Category: San Saba Armadillos

by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS NOTEBOOK: Mentioned tonight … Forsan, Anson, Albany and Goldthwaite

After opening the season with a 50-34 loss to archrival Coahoma on Aug. 25, the Forsan Buffaloes have set about improving things and gradually chipped away with consecutive wins over Post (1-5), Stanton (1-5), McCamey (2-4) and Kermit (1-6) to improve to 4-1 prior to their open date on Sept. 29. 

A solid effort, but nothing eye-popping.

However, the Buffs followed that with a district-opening 42-12 win over a very good Reagan County team (4-2, 0-1) last week and will enter this week’s home date with Anthony at 5-1 and 1-0. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 5-2A DIV. I WEEK 7 REPORT: Goldthwaite picks up big win over Bangs

Goldthwaite 42, Bangs 14 — Ethan Deeds passed for 136 yards and two touchdowns — both to Luke Sanderson — and rushed for 93 yards and two more scores as the Eagles pounded out 259 yards on the ground to pull away from the Dragons for a lopsided victory in a near must-win game for both teams.

Sanderson finished with 99 yards receiving on eight catches to supplement a rushing attack that also got 75 yards from Max Storm, 43 from Marcus Stevens and 41 from Erick Lozoya. Behind that nucleus, Goldthwaite (3-4, 1-2) increased a 7-0 halftime lead to 21-0 by the midway point of the third quarter and held from there for the win.

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: De Leon tops San Saba, stays in district title hunt

SAN SABA — A powerful running game, operated at a quick tempo powered De Leon to a 42-20 win at San Saba on Friday night. 

Heston Jobe rushed for 200 yards and five touchdowns and Jake Cooper rushed for 163 yards and had an 13-yard TD reception to lead De Leon (6-1, 3-0) which never trailed and maintained a lead from the 10:44 mark of the first quarter until the final whistle. 

Ethan Gonzales led San Saba (2-5, 1-2) with 118 yards rushing and 129 yards receiving with three total TDs. 

The Armadillos remained within striking distance through much of the evening. But De Leon was able to sprinkle in enough defensive stops to build and maintain the lead. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 5-2A DIV. I WEEK 6 REPORT: Coleman, De Leon score impressive victories

Coleman 40, San Saba 26 — Jadin Jackson rushed for 150 yards and two touchdowns and received for 85 yards, while Brayden Torres had another productive passing day to fuel the Bluecats to a victory over the Armadillos. 

Torres, who added 33 yards on the ground, hit 10 of 14 passes for 202 yards and three touchdowns — finding Hunter Lackey three times for 91 yards and all three scores — as the Bluecats (5-1, 2-0) extended an 18-12 halftime lead to 26-12 by the start of the fourth quarter.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Yellow Jackets head to Brownwood to face archrival

LAST WEEK: 46-12, .793
SEASON TOTAL: 229-61, .789

More often than not, Big Country Preps makes an appearance at the annual Stephenville-Brownwood matchup. Because more often than not, it produces a game worthy of one of Texas’ top rivalries. 

This year is no exception as Stephenville travels to famous Gordon Wood Stadium for the Big Country Preps Game of the Week. 

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by Evan Ren

BCP PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Abilene High QB Slack takes honor with six-TD performance

Photo by Chase Seabolt, HubCityPreps.com

Entering District 2-5A Division I play off back-to-back losses, the Abilene High football team needed a fast start and a strong performance on the road against Lubbock Monterey to get back on track and kick off its league schedule the right way.

Led by senior quarterback Dylan Slack, the Eagles got both, building a 49-7 halftime lead on their way to a 59-14 win over the Plainsmen.

Slack’s fingerprints were all over the win as he hit 15 of 20 passes for 217 yards and five touchdowns while adding another score on the ground — a performance worthy of this week’s Big Country Preps Player of the Week award.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 5-2A DIV. I WEEK 5 REPORT: San Saba upsets Hamilton; Coleman, De Leon open league play with wins

San Saba 32, Hamilton 28 — Ethan Gonzales ran for 215 yards and three touchdowns while Lane Miller added a pair of rushing scores of his own to lead the Armadillos to an upset win over the Bulldogs in the district opener for both squads.

San Saba (2-3, 1-0) got off to a fast start, jumping out to a 19-6 halftime lead and increasing that to 32-14 by the end of the third quarter, before holding off a late rally in the final period. 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Sweetwater plays host to Clyde in battle of unbeatens

LAST WEEK: 44-11, .800
SEASON TOTAL: 183-49, .788

Some weeks are just loaded with competitive area games and Week 5 of the 2023 season falls squarely into that category. 

This week’s menu features six or seven games that under normal circumstances, would qualify for our Big Country Preps Game of the Week. This forces us to push some great matchups aside to select our spotlight game. 

This week, we go with a battle of unbeatens — Class 3A Division I Clyde (4-0) at Class 4A Div. II Sweetwater (4-0) — at the famed Mustang Bowl at SHS. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 5-2A DIV. I WEEK 4 REPORT: Torres fuels Coleman past Llano; De Leon hands Hico its first loss

Coleman 26, Llano 20 — Brayden Torres passed for 232 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 60 yards and another score to fuel the Bluecats to an upset win over the Class 3A Division I Yellowjackets.

Playing its second consecutive game without quarterback Jadin Jackson, Coleman (3-1) raced out to 14-6 halftime lead and withstood a third-quarter Llano rally to win the game with the only touchdown of the fourth quarter.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Cooper’s Bray takes this week’s top spot

When it comes to individual performances, there are big games and there are big games.

And then there’s what Cooper junior Daniel Bray did against San Angelo Central last week in leading the Cougars to their first win of the season.

The explosive tailback, who had been limited some in the first two weeks by a nagging ankle injury and the growing pains of a young offensive line, broke out in a historic way in that 53-45 victory over the Bobcats. By the time the game was over, he had rushed for a school-record 366 yards and seven touchdowns on just 21 carries, making a case for our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award that was too compelling to pass over — even in a week with a number of other monster performances.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 5-2A DIV. I WEEK 3 REPORT: Coleman, Goldthwaite stay hot with Week 3 wins

Coleman 30, Brady 14 — Brent Bouldin rushed for 154 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Bluecats to their second consecutive win.

Brayden Torres added 73 rushing yards and a TD and passed for 44 yards for Coleman (2-1), which outscored Brady 16-8 in the second half to pull away for the 16-point win. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 5-2A DIV. I WEEK 2 REPORT: De Leon impressive again; Coleman evens record with big win

De Leon 42, Cross Plains 7 — Heston Jobe hit 15 of 21 passes for 185 yards and two touchdowns while adding 66 yards and two more scores on the ground to lift the Bearcats to a comfortable win over the Buffaloes.

Jake Cooper also had a big game, rushing for 152 yards and three scores on 22 carries while adding six catches for 70 yards for De Leon (2-0), which raced out to a 35-7 lead by halftime.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Snyder’s Stewart takes our first award of the school year

After a summer-long effort to produce our football preview, it is good to be back in our school year routine — a big part of which is our Big Country Preps Player of the Week. 

That said, we are proud to hand our first accolade for 2023-24 to Snyder senior quarterback Easton Stewart, who led the Tigers to a 42-0 season-opening win over Slaton last week. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 5-2A DIV. I WEEK 1 REPORT: San Saba, De Leon sharp in season-opening victories

San Saba 40, Florence 3 — The Armadillos piled up 365 yards rushing, getting big days on the ground from running back Ethan Gonzales (18-133, 2 TDs) and quarterback Lane Miller (13-122, 2 TDs) in their blowout win over the Buffaloes.

Miller also passed for 56 yards with a scoring strike to Gonzales as San Saba built a 19-0 first-quarter lead. Up 19-3 at halftime, the ‘Dillos outscored Florence 21-0 over the final two quarters to put the game away. 

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by Evan Ren

SAN SABA FEATURE: Armadillos’ newest Glover to expand already busy role with team

 

SAN SABA — The San Saba coaching staff believes that he can play virtually any position on the football field and he’s already played several. 

The 2023 season, however, will see junior Levi Glover holding down two primary positions — wide receiver and free safety — as the Armadillos approach their first game, though it is subject to change as the season progresses.

Glover, who will be shifting from cornerback to free safety, was already a valuable utility man as a 14-year-old sophomore last season. Despite his youth, the 10th grader hauled in 11 catches for 155 yards and two scores to go with 39 tackles, two forced fumbles and eight pass breakups as a cornerback.

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by Evan Ren

2023 SAN SABA FOOTBALL PREVIEW: Numerically-challenged Dillos banking on work ethic

 

SAN SABA — With modest numbers across the board, the San Saba Armadillos and coach Andreas Aguirre are falling back on the one thing they believe in most to get them through 2023: hard work.  

That may be the only practical approach given that the ‘Dillos return six starters on both sides of the ball from last year’s 6-4 team with only 12 lettermen back and an expected roster size of 24. 

So while the cupboard isn’t exactly empty in San Saba, numbers are an issue. Aguirre’s approach to it is straight forward: stay positive, love the players and work as hard as possible.

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by Evan Ren

COUNTDOWN TO TWO-A-DAYS: The San Saba Armadillos … 22 days to two-a-days

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. 16. 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 July 31, we’ll be spotlighting each 11-man team in the area and posing some of the key questions they’ll face in 2023 as part of our annual “Countdown to Two-a-Days” series.

We continue in Class 2A Division I with the San Saba Armadillos. On Monday we will take a look at the Ballinger Bearcats, followed by the Brady Bulldogs on Tuesday.

Continue reading “COUNTDOWN TO TWO-A-DAYS: The San Saba Armadillos … 22 days to two-a-days” →

by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Hamlin lefty takes this week’s award

Softball tournaments can distort the significance of pitching accomplishments due to inning caps or time limits, rendering perfect games or no-hitters into half-versions of their true selves. 

However, there is no denying that tournaments are work, especially for pitchers, and our Big Country Preps Player of the Week, Hamlin southpaw Zoe Moore, earned the accolade with a 4-0 record in the Wichita Falls Sunrise Optimist Tournament last week.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Munday’s Bowman takes our final accolade of the year

NOTE: This will be our final Player of the Week column for 2022. It will return on Monday, Jan. 9. 

It’s always a significant accomplishment to chart a double-double. But when one averages a double-double over the course of five straight games, you begin to put a blip on the area radar screen.

Munday senior Jaxon Bowman did precisely that last week, helping the Moguls to a 5-0 record and the tournament championship at Blackwell. Aside from averaging 11.2 points per game, the senior grabbed a whopping 13 boards per contest to along with a combined 12 steals as Munday improved to 12-2.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Comanche standout Glasgow takes top spot

Consistency and versatility always score big in our Big Country Preps Player of the Week column. 

Add a few extras to your stat sheet and play well over several games and you’ll generally end up at or near the top of our weekly list. 

That is precisely why Comanche sophomore guard Kinsey Glasgow has earned our Player of the Week award for the Week ending December 3.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Wylie QB Long leads another thrilling comeback to claim award

With the Wylie football team’s season on the line, facing a 40-30 deficit with less than six minutes remaining, the Bulldogs needed an epic comeback to rally past Colleyville Heritage on Friday at Grapevine’s Mustang-Panther Stadium.

Fortunately for coach Clay Martin’s squad, their senior quarterback has made a habit of leading those this year.

After throwing just his sixth interception on a fourth-down play midway through the final quarter, KJ Long was given new life when his defense forced and recovered a quick fumble. He made the most of it by leading a pair of quick scoring drives — the last to put the Bulldogs 43-40 with three seconds left on the clock — to fuel his team to a wild 50-40 area-round win and earn this week’s Big Country Preps Player of the Week award.

Continue reading “BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Wylie QB Long leads another thrilling comeback to claim award” →

by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps Boys Basketball Position Rankings: Posts

After highlighting the Big Country’s top guards and forwards the past two nights, we now take a look at the area’s best big men.

For the final installment in our three-part boys basketball position rankings series, we rank the Big Country’s top 10 post players.

We hope you’ve enjoyed reading through our rankings, and make sure to check back for all our boys and girls basketball coverage this season.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps Boys Basketball Position Rankings: Guards

With boys basketball season beginning this week, it’s time to shine a spotlight on some of the players you’ll be reading about throughout the 2022-23 season.

For the first installment in a three-part series that will cover all positions on the area boys basketball scene, 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 winter.

We hope you enjoy reading through our list.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 5-2A DIV. I WEEK 11 REPORT: Coleman, Hamilton and Tolar score shutout wins

Coleman 47, Bangs 0 — The Bluecats nailed down the No. 2 playoff seed out of this league, outgaining the Dragons 455-77 in a dominating win.

Fueled by a 337-yard rushing effort, Coleman (8-2, 5-1) cruised to a 27-0 halftime lead and increased that to 41-0 by the start of the fourth quarter. Quarterback Jadin Jackson led the way, rushing for 141 yards and two touchdowns on just six carries while going 6-of-8 passing for 118 yards and two more scores.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps Girls Basketball Position Rankings: Posts

After focusing on the top guards and forwards the Big Country has to offer the past two nights, it’s time to shift our attention to the paint.

For the final installment in our three-part position rankings series, we list our top-10 post players for the 2022-23 season.

We hope you’ve enjoyed reading through these rankings, and make sure to come back next week when we’ll feature the top boys basketball players in the Big Country.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps Girls Basketball Position Rankings: Forwards

After kicking off our girls basketball position rankings series with the guards on Tuesday, we now turn our attention to the forwards.

For the second installment in our three-part series, we rank the area’s top 10 players at that position with some others to watch for in 2022-23.

We hope you enjoy our list.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps Girls Basketball Position Rankings: Guards

With the girls basketball season upon us, it’s time to take a look at the local and area players who will be making the biggest impact for their teams during the 2022-23 season.

For the first installment in a three-part series that will cover all positions, we’ll be focusing on 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 Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 5-2A DIV. I WEEK 10 REPORT: Bangs bounces back with big win over Hamilton; Coleman routs De Leon

Bangs 34, Hamilton 27 — The Dragons picked up an important district win over the Bulldogs, scoring the final two touchdowns to rally from a 27-20 fourth-quarter deficit.

Bangs (6-3, 4-1) finished with 346 yards of total offense, getting 148 yards and three touchdowns rushing from Guy Powell and 119 yards and two scores passing from Kenny Cole. Powell was also the Dragons’ leading receiver, catching three passes for 71 yards and two more scores. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 5-2A DIV. I WEEK 9 REPORT: Tolar too much for Bangs; Hamilton, San Saba pick up key wins

Tolar 57, Bangs 0 — Playing BHS with sole possession of first place in the district standings on the line, the Rattlers ran away from the Dragons in shutout win.

Tolar (8-0, 4-0) held a potent Bangs offense to just 191 yards, using a 29-point second quarter to break open what was a scoreless game to that point. the Rattlers followed the big second quarter with 14 points in each of the next two to pull away even further in the second half.

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