Below are the current season statistical leaders for Big Country girls basketball through Jan. 23.
This database will be 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.
Back-to-back double-doubles in two dominating efforts were enough to give Gorman junior Delila Crain our Big Country Player of the Week for the week ending Saturday, Jan. 18.
Opening the week with an 83-7 rout of Bluff Dale, Crain posted 30 points and 10 boards to go with five assists, five deflections, six steals and four blocks.
She followed that with 21 points, 12 boards, five deflections, four assists and three steals in a 58-27 win over Huckabay.
We all know a football player who almost never misses any practice time and practically lives in the weight room. He’s always early to arrive and late to leave. He’s coachable, but seldom needs direction because he always pays attention.
You know who I’m talking about.
The guy who sets a good example for young players. The guy who never complains and, first and foremost, is tough mentally and physically. He may not be the best player on a team (though some of them are). But he’s definitely the guy who gets the most out of the talent he’s given.
Welcome to the 2024 “True Grit” team — the one place in the Big Country where guys who fall into this category are recognized for it.
Here are our first-team selections for the 2024 All-Big Country Preps football team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.
Here are our second-team selections for the 2024 All-Big Country Preps football team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.
Here are our selections for the 2024 All-Big Country Preps Football Team (Third-Team roster). For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.
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.
The fact that Riley Grohman is our Player of the Week should surprise no one, considering she was named to our All-Big Country Preps team last year. But when you toss in her stats — an all-encompassing set of numbers — it makes even more sense.
The senior guard was at the top of the stat sheet last week for the third-ranked Lady Indians, who swept Merkel (70-25) and Clyde (79-29) to improve to 24-2.
Wyatt Nickson was on fire over Christmas Break.
In fact, in six games the senior guard averaged 19.3 points and 4.3 rebounds per game while shooting 45 percent overall and 48 percent from the 3-point line.
“Wyatt has been putting in the extra work to make himself the best scorer possible,” coach Blake Allen said. “He has been on an absolute tear and he is fun to watch play basketball”
The Indians enter this week at 12-6.
Here are our third-team selections for the 2024 All-Big Country Preps volleyball team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.
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: Jim Ned-Paradise region semifinal football playoff (64 images)”
Stephenville 47, Canyon Randall 7 — Ryan Gafford threw for 198 yards and three scores and Sawyer Wilkerson rushed for 133 yards and two touchdowns to help the Yellow Jackets to a rout of Randall.
Stephenville totaled 399 yards in total offense en route to the win. Tristian Gentry was the leading receiver for SHS, with eight catches for 158 yards and two scores.
SPRINGTOWN — The Jim Ned defense limited a quality Paradise offense to just 217 yards and a single touchdown Friday night, but it wasn’t quite enough in a 10-7 loss to the Panthers in a Region I-3A Division I semifinal matchup at Porcupine Stadium.
On a night when the Indians stop troops were nothing short of dominant, the Paradise ‘D’ was just a little more so, holding JNHS to just one score in four trips inside the 30 to help the Panthers escape with a hard-fought win.
Jim Ned had a pair of empty red zone trips around its only touchdown in the first half, and those missed opportunities proved too much to overcome after halftime, when scoring chances were few and far between for both teams. The result was a season-ending loss full of “what ifs” and “if onlys” for an Indians squad that looked poised on multiple occasions Friday night to extend its campaign to the state quarterfinals.
LAST WEEK: 24-2, .923
SEASON TOTAL: 578-139, .806
Big Country Preps carries 16 teams from its coverage area into Week 14 and it’s my guess that at least nine of them will survive Thanksgiving weekend.
And on that subject, Happy Thanksgiving to all of you from all of us at BCP.
Here are this week’s picks, we’ll see you on the road!
Only a year removed from running a ground-based flexbone option attack, the Wall Hawks have managed to put that approach in the distant past with a remarkable effort through the air in 2024.
And who would have thought that making that difficult transition could have happened so quickly?
Now, having committed to a full-blown spread attack under new coach Craig Slaughter, the Hawks have already accumulated nearly 3,000 passing yards, placing them near the top in that category among Big Country teams.
Jim Ned 35, Dalhart 7 — Gray Beasley rushed for 119 yards and four TDs and threw for 75 yards to lead Jim Ned to an area round win over Dalhart.
Leading 14-7 at the break, the Indians put the game away with 21 unanswered points in the second half.
Jim Ned (9-3) advances to face Paradise (10-2) in the Region I-3A DII semifinals. Dalhart finished up at 8-4.
It’s been a little while for Anson’s Corey Layne.
The AHS senior quarterback took our Big Country Preps Player of the Week way back on Sept. 16, but has missed the top spot for two months — until today.
Layne, who led Anson to a 45-11 bi-district rout of Christoval last week, took our Player of the Week with an effort that included 197 yards rushing and four scores on only 20 carries. He also hit 12 of 20 passes for 171 yards and three more TDs to give him a direct hand in seven scores.
But that’s just the half of it.
When someone hits 27 of 34 passes for 441 yards and five scores, it’s generally the type of performance that appears on our Player of the Week radar screen.
When it’s done in only two and a half quarters, however, it makes everyone sit up and do a doubletake.
That was the case for Glen Rose quarterback Canyon Evans, who shredded Fort Worth Dunbar in a 61-7 win on Friday that saw him removed before the onset of the fourth quarter.
Jim Ned 45, Sweetwater 28 — Aiden Ellis rushed for 262 yards and three scores on 43 carries in a bulldozer-like effort for Jim Ned, which rushed for 400 yards as a team.
With the score tied at 21 at the break, the Indians took command with a 24-7 second half.
LAST WEEK: 45-8, .849
SEASON TOTAL: 464-122, .791
The regular season ends Friday night (if you can believe it) and there’s no better way to close things up than with No. 5 Class 2A DI Hawley (9-0, 4-0) at No. 1 Stamford (9-0, 4-0).
The winner will earn the District 4 championship and No. 1 seed heading into the playoffs, so much is at stake.
I’m leaning toward Stamford here for three reasons: First, the overall team speed of SHS is unmatched by anyone in the area.
Secondly, the Bulldogs have an intangible working here — specifically a last-second miracle touchdown scored by Hawley’s
Camden Ables from 45 yards out with 0:47 left in last year’s game.
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.
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.
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.
TUSCOLA — After one game in Tuesday’s District 6-3A volleyball match between Clyde and Jim Ned, the visiting Lady Bulldogs looked poised to leave Bill Thornton Arena with their unbeaten district record intact.
Coach Courtney Freeman’s squad was almost flawless out of the gate, tallying 13 kills with just three hitting errors on its way to a breezy 25-14 win in the opening set.
But as it would turn out, Game 1 wasn’t the tone-setter that Clyde had hoped it would be. Instead, it lit a fire under the homestanding Lady Indians, who rallied to win the next three sets 25-17, 25-18 and 25-22 to take the match and pull even with the Lady Bulldogs in the 6-3A standings at 2-1.
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.
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:
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:
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.
TUSCOLA — There are at least two keys for teammates and media to get along with Jim Ned senior lineman Xaden Wishert.
First, show up ready to work. And secondly, don’t confuse him with his older brother, Xavier (now playing at ACU), who starred as a running back-linebacker during Jim Ned’s state title run in 2021.
Xaden, who gets along fine with his sibling, is a different person, playing a completely different set of positions. So comparing the two really isn’t fair to either one of them.
TUSCOLA — The Johnathon McClure era begins at Jim Ned with respectable numbers.
Back from last year’s 8-3 team are five offensive and seven defensive starters among 21 lettermen, with impact players on both sides of the ball.
The timing of this couldn’t be better from the Jim Ned perspective, given that its traditionally tough district (3-3A DI) got even more difficult following this year’s realignment with the addition of very good teams from Comanche and Sweetwater.
“If you go team-by-team, I could talk at length about each of them,” said McClure about the opposition facing the Indians in district play. “Obviously Sweetwater is an easy one to talk about right now with good reason. But I don’t think there’s enough talk about Comanche. They’re a dangerous crew.”
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 Jim Ned Indians
Continue reading “COUNTDOWN TO TWO-A-DAYS: The Jim Ned Indians … 11 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)”
ABILENE — After a pair of thrilling 2-1 games to open their Region I-3A area-round series on Thursday, Jim Ned and Holliday shifted sites on Saturday to Abilene Christian University’s Crutcher Scott Field.
Both teams showed up with an offense ready to go as the Eagles took a 3-2 lead after the first inning before a two-out seventh-inning rally allowed Holliday to escape with a 6-4 win.
Holliday advances to face Brock in the regional quarterfinals next week.
San Angelo Grape Creek 74, San Angelo TLCA 0 — TLCA’s struggles continued on Friday with a loss to cross-town rival Grape Creek.