It wasn’t long ago that Marcus was flying high as one of the top teams in Class 5A. But after two straight losses in District 6-5A, they are inching closer to finishing this season with a thud.

    The Marauders (4-3 overall) carry a suddenly mediocre 1-2 district record into Friday’s annual Battle of the Mound Showdown with rival Flower Mound (2-1). A loss for Marcus would make any shot at playoffs extremely difficult. Game time is slated for 8 p.m. at the University of North Texas.

    “I’m really surprised, we just didn’t fight well at all and we certainly have a lot more to give,” Marcus head coach Bryan Erwin said following his team’s 42-21 loss to Coppell last week. “I’m not even really thinking about the next game right now because we have to figure out a way to regroup. If we can’t do basic stuff then we won’t have a chance at beating Flower Mound.”

    With the recent loss, Marcus dipped into a tie with Hebron for the fourth and final playoff spot with two games left in the regular season. Flower Mound is third at 2-1 along with Coppell while Southlake Carroll remains the only unbeaten team in the league at 3-0.

    Marcus still has Flower Mound and Hebron on the schedule while Hebron faces Carroll this week before meeting the Marauders in the season finale. If both teams were to lose this week, it would set up a potential winner take all scenario in the finale. Marcus, of course, would like to avoid that at all costs.

    “We need to learn how to respond, fight and be loyal to each other,” Erwin said.

    Erwin hinted that he didn’t see anything like that against Coppell. In fact, following a short post-game speech, Erwin ordered his team back on the bus as he sternly walked with them surely grasping at reasons in his head for his team’s struggles.

    Marcus trailed for most of the game but seemed to have Coppell on its heels when Chris Martin made a clutch 42-yard catch for a touchdown. On the play, Martin leapt up between two defenders and came down with both feet in the corner of the end zone. The score gave Marcus a 21-20 lead with 4:26 left in the third quarter.

    Then the bottom fell out.

    Coppell scored four plays later on one of Cam McDaniel’s five touchdowns. It was one of three touchdowns the Cowboys scored on their last four drives to take a commanding 42-21 lead with 4:03 left in regulation. In the meantime, Marcus had its last three possessions go three and out.

    Marcus is looking to beat Flower Mound for the second-consecutive season after losing to the Jags the two years prior. It’s been an up and down series for both squads and in most cases has provided major playoff implications for both teams. 

   This year’s installment will be no exception.