It’s not a requirement for one to be on the winning team to become eligible for our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award.
It helps, but it’s not set in stone, by any means.
Case in point: San Saba quarterback Luke Tharp, who produced big-time numbers in a 44-41 loss to Holland last week.
Jim Ned 45, Clyde 6 — 
Aiden Ellis rushed for 159 yards and three scores and Gray Beasley threw for 123 yards and two more TDs to lead the Indians to an important district win.
Jim Ned (6-3, 3-1) remains in district title contention with the win and could potentially win the crown with a win at Sweetwater next week, depending on the results of the Clyde-Comanche game.
Photos provided by Melissa Carroll and Kelly Moody
There’s a great deal of excitement brewing around the Tolar volleyball team heading into postseason play and with good reason. If the Lady Rattlers (28-9, 12-1 District 8-3A) manage to knock off Comanche on Tuesday, they will set a school record for wins in a season.
Secondly, senior setter Abbie Soileau is dishing assists like they were going out of style — including the 47 she tallied last week in wins over No. 25 Peaster and Early. That lifted her season total to a Tolar school record 1,032 assists on the year and more 1,700 for her career.
Comanche 34, Breckenridge 21 — 
The Indians rushed for 330 yards collectively to improve to 5-3 overall and 2-1 in district play.
Cayden Davis rushed for 121 yards and one score and Ladainian Smith rushed for 101 yards and another TD to lead Comanche.
Breckenridge fell to 0-8 and 0-3.
LAST WEEK: 41-10 .803
SEASON TOTAL: 367-108, .772
Football season doesn’t feel complete without at least one visit to Chesley Field in Cisco. And Friday night, the Big Country Preps Game of the Week will stop by for a crucial District 4-2A DI matchup between the Loboes (5-2, 1-1) and Hawley (7-0, 2-0).
For Hawley, a win here will keep open the possibility of an unbeaten regular season. For Cisco, a victory would signal the beginning of a climb back into area prominence.
Big Country Preps is publishing area volleyball statistical leaders each Tuesday at 7 p.m. roughout the regular season.
This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.
Sweetwater 27, Comanche 13 — Uriah Aguilar-Rivera rushed for 121 yards and two scores as Sweetwater captured a crucial win on the road.
The Mustangs (4-3, 2-0) are now tied with Clyde (4-3, 2-0) for the league lead. They will meet on Friday in Sweetwater.
Comanche (4-3, 1-1) was led by Cayden Davis who threw for 116 yards and one score and rushed for 160 yards and another TD.
It isn’t often that a place-kicker nails down our Big Country Preps Player of the Week, but Comanche’s Alex Terrell has done exactly that with a pressure-packed performance in a 13-10 overtime win over Jim Ned in our Game of the Week last Friday.
Aside from hitting a game-tying 30-yard field goal to send the contest into overtime, Terrell connected on a 31-yard field goal in the extra period to give CHS the win.
Sweetwater 90, San Angelo TLCA 0 — A long night for TLCA got even worse when it was forced into seven turnovers. Six of those giveaways resulted in Sweetwater touchdowns via scoop-and-scores and pick returns.
The Mustangs were led offensively by Caiden Ortiz, who threw for 137 yards and two scores.
Sweetwater improved to 3-3 and 1-0 with the win; TLCA dropped to 0-6 and 0-1.
OMANCHE — A week after Coahoma and Littlefield put on an offensive show in a 71-70 CHS win in our Big Country Preps Game of the Week, Comanche and Jim Ned produced a polar opposite.
Jumping into the trenches and hitting each other in the mouth four three hours, this Indians vs. Indians matchup resulted in a physical defensive struggle — eventually won by Comanche, 13-10 in overtime.
Alex Terrell booted a game-tying 30-yard field goal as time expired in regulation and came back to hit a game-winning 31-yarder in overtime to help Comanche (4-2, 1-0) to a nail-biting win in the District 3-3A DI opener for both clubs.
LAST WEEK: 32-12, .809
SEASON TOTAL: 279-91, .757
Now it’s time to get down to business.
With most of the Big Country taking an open date last Friday as a prelude to district play, we now dive headfirst into the games that count the most.
District play opens tomorrow for most leagues in the area, the intensity of which is already tangible.
Can you feel it?
We’ll see you on the road.
Here’s this week’s area picks:
Overwhelming. If there were a one-word description for last week’s performance by six-foot Graham senior Lillian Noble, that would be it.
Noble, a four-year varsity player who has already committed to Oklahoma Baptist, was far and away the most dominant player in both a 3-1 win over Wichita Falls Memorial and a 3-1 loss to Glen Rose last week.
Her combined totals: 54 kills, 23 digs and 12 blocks — making her the most effective two-way player the area saw on both sides of the net last week.
“Lillian has become a true utility player for us this season,” coach Marci Faulk said. “It’s exciting to see her embrace this new role and have so much success doing so!”
Comanche 54, Early 20 
— Cayden Davis rushed for 186 yards, threw for 104 and accounted for four touchdowns to lead Comanche to a win over Early.
The Indians rushed for 403 yards through seven different ball carriers, five of whom scored.
Lead art provided by Mark Rogers, HubCityPreps.com
Sweetwater 39, Lubbock Estacado 25 — Korda Moore rushed for 160 yards and three touchdowns and Caiden Ortiz threw for 135 yards to lead Sweetwater, which evened its record to 2-2 with the win.
The Mustangs finished with 388 yards in total offense while dropping Estacado to 1-3.
TOLAR — It wasn’t always pretty — any game with eight turnovers will likely earn that assessment — but when the Big Country Preps Game of the Week between Tolar and Comanche was finally over Friday night, Rattlers coach Blake Mouser was happy to get out of the nondistrict battle with a 14-7 victory.
“We weren’t sharp against a good team. We’ve got to grow up,” Mouser said, while noting the relative youth of the Rattlers will likely have them playing a lot of games that can go either way until they learn to close the deal.
“You saw a lot of missed assignments and penalties. But at the same time, it’s always good to win. Comanche’s a really good team. I don’t want to belittle them at all. But we had some mistakes that we’re going to have to address, and we will.”
LAST WEEK: 47-11, .810
SEASON TOTAL: 141-59, .705
After nosediving in Week 2 with one of the worst pick records I’ve ever had, the column rebounded in Week 3 with an .810 percentage to push my overall tally over .700 again.
As for this week’s Big Country Preps Game of the Week, Mr. Yale Youngblood will be on hand in Tolar to cover Comanche’s road game with the Rattlers in what should be a fun one.
I’ll be heading to Ballinger, where the Bearcats (3-0) will play host to Brady (2-1) in a battle of upstarts.
Let’s dive into this week’s picks:
Versatility is a definite advantage for nominees in our Big Country Preps Player of the Week column. And for Anson senior quarterback Corey Layne it was enough to put him in this week’s top spot.
Leading the Tigers (3-0) to a 49-28 over Dublin, Layne connected on 18 of 27 throws for 284 yards and four touchdowns. He also rushed eight times for 65 more yards and two additional scores.
Layne was equally effective from his linebacker spot, collecting 10 tackles and one interception.
Comanche 36, Eastland 14 — Cayden Davis threw for 177 yards and four scores and Ladainian Smith rushed for 140 yards and another TD as Comanche (2-1) handed Eastland its first loss of the season.
The Mavericks (2-1) managed 182 yards rushing and two scores with their newly installed wing-T offense.
LAST WEEK: 46-28, .621
SEASON TOTAL: 94-48, .661
Abysmal.
That’s about the only adjective that comes to mind when trying to describe my Big Country football picks, which are off to the single worst start through two weeks that I’ve ever experienced in 18 years of covering area football.
A percentage of .621 after two weeks of play is beatable by throwing darts, flipping coins, or even consulting with your local horoscope page. Yet here I sit, trying to dig myself out of the hole I’ve created. But enough of that, Glen Rose at Brownwood is our Big Country Preps Game of the Week, in a week filled with interesting matchups.
Let’s have a look at them:
Sometimes, the biggest stage creates the biggest performances.
And in the Big Country, the stage doesn’t get any bigger than the annual Abilene – Abilene Cooper matchup — one of the biggest rivalries in the state of Texas and arguably the biggest in our area (though you may get an argument from Brownwood-Stephenville).
Friday night with much of the city of Abilene paying attention, AHS quarterback Brayden Henry had a memorable night, hitting 15 of 19 throws for 216 yards passing and two TDs.
Jim Ned 42, Lubbock Trinity Christian 12 — Gray Beasley threw for 165 yards and three scores and rushed for 35 yards and another TD to lift the Indians (1-1).
Also having big nights were running backs Aiden Ellis, who rushed for 100 yards on 14 carries and Jaron Pryor (11 carries, 59 yards, one score).
Clyde 43, Cisco 42 — In one of the top games in the area on Friday, Clyde edge Cisco in a shootout, giving the Bulldogs (1-0) the only win of the night for District 3-3A DI.
The Bulldogs overcame a 28-20 deficit heading into the fourth quarter to earn the win.
Clyde will play host to Eastland (1-0) in its home opener next Friday; Cisco will travel to San Angelo TLCA on the same evening.
LAST WEEK: 0-0, .000
SEASON TOTAL: 00-00, .000
Week 1 is often loaded with difficult picks and 2024 is no exception.
Our first slate of games this year has a number of contests that could have qualified for the Big Country Preps Game of the Week. But we finally settled on Albany at Stamford for the spotlight.
The two-time defending state 2A DII state champions, minus several key players lost to graduation, facing a Stamford club bringing back most of its skill and a ton of speed.
COMANCHE — In a year that will see Comanche have to replace most of its skill personnel, the Indians may have one saving grace that catapults them into the playoffs yet again: a large, experienced offensive line.
Yet “experienced” might be an understatement.
In fact, Comanche’s offensive front is stocked with five seniors — Christian Anaya (5-11, 238), Ethan Dease (5-11, 230), Miles Hatch (5-8, 230), Camilo Sanchez (5-10, 273) and Christian “The Badger” Sanchez (5-10, 195).
COMANCHE — Big plusses, big minuses and they’re all over the 2024 map for the Comanche Indians who are wondering which factors will have the biggest impact.
To begin with, several key players have graduated from CHS, including standouts Ayden Fishback (TE/DE), Dalton Salinas (OL/DL), Diego Gutierrez (WR/DB), Kyler Beaty (DB/WR) and Layden Welch QB/LB). And to make matters worse, All-Big Country Preps running back Sawyer Wilkerson has moved on to Stephenville.
The Indians, do, however, have possible compensation with 20 returning lettermen. They will also be supplementing their varsity roster with promotions from an excellent 9-1 JV team.
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 Wednesday, Aug. 21. 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. 5, we’ll be spotlighting each 11-man team in the area and posing some of the key questions they’ll face in 2024 as part of our annual “Countdown to Two-a-Days” series.
Today, we take a look at the Comanche Indians.
Continue reading “COUNTDOWN TO TWO-A-DAYS: The Comanche Indians … 12 days to two-a-days”
OTHER 2024 ALL-BIG COUNTRY PREPS TEAMS
Our All-Big Country Preps Softball and Baseball Teams, released Wednesday and Thursday, respectively, are in place to honor those who achieved the most on-field success in 2024. It is off the field, however, where character, grit, and work ethic are often measured. And it is with our Big Country Preps All-Hustle Team that we wish to honor those players, male and female, who were (simply put) the hardest-working, best teammates in the area this spring.
This team isn’t about who the best baseball and softball players were.
The All-Hustle team honors effort, discipline, toughness, coachability and selflessness — traits that coaches wish they had in every player and upon which championships are built.
It is for that reason that this team is largely selected by area coaches and described in their own words.
Big Country Preps is now honored to present these individuals to you — the best team players (boys and girls) that the the Big Country had to offer during the 2024 season.
The players below are listed in no particular order.
Digital photos, prints and keepsakes may be purchased by clicking the link below. The “BigCountryPreps.com” watermark will be removed from all purchased photos.
Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: 2024 State LineMAN Challenge (165 images)”
Coming off a subpar performance in Game 1 of last week’s 2A bi-district series with Hawley, Cisco pitcher Hannah Rogers did something few expected: a complete about-face.
Rogers, who had been beaten up in an 11-4 loss on Friday afternoon that saw her allow 14 hits, quickly regained her form for Game 2 that evening. Limiting Hawley to seven hits, she led Cisco to a series-tying 5-2 win.
Here are the area’s baseball statistical leaders through April 25.
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.
ABILENE — The Brock boys track team claimed its fourth consecutive region title Monday, headlining a strong showing by area athletes at the rain-altered Region I-3A meet at Abilene Christian University’s Elmer Gray Stadium.
Led by Dylan Foster, who claimed gold medals in both hurdle events, earned bronze in the long jump and ran a leg on Brock’s gold medal-winning sprint relay team, the Eagles finished with 99 points, edging runner-up Holliday by 13 points and topping third-place Wall by 44 points.
The Brock boys scored in 10 events and claimed nine medals on their way to the team championship, capping a meet that saw athletes from the Big Country Preps coverage area combined to earn 32 medals and claim 23 automatic berths to the Class 3A state meet May 2 in Austin.
There is very little that Eula’s Halie Cauthen isn’t good at athletically. Already an Honorable Mention All-Big Country Preps basketball player, the EHS junior showed her full range of versatility last week with three big performances in three different sports.
To begin with, Cauthen opened the week by qualifying for the 1A state golf tournament as an individual at the regional tournament, closing with rounds of 103 and 105.
Then, after playing 54 holes of golf in three days, Cauthen rushed back to compete for the district championship in softball against Cross Plains.
With a game time of 7:30 p.m., she arrived from the golf tournament at 7:25 and went 4 for 4 with three triples, three RBIs and four runs scored to help Eula clinch the district title in a 10-1 victory.
But Cauthen wasn’t finished quite yet.
Here are the area’s baseball statistical leaders through April 18.
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.
Here are the area’s softball statistical leaders through April 18.
With the end of the regular season, this will be our FINAL softball leaders posting for 2024.
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.
Here are the area’s softball statistical leaders through April 11.
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.
While we normally try to share the love in our Big Country Preps Player of the Week column, five district titles in one week isn’t easy to sidestep.
And while Wall’s Briggs Jones has already pulled down our award once this year, he earned a second with his showing at the District 6-3A meet in Clyde last week by sweeping the long jump (23-2), the triple jump (44-10.75), the 200 meters (21.92), the 100 meters (10.72) and assisting the 800 relay team to gold with a 1:29.68 split.
BRECKENRIDGE — Using a combination of clutch hitting and power, the Breckenridge Lady Buckaroos took sole possession of first place in District 8 on Friday with a 9-5 win over Comanche to break a tie between the two clubs atop the league standings.
Joni Jackson was 4-for-4 with a double and three RBIs, Reagan Robinson was 2-for-4 with a homer and three RBIs and Mia Castillo was 3-for-4 with a double, a homer and three RBIs to spearhead a 14-hit day for Breckenridge (20-9-1, 9-1),. which avenged a 12-6 loss to CHS on March 12.
Big Country strikeout leader Chloe Whitmire earned the win in the circle and helped the Lady Bucks avenge a 12-6 loss to CHS on March 12. Her complete game win saw her allow three earned runs on seven hits with 11 strikeouts — pushing her season total to 285 Ks in 159 innings.
Here are the area’s baseball statistical leaders through April 4.
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.
Here are the area’s softball statistical leaders through April 4.
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.
Here are the area’s baseball statistical leaders through March 28.
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.
San Angelo Grape Creek 74, San Angelo TLCA 0 — TLCA’s struggles continued on Friday with a loss to cross-town rival Grape Creek.