing attack. Considering the potential struggles of the Weiss defense, the pressure is on Bradfield to lead his offense to victory especially if Manor is able to answer every score.
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