Here are the Big Country’s rushing leaders through Week 9:
Category: Munday Moguls
District 5-2A Division II: Week 9 Report
Quanah 58, Munday 34 — Quanah rolled up 545 yards in total offense, of which 402 were on the ground to earn a win over Munday.
Landin Leija led Quanah with 195 yards rushing and four scores on 18 carries. He was also 8 of 11 through the air for 129 yards and another TD.
Munday will close its regular against Shamrock at home and Memphis on the road over the next two Fridays.
BCP Podcast No. 67: Hugh Sandifer jumps on to talk Wylie football, career
In his 41 years at Wylie High School, more than 30 of those as the Bulldogs’ head football coach, Hugh Sandifer has had one of the most successful tenures the Big Country has ever seen. But in the past two years, WHS has struggled while transitioning to the Class 5A level, experiencing an 18-game losing streak before defeating Wichita Falls High 21-14 last week.
Earlier this week, Sandifer took some time to visit with Big Country Preps’ Daniel Youngblood about that victory, his tenure at Wylie and what drives him to continue coaching for this week’s Capital Farm Credit Wednesday Night Podcast.
Also on this episode, Daniel and partner Evan Ren discuss the Big Country football landscape, highlighting last week’s top results and this week’s most intriguing 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!
District 5-2A Division II: Week 8 Report
Wellington 50, Munday 6 — The Skyrockets pounded out 419 rushing yards while limiting the Moguls to 44 total yards in a lopsided victory Friday.
Four Wellington players had at least 67 rushing yards, led by Marc Ramirez with 98 yards and a touchdown and Grant Field with 89 yards and two scores. All of the scoring took place in the first half as Wellington established control from the beginning.
The win improved WHS to 6-1 overall and 2-0 in district play heading into next week’s game at Shamrock. Munday, now 2-5 on the year and 0-2 in 5-2A DII, will try to get back on track next week against Quanah.
BCP Podcast No. 66: James Morton joins Evan, Daniel to talk Eastland football, son’s recruitment
It’s been a big year for Eastland football coach James Morton, who has coached the Mavericks to a 6-0 start and earlier this week week watched his son, standout junior quarterback Behren Morton, commit to play collegiately at Texas Tech.
On Tuesday, Coach Morton took a few minutes to chat with Big Country Preps’ Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood about this year’s Eastland team, the progress his program has made and watching his son’s recruitment for this week’s Capital Farm Credit Wednesday Night Podcast.
Also in this episode, the guys revisit Evan’s column on fan’s treatment of coaches and discuss last week’s top results and this 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!
District 5-2A Division II: Week 7 Report
Wheeler 74, Munday 6 — WHS piled up 633 yards in total offense, including a 527-yard rushing tally to win going away.
Wheeler limited Munday to just 15 total yards on the day to improve to 5-1, 1-0. Munday, which is playing a mixed schedule of varsity/JV games, is currently 1-3 against varsity competition and 0-1 in district.
Wheeler will play host to Shamrock next Friday; Munday will travel to Wellington on the same evening.
BCP GAME OF THE WEEK: Coahoma to receive huge test from Idalou (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country Picks)
LAST WEEK: 34-9, .790
OVERALL: 251-51, .831
There comes a point when every emerging football program has to show its hand. And it’s usually around the midpoint of the season when we can differentiate between who has a full house and who’s holding a pair of deuces.
The Coahoma Bulldogs (4-1) will reach that point this Friday when they host perennial toughie Idalou (3-2) in our Big Country Preps Game of the Week.
EVAN REN: High school athletics has forgotten itself
What is the purpose of interscholastic athletics? It seems silly to even pose the question.
I bring it up because within the word purpose lies the problem — a poisonous problem, brought on by our own lack of vision.
Must I say it?
The original purpose behind high school sports was the teaching of teamwork, work ethic, sacrifice, respecting authority, overcoming adversity and accepting discipline.
Sports taught our kids that the world wasn’t perfect. It taught our kids that there would be disappointments to endure. It taught them the benefits of hard work and we hired our coaches accordingly.
Somewhere along the line we injected winning into the mix and it has resulted in something truly ugly.
Continue reading “EVAN REN: High school athletics has forgotten itself”
District 5-2A Division II: Week 6 Report
Munday (1-2) — The Moguls took the night off on Friday, but will open district play on Oct. 11 at home against Wheeler.
Quanah 47, Olney 19 — The Indians rolled up 447 yards in total offense to get their first win of the year.
Quanah was almost perfectly balanced, rushing for 227 yards and passing for 220 to improve to 1-4.
Landin Leija led QHS, throwing for 227 yards and three scores.
District 5-2A Division II: Week 5 Report
Miles 53, Munday 41 — The Moguls (1-2) fell in a shootout in their final non-district game of the season.
Trailing by 26 points early in the second half, Munday rallied to within five points with just under eight minutes to play, only to fall short.
Miles’ Davian Martinez led the Bulldogs with 154 yards rushing and three scores to keep MHS (5-0) unbeaten.
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 5-2A Division II: Week 4 report
Clarendon 40, Munday 0 — The Moguls (1-1) had a tough go of it in their 
second varsity game of the year.
With a schedule featuring two JV clubs, Munday saw varsity action for the first time since a Week 1 victory over Olney.
The Moguls were limited to just 149 yards in total offense, including 32 yards on the ground. Chris Garcia led Munday with 73 yards passing.
Clarendon led 34-0 at the break before coasting to the finish line.
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!
FEATURE: From leather helmets to Jerry World, Munday WWII Vet Thompson has seen it all
MUNDAY — It has become an October tradition in Munday for attendees at a Mogul football game to sing happy birthday to one of MHS’ top fans: Gene Thompson.
This year, however, the brief ceremony carries a special significance — one that Thompson has literally waited 100 years for.
Yes, Thompson, a 99-year-old veteran of World War II, will officially become a centenarian on Oct. 23. He will be honored two nights later at Munday’s home game against Quanah, where everyone in attendance will recognize the longest-tenured Mogul fan in the program’s history.
To put Thompson’s connection to Munday athletics into perspective, it began when he played football as a Mogul in 1936. That’s three years before the retirement of baseball great Lou Gehrig, before Gone with the Wind was in the box office and before the horrific war in which he took part had seen its first shot fired.
District 5-2A Division II: Week 3 Report
Munday 39, Roscoe JV 0 — The Moguls are at present, playing against a string of JV teams, due to low numbers.
They will again take the field with a varsity squad on Sept. 20 against Clarendon and will remain on a varsity schedule for the remainder of the football season.
The Moguls are currently 1-0 vs. varsity clubs and 2-1 overall.
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.
DISTRICT 5-2A Division II: Week 2 Report
Hamlin 44, Wheeler 15 — The Pied Pipers passed their second test of the season, and did so with flying colors, routing a strong and experienced Wheeler squad in a neutral site game at Childress.
Hamlin led 28-7 at halftime and increased its lead to 44-7 by the start of the fourth quarter, dominating a Mustangs team that some had picked to win District 5-2A Division II.
Having now outscored their first two opponents by a 71-22 margin, the Pied Pipers will face their stiffest test to date next week when they travel to Hawley for a nondistrict game.
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 5-2A Division II: Week 1 Report
Munday 52, Olney 0 —In perhaps the biggest surprise of the opening week, the Munday Moguls dominated Olney from start to finish.
Munday scored at least twice in each of the first three quarters and carried a 45-0 lead into the fourth.
Oddly enough, Coach Patrick Corcoran’s Moguls will now play three straight JV teams, due to low numbers.
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 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.