Two Southeast Texas football teams made major statements Friday night, giving fans reason to dream about the season that lays ahead.
For one, Class 2A Newton showed its worth with a thrilling victory at Silsbee, a Class 3A school thought to be a district championship contender. In another game, Jasper looked to be the real deal in a surprising 23-13 victory over West Orange-Stark, thought of as a state championship contender before the season.
The victory for Jasper was its second straight against a team ranked in The Associated Press top 10 state rankings. Most striking in those victories for the Bulldogs has been their 11 takeaways, four against WO-S and a whopping seven two weeks earlier in a 31-22 victory against Kirbyville, then the No. 4 team in Class 2A.
Next for Jasper is a trip to Hamshire-Fannett before a final district tune-up at home against Silsbee. After then, Jasper might be sitting with a surprising 4-1 record as it enters District 18-3A play against Diboll.
As for Newton, the Eagles picked up a second straight victory against a Class 3A team. They needed a last-second field goal try by Silsbee to bounce off the crossbar to seal the victory, but a win is a win, no matter how you slice it.
What Newton has now is a 4-0 record and an eye on a third straight Class 3A opponent, Orangefield, which will provide another stiff test. Those battles will do nothing but help Newton — ranked No. 6 in Class 2A — prepare for a District 22-2A race that looks to be getting tougher by the week.
One week after the Little Cypress-Mauriceville football team snapped a 16-game losing streak that stretched through one season and in parts of two others, the Battlin’ Bears have another kind of streak: A winning streak.
In a whichever-team-has-the-ball-last kind of game, LC-M snagged a 39-36 victory over Cleveland, a strong 3A school. LC-M’s Hunter Gonzales scored four touchdowns, two passing and two rushing. He also completed 14 of 24 passes for 249 yards.
Coupled with last week’s victory against Bridge City, LC-M takes a two-game winning streak into a district opening game against Port Neches-Groves. Play in District 20-4A will be a bit tougher than what LC-M has faced in recent weeks, but the Bears still have good reason to be confident.
Two good things to take from the West Brook football team’s near-comeback loss to Houston Eisenhower:
One, the Bruins fell a failed two-point conversion shy of going to overtime after they scored two touchdowns in the final two minutes. The team’s never-say-die approach should give coach Craig Stump something to build upon.
Two, the two-point loss came against an Eisenhower team that lost by 16 points to Galena Park North Shore, the No. 7 team in the Class 5A state rankings. West Brook and North Shore end the District 21-5A season against each other, and there’s reason to think the Bruins have the potential to keep the game closer than the 41-13 margin by which they lost last season.
The Nederland football team used third-string quarterback Adam Atterberry in a 42-7 loss to Friendswood. Starter Tyler Smith missed the game with the flu. Atterberry became Nederland’s third starting quarterback in as many games. The season-opening starter, Kirby Bellow, is out for the season after he suffered a ligament injury in the opener.
Watch for Orangefield to be a party crasher in a district thought to have been sewn up before the season began.
The preseason prediction that would give the District 21-3A title to the winner of the Oct. 9 game between WO-S and Silsbee might go out the window if Orangefield continues its impressive play.
The Bobcats, who won just once last season, now have a three-game win streak after a 52-0 victory over Cleveland Tarkington. In all, the Bobcats have played well enough to give reason to think they might be good enough to knock off either or both off the preseason district favorites.
Showing posts with label High school football. Show all posts
Showing posts with label High school football. Show all posts
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Monday, September 14, 2009
Why Ryan S. Clark voted the way he did in this week's poll
Whenever Sunday rolls around, that's when I know its time to vote in The Associated Press high school football poll.
I just look around to see how other schools did and that way it gives me a chance to gauge what's going on. In the case of WO-S, which is No. 3 in Class 3A, and Newton, which is No. 6 in Class 2A, there really isn't much to gauge because those schools started the preseason in the Top 10.
But as for schools like Lumberton and Vidor, it was time to give them credit because they have started the season 3-0. Lumberton has won district the last two years and Vidor is pegged to win district this year, which factored into the voting. Plus, what I have learned from folks over the last few weeks is area schools do not get much respect in these polls, because voters across the state might not be familiar with the schools around here.
Take Evadale for example. That is a program that is off to a 3-0 start and last season finished 7-2. Coach Mark Williams has quite a few kids back from last season and they looked poised for another strong run.
But there are schools that do get respect from across the state such as Kirbyville. Kirbyville got quite a few votes in the latest poll, but I did not vote for them. Sure they played an epic game against WO-S, but they made multiple turnovers and errors against Jasper. That's something Kirbyville coach Jack Alvarez told me. Plus, Jasper has only played two games so the game against WO-S on Friday should be a good gauge how good Jasper is and how good Kirbyville could be.
Of course as the season rolls along, these picks will change and for all we know, Evadale and others could crack the Top 10. No matter what happens, this season should be an interesting one.
I just look around to see how other schools did and that way it gives me a chance to gauge what's going on. In the case of WO-S, which is No. 3 in Class 3A, and Newton, which is No. 6 in Class 2A, there really isn't much to gauge because those schools started the preseason in the Top 10.
But as for schools like Lumberton and Vidor, it was time to give them credit because they have started the season 3-0. Lumberton has won district the last two years and Vidor is pegged to win district this year, which factored into the voting. Plus, what I have learned from folks over the last few weeks is area schools do not get much respect in these polls, because voters across the state might not be familiar with the schools around here.
Take Evadale for example. That is a program that is off to a 3-0 start and last season finished 7-2. Coach Mark Williams has quite a few kids back from last season and they looked poised for another strong run.
But there are schools that do get respect from across the state such as Kirbyville. Kirbyville got quite a few votes in the latest poll, but I did not vote for them. Sure they played an epic game against WO-S, but they made multiple turnovers and errors against Jasper. That's something Kirbyville coach Jack Alvarez told me. Plus, Jasper has only played two games so the game against WO-S on Friday should be a good gauge how good Jasper is and how good Kirbyville could be.
Of course as the season rolls along, these picks will change and for all we know, Evadale and others could crack the Top 10. No matter what happens, this season should be an interesting one.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Lucky No. 34 for Central, Kelly
Two Southeast Texas high schools played football games Saturday, and both secured victories by scoring their game's last 34 points. Central used a 34-point run to cap a 41-21 victory over Galveston Ball and Kelly used a 34-point run to lock up a 40-13 victory over Houston Furr.
Central appears to be playing with the same discipline that helped the school reach the fourth round of the Class 4A state playoffs last season. The Jags had a plus-2 in the turnover ratio against Ball and are a plus-3 on the season. That's one sign of a team that plays with discipline.
Central won games last season with a grind-it-out offense that kept the ball out of the air and the other team's offense on the sideline. Few will forget the way Central stymied a high-scoring Friendswood team in a 20-19 playoff loss last season that was supposed to be a one-sided affair.
As for Kelly, the Bulldogs have looked good since the opening week loss against Class 4A Kelly. If nothing else, Kelly appears to be rounding into shape for a TAPPS district run that includes tough games against Houston Pius and St. Thomas high schools.
The third week of the high school football season is finished. Check out our take on some of the week's key events.
Friday night football wrapup: Nelson, Crouch among winning coaches
This week's final scores, boxes/Next week's schedule
Three weeks into the high school football season, and seven of the nine schools that opened the season with new head football coaches have at least one victory to their team’s credit.
Two of those coaches picked up their first victory Friday, when Little Cypress-Mauriceville’s Randy Crouch and Ozen’s Jeff Nelson both put their heads on a pillow as winners. LC-M topped Bridge City 16-0 and Ozen beat Houston Worthing 30-19.
Only one first-year coach, Port Neches-Groves’ Brandon Faircloth, has an undefeated team at 3-0. Memorial’s Kenny Harrison and Orangefield’s Brian Huckabay are 2-1. Other coaches with a victory to their credit are Jasper’s Mike Bickham and Central’s Andrew Washington.
But for all the attention placed on new coaches this season, each of them would point to their players as the reason for success. After all, the players are the ones doing the work on the field.
Legacy’s Eric Holton and Kountze’s Mike Stewart are still without a victory at their new schools, but we’re sure they’ll soon earn a notch in the “W” column.
Among Friday night’s more intriguing events were the overtime contests won by West Orange-Stark and Port Neches-Groves.
WO-S ended the game when it stuffed a two-point conversion run to preserve a 21-20 victory over former district mate Kirbyville.
As for PN-G, it sealed a 22-16 victory over Texas City with a 13-yard TD run by Caleb Harmon. Texas City fumbled away its only overtime possession, and PN-G enters District 20-4A play undefeated.
Other 20-4A teams to finish non-district play with undefeated records are Vidor and Lumberton. How non-district success translates to district play is tough to gauge, as some of those victories came against schools in smaller enrollment classes.
Only PN-G earned each of its three non-district victories against schools in Class 4A or above. PN-G’s three victories were 21-20 agianst Barbers Hill, 37-7 against Crosby and 22-16 against Texas City.
Keep in mind, however, that none of those victories came on the road.
Among Friday’s more notable performances were that of Nederland quarterback Tyler Smith, a junior who engineered a John Elway-like drive in the fourth quarter of his first varsity start, a 27-23 victory over Waller.
Smith landed in the starter’s role when third-year varsity starter Kirby Bellow suffered a partially torn knee ligament in Nederland’s season-opening loss to West Orange-Stark.
Smith showed moxie during an 83-yard game-winning drive that ended with a pass to a wide-open Ryan Brady on a fly pattern for a 38-yard score with 5:14 left that ended a frantic 20-point Nederland rally.
Let’s chalk up Memorial as a much-improved team this season. The Titans have won two of three games, and they appear to have found the reliable rushing attack they’ve needed for the past few seasons. Ronzell King rushed 27 times for 176 yards and two touchdowns in Memorial’s 28-14 victory over Houston Nimitz. For the season, King has 371 rushing yards and five touchdowns.
We’re not making predictions, but Memorial may finally get a chance to steal one against West Brook when they meet later this season. Watch out.
There’s no mystery as to how Vidor figures to win games this season. The Pirates have averaged 416.3 yards through its three season-opening victories. Vidor runs a Slot-T offense that coach Jeff Mathews and his staff borrowed from coaches at Liberty Hill, winner of Class 3A state titls in 2006 and 2007.
"We begged, borrowed and stole information from everybody that was willing to listen," Mathews said in an Enterprise story published last season.
The offense is designed to methodically work the ball down the field, slowly melting time off the clock and keeping the other team’s offense off the field. Vidor did it well last season. How well the Pirates can run that offense this season will be determined in a district-opener against a strong Central team in two weeks.
Lumberton looks to have a slightly different look this season than it did during its two district championship seasons in 2007 and 2008. That much appeared evident in a 20-14 victory over Hardin County rival Silsbee. A portion of Lumberton's newly-stamped identity comes through the confidence and experience shown by junior quarterback Ryan Hughes, a second-year starter who looks to give his team a more balanced offensive look. Lumberton won those two district titles with a heavy run-based game. So far, the Raiders -- from Hughes to a strong defense backed by linebacker Anthony Beard -- are looking good.
An indicator that the likely District 22-2A title game between Kirbyville and Newton at the end of the regular season will be a tight one come with this fact: Both school hung 62 points on Diboll this season. Newton routed Diboll 62-21 on Friday, two weeks after Kirbyville beat Diboll 62-20.
A look at Friday’s top performers, based on statistics reported Friday night to The Beaumont Enterprise:
Rushers
Ronzell King, Memorial 27 rushes, 176 yards, 2 touchdowns
Caleb Harmon, PN-G 24-160-1
Nick Cardenas, Nederland 24-142-2
Dewan Childress, Anahuac 16-138-1
Kevin Tate, Vidor 12-129-3
Kelvin Bennett, Newton 9-119-2
Corey Huckabay, Orangefield 12-109-4
Percy Johnson, West Brook 7-108-2
Tye LeBlanc, East Chambers 21-107-0
Jacob Peevy, Vidor 17-107-1
Tevvin Jones, LC-M 22-107-1
Passers
Bruce Reyes, West Brook 20 completions, 35 attempts, 279 yards, 0 touchdowns, 0 interceptions
Jeremy Johnson, Silsbee 23-36-263-2-2
Cody Johnson, Anahuac 10-11-185-2-0
Tyler Smith, Nederland 15-30-167-2-1
Brennan Doty, PN-G 10-20-156-2-1
Receiving
Braxton Mayes, Anahuac 5 catches, 107 yards, 1 touchdown
Ryan Brady, Nederland 9-100-2
James Morrison, H-J 2-89-1
Pheal Hill, Silsbee 7-85-1
Prentice Lane, Silsbee 7-84-0
Click here to view most recent blog entry.
Three weeks into the high school football season, and seven of the nine schools that opened the season with new head football coaches have at least one victory to their team’s credit.
Two of those coaches picked up their first victory Friday, when Little Cypress-Mauriceville’s Randy Crouch and Ozen’s Jeff Nelson both put their heads on a pillow as winners. LC-M topped Bridge City 16-0 and Ozen beat Houston Worthing 30-19.
Only one first-year coach, Port Neches-Groves’ Brandon Faircloth, has an undefeated team at 3-0. Memorial’s Kenny Harrison and Orangefield’s Brian Huckabay are 2-1. Other coaches with a victory to their credit are Jasper’s Mike Bickham and Central’s Andrew Washington.
But for all the attention placed on new coaches this season, each of them would point to their players as the reason for success. After all, the players are the ones doing the work on the field.
Legacy’s Eric Holton and Kountze’s Mike Stewart are still without a victory at their new schools, but we’re sure they’ll soon earn a notch in the “W” column.
Among Friday night’s more intriguing events were the overtime contests won by West Orange-Stark and Port Neches-Groves.
WO-S ended the game when it stuffed a two-point conversion run to preserve a 21-20 victory over former district mate Kirbyville.
As for PN-G, it sealed a 22-16 victory over Texas City with a 13-yard TD run by Caleb Harmon. Texas City fumbled away its only overtime possession, and PN-G enters District 20-4A play undefeated.
Other 20-4A teams to finish non-district play with undefeated records are Vidor and Lumberton. How non-district success translates to district play is tough to gauge, as some of those victories came against schools in smaller enrollment classes.
Only PN-G earned each of its three non-district victories against schools in Class 4A or above. PN-G’s three victories were 21-20 agianst Barbers Hill, 37-7 against Crosby and 22-16 against Texas City.
Keep in mind, however, that none of those victories came on the road.
Among Friday’s more notable performances were that of Nederland quarterback Tyler Smith, a junior who engineered a John Elway-like drive in the fourth quarter of his first varsity start, a 27-23 victory over Waller.
Smith landed in the starter’s role when third-year varsity starter Kirby Bellow suffered a partially torn knee ligament in Nederland’s season-opening loss to West Orange-Stark.
Smith showed moxie during an 83-yard game-winning drive that ended with a pass to a wide-open Ryan Brady on a fly pattern for a 38-yard score with 5:14 left that ended a frantic 20-point Nederland rally.
Let’s chalk up Memorial as a much-improved team this season. The Titans have won two of three games, and they appear to have found the reliable rushing attack they’ve needed for the past few seasons. Ronzell King rushed 27 times for 176 yards and two touchdowns in Memorial’s 28-14 victory over Houston Nimitz. For the season, King has 371 rushing yards and five touchdowns.
We’re not making predictions, but Memorial may finally get a chance to steal one against West Brook when they meet later this season. Watch out.
There’s no mystery as to how Vidor figures to win games this season. The Pirates have averaged 416.3 yards through its three season-opening victories. Vidor runs a Slot-T offense that coach Jeff Mathews and his staff borrowed from coaches at Liberty Hill, winner of Class 3A state titls in 2006 and 2007.
"We begged, borrowed and stole information from everybody that was willing to listen," Mathews said in an Enterprise story published last season.
The offense is designed to methodically work the ball down the field, slowly melting time off the clock and keeping the other team’s offense off the field. Vidor did it well last season. How well the Pirates can run that offense this season will be determined in a district-opener against a strong Central team in two weeks.
Lumberton looks to have a slightly different look this season than it did during its two district championship seasons in 2007 and 2008. That much appeared evident in a 20-14 victory over Hardin County rival Silsbee. A portion of Lumberton's newly-stamped identity comes through the confidence and experience shown by junior quarterback Ryan Hughes, a second-year starter who looks to give his team a more balanced offensive look. Lumberton won those two district titles with a heavy run-based game. So far, the Raiders -- from Hughes to a strong defense backed by linebacker Anthony Beard -- are looking good.
An indicator that the likely District 22-2A title game between Kirbyville and Newton at the end of the regular season will be a tight one come with this fact: Both school hung 62 points on Diboll this season. Newton routed Diboll 62-21 on Friday, two weeks after Kirbyville beat Diboll 62-20.
A look at Friday’s top performers, based on statistics reported Friday night to The Beaumont Enterprise:
Rushers
Ronzell King, Memorial 27 rushes, 176 yards, 2 touchdowns
Caleb Harmon, PN-G 24-160-1
Nick Cardenas, Nederland 24-142-2
Dewan Childress, Anahuac 16-138-1
Kevin Tate, Vidor 12-129-3
Kelvin Bennett, Newton 9-119-2
Corey Huckabay, Orangefield 12-109-4
Percy Johnson, West Brook 7-108-2
Tye LeBlanc, East Chambers 21-107-0
Jacob Peevy, Vidor 17-107-1
Tevvin Jones, LC-M 22-107-1
Passers
Bruce Reyes, West Brook 20 completions, 35 attempts, 279 yards, 0 touchdowns, 0 interceptions
Jeremy Johnson, Silsbee 23-36-263-2-2
Cody Johnson, Anahuac 10-11-185-2-0
Tyler Smith, Nederland 15-30-167-2-1
Brennan Doty, PN-G 10-20-156-2-1
Receiving
Braxton Mayes, Anahuac 5 catches, 107 yards, 1 touchdown
Ryan Brady, Nederland 9-100-2
James Morrison, H-J 2-89-1
Pheal Hill, Silsbee 7-85-1
Prentice Lane, Silsbee 7-84-0
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Wednesday, September 02, 2009
Nederland should still contend without Bellow under center
Although Nederland quarterback Kirby Bellow is out for the season with a knee injury, there's little reason to think the Bulldogs will fall from contention in the District 20-4A race. Many fans remember how well Bellow performed in his first season as a varsity starter, when he replaced Ryan Sampere after he suffered a season-ending injury in the 2007 season opener.
How well Bellow's backup, Tyler Smith, handles the pressure that comes with being a varsity starting quarterback will go a long way in determining Nederland's chances for a district title.
If there is one silver lining to losing Bellow for the season, it is that his injury occurred not only early in the season -- which gives Smith ample time to grow into the role before district play -- but that it came in the game before Nederland's bye. With no game Friday, Smith has two weeks to prepare for Nederland's next game, Sept. 11 against Waller. That can only help.
How well Bellow's backup, Tyler Smith, handles the pressure that comes with being a varsity starting quarterback will go a long way in determining Nederland's chances for a district title.
If there is one silver lining to losing Bellow for the season, it is that his injury occurred not only early in the season -- which gives Smith ample time to grow into the role before district play -- but that it came in the game before Nederland's bye. With no game Friday, Smith has two weeks to prepare for Nederland's next game, Sept. 11 against Waller. That can only help.
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