Midway the next hurdle in Rider's path to Region I title

Regional finals, round four, Rider Raiders. Coach Jim Garfield only sees one option.

"We gotta knock this door down, we gotta get through it," Garfield said of tonight's Class 4A Division I regional final against the Midway Panthers.

The Panthers eliminated the roadblock by the name of Denton Ryan a week ago, 19-7. Ryan eliminated first the Panthers and then the Raiders in the 2010 playoffs, marking Rider's fourth loss in this round since 2004.

One of the two will emerge as the Region I champ tonight at Mansfield's Vernon Newsom Stadium. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m.

But Rider has openly talked about going further this time, even as it has stayed focused on going 1-0 each week.

"We want to make the people of Wichita Falls proud that somebody can get into the semifinals," Garfield said. "The last time that happened was 2000 with the Coyotes. We hope to move on."

On paper, it looks like another big challenge for the Rider offense. The Panthers (10-2) are allowing just 17 points per game. Last week Midway scored as many touchdowns (one) defensively as it gave up.

Killeen, which Rider defeated 32-24 last week, had the best defense by total yards in the Waco area. But the Panthers beat the Kangaroos 33-19 and also have defeated Stephenville (51-20) and Ryan.

"They are very solid at all the positions with offense, defense and special teams," Garfield said.

Midway brought back some experience from last year's regional semifinalist, but also has explosive young players. Garfield felt one of their best defensively is sophomore inside linebacker Chavoun Childers (5-11, 210). He has 85 tackles, third on the team. Fellow inside backer Justin Richter (5-10, 190, senior) leads the team with 133 after making 20 last week.

Those two will try to contain Rider quarterback J.T. Barrett (1,410 rushing yards), who rushed for 222 yards and two touchdowns last week, most of it in the middle of the field. Barrett is ranked as the top dual threat quarterback in the 2013 class by 247sports.com.

The best thing for the Rider offensive line is that if they can make some holes against the quick Midway defense it opens it up for not only Barrett, but running backs Anthony Wagner (973 yards, team-high 20 TDs) and Dominic Thrasher (689 yards, 12 TDs).

Midway runs a 3-4 defense with Marquise Johnson at the nose and Trevell Harden and Adam Deleon, who Garfield calls an all-stater, on each side of him. The trio weighs in at a combined 645 pounds, while Rider averages around 276 up front, making it a game of size versus speed.

"They're very athletic and very physical on defense," Garfield said.

On the other side the Falcons have a running back, junior B.J. Kelly, who reminds Garfield of his own 2010 star, Deron Royster.

"He's one of the best we've seen and reminds me of Deron," Garfield said.

Kelly had 158 yards a week ago on 35 carries against the bruising defense of Ryan.

Midway plays three different quarterbacks with junior Jordan Darling (6-4, 225) looking like the biggest threat in the air. Junior Kramer Robertson (5-11, 170) can break down defenses with his speed and junior Deandre Ford also is a dual threat.

Hunter Jarman (6-0, 185, junior) is the top receiving threat with his ability to run after the catch and break tackles.

"And their offensive line is very good," Garfield. said. "They're all back from last year. The kid who really stands out is their center Greg Garrett."

Midway also has a box set, similar to Rider's single wing, for short-yardage plays.

"We have to have a lot of people show up and get to the football," Garfield said. "We need to get them off-schedule defensively. I feel good about how we match up."

Garfield loves the way his team has responded to challenges in the playoffs as it twice answered deficits with impressive scoring drives last week. And the defense has came on strong after the offense wasted an opportunity.

"We've been in enough battles as a group for two years that we kind of know each other," Garfield said. "If we give up a long drive we know our offense can go out and match it. The offense knows our defense can go out and get a stop. They just believe in each other. It's not like they point fingers at each other it's I'm going to hug on your neck and I'm going to back you up on this."

"We're not satisfied yet," Rider senior offensive guard Clint High said. "We want to get past this now. We have the best chance we've ever hard to do this. We can be something special."

Notes: Tickets are still available at Rider for pre-sale until noon today. All tickets at the gate with be $10 and parking is $5. Rider is the visiting team. ... The Panthers' offensive coordinator is former MSU player Derek Alford, who also coached at Hirschi and Petrolia.

HOW THEY GOT HERE

MIDWAY PANTHERS (10-2)

d. Round Rock 31-14

d. RR McNiel 51-27

lost to Belton 38-21

d. Austin Bowie 21-10

lost to Waco 26-24

d. SA Lake View 49-16

d. Waco University 45-7

d. Stephenville 51-20

d. Killeen 33-19

d. Burleson 35-13

d. Boswell 42-7

d. Denton Ryan 19-7

Total: Midway 440, OPP 204

RIDER RAIDERS (10-3)

d. Abilene Cooper 36-35

d. Kennedale 28-21

lost to Amarillo 27-24

d. Lubbock Coronado 58-7

lost to Little Elm 51-44 (OT)

d. Lake Dallas 38-35

lost to Denton Ryan 20-17

d. The Colony 59-35

d. Denton 49-27

d. WFHS 28-7

d. Frenship 42-14

d. El Paso Chapin 37-10

d. Killeen 32-24

Total: Rider 492, OPP 313

SCORE BY QUARTERS

RIDER 127 129 121 115 0 — 492

OPP 58 95 50 103 7 — 313

MIDWAY 158 138 93 51 — 440

OPP 46 58 38 62 — 204

PROJECTED STARTERS

RIDER OFFENSE

OT — Jacob Watson (53) jr.

OG — Caleb Battista (55) sr.

C — Colton Lopez (64) jr.

OG — Clint High (77) sr.

OT — Harrison Sorge (76) jr.

QB — J.T. Barrett (6) jr.

RB — Dominic Thrasher (8) jr.

RB/WR — Anthony Wagner (2) sr.

WR — John Hatch (20) jr.

WR — Brylan McCoy (24) jr.

WR — Brandon Williams (7) jr.

K — Cal Johnson (90) sr.

MIDWAY DEFENSE

DE — Trevell Harden (30) sr.

NG — Marquise Johnson (91) sr.

DE — Adam Deleon (31) sr.

OLB — Chrishard Buhl (7) jr.

OLB — Wesley Abercrombie (43) sr.

ILB — Chavoun Childers (19) so.

ILB — Justin Richter (25) sr.

CB — Robert Lewis (15) sr.

CB — Gerron Dewberry (13) sr.

S — Orion Stewart (6) sr.

S — Chase Wommack (22) sr.

P — Hunter Jarmon (2) jr.

MIDWAY OFFENSE

OT — Josh Andrews (64) sr.

OG — Luke Biarnesen (50) sr.

C — Greg Garrett (73) sr.

OG — Nathan Hengst (61) sr.

OT — Tyler Surtain (54) sr.

QB — Jordan Darling (16) jr. and Kramer Robertson (3) jr.

RB — B.J. Kelly (5) jr.

WR — Hunter Jarmon (2) jr.

WR — Courtney Washington (88) sr.

WR — Dustin Vasek (12) so.

WR — Gary Goode (26) sr.

K — Drew Owen (1) jr.

RIDER DEFENSE

DE — C.J. House (19) sr.

NG — Dylan McDorman (99) sr.

DE — Kiegan Hart (44) sr.

OLB — Cody O’Donnell (48) sr.

OLB — Korey Wilberun (32) sr.

ILB — Eddie Speight (25) sr.

ILB — Tyler Alaniz (23) sr.

CB — John Nunn (88) sr.

CB — D.J. Arnold (22) jr.

S — T.K. Cuttino (14) sr.

S — Josh Aaron (13) sr.

P — Cal Johnson (90) sr.