The fifth-seeded Derby Panthers (9-1) travel to Lawrence on Friday to face the top-seeded Lawrence Free-State Firebirds (10-0) in the Class 6A quarterfinals at 7 p.m.

The Panthers also played the Firebirds in the playoffs the past two years, winning both times.

“We watch film, and we see where their weaknesses are and where their strengths are,” Derby coach Brandon Clark said. “Honestly there’s not too many weaknesses on this team, so they’re really good.”

Free State puts up a lot of its points before halftime, and half of its wins this season have been won by over 30 points.

“This is the playoffs. We’re gonna go in attack mode from the get-go,” Clark said. “We’re gonna try and not let them score. We played from behind before but hopefully we’re not behind at halftime and hopefully we get them out of their game plan.”

The Firebirds, compared to the Panthers, have their fair share of big guys on the defensive line.

“We’ve battled size. We’re not the biggest team. We’ve been that way all year. We don’t treat it any differently. We want to play with leverage and work. We may not be big, but we are quick and fast, so we’re gonna try and use that to our advantage,” Clark said.

The season has been flooded with injuries for the Panthers, including senior linebacker Alex McGill, junior defensive end Isaac Keener and sophomore quarterback Grant Adler. But it doesn’t stop the team with other players stepping up.

“It’s building confidence through practice. I think we’ve got eight starters out, and it’s just repetition through practice,” Clark said. “When the kids are seeing it in practice and repping it all the time, they become better, they become confident in what they see and what they know so it shows on Friday.”

One starter who has stayed prominent on the field is senior running back Brody Kooser, who came back from last season better than before.

“He can do it all this year — he can block, he can run, he can catch, he can do everything,” Clark said. “I feel like his best asset is he’s just very elusive — he can put his shoulder pads down and run you over, but at the same time he can make it look like he’s getting ready to do that and then just sidestep you and get free.”

In 2016, Kooser had 1,681 rushing yards and 32 touchdowns.

So far this season he already has 1,318 rushing yards and 23 touchdowns.

“He’s become more of a physical runner,” Clark said. “He’s really hit the weights hard and he’s become faster, but overall he’s more of an overall football player. He knows where the holes are, he knows where the guys are going to be and he just understands the game a lot better, and now he can just play off instinct because he’s repped it so much.”

Kooser’s teammates recognize his skill not only during games but in practice too.

“He’s incredible. It’s tough going against him every day at practice, but we don’t get what other people get. We get practice Brody — other people get game Brody. I feel bad for the other people’s defense because he’s a crazy hard kid to tackle,” junior center back Dax Benway said.

Clark is confident his team is ready for a battle and a win against Free State for the third year in a row.

“We’re in the playoffs now. Every game is going to be a good game and it’s going to be a battle — hopefully it’s a four quarter battle,” Clark said. “I’m excited to see our guys go against these big guys. We’re not going to take the underdog mentality because our team feels confident in themselves, but we’re gonna be on attack mode from the first play of the game to the last play.”