The Alamodome is one of many places the Katy Tigers football team can call home, thanks to its tremendous success the past two decades.

When the 15-0 Tigers take the field Saturday night for the 5A-Division II championship game against Pflugerville, they’ll be making their ninth appearance in a state final and will be seeking their fifth championship.

Such experiences don’t faze Katy, which won its last title in 2003 and lost the 2005 final to Southlake Carroll.

“This year I’m a little more used to so it (last week’s semifinal against San Antonio Madison) was just another game to me. At the end of game I thought about the title,” Tigers linebacker Brad Graham said. “This week is the same way. You’re still playing 17-and 18-year-old guys. It’s just for something a little bigger.”

That’s not an attitude just any team can acquire.

Take Pflugerville, which before last week hadn’t reached the semifinals since 1970.

But this the Panthers have surprised many this year. They finished just 4-3 in District 14-5A but knocked off Temple, Klein Forest and Abilene among others to advance to San Antonio.

Abilene was the team that eliminated Southlake Carroll from the playoffs three weeks ago, and Pflugerville edged it 20-14 in overtime Saturday at Texas Stadium.

So here it is – the seasoned veterans against something of an upstart.

“We anticipate a great fight,” Tigers coach Gary Joseph said.

Pflugerville (12-3) thrives on the Wing-T offense. Its running game is keyed by 245-pound Greg Nwoko’s 1,390 yards and six touchdowns, but he gets able help from Zavier Gooden (1,043 yards; six TDs) and Marcus Carruth (955 yards, nine TDs).

Carruth scored the winning touchdown in overtime against Abilene.

Nwoko is being recruited by Texas El-Paso and Nebraska among others. The Austin American-Statesman reported Gooden put off a recruiting visit to Missouri because of the playoffs.

“Their offense at the line of scrimmage does a great job blocking and those backs are probably as big as some college running backs,” Joseph said. “And not only do they have great size (Carruth is 225 pounds and Gooden is 215), they run very hard. They have a deceptive-type offense; Carruth is as good a running back as anybody we’ve seen at fullback and of course Nwoko will go to a major university so he’s a real big-time running back.

“Gooden is a big-play guy for them. He’s got great size and height (6-foot-3, 215) and he runs extremely hard.”

Receiver Tyler Walls, who missed much of the season with a broken leg, had a huge game against Abilene by making two 49-yard catches – one for a score – in the first half.

“They’ll break out of the wing and go to shotgun. Their quarterback (Brandon Wilson) is probably the fastest kid they have on their team,” Joseph said.

Pflugerville’s defense is huge, led by 5-11, 310-pound tackle Joe Hernandez and 6-6 junior defensive end Alex Okafor.

Free safety Justin Sorrell (5-10, 185) patrols the secondary.

“We just have to get under them and be physical; just a carryover from the second half of the Madison game,” Katy tight end Markham Stayton said.

That half, coupled with the end of the first, saw the Tigers score 52 unanswered points and five touchdowns in just less than 11 minutes.

GAME-BY-GAME
Katy Tigers (15-0)
Klein, W 45-0
The Woodlands, W 48-7
at A&M Consolidated, W 41-14
Alief Taylor, W 38-0
at Katy Taylor, W 48-0
Hastings, W 24-13
at Morton Ranch, W 52-12
Cinco Ranch, W 38-9
at Elsik, W 45-6
Mayde Creek, W 63-3
Postseason
vs. Strake Jesuit, W 51-18
vs. Madison, W 42-8
vs. Pasadena Memorial, W 30-14
vs. Fort Bend Clements, W 42-0
vs. San Antonio Madison, W 66-21
Pflugerville Panthers (12-3)
A&M Consolidated, W 21-16
Bryan, W 23-16
San Marcos, W 48-21
Leander, L 36-37
Georgetown, W 28-14
Round Rock McNeil, W 49-14
Cedar Park, W 28-14
Round Rock Stony Point, L 34-39
Round Rock Westwood, W 38-19
Round Rock, L 10-31
Postseason
vs. Temple, W 34-31
vs. Klein Forest, W 18-7
vs. Dallas Carter, W 20-18
vs. Longview, W 35-14
vs. Abilene, W 20-14

TELEVISION COVERAGE
Katy-Pflugerville will air on FSN Southwest throughout most of the region, but the Rockets-Chicago Bulls NBA game on FSN will bump Katy to KNWS-TV (Channel 51) in the Houston market.
Satellite viewers will get the Katy game on FSN Southwest’s main channel, 643 on DirecTV and 416 on DISH Network, and the Rockets on an alternate channel.

GETTING IN THE SPIRIT
A Katy pep rally is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday at the Arneson River Theatre, 418 Villita St. on the Riverwalk in San Antonio.

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