Apaches News
Sat, Oct 31, 2009 - [Football]
By JOE BUIE, Staff Writer, Tyler Junior College

Today's Southwest Junior College Football Conference regular-season finale in Miami, Okla., carries little significance for Tyler Junior College. The kickoff with Northeastern Oklahoma A&M is set for 3 p.m. at Robertson Field.
 
The No. 15 Apaches (6-2, 3-2) clinched their first playoff berth since 2004 with last week's 36-33 win over Trinity Valley. Not only that, TJC earned the No. 3 seed.
  
The final playoff spot is up for grabs between Kilgore (2-3 SWJCFC) and Cisco (1-4), who play at 3 p.m. today in Cisco.

NEO (3-5, 1-4) was eliminated with last week's 68-36 loss at Kilgore, the third consecutive setback for the Golden Norsemen. NEO could still finish in a three-way tie for fourth, but would lose out in a point-spread tiebreaker.

Both TJC and NEO are accustomed to playing high-scoring games.

The Apaches average 434 yards per game, and the Golden Norsemen are next at 376. But these are also the worst-ranked defenses in the conference, both allowing 400-plus yards per game.

The respective starting quarterbacks are ranked 3-4 in the conference in passing yards. NEO's Barrett Ahrberg has thrown for 1,152 yards, seven touchdowns and eight interceptions. TJC's Vincent McNeil has passed for 1,101 yards, 11 TDs and three interceptions.

When Ahrberg is not throwing, he's handing off to Da'Sor Horton. Horton leads the conference in rushing attempts (190) and is third in yards (892).

Keeping the dual-threat McNeil healthy is vital for TJC's playoff chances, so head coach Danny Palmer will probably use the NEO game to play all three of his quarterbacks. That could mean significant time for sophomore Michael Cook of Eustace and freshman Jeffrey Claybon of Lufkin.

A victory would allow the Apaches to take a four-game winning streak into the playoffs and maintain their national ranking. TJC will play the Blinn-Navarro loser in the SWJCFC semifinals next Saturday at either Brenham or Corsicana.