By ERIC VICCARO
sports@bowienewsonline.com

Nocona’s Jack Crain will be packed Friday for the triennial Homecoming celebration, and Holliday will bring a strong contingent with them too.
Essentially the population of Nocona will double on Friday night as the Indians and Eagles square off in the District 5-3A-II opener.
Nocona coach Brad Keck said Holliday will be a tough team to deal with because the Eagles run the deceptive Wing-T and a solid odd-man front that’s yielded just 99 points through five games.
“The biggest thing is we are going to have to be disciplined on defense,” Keck said, “because there’s so much misdirection. We can’t be sucked in by their fakes.”
Jett Johnson, the son of head coach Frank Johnson, is the Holliday quarterback. Other players to watch are leading tackler Kyle Bowman at linebacker and junior safety Kade Patterson.
Keck said the break was good for Nocona.
“We shortened practices and gave the players time off here and there,” Keck said.
Luis Rico and Zach Boyd are questionable to play versus Holliday.
Keck said the game is important because it will set the tone for how district will play out. And there’s the question of whether Homecoming will motivate or distract the Indian players.

Gold-Burg at Bryson

Gold-Burg plays at Bryson on Friday as the Bears face a Cowboys’ squad that has outscored opponents 327-138 this season.
“They execute well,” Gold-Burg head coach Jay Johnson said. “They run everything from a tight shotgun to a spread. On defense, they are athletic and use a 2-3.”
Johnson said it was beneficial for the Bears to have two weeks to prepare for imposing Bryson. Many of the players also competed in the Rabbit Run at Bowie, which helped them with conditioning.
Brayden Houser paces Bryson’s offense with 874 yards passing, including 18 TD. Houser has also rushed for 310 yards. The Cowboys are averaging 393.6 yards per contest. Read more, and see standings, in the Oct. 5 Bowie News.

Nocona assistant coach Nathan Alling talks with Luis Rico (55) and Logan Barnes during a timeout. (News file photo by Eric Viccaro)