The Brownwood Lions, who have appeared in 23 consecutive 7-on-7 state tournaments, begin the quest for another trip to College Station on Saturday as they take part in the Mineral Wells Division II state qualifier – the first of just three tournaments for Brownwood this season.

The Lions are competing in Pool C at Ram Stadium with games at 9:20 a.m., 11 a..m. and 12:20 p.m. against Burkburnett, Dumas and Ponder. If Brownwood wins its pool, it would advance to the 1:15 p.m. semifinals to face the Pool D champion – either Bowie, Celina, Sanger or Springtown – with the winner of that game headed to Veterans Park and Athletic Complex in College Station June 27-28.

Burkburnett finished 3-8 in 2023 but made the playoffs, Dumas posted a 4-7 mark and also reached the postseason, and Ponder was 4-6 and did not advance past district play. The Lions, meanwhile, were 12-2 a year ago played for the regional championship in the state quarterfinal round of the playoffs.

The other half of Saturday’s bracket consists of Mineral Wells, Decatur, Peaster and Graham – which has already qualified for state – in one pool, and Boyd, Glen Rose, Lake Worth and Stephenville in the other. One of those teams will also punch a state ticket as well.

As for the objectives for the Lions on Saturday, Brownwood head football coach Sammy Burnett said. “No. 1 is communication and teamwork, that’s most important. Chemistry is the biggest thing. You’re going to face adversity in 7-on-7 and you’re going to get frustrated with some of the things you see and that some people do because, to me, it’s not as realistic as a Friday night game with some of the routes they run and coverages they play. But I want to see them face adversity when they’re down, how do they handle that, what is their response?”

Burnett said the Lions will make a considerable change on the defensive side of the ball than from years past.

“We’re actually going to pull our linebackers off the field and put some corners and safeties in those spots,” Burnett said. “We’re at a disadvantage in 7-on-7 at that position because we’re big, thick and strong and we’re C-gap defenders to force the run, that’s their job. We don’t ask them to cover a slot receiver one-on-one, so we’re going to modify that a little.”

Among the players to keep an eye on, Braeden Stacks and Rory McNeese are expected to split time at quarterback; receivers include returners Carson Noe, Aaron Edmonds and Stone Ratliff, along with varsity newcomer Grant Gray; and the backfield will feature Levi Pearson and Tre Moseley.

The defense is anchored by returning starter Noah Gonzalez, with Kenyan McDowell, Keedan Brooks, Raven Prado, Caven Webster and Durham Brown expected to contribute significantly.

Burnett stated, however, that Gonzalez, Webster, Ratliff, Edmonds and Moseley could see limited or no action at all due to nagging injuries.

Next week, the Lions host their own qualifier on Saturday, June 1 and wrap up the qualifying season Saturday, June 8 at Jim Ned.