Early test for Midland Legacy at Abilene

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The Midland Legacy Rebels won their home opener Friday, nearly doubling up Tascosa. | Twitter.com

Prep Football Preview

Sept. 8

7 p.m.

Shotwell Stadium

1525 E. South 11th, Abilene 

Preview

In a battle of two undefeated teams, the Midland Legacy Rebels (2-0) will travel to take on the Abilene Eagles (2-0). Both teams have had a pretty easy time with their opponents to date, in terms of commanding wins, so this could go a long way to determining how the season goes for both sides.

Midland Legacy, picked by MaxPreps to finish second in the district behind Permian, has started strong, holding Amarillo to one touchdown in a 35-7 season-opening win, then nearly doubling up Tascosa in a 63-34 win Friday.

Abilene, meanwhile, handed Permian a 49-14 loss to start the season, then held off Cooper by a 26-7 score.

The Rebels have Marcos Davila at quarterback, touted as one of the best in the state by some analysts and headed to Purdue University for the next step in his life. He has taken the field every year of high school. Though only subbing as a freshman, he stepped into the starting role as a sophomore and racked up nearly 5,500 passing yards in his first three years.

He has a couple of targets for his passes, including Aiden Serrano and Caden Ellis, but the Rebs don’t rely solely on the air game. Instead, they let Tommy Johnson III grind out 100 or so yards per game, giving them a versatile attack.

Abilene has one of the state’s top coaches, as Mike Fullen this year earned the the Tom Landry Award. He, like Midland Legacy’s Clint Hartman, has a solid track record in terms of getting his team to the playoffs.

Quarterback Brayden Henry can pass the ball to teammates like Ryland Bradford, or he can take off running himself. Defensively, Bryce Neves brings down a lot of opponents, and Demarco Upshaw can pick off passes.

Teams

Midland Legacy

6A Region 1, District 2

Enrollment: 2,338

Abilene

5A-1 Region 1, District 2

Enrollment: 2,141

Coaches

Head Coach Clint Hartman, Midland Legacy

8th Season, 59-24 record heading into 2023 season 59-24 

Playoff Appearances: 6 in 7 seasons

Head Coach Mike Fullen, Abilene

5th Season, 22-23 all-time record heading into 2023 season

Playoff Appearances: 3 in 4 seasons

Records 

Midland Legacy 

2023: 2-0

2022: 7-5, lost 23-21 to Keller in second round of playoffs

Abilene

2023: 2-0

2022: 6-7, lost 24-14 to Centennial in third round of playoffs

Last Meeting

Sept. 9, 2022

Midland Legacy 56, Abilene 20

Players to Watch

Midland Legacy

WR Aiden Serrano (Jr.)

OLB Tommy Johnson III (5’9, 185, Sr.)

WR Caden Ellis (5’9, 155, So.)

FS Cole Neatherlin (Jr.)

QB Marcos Davila (6’4, 198, Sr.) 

Abilene

WR Ryland Bradford (Jr.)

QB Brayden Henry (5’7, 155, So.)

RB Antoine Rashaw (5’7, 170, Sr.)

MLB Bryce Neves (6’1, 175, Sr.) 

Season Schedules

Midland Legacy

Week 1: Midland Legacy 35, Amarillo 7 

Week 2: Midland Legacy 63, Tascosa 34

Week 3: at Abilene

Week 4: at Steele

Week 5: vs. Judson 

Week 6: Bye

Week 7: vs. Frenship (district)

Week 8: vs. Permian (district)

Week 9: vs. Midland (district)

Week 10: at Odessa (district)

Abilene

Week 1: Abilene 49, Permian 14 

Week 2: Abilene 26, Cooper 7

Week 3: vs. Midland Legacy

Week 4: at Frenship

Week 5: at Monterey

Week 6: at Tascosa

Week 7: at Cap-rock

Week 8: at Lubbock-Cooper

Week 9: at Coronado

Week 10: vs. Amarillo

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