SATURDAY

Austin Regents (6-0, 3-0) vs. Holy Cross (4-2, 3-0) at Harlandale Memorial Stadium, 7 p.m.

The Knights haven’t lost a district game since being assigned to TAPPS TAPPS District 3-II before the 2012 season. Austin Regents will pose the biggest threat to Holy Cross’ 10-game winning streak so far this season.

Holy Cross and Austin Regents, whose nickname also is the Knights, are locked in a three-way tie for first place.

Holy Cross has outscored its first two opponents 82-27, scoring 48 unanswered points last Friday against San Marcos Academy and pulling away from TMI in the second half a week earlier.

Its defense limited San Marcos Academy to 140 total yards and is averaging 181 yards allowed in the two games. Austin Regents also defeated the Bears (41-0 on Sept. 27) and limited them to 89 total yards.

Holy Cross stayed fairly conservative offensively against San Marcos Academy, opting to run the ball behind Greg Scott. Look for quarterback Cisco Flores to open things up against Austin Regents.

Key players for Regents include quarterback Grant Brown and back Will Zudock, who is a receiving threat coming out of the backfield.2012 score: Holy Cross 35, Austin Regents 21.

Lanier (2-4, 2-0) vs. Brennan (7-0, 3-0) at Gustafson Stadium, 7 p.m.

No one expected Lanier to be one of the last two undefeated teams in District 28-4A, but that’s the position the Voks find themselves in, heading into this battle for first place. 

The biggest reason has been a defense that has only surrendered 22 points in Lanier’s first two district games. Jefferson produced a solid 322 yards last week, but the Voks limited them to six points over the final three quarters, which came on a 69-yard pass play to explosive D’Andre Melton.

None of Brennan’s first three opponents has been able to find a way to slow down the Bears. They’re averaging a mind-boggling 64.3 points in the district, a performance worthy of a team ranked No. 3 in the state Associated Press Class 4A poll.

Everything originates with quarterback Da’Shawn Key, who has run for 849 yards and passed for 831, with just one interception. In a 69-0 win over Burbank Oct. 11, backup running back Alex Hill gained 149 yards and scored two touchdowns on just four attempts.

Brennan has only allowed 27 points this year, including six against Brackenridge on an 80-yard run. It limited to 54 total yards in its last outing.

Lanier’s offense depends on ball control, although Voks  quarterback Nicholas Garcia threw for 205 yards in a 20-14 win over Jefferson last Friday. In his second start, Joe Orta ran for 91 yards – narrowly missing the 100-yard mark for the second week.

The key for Lanier will be its ability to sustain drives, as it did against Jefferson.

Brennan and Lanier met for the first time last year. 2012 score: Brennan 52, Lanier 6.

Somerset (5-1, 1-0) vs. Sam Houston (1-5, 0-0) at Wheatley Heights Sports Complex, 7 p.m.

Sam Houston has played some strong teams in its first six games, but hasn’t faced a powerful passing offense like it will face in Somerset’s Saturday in its District 28-3A opener. Fortunately for the Hurricanes, they’ve had two weeks to prepare.

Somerset junior quaterback Koy Detmer Jr. already has thrown for 1,546 yards this year (an average of 259.2 yards a game). Detmer has thrown 22 touchdown passes and just two interceptions.

The Bulldogs aren’t one dimensional, though. Back Donaldo Perez has rushed for 770 yards.

The Bulldogs have been involved in their share of shootouts, but they also have limited Lanier to six points, Hondo to 15 and shut out Poteet 44-0 last Friday in their district opener.

The Hurricanes haven’t had leading rusher Erin Mack for essentially the last two games and the ground game has suffered in his absence. Sam Houston ran for just 76 yards in a 54-12 loss to Navarro Sept. 27 and 39 yards in a 36-0 loss to Gonzales Oct. 4.

Quarterback Raymonte Prime threw for 160 yards against Navarro, but the Hurricanes had exactly zero passing yards against Gonzales.

Mounting a consistent offense is one challenge the Hurricanes will face against Somerset. The other major hurdle will be slowing down the Detmer offense. 2012 score: Somerset 47, Sam Houston 19.