Yesterday we told you all about the Bishop Amat defense and what Jesse Scroggins and Co. will need to do to continue their prolific scoring.  CLICK HERE for that preview.

As for the battle on the other side, the Lakewood defense thrives on seeking out contact and it’s worked beautifully this season as the Red Swarm has allowed a Pac-5 best 77 points.  In the last four games of the regular season, they gave up a total of 21 points.  Led by Notre Dame-bound Justin Utupo on the defensive line and USC-bound Dion Bailey in the secondary, the Lancer defense will keep doing what they do best: pressure, pressure, pressure.

They will have to be careful though, because the Amat offense is built to attack aggressiveness.  The Lancers from La Puente run about 15 different sets, and they can run almost every play out of anything from “four-wide” to “Maryland” or the “stacked-I”.  Amat will shift before the snap to change the strong side and force Lakewood to do the same.  You might see them sift pre-snap more tonight in an effort to confuse Lakewood and negate called blitzes.

The Lancers captained led by quarterback Jerry McClanahan (#7) who stars on the diamond and is headed to UC Irvine on a baseball scholarship.  The senior has a strong arm and makes good decisions with just four interceptions on the year.  He has completed 62 percent of his passes for 1,683 yards and nine touchdowns.

McClanahan will be looking for some quick hitting routs from receivers Darien Johnson (#1) and Rio Ruiz (#9). They two sure handed wideouts go both ways and have combined for 850 yards and five touchdowns.  The Lancers love to run screens to these playmakers (especially Johnson) and in a game early this year coach Steve Hagerty called 15 screen plays.

To make those screens successful and maintain a solid rushing attack (1,454 yards) you need a big, athletic offensive line.  Just like the Lakewood Lancers, that’s what the La Puente Lancers have.  Led by center Chris Mancilla (#63), the front line averages about 6’2″ 260lbs.

But all that’s the garnish on a nice plate of food.  The meat is lined up in the back field.

The key to this quarterfinal match up will be Amat running back Jay Anderson (#4).  The junior speedster has 1,121 yards rushing (4.5 avg) and 22 touchdowns.  Hagerty will find any way to get Anderson the ball, and they love to run the counter after a few sweep tosses.  They will also feature Anderson in the screen game (27 catches, 300 yards).

Here is the stat of the week: Amat is 10-1, with that one loss coming to Crespi, 38-25, three weeks ago. Anderson had 60 yards rushing on 17 attempts.  It was a season-low total for a back that averages over 100 yards-per-game.  If Lakewood wants to remain dominate on defense and control the rhythm, they need to keep Anderson out of his.

Bottom Line & Bold Prediction: Lakewood team speed, especially on defense, will be too much for Amat.