After their 53-20 rout of Mesquite Poteet Friday, Prosper will look to gain revenge on Mansfield Lake Ridge, who defeated the Eagles earlier in the year. With weak performances from Kaleb Adams and the defense, Lake Ridge demolished Prosper in week two. The Eagles will look to get the last laugh against Mansfield Lake Ridge December 1 in round three of the playoffs.

The Eagles come into this game playing their best football, with both the offense and defense clicking on all cylinders. In years past, Prosper football has performed up to standards in the regular season, only to disappoint in the playoffs with an early exit. This year however, Prosper football has a different feeling and attitude in the playoffs.

Star senior running back Kaleb Adams hasn’t slowed down from his amazing regular season. The second-year starter has racked up an impressive 404 yards while adding 7 touchdowns in his two playoff games. His senior year has been something special, and I’m sure he will try all in his power to keep it from ending Friday night.

A nice surprise that has fueled Prosper’s two playoff victories has been the impressive quarterback play from junior Keegan Shoemaker. Shoemaker, who had been inconsistent in the regular season, seems to finally be hitting his stride at the perfect time. His 63-yard touchdown run against Mesquite Poteet are among the few moments that lead to the belief that Shoemaker can be the quarterback to lead the Eagles to glory.

A component to Prosper’s team that hasn’t been a surprise is the stout defense that has performed no different from the regular season to the postseason. Names like Justin Benvie and Devin Haskins are those that come to mind when thinking of some of the leaders on the defensive side of the ball. However when it comes down to it, football is a team sport, and the performances from the defense have been team efforts.

As for the foe in Mansfield Lake Ridge, there’s a reason why they demolished Prosper earlier in the season. Their team is amazingly talented. Lake Ridge’s only loss comes at the hands Denton Guyer in the very first game of the season.

University of North Texas commit Jason Bean leads Lake Ridge at the quarterback position. Bean has totaled 1203 yards and 16 touchdowns throughout this season. Although that’s a step off from his 3002 yards and 28 touchdowns in 2016, Bean is still a force to be reckoned with.

With a talent like Jason Bean at quarterback, wide receivers have gained their fair share of yards and touchdowns. Their leading receiver, Malik Knowles, has accounted for 689 yards with 11 touchdowns on the season.

As for running the ball, Lake Ridge has their own version of Kaleb Adams. Meet Dewone Jackson, who has tallied 909 and 12 touchdowns on the year. The Prosper defense will need to play to the best of their ability Friday if they look to stop both the Lake Ridge run and pass game.

The Lake Ridge defense hasn’t been too shabby throughout the season either. While most won’t call it shutdown, it shouldn’t be thought of as a defense that Prosper can easily run over. Point being, Prosper will still need to come to play offensively Friday night if they look to advance.

The Prosper Eagles control their own destiny this postseason. With Lake Ridge staring them right in the face, this an opportunity to prove to the metroplex that Prosper football is in fact the real deal. Although Lake Ride destroyed Prosper early in the season, we have all seen this team grow and improve in every aspect of the game. Game time for Prosper vs Lake Ridge is set for 7 PM Friday at Carrollton’s Standridge Stadium. The matchup is sure to be both entertaining and nerve-racking, as it’s the biggest game for Prosper Football in recent memory.