Here are the Big Country’s rushing leaders through Week 5:
Category: Hico Tigers
DISTRICT 10-2A DIV. II WEEK 5 REPORT: Hico snaps three-game losing skid
Hico 51, Frost 20 — Price Mullin rushed for 71 yards and two scores and Carson Keller rushed for 50 yards and two more touchdowns as Hico routed Frost in the district opener for both clubs.
Keller also completed four of six passes for 148 yards an another TD as the Tigers (2-3) snapped a three-game losing streak.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Brownwood entertains red hot Glen Rose (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country picks)
LAST WEEK: 51-10, .836
SEASON TOTAL: 131-42, .757
Football picks are something I take pride in and it irritates me to no end when I stink it up. So let’s just say, I burned some midnight oil to get that situation corrected last week.
As a result, the column recovered with a solid .836 percentage in Week 3, salvaging my bruised ego after a disastrous Week 2 tally. In all, 51 of 61 area picks hit the mark last week, elevating my season’s record above 75 percent.
That’s more like it.
Week 4 in the meantime, presents a lineup of some of the most difficult area picks we’ve had this season — including an explosive Glen Rose team facing Brownwood in our BCP Game of the Week. Let’s dive in, shall we?
Here’s this week’s forecast:
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 10 quarterbacks with a list of others to watch in 2022.
We hope you enjoy this list and that you’ve enjoyed our position rankings as we get set to kick off a new season.
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 10 with a list of others to watch in 2022. Don’t forget to check in Thursday 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.
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 Tuesday with the linemen, we now shift our attention to the playmakers on the perimeter, ranking our top 10 wideouts/tight ends with a list of others to watch in 2022.
We hope you enjoy our list and encourage you to check out the other position groups, which are linked below.
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 10 offensive linemen with a list of others to watch in 2022.
We hope you enjoy reading through our rankings.
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 eight kickers and top eight 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 2022 season.
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-10 defensive backs and others to look out for in 2022.
We hope you enjoy our list.
Big Country Preps Preseason Football Position Rankings: Linebackers
After taking a look at the Big Country’s top defensive linemen on Saturday, it’s now time to examine those who will backing them in 2022.
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.
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 2022.
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.
2022 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.
HICO FEATURE: Lone senior Ty Crawford ready to lead the Tigers in any way he can
As the only senior on a young Hico team, Ty Crawford will carry a lot of weight on his shoulders this fall.
But after helping the Tigers to a 5-6 record — their highest win total since 2017 — last year, the 5-foot-10, 235-pound defensive lineman feels well equipped to handle that load.
Crawford, who will also take on some fullback duties on offense this season, is ready to put his leadership skills to the test in 2022 and to try to help the HHS program maintain the progress it made in coach Todd Swearengin’s first year at the helm last season.
2022 HICO FOOTBALL PREVIEW: Young Tigers eager to prove themselves in Swearengin’s second year
To an outsider, 2022 might look like a retooling year for the Hico Tigers. But second-year HHS coach Todd Swearengin doesn’t necessarily see it that way.
Despite graduating 14 of 21 lettermen from last year’s squad, including seven offensive and eight defensive starters, Swearengin feels his Tigers are equipped to build on the success they enjoyed in 2021, when their 5-6 record marked Hico’s highest win total since 2017.
With loads of first-time starters and new play-callers on both sides of the ball, the youthful Tigers will face a steep learning curve. But even with just one senior on his roster, Swearengin is confident in his team’s willingness and ability to compete.
Scenes from Big Country Preps Photo Tour Days 5 and 6
Day 6 of Big Country Preps’ 2022 Photo Tour is now in the books, with one more day of shooting yet to come from practice fields throughout the area.
Here are but a few of the images collected Friday and Saturday:
COUNTDOWN TO TWO-A-DAYS: Hico Tigers
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. 17. 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. 1, we’ll be spotlighting each 11-man team in the area and posing some of the key questions they’ll face in 2022 as part of our annual “Countdown to Two-a-Days” series.
We continue in Class 2A Division II with the Hico Tigers. On Wednesday we will take a look at the Forsan Buffaloes, followed by the Anson Tigers on Thursday.
Evan Ren’s 2022 BCP Baseball/Softball All-Hustle Team: The hardest-working players in the area!
OTHER 2022 ALL-BIG COUNTRY PREPS TEAMS
- All-Big Country Preps Baseball Superlative Award Winners (Pitcher of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year, etc.)
- All-Big Country Preps First-Team Baseball Selections
- All-Big Country Preps Second-Team Baseball Selections
- All-Big Country Preps Softball Superlative Award Winners (Pitcher of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year, etc.)
- All-Big Country Preps First-Team Softball Selections
- All-Big Country Preps Second-Team Softball Selections (plus honorable mention)
- Big Country Preps Rising Stars Team (area’s top Sophomores and Freshmen!)
Character, grit and work ethic aren’t seen in a box score. And it is with our Big Country Preps All-Hustle Team that we wish to honor those players (male and female) who exemplify those qualities.
The All-Hustle team isn’t about who the best baseball and softball players were. It honors the best teammates.
It is here where effort, discipline and coachability — traits that coaches wish they had in every player and upon which championships are built — are honored.
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 Big Country had to offer during the 2022 baseball and softball seasons.
The players below are listed in no particular order.
2022 All-Big Country Preps Softball Superlative Award Winners
Here are our superlative award winners for the 2022 All-Big Country Preps softball team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.
- All-Big Country Preps First-Team Softball Selections
- All-Big Country Preps Second-Team Softball Selections (plus honorable mention)
- All-Big Country Preps Rising Stars Team (area’s top Sophomores and Freshmen!)
- Big Country Preps All-Hustle Team (Thursday night)
CAPITAL FARM CREDIT WEDNESDAY NIGHT PODCAST: Hico’s Ryan Starnes joins the show
CAPITAL FARM CREDIT WEDNESDAY NIGHT PODCAST: Hico softball coach Ryan Starnes joins the show.
PHOTO GALLERY: Hico-Tolar regional quarterfinal Games 2 and 3 (71 images)
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: Hico-Tolar regional quarterfinal Games 2 and 3 (71 images)”
GAME STORY: Hico rallies to eliminate Tolar, advances to first regional semifinal
“Winning a series this way is like eating an elephant. It’s monumental, but the way you do it is just one bite at a time. The kids believed that and they did it.” — Hico Softball coach Ryan Starnes
STEPHENVILLE — Prior to this season the Hico Lady Tigers had never won a softball playoff game, much less a series.
Now they’re heading to a regional semifinal and very few, even in the Hico camp, saw it coming.
With Monday’s 4-2, 7-3 sweep of Tolar in Games 2 and 3 of a Region II-2A quarterfinal, the Lady Tigers completed a stunning series comeback after falling 14-5 in Game 1 on Saturday. They now continue their journey into uncharted waters, where they will face Axtell in the Region II semis later this week.
“We’ve had an inability to get over the hump against Tolar,” Hico coach Ryan Starnes said. “We played them several times and things would just go bad. We wouldn’t play good softball, but today, we put it together.”
PHOTO GALLERY: Hico-Santo softball playoff (46 images)
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: Hico-Santo softball playoff (46 images)”
GAME STORY: Hico softball takes first-ever postseason win
STEPHENVILLE — Only four times in their history had Hico reached postseason play in softball. And never before Wednesday night had the Lady Tigers scored a single postseason victory.
That streak came to a end at Stephenville High School when Hico opened its best-of-three series against Santo with a 17-1 win.
FEATURE: Now-healthy Fincannon making a huge splash in Big Country softball
HICO — The name of Kiersten Fincannon is likely to be unfamiliar to most Big Country softball fans at this point.
That’s about to change.
The Hico sophomore, who played much of last season at Dublin with an ailing knee, was far below her potential even as a freshman. But with the arrival of the 2022 campaign, a now-healthy knee is allowing the 16-year old to pitch to the level she is capable of and the results are stunning.
Big Country boys basketball playoff pairings, results (March 5)
Here are the updated Big Country boys basketball playoff pairings, results through March 5:
Continue reading “Big Country boys basketball playoff pairings, results (March 5)”
Big Country Boys Basketball Statistical Leaders (Final)
Below are the final regular season statistical leaders for Big Country boys basketball in 2022.
This database has been continually updated for our subscribers throughout the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.
Big Country girls basketball playoff pairings, results (March 5)
Here are the updated Big Country girls basketball playoff pairings, results through March 5
Continue reading “Big Country girls basketball playoff pairings, results (March 5)”
Big Country Girls Basketball Statistical Leaders (through Feb. 3)
Each Thursday night, Big Country Preps will publish area boys and girls basketball statistical leaders.
This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.
Teams that do not submit their statistics in a given week will not be listed when our stats are posted, but will be added to the lists below as they are received in the coming days.
UIL REALIGNMENT: Big Country football landscape will change dramatically
While icy road conditions may have changed the UIL’s method of delivering the news, the results of its biennial realignment still offered the usual mix of surprises on Thursday.
Held via live feed over the internet, area coaches learned their fate on the web.
Topping the list of stunners for area teams would be the shift of Brownwood from its centralized home in District 5-4A DI to the far west in District 2. There, the Lions will join Big Spring, Lubbock Estacado, San Angelo Lake View and Andrews — the last of which will produce a 480-mile round trip.
SIGNING DAY: Eakin, Jones among several high-profile area signees
What appeared to be a slow year for the Big Country on the signing front quickly blossomed into something memorable in 2022.
With National Signing Day taking place on Wednesday, the Big Country Preps coverage area finished with multiple Division I signees, including several on the gridiron.
Big Country Boys Basketball Statistical Leaders (through Jan. 20)
Each Thursday night, Big Country Preps will publish area boys and girls basketball statistical leaders.
This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.
Teams that do not submit their statistics in a given week will not be listed when our stats are posted, but will be added to the lists below as they are received in the coming days.
Big Country Girls Basketball Statistical Leaders (through Jan. 20)
Each Thursday night, Big Country Preps will publish area boys and girls basketball statistical leaders.
This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.
Teams that do not submit their statistics in a given week will not be listed when our stats are posted, but will be added to the lists below as they are received in the coming days.
EVAN REN’S 2021 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, takes pride in being coachable but seldom needs direction.
He always sets the right example for younger players. He doesn’t gripe and, above all else, he’s tough enough to make all the aforementioned traits possible.
Know someone like that? Here is where they are honored.
Welcome to Big Country Preps’ “True Grit” team — a collection of area players nominated by their head coaches, who exemplify the character traits football mentors want throughout their roster.
Not all of them are great players. In fact, many of them will never play a down of college football. But every single one of them is making the most of their high school football experience and has helped those around them do the same.
We are absolutely honored to present these young men to you — the toughest, hardest-working football players the Big Country had to offer in 2021.
