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Hillsborough (6-1) at Armwood (7-0) GAME OF THE WEEK

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 18, 2007

Kickoff: 7:30 p.m., Lyle Flagg Field, Seffner

WHAT HILLSBOROUGH MUST DO TO WIN:

WIN THE BATTLE UP FRONT: It's easier said than done, considering Armwood's front seven is as good as they come, but this could very well determine the outcome of the game. Hillsborough's offensive line must make holes for the running game, and it must give time to quarterback Tarean Austin by controlling Armwood's dominating line, which includes standout defensive ends Ryne Giddins and Sergio Joyner.

SPREAD THE BALL AROUND: Hillsborough's got plenty of playmakers, from running backs Iziah Wyche, Lindsey Lamar and Marc Thomas to receivers Terrence Mitchell and Colby Walden. The Terriers offensive coaches have done a good job devising a scheme to get all of them some touches, and they'll all need to make a contribution tonight to come away with a victory.

SPECIAL TEAMS NEED TO BE THAT: In Hillsborough's 19-9 loss to Armwood in the 2006 regular-season opener, the kicking game struggled mightily. Hillsborough had two punts blocked and failed to get off two others, directly leading to all 19 Hawks points. Avoiding those miscues this year is priority No. 1 for Coach Earl Garcia. Junior kicker/punter Evan Colborne will play a very important role tonight, as the Terriers must be sound in the kicking game to have a chance to win.

WHAT ARMWOOD MUST DO TO WIN:

STAY GROUNDED: Armwood's bread and butter is the ground game, with senior Eric Smith running behind that standout offensive line that includes Division I prospects Matt Patchan and Juan Gorostiaga, and there's no reason for the Hawks to stray from that game plan tonight. Continue to give Smith his touches until Hillsborough's defense forces your hand. Hawks fullback Matt Eastman is scheduled to jump back into the starting role tonight, which should only make the running attack that much more dangerous.

LIMIT THE MISTAKES: The Hawks are coming off their closest game of the season, and it's no secret why they sweated out a 14-10 victory against Plant City: turnovers. The Hawks offense coughed it up three times in that narrow victory and turned it over twice more on downs inside Plant City's red zone. They got away with it last week, but squandering scoring chances tonight could prove disastrous.

TAKE AWAY THE BIG PLAY: The Terriers have proven to be a quick-strike offense this season, one capable of putting up a lot of points (they've scored 35-plus points in four games). It's crucial for the Hawks defense to take away the big play and make Hillsborough work hard for everything it gets. Armwood's defense prides itself on punishing opposing ball carriers. The Hawks need to do just that or they could be in for a long night.

X-FACTOR: It's been said before, but it's the truth: Armwood's homefield advantage. Teams don't go into Lyle Flagg Field and win. Armwood has a string of 29 consecutive home wins dating to the 2003 season, including regular season and playoff wins. The Hawks have outscored their opponents at home (Plant, Newsome and Brandon) 102-13 this season. Then again, the last time Armwood had a streak of 29 straight wins (their 29-game on-field winning streak, compiled mostly in their consecutive state championship seasons in 2003-04), Hillsborough was the one to snap it.

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