Category: Haskell Indians

by Evan Ren

SIGNING DAY: Eastland’s Morton headlines this year’s Big Country recruiting crop

With National signing Day officially in the books, it’s time to take a quick look at this year’s Big Country signees — the most notable of which is Eastland quarterback Behren Morton, who has inked a Letter of Intent with Texas Tech. 

Wall offensive lineman Tate Williams (Baylor) and Cash Jones of Brock (Georgia) were the area’s only other players to sign with power conferences.

Angelo State was among the busiest of the area’s bigger universities, snagging Tyler Simpson of Blanket, Logan Glover of San Saba and Kason Phillips of Stephenville. 

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Stamford girls upset perennial power Haskell to open doubleheader sweep

STAMFORD — Dating all the way back to elementary school, a group of Stamford junior girls currently on the SHS varsity had been losing in basketball to a current group of junior girls from Haskell. Over and over again, they took one drubbing after another. 

That all ended on Tuesday in the first game of a varsity doubleheader at Stamford High School when the Lady Bulldogs, behind 20 points from Tylee Jo Bevel, upset the 15th-ranked Maidens 48-47 to hand Haskell (18-3, 11-1) its first district loss of the year. 

The Stamford boys claimed the nightcap, beating Haskell 46-38 to complete a varsity sweep. But it was the Stamford girls who stole the show on Tuesday, rallying to finally stop their old nemesis. 

With the score tied at 47 with no time left, Bevel drew a foul on a missed 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded. She went to the line and sank the winning free throw, but not before there was some drama. She had missed her first two shots with a rather loud contingent of Haskell students trying to distract her into a third. 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS 2020 MAX EFFORT TEAM: The hardest-working volleyball players in the Big Country

Our All-Big Country Preps Volleyball team, released today, is in place to honor those who achieved the most on-court success in 2020. It is off the court, however, where character, grit and work ethic are often measured. And it is with our Big Country Preps Max Effort Team that we wish to honor those players who were the hardest-working, best teammates in the area this fall. 

This team isn’t about who the best volleyball players were.

The Max Effort team honors hustle, discipline, toughness, coachability and selflessness — traits that coaches wish every player had.

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by Evan Ren

Evan Ren’s 2020 True Grit Team: The toughest, hardest-working players in the Big Country!

Most of us know a football player who lives in the weight room, who’s always dependable and who always does what his coaches ask him. He always puts the team first. He’s early to arrive and late to leave. And he seldom needs direction because he always pays attention. 

You know the type. But you seldom hear about them, since there is no specific category to put them in and the media doesn’t recognize these qualities.

This is the guy who always sets a good example. He doesn’t complain and above all else, is tough mentally and physically. He’s not necessarily the best player on his team (though some are). But he’s definitely the guy who gets the most out of whatever talent he was born with.

Welcome to the 2020 “True Grit” team — the one place in the Big Country where guys who fall into this category are recognized for it.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Haskell girls overwhelm Anson, take over top spot in 10-2A standings

ANSON — Entering their first meeting of the season separated by just one spot in the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Class 2A rankings and tied in the loss column in the District 10-2A standings, the Haskell and Anson girls basketball teams both showed up at Tiger Gym on Tuesday hoping to get a leg up on the other.

But the No. 16 Maidens quickly spoiled what appeared on paper to be a marquee Big Country matchup, opening the game on a 15-2 run and never letting up from there to secure a dominant 44-21 victory over the 17th-ranked Lady Tigers.

Fueled by its signature pressure defense, Haskell (12-2 overall, 5-0 in league play) led 27-7 by halftime and stretched its advantage to 25 points in the third quarter (39-14) before coasting in the fourth to the lopsided victory.

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by Evan Ren

CAPITAL FARM CREDIT/BCP PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Albany’s Cotter takes award with two dominating efforts

One dominating performance deserves another. 

Having already helped Albany reach the Region I-2A finals with a 17-kill performance in a win over Plains (22-25, 25-10, 25-22, 25-16) last week, Sarah Beth Cotter wasn’t finished. 

With AHS facing perennial power Wink in the regional finals Saturday in Big Spring, she helped the Lady Lions reach the state semis with 16 kills, two blocks, four digs and an ace in a stunning 25-14, 25-19, 25-20 sweep of the Lady Cats. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

BCP Girls Basketball Position Rankings: Guards

With the girls basketball season underway, it’s time to take a look at the players who will be making the biggest impact during the 2020-21 season.

For the first installment in a three-part series that will cover all positions, we’ll be taking a look at the Big Country’s top guards, ranking our top 10 with a list of others to watch this season.

As with any such list, these rankings are subjective. We hope you enjoy reading through our selections.

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by Evan Ren

District 3-2A Div. I Week 11 Report: Stamford locks up final playoff spot behind big night from Vaughn

Stamford 56, Haskell 32 — Zhawn Holden threw for 343 yards and six touchdowns and rushed for 83 yards on only 10 carries to help Stamford (5-5) secure the fourth and final playoff spot. 

Ryheem Smith was on the receiving end of six Holden deliveries for 160 yards and three scores. Dylan Faulks caught four others for 62 yards and a score.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Loboes put district streak on the line at San Saba (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country picks)

LAST WEEK: 34-5, .871
SEASON TOTAL: 351-77, .820

If you had told me three months ago that we would make it to Week 11 of the football season without a major COVID lockdown, I’d have told you to rethink your position. 

Eleven weeks later, here we are, still playing. We didn’t completely escape the virus, but it didn’t stop the season, either. 

That said, it’s time to jump into this week’s area forecast, beginning with our Big Country Preps Game of the Week — Cisco at San Saba — a contest that I had serious doubts about ever materializing when I put it on a calendar back in August. 

There are two big stories at play here: The District 4-2A Division I championship tops that list. But a 54-game district winning streak owned by Cisco dating back to 2010 is another prize the Armadillos are openly eyeballing. 

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by Evan Ren

District 3-2A Div. I Week 10 Report: Forsan keeps district title hopes alive with win over Stamford

Forsan 42, Stamford 14 — The Buffaloes locked up the No. 3 seed with a dominating win over Stamford that saw them rush for 337 yards as a team.

Nate Hernandez rushed for 129 yards and three scores and Major Stockton had a combined rushing/passing total of 205 yards with a TD pass to lead Forsan (5-3, 3-1), which was never threatened after building a 28-0 halftime lead.

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