Playoff Picture Not Clear Yet!!!! WHO GETS IN??

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http://www.beaumontenterprise.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=18953750&BRD=2287&PAG=461&dept_id=583964&rfi=6

The 2007 playoff picture in District 22-4A is far from sharp at this juncture, but it is moving into focus.

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While no teams have clinched a spot, Port Neches-Groves - with the only undefeated record of 4-0 in league play - is certainly in a favorable position. Coach Matt Burnett's Indians do, however, have two road games remaining, including their regular-season ender at defending champion Dayton.

Dayton, the consensus preseason favorite, lost its district opener to Lumberton 8-7, but the Broncos have bucked ferociously since with back-to-back shutouts of Ozen and Vidor and a 49-13 lacing of Little Cypress-Mauriceville. The Broncos are joined in a second-place tie at 3-1 by Lumberton and Nederland, both of which have also played impressively this season.

The only other team with a realistic shot at earning one of the district's three playoff berths is 2-2 Central, although Ozen isn't mathematically out of it yet with its 1-3 record. The Panthers would have to run the table beginning with Friday night's road game at Lumberton, and they would also need several other key elements to fall into place to avoid losing the final berth on a tiebreaker.

Central is also facing a tough, uphill struggle as coach Donald Stowers' Jaguars have back-to-back road games coming up at Dayton and PN-G before they close vs. Ozen in Cardinal Stadium.

At 0-4 each, Vidor and LC-M are out of the picture, but both teams would love to play spoiler, and they'll have their opportunities. Coach Jeff Mathews' Pirates host PN-G Friday night, and coach Todd Moody's Battlin' Bears are facing back-to-back duels with Nederland and Lumberton.

Lumberton has never earned a playoff spot in football, but coach Alvin Credeur's Raiders can take a giant step in that direction with a win over Ozen Friday night before their home fans. The only blemish on the Raiders' 6-1 record came this past Friday night in a hard-fought 31-24 loss to PN-G at The Reservation.

Lumberton's other games after Ozen are at LC-M on Nov. 2 and back home for Nederland on Nov. 9. It's a favorable closing stretch for the Raiders.

Like Lumberton, Dayton has two home games remaining - Friday night against Central and on Nov. 9 vs. PN-G. In between, the Broncos must go to Nederland's Bulldog Stadium on Nov. 2. Nederland also has two at home - LC-M Friday night then Dayton the next week - before closing at Lumberton on Nov. 9.

District followers have already been treated to some marquee matchups this season, such as Lumberton's 8-7 win over Dayton, PN-G's 31-24 victory over Lumberton, Nederland's 40-29 conquest of Central, Ozen's 25-22 squeaker over LC-M and the annual Mid-County Madness tussle won 28-16 by PN-G over Nederland.

As you can see, however, plenty more meaningful games remain over the final three weeks. Stay tuned.

Here's a brief look at how other Southeast Texas district races are taking shape:

District 21-5A

Since 5A leagues now send four teams each to the playoffs, West Brook and Humble are sitting pretty with their spotless 4-0 records. They will meet - possibly for the district championship - on Nov. 2 in Durley Stadium.

Baytown Lee is also very much in the playoff mix with its 3-1 district record as well as are Memorial and Channelview with their 2-2 marks. It's also even too early to rule out Kingwood, despite its non-glamorous 1-6 and 1-3 records.

Atascocita and Baytown Sterling are out of it with their 0-4 district records, and more smoke will clear after this week's round of games which includes biggies in West Brook at Memorial, Baytown Lee at Humble and Kingwood at Channelview.

District 21-3A

West Orange-Stark is the frontrunner at 4-0, and considering the Mustangs have won all 21 of their district games since dropping to 3A, they are riding pretty high. Kirbyville and Jasper are tied for second place at 3-1, and Silsbee and Hamshire-Fannett are both right behind them at 2-2.

At 1-3 each, Orangefield and Hardin-Jefferson are pretty much in spoilers' roles as is winless Bridge City (0-7, 0-4).

Kirbyville and Jasper have two home games each remaining, but Kirbyville's are with Bridge City and Hamshire-Fannett whereas Jasper's are with WO-S and Silsbee.

District 23-2A

Newton and Woodville share the district lead with 2-0 records, and their head-to-head meeting will be Nov. 2 in Woodville. Newton beat Woodville 49-34 last season.

With 1-1 records, Hemphill and San Augustine are tied for third place. If they remain tied, San Augustine owns the tiebreaker with its 27-13 victory in the teams' meeting on Oct. 12.

Corrigan-Camden and Shelbyville are bringing up the rear at 0-2 each. Corrigan-Camden gets its chance to get back into the hunt Friday night when it plays Woodville, while Shelbyville hosts San Augustine.

District 24-2A

One good football team is going to be disappointed when this race ends, because the league's top four teams have combined for a 26-3 record so far this season.

East Chambers and Buna are the co-leaders with 3-0 district marks going into this week's games, and they're also both 7-0 on the season.

Guess who plays Friday night in Winnie's Buccaneer Stadium? That's right. Buna and East Chambers. It ought to be a dandy.

At 3-1, Hardin is one-half game behind East Chambers and Buna, while Kountze is still in the race with a 2-1 mark. Hardin hosts Kountze Friday night. Warren (1-3), Deweyville (0-3) and Anahuac (0-4) occupy the spoilers' roles.