Category: San Saba Armadillos

by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Stephenville play host to Sweetwater (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country Picks)

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At last, here we are. 

The 2021 football season has arrived, giving us a much-needed diversion every Friday night, in isolated spots all over Central Texas. As always, I will endeavor to pick the winner of all our area games, from Class 1A through Class 6A, with the top matchup serving as our Big Country Preps Game of the Week.

Our first spotlight game should come as no surprise, with long-time Hamlin coach Russell Lucas debuting as the head coach of the Sweetwater Mustangs — one of the most -storied programs in the Big Country.

Their opposition?

The Stephenville Yellow Jackets at Tarleton State’s Memorial Stadium. 

With that, let’s dive into the picks, shall we? 

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by Daniel Youngblood

BCP Football Preseason 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 2021.

We hope you enjoy this list and that you’ve enjoyed our position rankings as we get set to kickoff a new season.

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by Daniel Youngblood

BCP Football Preseason 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 Monday, we move now to the area’s top backs, ranking our top 10 with a list of others to watch in 2021. Don’t forget to check in Wednesday night 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.

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by Daniel Youngblood

BCP Football Preseason 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 pass-catchers.

After starting the offensive portion of our series Sunday with the linemen, we now shift our attention to the playmakers on the perimeter, ranking our top 10 wide receivers/tight ends with a list of others to watch in 2021.

We hope you enjoy our list and encourage you to check out the other position groups, which are linked below.   

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by Daniel Youngblood

BCP Football Preseason 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 2021.

We hope you enjoy reading through our rankings.

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by Daniel Youngblood

BCP Football Preseason 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 10 kickers and top three 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 2021 season.

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by Daniel Youngblood

BCP Football Preseason 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 2021.

We hope you enjoy our list.

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by Daniel Youngblood

BCP Football Preseason Position Rankings: Linebackers

After taking a look at the Big Country’s top defensive linemen on Wednesday, it’s now time to examine those who will backing them in 2021.

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.

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by Daniel Youngblood

BCP Football Preseason 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 2021.

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.

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by Evan Ren

2021 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. 
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by Evan Ren

EVAN REN: The top area games worth traveling to in 2021

Every year, one of the things I look forward to most, is mapping out the upcoming football season — charting the games I believe will have the greatest impact. 

First and foremost, it’s a preseason menu for area fans who enjoy driving to some of the Big Country’s best football games on a weekly basis. Call it a football roadmap of sorts.

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by Evan Ren

SAN SABA FEATURE: Do-it-all Lackey will see his role expand in 2021

SAN SABA — Many high school football teams, out of necessity, will shift a versatile athlete into the role of “utility.”  You know the type: big enough to play a couple of positions. Fast enough to play a couple of others. Smart enough to learn all of them. 

Finding a good one can be difficult.  Finding one as good and as versatile as San Saba’s Wesley Lackey, is a genuine rarity. 

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by Evan Ren

2021 SAN SABA PREVIEW: Dillos reach a crossroads following graduation losses

SAN SABA — Few teams in the Big Country Preps coverage area have enjoyed more success over the past three years than the San Saba Armadillos, who have posted a combined 35-5 record and two district titles in that span.

But with the passage of time, one of the most gifted groups of athletes to ever pass through this community has been handed their diplomas. Most of the varsity players who posted 14-1 and 13-1 records in 2018 and 2019 are now gone, leaving the Armadillos at a crossroads. 

Will all the hard work pay off at this stage? And, do they have sufficient talent on the roster to continue their run of success? 

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by Evan Ren

COUNTDOWN TO TWO-A-DAYS: San Saba Armadillos

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 Saturday, Aug. 14. 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. 2, we’ll be spotlighting each 11-man team in the area and posing some of the key questions they’ll face in 2021 as part of our annual “Countdown to Two-a-Days” series.

Today, we stay in Class 2A Division I with the San Saba Armadillos. On Saturday, we will take a look at the Winters Blizzards, followed by the Ballinger Bearcats on Sunday.

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by Evan Ren

STATE TRACK ROUNDUP (Day 2): Vancleave wins discus state title at the last possible moment

How many of you once dreamed of hitting a game-winning homerun or shooting the game-winning shot to win a championship?

Hamlin senior Jenna Vancleave experienced the track and field equivalent of the same dream on Friday in Austin, only she had an even greater sense of urgency.

Not only did Vancleave win the girls 2A discus state title on the final throw of the competition at the state meet, but she did it on what she knew would be the final throw of her career. Her performance shares the spotlight with Wylie’s Kylor Aguilar, who took gold in the boys 5A pole vault. 

“I just came in hoping for the best,” Vancleave said. “It was all in God’s hands.

“I was very nervous. My stomach hurt so bad, but my coaches talked to me and calmed me down. They were like, ‘You’ve just got to throw. Let it loose and relax.’ So I took that advice and and apparently it worked.” 

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by Evan Ren

EVAN REN: Handicapping the boys state track meet.

Having already released our picks for the girls state track meet earlier this evening, we now present the boys event, using the same approach. 

We’ll comb through each event involving a Big Country athlete (or athletes) and assess if they are favorites, dark horses or long shots to get on the medal stand. 

Let’s not waste any time. Let’s dive in. 

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by Evan Ren

EVAN REN: Picking the favorites, dark horses and longshots at the girls state track meet

I don’t care who you are — even if you’re a non-fan when it comes to track and field. 

The excitement of the state meet in Austin will capture your attention if you catch sight or sound of it. It’s inescapable. 

And once per year, it is my pleasure to examine the multitude of Big Country athletes heading to Austin for the event and pick who we can expect to see on the medal stand from our area. 

Let’s begin with the girls side, looking at each event in which a Big Country athlete has qualified for state. 

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by Evan Ren

CAPITAL FARM CREDIT/BCP PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Clyde’s Phillips earns this week’s spotlight

In a week filled with unforgettable moments, several of our nominees handed in by area coaches could justifiably be called our Capital Farm Credit/BCP Player of the Week. 

We finally settled on Clyde sophomore Payton Phillips, who stunned attendees at the Region I-3A meet by taking gold in both the long jump (18 feet, 6 inches) and the 100 hurdles (15.12) — breaking school records that were 25 and 15 years old, respectively. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

REGION IV-2A TRACK RECAP: San Saba, Goldthwaite combine for six medals, four state bids

KINGSVILLE — Despite being the only two schools representing the Big Country Preps coverage area in the Region IV-2A track meet, both San Saba and Goldthwaite had their share of highlights Friday and Saturday at Texas A&M-Kingsville.

Both schools had athletes earn state meet berths, with San Saba claiming two gold medals and a silver and Goldthwaite earning a silver and two bronzes.

Both San Saba squads earned top-10 team finishes as the boys placed seventh with 26 points the girls took eighth with 28 points. The Goldthwaite boys, meanwhile, finished eighth with 24 points, while the girls were 11th with 20 points.

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