Trophy Club Nelson (8-0, 5-0) at Southlake Carroll (8-0, 5-0):

It’s a showdown of unbeaten teams on Friday night as upstart Byron Nelson looks to stake their claim as a state title contender against perennial powerhouse Southlake Carroll.

The Bobcats rolled past Keller Central last week, 56-24, as QB Jake Wilson threw for 320 yards and four touchdowns, while Aaron Darden added 146 yards rushing and three scores on the ground.

The real key to Byron Nelson’s emergence as an elite team this year has been the play of their defense, which has been much better in 2022.

Carroll got a big scare a few weeks ago against Keller when they lost Wyoming commit QB Kaden Anderson to an injury. Last week the Dragons rolled past Haslet Eaton, 42-7, as Carroll relied heavily on the ground game paced by Owen Allen, who ran for 162 yards and three touchdowns, while James Lehman added 142 yards rushing for Southlake Carroll. This is Carroll’s first true test since the Anderson injury.

Byron Nelson is going to load the box and try to make sophomore QB Graham Knowles beat them. Knowles is talented and he’s had a couple of games to get adapted to the speed of varsity football, I think Carroll makes some key plays late and earns themselves a thrilling and hard-fought win against a Byron Nelson team that’s going to be a force come playoff time.

Stepp’s Pick: Southlake Carroll by 4