Category: Big Spring Steers

by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 2-4A DII WEEK 2 REPORT: Andrews rallies past Big Spring; Lake View too much for Snyder

Andrews 42, Big Spring 34 — Tommy Evans ran for 242 yards and four touchdowns, including three in the final 10 minutes, to  lead the Mustangs to a remarkable comeback win over the Steers.

Big Spring, which got 172 yards and two touchdowns passing from Javon Jackson and TDs from both its special teams (blocked punt return) and defense (interception return), stretched a 21-14 halftime lead to 34-14 by the 10:26 mark of the fourth quarter. But Andrews, which also got 161 yards rushing from Blas Hernandez, scored the game’s final four touchdowns, taking a 35-34 lead on Evans’ final score with 5:37 to play before icing the game with a Jorge Rodriguez TD run with just under two minutes remaining.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Haskell QB takes the first award of the school year with an insane effort

Before Haskell senior quarterback Haegen Pinkerton arrived at HHS as a freshman, the name of Pinkerton was something I associated with the famous detective agency. 

I now associate it with statistical insanity, and you should associate it with the Big Country Preps Player of the Week. 

Pinkerton, who was behind center in Haskell’s 80-62 loss to Stamford, had one of the biggest nights I can recollect in a losing effort, accounting for seven touchdowns on Friday. 

Hitting 15 of 22 throws for 193 yards, three of Pinkerton’s deliveries went for scores. But it was on the ground where he did most of his damage, rushing 29 times for 290 yards and four touchdowns to help keep the Indians competitive. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 2-4A DII WEEK 1 REPORT: Big Spring, Snyder drop season openers; rest of league goes 3-1

El Paso Ysleta 30, Big Spring 22 — Colin Mikels ran for 157 yards and a touchdown, and Javon Jackson passed for 96 yards and ran for 69 more and two scores, but it wasn’t enough to lift the Steers to a win in coach Stacey Martin’s Big Spring debut.

Ysleta raced out to a 14-7 halftime lead and stretched that to 22-7 by the start of the fourth quarter, when BSHS tried to rally came up a touchdown short.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps Preseason Football 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 15 quarterbacks with a list of others to watch in 2026.

We hope you enjoy this list and that you’ve enjoyed our position rankings as we get set to kick off a new season.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps Preseason Football 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 earlier today, we move now to the area’s top backs, ranking our top 15 with a list of others to watch in 2026. Don’t forget to check in tomorrow when we conclude our series with the top 10 area quarterbacks.

We hope you enjoy this list and encourage you to check out the other position groups, which are linked below.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps Preseason Football 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 receivers.

After starting the offensive portion of our series with the linemen, we now shift our attention to the playmakers on the perimeter, ranking our top 15 wideouts/tight ends with a list of others to watch in 2026.

We hope you enjoy our list and encourage you to check out the other position groups, which are linked below.   

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps Preseason Football 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 15 offensive linemen with a list of others to watch in 2026.

We hope you enjoy reading through our rankings.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps Preseason Football 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 2026 season.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps Preseason Football 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 15 defensive backs and others to look out for in 2026.

We hope you enjoy our list.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps Preseason Football Position Rankings: Linebackers

After taking a look at the Big Country’s top defensive linemen last night, it’s now time to examine those who will backing them in 2026.

Continuing with Big Country Preps’ eight-part preseason position rankings series, here’s our top 15 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.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps Preseason Football 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 2026.

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 15 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.

Continue reading “Big Country Preps Preseason Football Position Rankings: Defensive Linemen” →

by Daniel Youngblood

2026 DISTRICT PREDICTIONS: Evan and Daniel make their picks

The time has arrived for us to make our Big Country predictions, district-by-district.

Several weeks of research and two solid months of summertime labor have gone into this, so we’re more than ready to post it. 

With that please 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!

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by Daniel Youngblood

BIG SPRING FEATURE: Martin looks to bring discipline, toughness and fun in return to alma mater

Since novelist Thomas Wolfe coined the phrase in a 1940 novel, it’s been said many times and by many people that “you can’t go home again.”

Well … new Big Spring coach Stacey Martin is certainly going to give it a try.

Hired away from his position as Midland High’s defensive coordinator, Martin will return to the school for which he played and graduated in the early 1990s. And it was precisely the opportunity to return home and elevate his alma mater to a higher level that attracted him to the post.

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by Daniel Youngblood

2026 BIG SPRING FOOTBALL PREVIEW: Young Steers set to lean on lines in Martin’s first season

After playing the past seven years under coach Cannon McWilliams, the Big Spring Steers will have a new voice in 2026. They’ll also have a bevy of new faces at key positions on both sides of the football.

Following McWilliams’ departure for Crane over the offseason, BSHS alum Stacey Martin was tabbed to take over the Steers football program in May. And one of his biggest challenges in Year 1 will be finding playmakers to replace a talented and seasoned skill group lost to graduation from last year’s 5-5 team.

Big Spring returns just five starters on both sides of the ball, and the bulk of its experience can be found on the lines. That will leave Martin and his staff looking for new sources of production in all phases as the Steers try to extend their playoff streak to eight consecutive years in a new six-team Class 4A Division II district.

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by Daniel Youngblood

2026 All-Big Country Preps Baseball Team: First-Team Roster

Here are our second-team selections for the 2026 All-Big Country Preps baseball team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.

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by Daniel Youngblood

2026 All-Big Country Preps Baseball Team: Second-Team Roster (w/ honorable mention)

Here are our second-team selections for the 2026 All-Big Country Preps baseball team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.

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by Evan Ren

2026 Big Country Preps Rising Stars Baseball Team: The top sophomores and freshmen in the area

Ladies and gentlemen, we are proud to release our 2026 All-Big Country Preps baseball teams. 

Here, you will find our Rising Stars Team honoring the top freshmen and sophomores in the Big Country.

For the rest of this year’s baseball selections, please click the links below.

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by Daniel Youngblood

2026 All-Big Country Preps Softball Team: First-team Roster

Here are our first-team selections for the 2026 All-Big Country Preps softball team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.

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by Daniel Youngblood

2026 All-Big Country Preps Softball Team: Second-team Roster (w/ honorable mention)

Here are our second-team selections for the 2026 All-Big Country Preps softball team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.

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by Evan Ren

2026 Big Country Preps Rising Stars Softball Team: The top sophomores and freshmen in the area

Ladies and gentlemen, we are proud to release our 2026 All-Big Country Preps Softball teams. 

Here, you will find our Rising Stars Team honoring the top freshmen and sophomores in the Big Country.

For the rest of this year’s softball selections, please click the links below.

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by Daniel Youngblood

REGION I-4A TRACK MEET: Brownwood girls run away with team title as area athletes shine

LUBBOCK — The Brownwood girls track team feasted at the Region I-4A meet Friday and Saturday at Lowrey Field, collecting nine medals and five automatic state berths to make a comfortable run to the event’s team championship.

The Lady Lions, who accounted  for all but two of the area’s medals on the girls side, got scoring from 13 entries on their way to 107 points — topping second-place Canyon by 31 points and third-place Krum by 44.

The BHS girls success headlined a strong overall showing by area athletes, who combined to claim 22 medals and 12 automatic spots to the Class 4A state meet May 14 in Austin.

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by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Big Spring’s offense sputters in series-opening loss to Springtown

ABILENE — For just the second time this season, the Big Spring softball team was held to two hits as the Lady Steers lost the opening game of their Region I-4A Division I area-round series against Springtown 3-1 on Wednesday night at Cooper’s softball field.

The only other time Big Spring was held to two hits this year was a 3-0 tournament loss to Boyd in a game that ended in the sixth inning by virtue of a time limit. The only other time the Lady Steers were held to one run or less this year was in an 8-1 loss to Snyder on April 7.

Big Spring coach Chelsey Jordan was quick to credit Springtown pitcher Kylee Spray for shutting down the Lady Steers’ offense, but she said that the remainder of the series on Friday, starting at 5 p.m., would play out differently.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Brock’s Blue wins accolade with remarkable performance

If you’re going to top someone who throws a perfect game in our in our Big Country Preps Player of the Week column, you had better do something very special.

This rare occurrence took place last week when Brock sophomore shortstop Kayden Blue helped the Lady Eagles to a three-game bi-district series win over Levelland with a truly memorable performance. In the process, she edged Abilene High ace George Ferguson, who delivered a perfect game win over Cooper. 

With Brock sandwiching wins in Games 1 and 3 (5-1 and 5-2) around a 5-4 loss in Game 2, Blue was quite literally unstoppable, going 10-for-10 in the series with five runs scored (accounting for more than a third of BHS’ run tally. Yet it doesn’t stop there. She also posted a pair of walks (one intentional), making her a perfect 12 for 12 in reaching base throughout a difficult series against excellent competition. 

“Kayden showed all the characteristics of a great leader in all three games and was phenomenal in the leadoff spot for us”

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Ferguson’s heartbreak sufficient for this week’s award

There are varying degrees of “no-hitter” in both high school baseball and softball. This is especially true when the mercy rule is concerned, with pitchers holding the opposition hitless through five innings (in a 10-run rule game) and in the case of the 15-run rule, through only three frames. 

Whether those should be called actual no-hitters, depends on who you speak to. 

There was, however, nothing arguable about the potential no-no delivered by Abilene junior pitcher George Ferguson in last week’s 2-0 win over Wichita Falls Memorial.  To begin with, Ferguson held Memorial hitless through 8.2 innings before finally giving up an infield single in the ninth.  In the process, he walked only one batter and fanned 17. 

It was nothing short of a brilliant performance against a Memorial team that had won eight straight games. If ever one deserved credit for a no-hitter without actually throwing one, it’s Ferguson. 

“George did a great job on the mound from start to finish and that included a 45-minute weather delay,” coach Brad Harman said.

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by Evan Ren

Evan Ren’s 2026 Gym Rat Team: The hardest-working players in the Big Country!

Scoring and rebounding is only part of the story when it comes to basketball. Behind the scenes and beyond the view of the public, is where character is often measured. And it is with our Big Country Preps Gym Rat Team that we salute the individuals who exude the most of it. 

This team isn’t about who the best players are, though some of the area’s top players are on this list. 

The Gym Rat team is about effort, discipline, toughness, coachability and selflessness — traits that coaches love above all else and that championship foundations are built upon.

It is for that reason that our Gym Rat team is selected entirely by area coaches, described in their own words. And Big Country Preps is absolutely honored to present these individuals to you — the best “team players” (boys and girls) that the area had to offer during the 2025-26 season.

Players are listed in no particular order. 

Enjoy.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Wall senior claims this week’s award

As one would expect, the Jim Ned Relays had a quality field of competition last week, opening the door for one of its athletes to snag Big Country Preps Player of the Week honors. 

So it’s not surprising that its top performer sits atop of our weekly list of highlighted competitors from around the area. 

Wall senior Bryson McFarden takes our weekly accolade after medaling five times in Tuscola with four golds and a silver. 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Clyde’s Reynolds is the hands-down winner

In the pitcher’s circle, there are varying degrees of perfection. And in the case of our Big Country Preps Player of the Week, that statement was fully illustrated on Friday in a 6-0 Clyde win over Merkel. 

Yes, CHS freshman Brynli Reynolds threw a perfect game. But this wasn’t your standard, every day, run-of-the-mill, garden variety perfecto. 

In fact, it may have been the most dominating performance by a baseball or softball pitcher the Big Country has seen in the last two decades. 

Aside from retiring 21 straight hitters from a very good Merkel team (19-2), Reynolds fanned the first 17 batters she faced and finished with 20 strikeouts. She also helped herself at the plate, going 1-for-2 with an RBI.

It was the second time this season that the Clyde freshman has taken our weekly accolade.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: And yet another Gaylor takes our weekly accolade

A week after Lipan’s Court Gaylor took our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award, yet another Lipan player has done the same thing. 

And by sheer coincidence, her last name is Gaylor as well. 

This time around it is freshman guard Sydni Gaylor, Court’s Younger sister, who has taken the accolade after leading the LHS girls to a Class 2A Division II state title in San Antonio on Thursday. 

Helping the Lady Indians to a 42-35 over perennial power Martin’s Mill, Sydni finished with 23 points and was voted by attending media as the game’s MVP. 

And the good news (at least for Lipan) is, this kid is only a freshman. 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Lipan PG Gaylor nabs honor with pair of strong playoff performances

Entering the week at 35-1 and ranked No. 1 in Class 2A, the Lipan Indians have won 33 straight games since suffering their only loss of the year to Class 4A Dallas Roosevelt in mid-November.

At the heart of that success has been standout point guard Court Gaylor, who performed at a high enough level in LHS’ first two playoff games to claim our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award. 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Cisco junior earns this week’s award

When Cisco junior guard Carter Toof is on his game, there is little one can do to stop him. He’s going to get his point, whether you like it or not. 

That was the case last week when Toof helped Cisco to a win over Abilene TLCA with 43 points, 14 rebounds and three assists. He followed that with 20 points, seven boards, four assists and three steals in a playoff warmup loss to Benjamin. 

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Hoops
by Evan Ren

FINAL Big Country Boys Basketball Statistical Leaders for 2026: Scoring, rebounding, assists, steals, FT Pct., pass deflections and blocks

Below are the current season statistical leaders for Big Country boys basketball through Feb. 19.  With the end of the regular season, this will be the FINAL boys basketball leaders we post this year. 

This database has been continually updated for our subscribers throughout the regular season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.

Is your favorite team missing? If so, please pass along a friendly reminder to your coach to check his email for our weekly stats request. We’ll be happy to add them to our database after they arrive. 

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by Evan Ren

FINAL Big Country Girls Basketball Statistical Leaders for 2026 (Scoring, rebounding, assists, steals, FT Pct., pass deflections and blocks)

Below are the current season statistical leaders for Big Country girls basketball through Feb. 12. This will be our FINAL girls stat leaders for 2026.

This database has been continually updated for our subscribers throughout the regular season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.

Is your favorite team missing? If so, please pass along a friendly reminder to your coach to check his or her email for our weekly stats request. We’ll be happy to add them to our database after they arrive. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

UIL REALIGNMENT: Area football landscape experiences major changes in biennial district reshuffling

Surprised — and in some cases, stressed out — faces could be seen in abundance Monday morning at Abilene’s Region 14 Education Services Center, where coaches from throughout the area and beyond gathered to learn their new district homes as part of the University Interscholastic League’s biennial realignment.

In what can best be described as a seismic shift in the Big Country football landscape, a majority of area schools were placed in unfamiliar environs — be that a new district with new foes or even a new region entirely.

The now venerated process by which the UIL releases the packet containing the new district alignments for football, basketball and volleyball is frequently compared by coaches to waking up on Christmas morning to find what presents await under the three. And on this day, in particular, few found the gifts they were expecting.

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by Evan Ren

EVAN REN’S 2025 TRUE GRIT TEAM: The toughest, hardest-working players in the Big Country!

Most high school football teams have that one player acknowledged by the coaching staff as the prime example of what a teammate should be. 

He’s the guy who seldom misses any practice time and is a regular in the weight room. He’s early to arrive. He’s late to leave and takes pride in being coachable, though he seldom needs direction. 

He always sets the right example for younger players. He doesn’t complain and, above all else, he’s tough enough to make all the aforementioned traits consistently possible. 

Know someone like that? Here is where they are honored. 

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by Evan Ren

2025 BIG COUNTRY PREPS RISING STARS TEAM: The top underclassmen in the Big Country

Here are our selections for the 2024 All-Big Country Preps Rising Stars Team — an honor reserved for the area’s top freshman and sophomore football players. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Wylie RB Laine takes honor with monster game in high school finale

Coming off a breakout junior season that ended prematurely due to a torn ACL late in district play, Wylie running back Julius wasn’t having the type of senior season he had hoped to going into Friday’s Senior Night game against Plainview.

Running behind a young and often banged-up offensive line, Laine entered that matchup with 668 yards on 135 carries on the year, including a combined 139 yards on the ground in three consecutive losses leading up to the Plainview game.

On Friday, though, the 6-foot-2, 235-pound bruiser finally broke loose and found some open field — a lot of open field — in closing out his high school career with a memorable night worthy of our Big Country Preps Player of the Week honor. By the game’s end, Laine had run for a career-high 300 yards and five touchdowns, including scoring runs of 35, 39 and 49 yards, to lead the Bulldogs to a wild 70-52 victory.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 3-4A DIV. I WEEK 11 REPORT: Big Spring claims No. 3 seed with win at Pecos; Andrews edges Lake View

Big Spring 34, Pecos 21 — Marcos Rios threw a pair of touchdown passes, Xander Garza had a TD run and Jacobi Lozano returned a punt 49 yards for a score to lead the Steers to a two-touchdown victory over the Eagles for the district’s No. 3 playoff seed

Sebastian Torres Barrera also put his stamp on the win for Big Spring (5-4, 1-2), nailing a pair of field goals to keep his team playing from ahead for most of the game. After falling behind 7-0 early, the Steers went to halftime up 17-7 and increased that advantage to 24-7 early in the third quarter on a TD pass from Rios to Kaine Valenzuela.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 3-4A DIV. I WEEK 10 REPORT: Big Spring can’t keep pace with Lake View; Andrews moves to 2-0

San Angelo Lake View 76, Big Spring 49 — Chris Alvizo passed for 293 yards and five touchdowns, and Izaiah Rios ran for 162 yards and two scores to help the Chiefs to an explosive win over the Steers.

Lake View (7-2, 2-0) also got a huge receiving day from Braylon White (6-122, 4 TDs) in piling up 526 yards of total offense (233 rushing, 293 passing) and setting a school record for points scored. 

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