Rematch - Central Oregonian

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Lon Austin

There is a lot of excitement in the air as the Crook County football team readies to play the Madras White Buffaloes tonight.

Both teams’ season will be on the line when the two squads take the field for the 7 p.m. game. For the winner, it is a chance to advance to the Class 4A playoffs while the season is over for the loser.

“We’re extremely excited to play Madras,” said Crook County head football coach Ryan Cochran following Wednesday’s practice. We’ve had a great week of practice and it should be a fun Friday.”

The two teams have already met previously this season when Crook County escaped with a 60-52 victory in a contest that was also played in Madras.

The contest was the highest scoring Class 4A football game of the year as both teams moved the ball up and down the field seemingly at will. In the Sept. 21 contest, the two teams combined for more than 1,100 yards of total offense.

Crook County’s Marcus Greaves finished the contest with 371 yards of total offense. Greaves ran for 109 yards on 15 carries, had 50 receiving yards, and 212 return yards — in addition to scoring six touchdowns.

Meanwhile, the White Buffaloes’ Devin Cecilani had nearly as impressive a contest, finishing with more than 300 yards of total offense and five touchdowns.

Although Cochran recognizes that tonight’s showdown could be a high-scoring affair, he said that Crook County is working hard to prevent Madras from running wild again.

“I expect there’s going to be quite a bit of scoring going on,” he said. “But we hope that we are setting things up so it won’t be a shootout. last time, we are preparing to make sure that it won’t be such a barn burner.”

If they are going to win, the Cowboys are going to have to find a way to contain Cecilani. However, he is not the only weapon that Madras has. Quarterback Steele Haugen has shown the ability to pass to a talented core of receivers. In addition, running back Joe Hisatake, who didn’t play when the two teams met earlier in the year, is healthy and running the ball well.

Madras finished the regular season with a 4-5 record. However, the White Buffaloes are coming off of a 28-7 victory over Estacada that propelled the team to a third- place finish in the Tri-Valley League.

Meanwhile, the Cowboys finished the regular season with a 5-3 record. Crook County whipped Summit 30-6 in their final game of the regular season. The Cowboys are also coming off of a bye week, so should be both rested and healthy.

“We’re excited just to have a play-in game,” Cochran said. “We’re excited that it’s close to home and that a lot of our fans can come out and support us. We’re expecting a packed house and a great game.”