Caldwell County will get a second shot at Mayfield this season when the Tigers visit the Cardinals Friday night in the second round of the Class 2A playoffs.
Mayfield won the regular season matchup 47-14 and carries an 8-2 record and No. 1 seed into the contest.
However, Caldwell felt like it left some points on the table the first time around, and hopes it has improved enough over the last six weeks to give Mayfield a challenge the second time around.
The Cardinals built a 34-7 halftime advantage in the earlier meeting and ended the night with 465 yards of total offense.
Caldwell, though, will point to missed opportunities on its end. The Tigers made five trips into the red zone and got as deep as the Mayfield 31-yard line on two other possessions. However, those seven drives resulted in only seven points. (Caldwell’s other touchdown came on a kickoff return.)
Caldwell (5-6) has won three straight entering this week’s matchup and is averaging 47 points a game in victories over Crittenden County, Trigg County and Fort Campbell.
Sophomore quarterback Daelyn Lander has thrown for 869 yards and 13 touchdowns the last three weeks. For the season, he has now passed for 2,009 yards and 23 touchdowns. His 24 career TD passes already have him ninth on Caldwell’s career list.
Seniors Gus Fox and Luke Parker lead a balanced receiving corps for the Tigers.
Fox has 49 catches this season for 625 yards and 11 TDs while Parker has 43 receptions for 686 yards and four scores.
However, Caldwell lost a key playmaker last week when senior Luke Maddox was injured at Fort Campbell and will miss the rest of the season. Maddox had an 85-yard kickoff return for a score last week and returned a kickoff 89 yards for a touchdown in the earlier meeting with Mayfield.
Senior Kameron Spikes lead the Tiger ground game with 597 yards and five touchdowns.
Linebackers Jack Roach, a junior, and Spikes lead the team in tackles with 112 and 111, respectively. Senior Layton Wall blocked a punt and a field goal attempt last week and also had 1.5 sacks. Parker tied a school record with his ninth interception of the season in the win at Fort Campbell.
But while Caldwell’s hopes are high because of their late-season surge, Mayfield is still Mayfield.
The defending state champion Cardinals are the second-rated team in the state in Class 2A according to the KHSAA RPI, behind only Owensboro Catholic, the school they beat in last year’s state finals.
Mayfield, which routed Todd County Central 50-12 in the first round last week, has won seven straight games since early-season losses to Graves County and Paducah Tilghman.
As always, the Cardinals are balanced offensively. Sophomore quarterback Gray Robbins has passed for 1,707 yards and 18 touchdowns with only seven interceptions while sophomore running back Josiah England has 1,381 yards and 16 TDs on the ground.
Juniors Mak Hoover and Malik Kirby are big-play threats in the passing game. Hoover has 35 receptions for 617 yards and seven touchdowns while Kirby has made 31 grabs for 586 yards and nine TDs.
The Mayfield defense is typically solid, allowing just under 200 yards a game. Seniors Ian Williams and Carter Morris lead the team in tackles with 75 and 74, respectively. The duo has combined for 22 tackles for loss.
Caldwell has dropped 11 straight to Mayfield going back to a 48-41 Tiger win in Princeton in 2013 in which both teams entered the game 9-0.
The Cardinals hold a 47-9-1 advantage in the all-time series.
Kickoff time is 7:00 Friday night.
