College Station coach Steve Huff hasn’t forgotten last season’s dominating performance against Port Neches-Groves.

He also hasn’t forgotten who’s playing under center for the Indians — a guy committed to playing college football in Austin.

“Their quarterback was such a problem,” he said. “Seems like this year, he’s carrying more of the load.”

PNG was tied with College Station at 21 early in the second quarter of last year’s 5A Division II Region III semifinal in Baytown following a 73-yard Roschon Johnson touchdown run. Johnson, now a junior, completed 20 of 30 passes for 244 yards and rushed 15 times for 116 yards, but College Station went on to score 31 unanswered and eventually eliminate PNG 52-28.

The Cougars reached the state semifinal round, losing to eventual runner-up Calallen to finish 14-1. And their key offensive playmakers from 2016 are back.

In fact, Indians coach Brandon Faircloth said the Cougars (10-2), who went unbeaten in six District 18-5A games, are the same team from last year.

“Very physical, fast, talented and well-coached,” he said. “A very good football team.”

Senior Marquez Perez has the keys to the Cougars’ dynamic offense.

Perez, a Tulsa commit who threw a touchdown pass and ran for three touchdowns (including a long of 60 yards) against PNG, is an accurate passer with 1,760 yards and 14 touchdowns on a 65.2 percent completion rate against eight interceptions. His scoring pass was to classmate DaDa Anderson, whose 65-yard touchdown run started the Cougars’ pull-away and was part of a 159-yard rushing evening.

Anderson has 1,184 rushing yards this season and 12 scores.

Faircloth does recall some factors in last year’s outcome that he used to plan the reverse result Saturday for PNG (10-1) in Humble.

“We’re a new team and they’re a new team,” Faircloth said. “We made some errors that put us behind the 8-ball in the first quarter. Versus a good team, you can’t do that. … We had some injuries. We didn’t have [now Texas A&M receiver] Keynel McZeal, we didn’t have [now-senior receiver] Preston [Hughes]. It’s one of those things where we’ll try to be the same team we’ve been all season, and that’s go out and play hard.”

Still, Huff isn’t all in love with the 2017 matchup that will determine who plays the winner of Friday’s Hutto-Fort Bend Marshall tussle.

“I don’t know that I like any matchup, ever,” Huff said. “I look at them the same; they’re all tough. When you look at their record and all they went through and you look at the Crosby game [which PNG won 72-69 two Fridays ago] … I don’t look at any game being really good.”

For one, the Cougars have to slow down a much healthier PNG team than the one last year.

And the Cougars have to slow down Johnson, who unofficially has thrown for 2,623 yards (32 touchdowns) and rushed 1,705 yards (20 TDs).

“Try to get away from the big plays,” Huff said. “That’s the No. 1 thing. Chunk yards will hurt you. Keep those down to very few because he’s gotten a bunch of them this year.”

I.C. Murrell: 549-8541. Twitter: @ICMurrellPANews