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Category: Clyde Bulldogs
BCP GAME OF THE WEEK: Clyde dominates Stamford 61-0
STAMFORD — If this was a midterm exam, someone slipped Clyde all of the answers.
From the opening whistle until the final seconds ticked away, the Clyde football team turned Friday’s Big Country Preps Game of the Week into its own personal highlight reel in a 61-0 win at Bill Anderson Stadium.
Bo Baker rushed for 126 yards and four touchdowns and Canaan Charleston rushed for 104 and two more scores to lead the Clyde offense. But it was the CHS defense that truly shined, limiting one of the Big Country’s top offenses to 45 total yards, including a minus-24 tally on the ground.
BCP Game of the Week: Stamford, Clyde about to take a tough midterm (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country Picks)
LAST WEEK: 44-8, .846
OVERALL: 217-42, .838
If the Big Country Preps Game of the Week is about learning who is who, then the Clyde Bulldogs (3-1) and Stamford Bulldogs (4-1) are about learn a great deal about each other, but more importantly, about themselves.
Friday night at Bill Anderson Stadium in Stamford, both clubs will square off in what amounts to a midterm exam.
Clyde, which has held its four opponents to an average of just five points per game, has done so against a series of run-heavy teams. Stamford is the first true up-tempo spread passing team that CHS has faced this season. So we’re about to find out just how good this Clyde defense may or may not be.
BCP Podcast No. 64: Evan, Daniel discuss biggest storylines, surprises from season so far
With Week 6 upon us, we’ve hit the halfway point of the 2019 regular season.
Most Big Country teams have either started district play or will in the next week or two, and fans have seen enough to form some informed opinions on their teams. This week, Big Country Preps’ Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood forego a guest to share their biggest takeaways from the season so far and discuss the things their most looking foward to down the stretch in this week’s Capital Farm Credit Wednesday Night Podcast.
Also in this episode, Evan and Daniel give a brief rundown of the week’s top matchups.
Continue to check back at BigCountryPreps.com each Wednesday night at 7 p.m. when Evan and Dan discuss the current happenings in Big Country High School sports — often with an interesting sports figure from around the area.
You can also peruse our BCP Podcast archive, which features dozens of our previous shows with prominent coaches and Big Country media fixtures.
Inquiries regarding these podcasts may be directed to Evan Ren at Evan.Ren@BigCountryPreps.com.
If you have a suggested topic of conversation or a recommended guest, don’t hesitate to contact us!
FEATURE: Clyde defense quietly becomes one of the area’s best
CLYDE — With Jim Ned capturing much of the area’s attention with three shutouts in as many weeks to open the season, it hasn’t been easy for anyone else in the Big Country to snag the defensive spotlight this year.
The Clyde Bulldogs, however, are making a bid to do exactly that.
Through four games, Clyde (3-1) has limited the opposition to a combined 21 points (5.3 per game), including shutouts of Comanche on Sept. 13 and Colorado City on Sept. 27.
“The guys have done an exceptional job,” second-year coach Scott Campbell said. “We’ve got a lot of experience on that side of the ball and a lot of good senior leaders who have an understanding of how to get aligned and play extremely fast.”
District 3-3A Division I: Week 5 Report
Clyde 54, Colorado City 0 — The Bulldogs (3-1) amassed 511 yards in total offense, of which 353 were on the ground to notch their third straight win.
Bo Baker rushed for 179 yards and two scores and Dylan Neuman threw for 158 yards and two more touchdowns to pace Clyde.
Colorado City (0-5) was held to 90 yards in total offense, including just 35 yards rushing on 23 carries as the Bulldogs pitched their second straight shutout.
BCP GAME OF THE WEEK: Loboes, Bearcats clash in our spotlight game (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country Picks)
LAST WEEK: 43-7, .860
OVERALL: 173-34, .835
While the Cisco Loboes have been in countless big games over the last two decades, the last few years have been a bit lean for Ballinger.
In fact, the general consensus is, when the Bearcats (3-0) play host to the Loboes (2-1) on Friday, this will be the biggest regular season game played in Ballinger in several years.
At the very least, it’s our Big Country Preps Game of the Week, and deservedly so.
BCP Podcast No. 63: Abilene High’s Mike Fullen checks in to talk Eagle football with Evan, Daniel
After serving as defensive coordinator under former Abilene High head coaches Steve Warren and Del Van Cox, helping the Eagles to a state championship in 2009, Mike Fullen was hired over the summer to take over the AHS football program.
Earlier this week, Fullen took a few minutes to chat with Big Country Preps’ Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood about his first season as a head coach, what he’s learned and what he hopes to accomplish in the future for this week’s Capital Farm Credit Wednesday Night Podcast.
Also in this episode, Evan and Daniel discuss some of their takeaways from the fourth week of the Big Country football season and take a look at the top matchups in Week 5.
Continue to check back at BigCountryPreps.com each Wednesday night at 7 p.m. when Evan and Dan discuss the current happenings in Big Country High School sports — often with an interesting sports figure from around the area.
You can also peruse our BCP Podcast archive, which features dozens of our previous shows with prominent coaches and Big Country media fixtures.
Inquiries regarding these podcasts may be directed to Evan Ren at Evan.Ren@BigCountryPreps.com.
If you have a suggested topic of conversation or a recommended guest, don’t hesitate to contact us!
District 3-3A Division I: Week 4 Report
Jim Ned 28, Mason 19 — The Indians (4-0) passed their most difficult test of the early season in workmanlike fashion.
Trailing 6-0 early on, the Jim Ned gained a permanent upper hand with three straight touchdowns — the first of which came at the 0:16 mark of the first quarter on a 1-yard run by Riley Perry.
Perry added a 3-yard TD with 4:08 left in the half before a 65-yard punt return by Jamin Harwell put the Indians up by three scores with 9:07 left in the third quarter.
BCP GAME OF THE WEEK: Explosive Brady visits Dublin (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country Picks)
LAST WEEK: 41-8, .837
OVERALL: 130-27, .828
On a Friday where any one of four or five games is arguably a candidate for our Big Country Preps Game of the Week, our final decision — Brady at Dublin — was based on sharing the love.
Jim Ned and Mason is on the board, as is Wichita Falls Rider at Brownwood, Hawley at Albany, Christoval at Cross Plains and, of course, the annual war between Brock and Breckenridge.
But with Jim Ned a likely candidate for Game of the Week when it faces Wall and Eastland later this year, and Brownwood receiving live coverage for Snyder two weeks ago and Wylie next week, the field narrowed a bit.
Hawley got our Game of the Week last Friday, and Albany will likely see the GOW when it faces Hamlin, so we’re heading to Dublin where Brady will be a part of its first-ever BCP spotlight game.
It shouldn’t disappoint.
BCP Podcast No. 62: Stephenville’s Sterling Doty visits with Evan, Daniel
After a successful five-year run at Magnolia High School, following a stint as an assistant and offensive coordinator at Cooper, Sterling Doty has returned home to lead the Stephenville program he helped to two state titles in the late 1990s.
This week, Doty took a few minutes to chat with Big Country Preps’ Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood about his team, the pressure he faces as Stephenville’s coach and some of his influences for this week’s Capital Farm Credit Wednesday Night Podcast.
Also in this episode, Evan and Daniel discuss some of their takeaways from the third week of the Big Country football season and take a look at the top matchups in Week 4.
Continue to check back at BigCountryPreps.com each Wednesday night at 7 p.m. when Evan and Dan discuss the current happenings in Big Country High School sports — often with an interesting sports figure from around the area.
You can also peruse our BCP Podcast archive, which features dozens of our previous shows with prominent coaches and Big Country media fixtures.
Inquiries regarding these podcasts may be directed to Evan Ren at Evan.Ren@BigCountryPreps.com.
If you have a suggested topic of conversation or a recommended guest, don’t hesitate to contact us!
District 3-3A Division I: Week 3 Report
Early 19, Tolar 18 — Brent Grooms threw for 205 yards for a score and rushed for 57 yards and two more scores to help the Longhorns improve to 2-1 on
the year.
Early trailed 18-13 heading into the fourth quarter before earning a road win with a late score.
Timmy Smithson was a favorite target of Grooms, hauling in six catches for 144 yards and a touchdown.
GAME STORY: Clyde’s defense shuts out Comanche
CLYDE — The Clyde defense turned in its second-best effort of the young season as the Bulldogs posted a 34-0 win over Comanche on Friday night at Bulldog Stadium.
The Indians, who were coming off a momentum building 31-28 win over Breckenridge last week, couldn’t get on track in the loss as they gained just 66 yards — only nine of which came after the game’s opening drive.
BCP GAME OF THE WEEK: Hawley, Hamlin collide in matchup of 2A powerhouses (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country Picks)
LAST WEEK: 46-6, .884
SEASON TOTAL: 89-19, .824
I don’t know what has me more jazzed — the interesting slate of Big Country games we’ve got on tap this week, or the fact that I hit 88 percent of my picks in Week 2 and am at 82 percent for the season.
I don’t mind saying, it’s way too early in to be picking at a rate that high. Normally the 80-percent plateau is crossed in the second half of the season, after you get dialed in on who’s who. But why should I complain? It will give me a leg up on Youngblood.
Our Big Country Preps Game of the Week — Hamlin (2-0) at Hawley (2-0) — was actually circled on the calendar well in advance of the season.
Yes, last year’s matchup resulted in a 32-6 Hamlin win.
But the venue switches to Hawley this time around and unless I’ve missed my guess, the Bearcats are more than motivated after being escorted to the woodshed by the Pipers a year ago.
BCP Podcast No. 61: Chris Joslin talks Coahoma football with Evan, Daniel
After a late arrival at Coahoma, Chris Joslin led the Bulldogs to a 4-7 record in his first season as a head football coach. This year, with most of that squad back, he has his team off to a 2-0 start, through which it has outscored its first two opponents by a combined 78-9 margin.
This week, Joslin took some time to talk to Big Country Preps’ Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood about this year’s team and his transition to the head coaching role on the Capital Farm Credit Wednesday Night Podcast.
Also in this episode, Evan and Daniel discuss the most interesting developments of Week 2 of the Big Country football season and take a look at the top matchups of Week 3.
Continue to check back at BigCountryPreps.com each Wednesday night at 7 p.m. when Evan and Dan discuss the current happenings in Big Country High School sports — often with an interesting sports figure from around the area.
You can also peruse our BCP Podcast archive, which features dozens of our previous shows with prominent coaches and Big Country media fixtures.
Inquiries regarding these podcasts may be directed to Evan Ren at Evan.Ren@BigCountryPreps.com.
If you have a suggested topic of conversation or a recommended guest, don’t hesitate to contact us!
FEATURE: Former Clyde, Sweetwater coach Craig Slaughter enjoying role as Wall DC
WALL — When Craig Slaughter’s name is brought up in Big Country football circles, it is often associated with a memorable run of success as the former Clyde football coach enjoyed when he led the Bulldogs to a 23-12 mark and one district title from 2006 to 2008.
His stint at CHS led to jobs at larger schools at Sweetwater (2009-11) and Llano (2012-17), after which many Big Country fans simply lost track of what had happened to the man.
He is, for the record, currently the defensive coordinator at Wall under head coach Houston Guy, where he is heading up a Hawk defense that has shut down powerhouses from Mason (47-7) and Cisco (20-13) in the first two weeks.
“I’ve really enjoyed the experience,” the 46-year-old Slaughter said of taking the job offer from his long-time friend, Guy. “When you’re leading a program, you get blamed for so much stuff that you really have nothing to do with, from who’s on the seventh-grade B team to the plays the seventh grade ran on a Thursday night.
“So (assistant coaching) is a load off your shoulders from the pressure you feel and put on yourself.”
District 3-3A Division I: Week 2 Report
Eastland 49, West 7 — Behren Morton threw for 281 yards and four scores and Brandon Fielding rushed for 81 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries as Eastland improved to 2-0.
The Mavericks raced out to a 35-0 lead by the second quarter before coasting the rest of the way.
By night’s end Eastland (2-0) had accumulated 432 yards in total offense. West (1-1) was limited to 150.
BCP GAME OF THE WEEK: Cisco, Wall square off in a clash of area powers (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country Picks)
LAST WEEK: 43-13, .767
SEASON TOTAL: 43-13, .767
The beauty of Week 1 of the football season is that it throws all sorts of new questions into your face. The beauty of Weeks 2 and 3 is that most of those questions get answered.
Our Big Country Preps Game of the Week — Wall at Cisco — should serve as a moment of clarity.
Just how good is this Wall team that routed perennial power Mason 47-7 at the Puncher Dome last week? Entering as a nine-point favorite, the Hawks shattered the computer projections leading some to believe this could be a vintage Hawks football team.
At this point, however, we don’t know exactly where Mason stands.
We do, however, have a pretty fair idea about Cisco, which handed a rapidly improving (albeit young) Class 4A Sweetwater team a 49-27 loss in the Mustang Bowl. This is your standard, tough Cisco football team with an excellent running game and physical defense.
So we’ll find out precisely where Wall is on Friday.
BCP Podcast No. 60: Evan, Daniel talk Big Country pigskin with Texas Football’s Greg Tepper
As the managing editor of Dave Campbell’s Texas Football magazine and an analyst for Fox Sports Southwest, Greg Tepper is respected statewide for the passion and knowledge he brings to his Texas high school football coverage.
This week, Tepper took a few minutes to chat with Big Country Preps’ Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood about the Big Country football scene and his work for this week’s Capital Farm Credit Wenesday Night Podcast.
Also in this episode, Evan and Daniel discuss the biggest surprises of high school football’s opening week and preview some of the Big Country’s top matchups in Week 2.
Continue to check back at BigCountryPreps.com each Wednesday night at 7 p.m. when Evan and Dan discuss the current happenings in Big Country High School sports — often with an interesting sports figure from around the area.
You can also peruse our BCP Podcast archive, which features dozens of our previous shows with prominent coaches and Big Country media fixtures.
Inquiries regarding these podcasts may be directed to Evan Ren at Evan.Ren@BigCountryPreps.com.
If you have a suggested topic of conversation or a recommended guest, don’t hesitate to contact us!
District 3-3A Division I: Week 1 Report
Wall 47 , Mason 7 — Mason’s 40-game home winning streak was ended in a resounding way by the Hawks, who dominated from start to finish in a Thursday night game televised by Fox Sports Southwest.
Wall (1-0) pounded out 353 yards rushing and Mason Fuchs threw two first-half TD passes in what was a largely unexpected rout.
The Hawks limited Mason to just 111 yards in total offense, including 84 yards rushing on 40 carries.
BCP GAME OF THE WEEK: Anson hosts highly touted Hamlin (w/ Evan Ren’s area picks for Week 1)
LAST WEEK: 0-0, .000
SEASON TOTAL: 0-0, .000
Fourteen seasons of Big Country football — that’s what 2019 represents for me.
Since 2006, I’ve been cruising the back roads (putting 275,000 miles on my truck) in search of the area’s best high school football games.
And I must say, it’s been an absolute blast.
We now jump headlong into the new season, beginning with our first Big Country Preps Game of the Week for 2019 — Hamlin at Anson.
FEATURE: Sustained success puts milestones in reach for Big Country football programs
Anyone who follows high school football in Texas knows that the Big Country has a rich tradition of producing winners on the gridiron.
But just how rich is that history?
Of the top 100 winningest 11-man programs in Texas history (regardless of classification), 11 call the Big Country home.
Brownwood is the standard-bearer with 738 wins in program history, which ranks sixth all-time. The Lions have a winning percentage of .654, which ranks 38th of programs that have a minimum of 500 games played.
The Lions, who have been playing football since 1907, are one of just 12 programs in the state to scale the 700-win plateau. But that number could grow by as many as six teams this fall, with three of those six teams hailing from the Big Country.
BCP Podcast No. 59: Evan, Daniel catch back up with Dublin’s Bob Cervetto
Dublin football coach Bob Cervetto took on one of the biggest challenges in the Big Country when he accepted his first head coaching job at DHS eight years ago. In the time since, he’s turned a moribund athletic program into one that’s competitive year-round.
Earlier this week, Cervetto took some time to chat with Big Country Preps’ Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood for his second appearance on the Capital Farm Credit Wednesday Night Podcast. Included in the topics discussed: his thoughts on this year’s Lions team, the state of his program and what motivates him to keep showing up to work every day with his signature positive attitude.
Also in this episode, Evan and Daniel discuss some of the top matchups of Week 1 of the high school football season.
Continue to check back at BigCountryPreps.com each Wednesday night at 7 p.m. when Evan and Dan discuss the current happenings in Big Country High School sports — often with an interesting sports figure from around the area.
You can also peruse our BCP Podcast archive, which features dozens of our previous shows with prominent coaches and Big Country media fixtures.
Inquiries regarding these podcasts may be directed to Evan Ren at Evan.Ren@BigCountryPreps.com.
If you have a suggested topic of conversation or a recommended guest, don’t hesitate to contact us!
BCP Preseason Position Rankings: Quarterbacks
After a week of highlighting area standouts, we close our eight-part preseason position rankings series with the Big Country’s top gunslingers.
To complete our look at the area’s best players, we’ve ranked our top-10 quarterbacks with a list of others to watch in 2019.
We hope you enjoy this list and that you have enjoyed our position rankings as we get set to kickoff a new season.
BCP Preseason Position Rankings: Running Backs
As we wind down our eight-part preseason position rankings series, we’ve finally arrived 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 running backs, ranking our top 10 with a list of others to watch in 2019. Don’t forget to check in Wednesday night when we unveil our top 10 area quarterbacks to conclude this series.
We hope you enjoy tonight’s list and encourage you to check out the other position groups, which are linked below.
BCP Preseason Position Rankings: Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
We’re now approaching the home 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 big boys up front, we now shift our attention to the playmakers on the edges, ranking our top 10 wide receivers/tight ends with a list of others to watch in 2019.
We hope you enjoy our list and encourage you to check out the other position groups, which are linked below.
BCP Preseason Position Rankings: Offensive Linemen
With the defensive and special teams rankings behind us, it’s time to look at the area’s offensive standouts. And we’ll start where any productive offense begins: on the line.
For the fifth installment of our eight-part preseason position rankings series, we turn our attention to the big boys, ranking the Big Country’s top-10 offensive linemen with a list of others to watch in 2019.
We hope you enjoy reading through our rankings.
BCP 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 five kickers and 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 2019 season.
BCP Preseason Position Rankings: Defensive Backs
After starting with the linemen and linebackers, we turn to the secondary 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 key on the defensive backs, giving our list of the area’s top-10 players and others to look out for in 2019.
We hope you enjoy our list.
BCP Preseason Position Rankings: Linebackers
After taking a look at the area’s top defensive linemen on Wednesday, it’s now time to examine those who will backing them in 2019.
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 Podcast No. 58: Evan, Daniel discuss predictions for upcoming football season
With the 2019 high school football season now less than two weeks away, Big Country Preps’ Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood have decided to utilize this week’s Capital Farm Credit Wednesday Night Podcast to break down every 11-man district race and dive deeper into their predictions for the upcoming season.
In this episode, Evan and Daniel share who they think will win each district and why, and go into deeper detail why they picked they teams they did to advance to the playoffs.
Continue to check back at BigCountryPreps.com each Wednesday night at 7 p.m. when Evan and Dan discuss the current happenings in Big Country High School sports — often with an interesting sports figure from around the area.
You can also peruse our BCP Podcast archive, which features dozens of our previous shows with prominent coaches and Big Country media fixtures.
Inquiries regarding these podcasts may be directed to Evan Ren at Evan.Ren@BigCountryPreps.com.
If you have a suggested topic of conversation or a recommended guest, don’t hesitate to contact us!
BCP Preseason Position Rankings: Defensive Linemen
With football season fast approaching, it’s time to take a look at the players who will be making the biggest waves in 2019.
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.
DISTRICT PREDICTIONS: Evan and Dan 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.
FEATURE: Clyde’s Baker growing into role as undisputed leader
With more than 160 tackles to his credit over the past two seasons, Bo Baker has been a leader for the Clyde Bulldogs
since he was a sophomore.
This year, for the first time, he’ll be the leader.
Playing alongside do-it-all standout Payton Burton each of the past two seasons, Baker managed to keep a relatively low profile despite near-elite production in his first two varsity seasons. But with Burton graduating in the spring, and Baker’s role in the offensive backfield slated to grow to match his importance to the Bulldog defense, that’s unlikely to to be the case in his third.
CLYDE TEAM PREVIEW: Experienced Bulldogs look to make leap in 2019
CLYDE — A case could be made that the Clyde Bulldogs were the best 3-7 team in the state relative to their competition level a year ago. But that’s little consolation to second-year coach Scott Campbell, who has much bigger goals in mind for his program.
Sharing a district with Wall, Jim Ned, Eastland, Breckenridge and Early, Clyde’s path to the playoffs will be as treacherous as ever in 2019. But Campbell has good reason to believe his Bulldogs are due a big leap this fall. The experience gained through last year’s frustration will likely play a large role in that.