Here are the Big Country’s receiving leaders through Week 4:
Category: Ballinger Bearcats
Big Country Volleyball Statistical Leaders (through Sept. 21)
Big Country Preps is publishing area volleyball statistical leaders each Tuesday at 7 p.m.
This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.
We will continually update the database throughout the regular season.
District 2-3A Div. II Week 4 Report: Bearcats earn road win at Clyde
Ballinger 21, Clyde 13 — Carter Arrott rushed for 115 yards and two scores and Beau Perkins rushed for 140 yards and another TD to lift the Bearcats (3-1) to a road win.
Leading 14-13 with 3:52 to play, Ballinger got a 1-yard TD run from Perkins to put the Bulldogs on the ropes.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Improved Lions to pay visit to Brady (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country Picks)
LAST WEEK: 36-16, .692
OVERALL: 163-46, .779
After four straight weeks of picking 80 percent or better, the USS Ren ran aground last Friday, bottoming out with a season-low .692 percentage and dropping my season tally to .779.
Big Country Volleyball Statistical Leaders (through Sept. 14)
Big Country Preps is publishing area volleyball statistical leaders each Tuesday at 7 p.m.
This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.
We will continually update the database throughout the regular season.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Brady cancels, Ren goes scrambling (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country Picks)
LAST WEEK: 42-9, .823
SEASON TOTAL: 85-21, .801
I was very much looking forward to our Big Country Preps Game of the Week – Coleman (2-0) at Brady (2-0). Unfortunately, COVID intervened by midweek, forcing a cancellation of the contest.
On a positive note, there are several other quality games throughout the area for us to focus on, and (taking a bow) the column is already hitting over 80 percent on picks and we’re only in Week 3.
Numbers of that sort are generally reserved for Weeks 7-10, so I’m feeling pressure to keep the early momentum going.
In the absence of our Game of the Week, I’ll be heading to Cross Plains on Friday, where Haskell will be paying a visit to the Buffaloes (COVID allowing, of course).
Let’s dive in to this week’s picks:
District 2-3A Div. II Week 1 Report: Bulldogs crush TLCA in season-opening win.
Brady 37, San Angelo TLCA 6 — Brady had an easy time with TLCA, finishing with 454 total yards, including 367 on the ground. 
JD Ibarra was the top scorer for BHS, with 175 yards rushing on 18 carries and three touchdowns. Hayden Baronet threw for 87, rushed for 172 and accounted for two scores.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Stephenville play host to Sweetwater (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country Picks)
LAST WEEK: 0-0, .000
SEASON TOTAL 0-0, .000
At last, here we are.
The 2021 football season has arrived, giving us a much-needed diversion every Friday night, in isolated spots all over Central Texas. As always, I will endeavor to pick the winner of all our area games, from Class 1A through Class 6A, with the top matchup serving as our Big Country Preps Game of the Week.
Our first spotlight game should come as no surprise, with long-time Hamlin coach Russell Lucas debuting as the head coach of the Sweetwater Mustangs — one of the most -storied programs in the Big Country.
Their opposition?
The Stephenville Yellow Jackets at Tarleton State’s Memorial Stadium.
With that, let’s dive into the picks, shall we?
BCP Football Preseason Position Rankings: Quarterbacks
After a week of highlighting area playmakers, we wrap up our eight-part preseason position rankings series with the Big Country’s best signal callers.
To complete our look at the area’s top players, we’ve ranked our top 10 quarterbacks with a list of others to watch in 2021.
We hope you enjoy this list and that you’ve enjoyed our position rankings as we get set to kickoff a new season.
BCP Football Preseason Position Rankings: Running Backs
As we wind down our eight-part preseason position rankings series, we arrive finally at the Big Country’s top ball-carriers.
After breaking down this year’s crop of receivers and tight ends Monday, we move now to the area’s top backs, ranking our top 10 with a list of others to watch in 2021. Don’t forget to check in Wednesday night when we conclude our series with the top 10 area quarterbacks.
We hope you enjoy tonight’s list and encourage you to check out the other position groups, which are linked below.
BCP Football Preseason Position Rankings: Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
We’re approaching the final stretch of our eight-part preseason position rankings series, and it’s time to look at the Big Country’s top pass-catchers.
After starting the offensive portion of our series Sunday with the linemen, we now shift our attention to the playmakers on the perimeter, ranking our top 10 wide receivers/tight ends with a list of others to watch in 2021.
We hope you enjoy our list and encourage you to check out the other position groups, which are linked below.
BCP Football Preseason Position Rankings: Offensive Linemen
With the defensive and special teams rankings behind us, it’s time to look at the area’s top offensive players. And we’ll start with the foundation of any productive offense: the offensive line.
For the fifth installment of our eight-part preseason position rankings series, we turn our attention to the trenches, ranking the Big Country’s top 10 offensive linemen with a list of others to watch in 2021.
We hope you enjoy reading through our rankings.
BCP Football Preseason Position Rankings: Kickers/Punters
After recognizing the top defensive players throughout the Big Country over the past three days, it’s time to honor the specialists.
We continue our eight-part preseason position rankings series by naming our top 10 kickers and top three punters to watch this fall.
We hope you enjoy this list and that you have enjoyed our position rankings as we get set to kickoff the 2021 season.
BCP Football Preseason Position Rankings: Defensive Backs
After starting with the linemen and linebackers, we turn to the defensive backfield to complete our look at the top defenders in the Big Country.
For the third installment in our eight-part preseason position rankings series, we shift our focus to the secondary, giving our list of the area’s top-10 defensive backs and others to look out for in 2021.
We hope you enjoy our list.
BCP Football Preseason Position Rankings: Linebackers
After taking a look at the Big Country’s top defensive linemen on Wednesday, it’s now time to examine those who will backing them in 2021.
Continuing with Big Country Preps’ eight-part preseason position rankings series, here’s our top 10 linebackers to watch this fall, as well as a list of the others we’re expecting big things from.
We hope you enjoy our list.
BCP Football Preseason Position Rankings: Defensive Linemen
With the start of football season around the corner, it’s time to take a look at the players who will be making the biggest impact in 2021.
For the first installment in an eight-part series that will cover all position groups, we’ll be taking a look at the area’s top defensive linemen, ranking our top 10 with a list of others to watch this fall.
As with any such list, these rankings are subjective. We hope you enjoy reading through them.
2021 DISTRICT PREDICTIONS: Evan and Daniel make their picks
Without further ado it is time for us to make our Big Country predictions, district-by-district.
This is the culmination of several weeks of research and two solid months of summertime labor, so we’re more than ready to post it.
So dive in and study our take on the upcoming season, along with the more than 80 preseason stories we posted earlier today. Enjoy! We’ll see you on the road.
EVAN REN: The top area games worth traveling to in 2021
Every year, one of the things I look forward to most, is mapping out the upcoming football season — charting the games I believe will have the greatest impact.
First and foremost, it’s a preseason menu for area fans who enjoy driving to some of the Big Country’s best football games on a weekly basis. Call it a football roadmap of sorts.
BALLINGER FEATURE: Quarterback Carter Arrott no longer a well-kept secret
BALLINGER — A year ago, Ballinger’s Carter Arrott made his varsity debut on the spur of the moment — relieving starting quarterback Tyler Vaughn in the second half of a season opener against eventual 3A Division I state champion Jim Ned.
His debut was a memorable one, capped by a 19-yard touchdown run with 3:42 to play to lead Ballinger to a 20-14 upset of the Indians — the only blemish on an otherwise perfect Jim Ned season.
2021 BALLINGER PREVIEW: Hit hard by graduation, Bearcats look to remaining seniors to lead
BALLINGER — If the Ballinger Bearcats are to continue the recent run of success that has seen them post a 29-16 record and four straight playoff berths under coach Chuck Lipsey, a new cast of characters will have to keep it going.
Coming off a 10-2 season that included a season-opening win over eventual Class 3A Division I state champion Jim Ned (the Indians’ only loss), the Bearcats have but three offensive and three defensive starters back. Returning lettermen? Only 13.
COUNTDOWN TO TWO-A-DAYS: Ballinger Bearcats
Football is just around the corner, and we at BigCountryPreps.com are committed to bringing you the information you need to prepare for your favorite team’s season.
We’ll be releasing our Big Country Preps Preseason Football Preview, the most comprehensive look at the upcoming Big Country football season anywhere, on Saturday, Aug. 14. But you won’t have to wait until then to sate your gridiron appetite.
Leading up to the first day of fall football practice on Aug. 2, we’ll be spotlighting each 11-man team in the area and posing some of the key questions they’ll face in 2021 as part of our annual “Countdown to Two-a-Days” series.
Today, we move to Class 3A Division II with the Ballinger Bearcats. On Monday, we will take a look at the Bangs Dragons, followed by the Brady Bulldogs on Tuesday.
PHOTO GALLERY: Ballinger-Early baseball playoff (66 images)
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LINK … GAME STORY: Laird, Early bounce back from slow start to rout Ballinger in Game 1
GAME STORY: Laird, Early bounce back from slow start to rout Ballinger in Game 1
A rocky first inning proved merely a mild inconvenience for the Early baseball team Thursday at Abilene Christian University’s Crutcher Scott Field, where the Longhorns rallied from a 3-1 first-inning deficit to run-rule Ballinger 14-3 in Game 1 of a best-of-three Region I-3A area-round series.
Sophomore starter Caydon Laird bounced back from allowing three runs in top of the first to shut out the Bearcats the rest of the way, and the EHS lineup gave him six runs in the second and five in the third to make a winner out of the right-hander.
Up 12-3 after three innings, the Longhorns tacked on two more runs in the fourth to put the run rule into effect and put themselves in position to close out the series when it resumes with Game 2 at 1 p.m. Friday at the same site.
FEATURE: Ballinger senior Vaughn relishing stretch run of injury-filled high school career
As a four-sport lettermen in his three years at Ballinger — and a freshman standout at Brady before that — Tyler Vaughn has been an impact athlete throughout his high school athletic career.
But with each of his last three years being derailed by significant injuries, Vaughn’s career has been marked by inevitable questions of what might have been had he been blessed with better luck.
Now serving as DH for the Bearcat baseball team after undergoing surgery in late January to repair a torn labrum, Vaughn isn’t focused on what wasn’t, however. With his team preparing for a bi-district series against District 5-3A champion Reagan County this weekend, and a college career at Howard Payne to look forward to after this school year, the Ballinger senior is devoting his energy to making the most of what remains of his time in a BHS uniform.
LIVE: State Track and Field Meet medalists and Big Country Placings (DAY 1)
CHECK FOR LIVE UPDATES THROUGHOUT THE DAY AT BIGCOUNTRYPREPS.COM
Continue reading “LIVE: State Track and Field Meet medalists and Big Country Placings (DAY 1)”
EVAN REN: Handicapping the boys state track meet.
Having already released our picks for the girls state track meet earlier this evening, we now present the boys event, using the same approach.
We’ll comb through each event involving a Big Country athlete (or athletes) and assess if they are favorites, dark horses or long shots to get on the medal stand.
Let’s not waste any time. Let’s dive in.
EVAN REN: Picking the favorites, dark horses and longshots at the girls state track meet
I don’t care who you are — even if you’re a non-fan when it comes to track and field.
The excitement of the state meet in Austin will capture your attention if you catch sight or sound of it. It’s inescapable.
And once per year, it is my pleasure to examine the multitude of Big Country athletes heading to Austin for the event and pick who we can expect to see on the medal stand from our area.
Let’s begin with the girls side, looking at each event in which a Big Country athlete has qualified for state.
Big Country baseball statistical leaders for 2021 (through April 29)
Here are the area’s baseball statistical leaders through April 29:
Statistics are from throughout the Big Country Preps circulation area as submitted by coaches. These lists will be continually updated as we receive more submissions.
