Month: August 2018

by Evan Ren

Campbell taking over at Clyde in great situation

The most difficult situation imaginable for a first-year coach is to replace someone who was not only successful, but who left you an empty cupboard. You have a tough act to follow, but nothing to follow it with.

In that regard, new Clyde coach Scott Campbell can count himself among the fortunate — the very fortunate.

Campbell, who replaced the highly successful Rocky Smart following his resignation in the spring, has ample weapons at his disposal to make a splash in his Clyde debut.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Anson Tigers expect to compete despite challenges

The Anson football team is coming off a tough 5-6 season, was moved from Class 2A Division I to Class 3A Division II at realignment and returns fewer lettermen than all but one of its seven district mates. But if fifth-year Tigers coach Chris Hagler is more nervous than normal heading into the upcoming season, he’s hiding it well.

With six offensive and five defensive starters back among its 10 returning lettermen, Anson has a solid nucleus to build around. And Hagler expects the young guys joining the mix to make whatever adjustments are necessary to become contributors themselves.

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by Evan Ren

Joslin eager to get started at Coahoma

In a way, first-year Coahoma football coach Chris Joslin is returning home. The former Big Spring assistant who most recently has been assisting at Rockdale, is now back in the Big Country with his first head coaching job.

And, at least on paper, the elements are there to continue some of the momentum from last year’s 7-4 club.

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by Evan Ren

Brock Eagles in search of redemption

To call the Brock Eagles hungry might be the understatement of the year.

With 19 lettermen and 15 of 22 positions filled by returning starters from a team that fell to Rockdale (45-29) in the Class 3A Division I state championship game, the Eagles feel as though they have some unfinished business in 2018.

On paper, they have the tools to get it done.

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by Evan Ren

Wall Hawks reload to make a run at district title

If one were going to make a case for perennial power Wall ever slowing down, it might be in 2018.

After all, the Hawks return only one offensive and three defensive starters from last year’s 12-1 team. They bring back a modest 13 lettermen after graduating 22.

There are, however, compelling reasons to believe the Hawks will take the proverbial “reloading” route, rather than rebuilding.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Goldthwaite Eagles have questions to answer in 2018

Coach Greg Proffitt’s Goldthwaite Eagles will have some big questions to answer in 2018.

Coming off a 4-7 season that saw them reach the playoffs for the 14th consecutive year, the Eagles will have to replace five starters on each side of the ball, including the bulk of their experience on the lines and much of their production in the backfield.

So what will that mean for this Goldthwaite squad and its ability to contend in a district that once again features De Leon, Crawford and Hico? Proffitt is not quite sure. But he said expectations are no lower are around the Eagle program than they’ve ever been.

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by Evan Ren

Eastland Mavericks to face merciless schedule

If the Eastland Mavericks are to keep their current streak of nine straight playoff berths alive, they’ll have to negotiate a minefield to get there.

A combination of graduation losses and a difficult realignment have placed the Mavs in the unusual position of facing uncertainty.

With a modest 11 of 22 positions occupied by returning starters and only 12 lettermen to choose from, a young Eastland group will need to wade through the new District 3-3A Division I to get a playoff spot.

That’s easier said than done in a league featuring perennial power Wall (12-1), a Breckenridge team expected to be its best in years, and rapidly improving groups from Jim Ned, Clyde and Early.

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by Evan Ren

Experienced Breckenridge Buckaroos a major threat

Don’t expect fifth-year Breckenridge coach Casey Hubble to involve himself in the hype surrounding his 2018 Buckaroos.

The media, however, may not be able to help itself, and the numbers provide some reasoning for that.

To begin with, Breckenridge returns all but one offensive starter, more than half its defense and has a solid nucleus of seniors for leadership.

Toss in the fact that the Buckaroos weren’t thrilled with a season-ending loss to Merkel in the playoffs last year and you can add hunger to their list of potential advantages.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Stokes-less Hawley Bearcats expect success in 2018

Quay Stokes’ graduation will no doubt be felt around Hawley this fall, both on the field and in the locker room. But those expecting the Bearcats to take a significant step backward may be setting themselves up for disappointment.

In fact, with six starters back on both sides of the football and a strong set of prospects up front and at the skill positions, Hawley coach Mitch Ables said expectations are as high as they’ve ever been in Bearcat country.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Burnett, Brownwood Lions excited for challenge in ’18

Placed in a district with No. 3 Stephenville, No. 4 Waco La Vega, No. 14 China Spring and Gatesville, a 7-4 playoff qualifier a year ago, the Brownwood Lions will have as tough a path to the postseason as anyone in 2018.

Add a nondistrict slate of Class 3A Division I No. 1 Brock, Snyder, Class 4A Div. II No. 6 Graham and strong 5A outfits from Wichita Falls Rider and Wylie, and you have a nine-game schedule that is sure to test the Lions’ strength and durability.

But don’t expect this Brownwood group to be intimidated by the road ahead. First-year Lions coach Sammy Burnett, a former Brownwood Lion himself, won’t allow that to happen.

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by Evan Ren

Early Longhorns banking on experience

With one of the area’s top returning quarterbacks and an experienced offensive line, the Early Longhorns are a virtual lock to field a better product than they did in 2017.

Whether or not they can improve on their 3-7 record, however, is the question for a program that hasn’t fielded a winning team in 10 years.

Shifted to the extremely difficult District 3-3A Division I during the UIL realignment, Early isn’t the only team on the block expecting to be better than a year ago. As a result, the fact that the Longhorns have improved might get blurred by a murderous league slate.

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by Daniel Youngblood

No. 4 De Leon Bearcats eager to live up to hype in 2018

Coming off a 12-1 season and ranked fourth in Class 2A Division I by Texas Football magazine, the De Leon Bearcats have every reason to be excited about the 2018 campaign.

Coach David Yeager’s team brings back a strong nucleus of 14 lettermen, including one of the top small-school quarterbacks in the state in Yeager’s son, Kevin. And realignment moved the only team that beat the Bearcats last season — the eventual state champion Mart Panthers — out of their bracket and into 2A DII.

While those facts and others have many around the state viewing De Leon as a legitimate state championship contender, Coach Yeager wants his team focused on more immediate goals. And that starts with putting the preseason hype in the proper perspective.

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by Evan Ren

Young Clyde Bulldogs already battle-tested

There’s a difference between being young and being untested.

On paper, first-year Clyde coach Scott Campbell has a junior-laden team, likely a year away from hitting its peak. But the club is far from inexperienced.

A year ago under former coach Rocky Smart, the Bulldogs reached the playoffs and finished 6-5 despite starting multiple sophomores on both sides of the ball.

This year, Campbell, the former head coach at Luling, inherits an enormous junior class of 18 players — roughly half of whom were in starting varsity roles last year.

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by Evan Ren

Tigers eager to face the 7-2A Division I gauntlet

If the old adage that “familiarity breeds contempt” is true, then District 7-2A Division I might be one of the most contentious group of teams in the Big Country.

Close proximity and a history of success for several teams is the driving force behind this league — a formula for intense rivalries and several high profile games throughout 2018.

For Hico Coach Randy Thornton, however, the weekly intensity offered by this league is really more about respect than anything else. But it’s still something he’s looking forward to.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Young Sweetwater Mustangs look to keep run going

After graduating 23 seniors off last year’s 10-3 team, second-year Sweetwater coach Ben McGehee knows his roster will look a little different in 2018. But don’t think for a minute that he or his Mustangs will be ceding District 1-4A Division II to any of their league mates.

It’s true that Sweetwater returns just 15 lettermen — tied with Pecos for the smallest number in the district. And yes, the Mustangs will be filling a number vacant spots with members of a 3-7 junior varsity team and a fair number of freshmen and sophomores.

But McGehee insists his squad will be ready to compete by the time district play rolls around.

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by Evan Ren

Albany Lions banking on mix of vets, youngsters

How one places Albany in their preseason projections is a matter of perspective.

While the returning numbers aren’t fabulous (six offensive and five defensive starters among 12 lettermen), the Lions do return a core group of exceptional players. And while the junior varsity was an uncustomary 7-3 last year, two of those losses were to Class 3A powers Cisco and Colorado City.

So the question is, will Albany take a major step back from last year’s 13-1 overall mark?

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by Evan Ren

Comanche Indians hope their size trumps youth

With a slew of new faces dotting Comanche’s varsity landscape, the one consolation coach Stephen Hermesmeyer has is that his guys will be bigger than most of their opposition. And with the Indians’ preference for keeping the ball on the ground, this could bode well for CHS, which will have at least five front-line players who tip the scales at 225 or more.

Injuries, however, could present a problem.

“Depth is going to be a major issue, but we do have some good-size kids,” Hermesmeyer said. “And we’ve got some good quality kids coming back.”

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by Daniel Youngblood

Cross Plains Buffaloes aim to contend in tough new district

Sharing a district with five teams that made the playoffs a year ago, including a pair of ranked squads in Class 2A Division II No. 5 Albany and 12th-ranked Hamlin, the Cross Plains Buffaloes will have to fight tooth and nail for their trip to the postseason this fall.

Fortunately for the school’s fans, coach Daniel Purvis feels his Buffs are up to that task.

With 13 lettermen back from from a 6-5 team, including six offensive and seven defensive starters, Cross Plains will send a talented and experienced group into battle. And the Buffs have every intention of leaving the fray with one of District 7-2A DII’s four playoff spots.

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by Evan Ren

Jim Ned Indians banking on big numbers in 2018

Any time a Class 3A team has 15 of 22 starters and 25 lettermen returning from a 9-3 football team it can count itself as one of the fortunate.

The 2018 Jim Ned Indians qualify and the timing could be viewed as an exclamation point at a program where a dramatic turnaround has taken place.

Jim Ned, which posted seven straight losing campaigns from 2010-16, has developed a winning attitude while cultivating its talent. And an influx of new varsity players from an unbeaten JV team serve as an added bonus.

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by Evan Ren

Bangs, Maxfield starting from scratch

After his sudden and unexpected departure from Brownwood to take the Bangs job in February, coach Kyle Maxfield put himself in a position to build a program from the ground up.

The bad news was that he was inheriting a club that went 0-10 in 2017. The good news was that there was only one direction the program could go, and it will have Maxfield’s fingerprints all over it as it begins to progress.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Experienced Roscoe Plowboys setting sights high

The Roscoe Plowboys won’t be real big in 2018, but they’ll be fast and experienced — two qualities that should come in handy while trying to navigate one of the state’s toughest Class 2A Division II districts.

With 18 returning lettermen and eight starters back on both sides of the football, coach Jake Freeman’s team will have more seasoned talent than any group in District 7-2A DII. The challenge will be leveraging that experience into a product that can compete with area powers Albany and Hamlin for district supremacy.

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by Evan Ren

Guts, instinct define play of Stamford’s Bevel

He doesn’t always do things as scripted, but one thing is for certain: Stamford senior quarterback Peyton Bevel will have a major impact on the direction of a game as long as he’s on the field.

Thus far, that impact has been overwhelmingly positive, as evidenced by his helping the Bulldogs to a 10-3 mark last year and a trip to the Region I-2A Division I semifinals. Along the way, he produced more than 2,200 yards in total offense, accounted for 26 touchdowns as a replacement for the injured Noah Horn and helped Stamford to come-from-behind wins over Anson, Hawley and Sundown.

A significant portion of that came through improvisation, though at times, it was difficult for his coaching staff to watch.

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by Evan Ren

Skillful Stamford Bulldogs banking on rebuilt lines

Whether or not coach Ronnie Casey’s Stamford Bulldogs have numbers in their favor depends on one’s perspective.

On the one hand, the Bulldogs have just five starters coming back on both sides of the football from a 10-3 team. So improvement on last year’s product appears difficult.

On the other hand, Stamford has a whopping 20 lettermen back, plus some varsity newcomers from a deceivingly good junior varsity team that saw its three losses come to Brock by one, to Wylie by three and to a high-powered Post team.

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by Evan Ren

Experience a Hico strength in 2018

The numbers are smiling on the Hico Tigers in 2018, and the timing couldn’t be better. That’s because from top to bottom, District 7-2A Division I is perhaps the top 2A league in Central Texas.

Hico returns eight offensive and seven defensive starters among 13 lettermen from last year’s 7-4 playoff team. But the Tigers will have to contend with toughies from De Leon (12-1), Crawford (11-3) and Goldthwaite (4-7), along with what is expected to be a radically improved team from San Saba (3-7) that returns 18 of 22 starters.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Hamlin Pied Pipers poised for another strong season

Having led his team to a 57-19 record since the start of the 2012 season, Hamlin football coach Russell Lucas has built the Pied Pipers into one of the Big Country’s most consistent Class 2A squads.

Under Lucas, who has an 83-37 overall record at Hamlin, the Pipers have become a perennial playoff team, and they’re a strong bet most years to go at least a couple of rounds deep.

Coming off a 10-3 campaign with eight starters back on both sides of the ball, the 2018 Hamlin squad appears well positioned to continue that trend.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Experienced Snyder Tigers expect improvement in 2018

A strong returning nucleus and a drop to Class 4A Division II has third-year Snyder football coach Cory Mandrell feeling good about his team’s chances in 2018.

The Tigers, who return seven offensive and six defensive starters among 21 total lettermen, feel this could be the year that puts them back on track after a string of six consecutive losing seasons.

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by Evan Ren

Forsan a stepping stone? Not exactly

For many, it’s an unknown.

“Where is Forsan at anyway?” One may ask at a game involving the Buffaloes.

“Way out in far West Texas, I think,” would be an common answer.

For coaches who are uninitiated, a mentioning of a job opening Class 2A Division I Forsan may come with a knee-jerk “stepping stone” assumption before applying for the gig.

That’s the way it is for Forsan. But for the coaches who live and work in this small community, located 14 miles southeast of Big Spring, it is a one-of-a-kind place, where many choose to remain.

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by Evan Ren

Young Coleman team showing healthy attitude

On paper, the 2018 Coleman Bluecats have a challenge in front of them, brought on by numbers.

Coleman, which has the second-lowest enrollment in District 4-3A Division II, has only two starters back on both sides of the ball from last year’s 3-8 team. There are only seven seniors on the roster and only 10 lettermen, but the inexperience factor is even larger than what it seems.

Due to the fact that the Bluecats didn’t have the numbers to field a junior varsity team in 2017, very few of their younger players got a large number of reps.

Nonetheless, fifth-year coach John Elder is liking what he sees out of this young group of players and believes they may surprise a few people.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Winters Blizzards look to build on last year’s turnaround

A year ago, Matt McCarty’s Winters Blizzards experienced one of the Big Country’s biggest in-season turnarounds. The mission now is to build on that.

Starting the 2017 campaign 1-4 following consecutive 2-8 seasons, the Blizzards rattled off four wins in their final five regular season games to earn their first playoff berth since 2014. And McCarty feels the strides made during that run — and the added confidence that resulted — has the Blizzards well positioned for bigger things in 2018.

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by Evan Ren

Colorado City hopes to continue momentum

After finishing 11-2 last year and reaching the Region I-3A Division II semifinals, the Colorado City Wolves may have some room for improvement in 2018 — depending on a couple of things.

First, a young defensive line with three new starters thrown into the Friday night fire will have to perform well. Secondly, C-City must continue its trend of controlling the football while staying on the plus side of the turnovers.

To achieve both, the Wolves bring seven offensive and six defensive starters back from a club that bookended 11 straight victories with a season-opening loss to Albany (13-1) and a season-ending loss to Canadian (14-1) last year.

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by Daniel Youngblood

BCP Podcast No. 9: Legendary Brownwood radio voice Dallas Huston checks in

Dallas Huston

Hall of Fame sports broadcaster Dallas Huston has spent more than half a century calling Brownwood Lion sporting events, and both his name and voice have earned iconic status in the Big Country as a result.

This week, Huston visited with Big Country Preps’ Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood to discuss his time on the mic, his favorite memories of Brownwood football and some of his most outrageous stories from the road on this week’s Capital Farm Credit Wednesday Night Podcast.

Also in this episode Evan and Daniel share some of their observations from the 2018 photo tour, which took the pair through football practices in every corner of the Big Country.

by Daniel Youngblood

BCP Podcast No. 8: Early’s Sandford talks Longhorn football, baseball scouting

Early’s Blake Sandford

Blake Sandford took a unique path to becoming Early’s head football coach that included time as an amateur scout for Major League Baseball’s Cincinnati Reds, among other clubs.

This week, Sandford spent some time chatting with Big Country Preps’ Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood about his time in baseball, the season outlook for his Early Longhorns and his philosophy as an athletic director on this week’s Capital Farm Credit Wednesday Night Podcast.

Also in this episode, Evan and Daniel discuss the wealth of quarterback talent and depth in the Big Country this season.

by Daniel Youngblood

BCP Podcast No. 7: Evan, Dan talk football with Wichita Falls’ Zach Duncan

Zach Duncan

Like Big Country Preps co-founders Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood, Wichita Falls Time Record News area writer Zach Duncan has been covering high school sports in his market for a long time.

Entering his 15th football season with the Wichita Falls newspaper, Duncan has seen more great games than he can count and worked with some outstanding coaches and players. This week, he took some time to share some his favorite football stories and talk shop with Evan and Daniel.

Also in this episode, Evan and Daniel discuss District 3-3A Division I and District 7-2A Division II — two all-area leagues that should be competitive from top to bottom.