Category: Wylie Bulldogs

by Mike Lee, Special to Big Country Preps

MIKE LEE’S WHERE ARE THEY NOW? How did twin athletes from Clyde end up in Kansas at Pittsburg State?

Note: If you know of a former Big Country Prep athlete now performing in college or professional sports, contact Mike Lee at michaellee7@att.net.

Twins Blake Carr in football and Abby Carr in volleyball enjoyed considerable success at Clyde High School before graduating in 2024. They both are continuing their athletic careers in Kansas.

Blake is a redshirt sophomore inside linebacker for the Pittsburg State football team. Abby is a redshirt sophomore setter on the Gorillas volleyball team. Located in Pittsburg, Kansas, Pittsburg State has an enrollment of about 5,500 students and fields an NCAA Division II athletics program.

Blake was primarily a quarterback for Clyde, passing and rushing for a combined 4,378 yards and 56 touchdowns as a senior in 2023. He made all-state and helped the Bulldogs to an 11-2 record.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Wylie routs Lubbock Cooper behind overwhelming defense, Karleskint’s four TD passes

The Wylie football team rode a fast start to a 21-0 first-quarter lead, and a dominant defensive effort ensured the game would never get in any closer after that in a 42-3 win over Lubbock Cooper on Friday at Hugh Sandifer Stadium.

The Bulldogs allowed just 66 total yards and forced four turnovers — all in the first half — to overwhelm a Pirates team that was coming off a 48-6 win over Lubbock Coronado for its first victory of the season.

The Wylie offense, meanwhile, turned 308 total yards into six touchdowns — five on those on fields of 56 yards or shorter — to bounce back from a 53-10 loss at Amarillo Palo Duro last week.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Wylie volleyball overwhelms Abilene High for 17th consecutive victory

The Wylie volleyball team cruised to its 17th consecutive victory Tuesday, sweeping  Abilene High 25-11, 25-8, 25-9 at Bulldog Gym to lock up at least a share of the District 4-5A championship.

Led by junior Kiki Bolden, who finished with 19 kills on 28 attacks for an eye-popping .643 hitting percentage, the seventh-ranked Lady Bulldogs hit .463 as a team in improving to 33-4 on the season and a perfect 7-0 in league play.

Coach Shay Cox’s team will now look to clinch the district championship outright on Friday when it hosts Wichita Falls Memorial (29-8, 6-1) before kicking off what it hopes will be a lengthy playoff run next week.

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Briton Rice
by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Tolar QB’s record-setting performance takes the top spot

It’s one thing to put up school-record numbers. It’s an entirely different thing to do it in only one half. 

With his team handing Eastland a 70-12 loss last week, Tolar quarterback Briton Rice put up a performance that the THS faithful may recollect years from now. 

Aside from hitting 11 of 18 passes for 282 yards, he connected on a school-record six TD passes. He also rushed for 17 yards and a seventh score to help the Rattlers improve to 4-3 and 3-1. 

“Briton connected on big plays for six passing touchdowns in the 1st half and a rushing TD on the first drive of the second half,” coach Blake Mouser said. He has 17 TDs to just two interceptions on the year while averaging over 200 yards passing a game.”

And get this: Rice’s entire performance was finished after the first drive of the second half. Beyond that, Mouser began playing his reserves. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME REPORT: Palo Duro takes control of District 2-5A DII race with impressive 53-10 win over Wylie

Photos by Carter Pirtle, PressPassSports.com

AMARILLO — Playing Amarillo Palo Duro with the top spot in the District 2-5A Division II standings on the line, the Wylie football team couldn’t keep pace with the Dons, falling 53-10 on Friday at Dick Bivins Stadium.

Trailing just 6-3 at the end of a first quarter that saw them kick a field goal for the game’s first points, the Bulldogs were outscored 35-0 over the middle two quarters  in dropping 4-3 overall and 2-1 in league action.

Palo Duro (7-1, 4-0) stayed perfect in 2-5A DII play with the win, which saw them outgain the Bulldogs 435-106 and score 47 unanswered points from the 4:20 mark of the first quarter to the 2:00 mark of the fourth. 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Haskell’s Pinkerton takes the trifecta

After only seven weeks of football this season, Haskell senior quarterback Haegan Pinkerton has put his stamp on our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award for a third time.

Believe me, we’d prefer to share the love. But with Pinkerton’s numbers, the teen has begun to turn this thing into a game of Monopoly, and he’s wearing the top hat. 

Pinkerton, who led the Indians to a 92-48 win over Munday, hit 13 of 14 passes for 264 yards and five touchdowns on Friday. But that’s only the beginning. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Second-half shutout fuels Wylie football team to 27-13 win over Wichita Falls Memorial

Hosting an explosive Wichita Falls Memorial squad that came in with the highest scoring average in District 2-5A Division II, the Wylie coaching staff was bound and determine to avoid getting into a shootout with the Mavericks on Friday at Hugh Sandifer Stadium.

After a competitive first half, the Bulldogs made good on that plan, outscoring the visitors 14-0 in the second half of an impressive 27-13 victory.

Wylie (4-2 overall) limited Memorial to 271 total yards — just 33 of those after halftime — to stay unbeaten in league play at 2-0. The Mavericks, who came in averaging 48.5 points per game, mustered just one first down in the second half in falling to 3-4 overall and 1-2 in district action.

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by Mike Lee, Special to Big Country Preps

MIKE LEE’S WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Hardin-Simmons ‘Player of the Week’ trio all from Big Country

Note: If you know of a former Big Country Prep athlete now performing in college or professional sports, contact Mike Lee at michaellee7@att.net.

Ty Thompson

The Hardin-Simmons Cowboys swept the American Southwest Conference Player of the Week honors in football this week — and all three selections were former Big Country Preps athletes.

During HSU’s 58-0 win over the University of Fort Lauderdale last Saturday, Cowboys quarterback Ty Thompson, a sophomore from Graham, passed for 183 yards and three touchdowns. He was named the ASC Offensive Player of the Week after completing scoring passes of 40 yards and 5 yards to Jairdyn Anderson and 15 yards to Harison Brockway, who is also from Graham.

Thompson’s three touchdown passes came in the first quarter and staked HSU to a 21-0 first-quarter lead.

Thompson also rushed for 101 yards on eight carries, including a 51-yard touchdown run.

Through three official games this season, Thompson leads the Cowboys in rushing with 221 yards and three TDs. He also leads the team in passing with 694 yards and six TDs against one interception.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Roby’s Weatherly takes this week’s award

Even in an otherwise “quiet” week, six-man players find a way to make a lot of noise. 

With many of our teams enjoying an open week prior to district play, Knox City and Roby got into a knock-down drag-out six-man game, with the Greyhounds winning 86-80. 

So great was this game, that our Big Country Preps Player of the Week emerged from the losing side of this matchup, with Roby quarterback Eli Weatherly taking our Player of the Week award for the Week ending Oct. 3

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by Daniel Youngblood

MIKE LEE’S WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Keenum makes major comeback as NFL quarterback at age 38

Note: If you know of a former Big Country Prep athlete now performing in college or professional sports, contact Mike Lee at michaellee7@att.net.

Most athletes covered in this column are former Big Country athletes that moved on to college sports. The average sports fan lost track and finds out what happened to them. Hence, the name “Where Are They Now.”

If you’re a sports fan, you likely know where Case Keenum is now. The former Wylie quarterback was the talk of the entire NFL after elevating from Chicago’s No. 3 quarterback to the starter and leading the Bears to a 27-7 win over the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football.

The question fans may have about Keenum is “How did he get to where he is now?”

The 38-year-old Keenum hadn’t played in an NFL game since 2023 — a span of 1,009 days. But he showed no rust, completing 24 of 34 passes for 247 yards and two touchdowns against the Eagles. He also scored on a 1-yard run — his first NFL rushing touchdown since 2019.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Graham QB Corley takes this week’s top honor

A week ago, Graham senior quarterback Cooper Corley narrowly missed taking our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award.  
 
This time around, there was no stopping him.  

Corley, who led the Steers to a 48-21 win over Peaster, hit 16 of 27 throws for 307 yards and two TDs.  

He also rushed 12 times for 132 yards and four more scores and caught a 29-yard TD pass for seven touchdowns on the night.  

“Very rarely do you see a kid total 7 TDs in a night and score in three different ways,” Graham coach Clay McChristian said. “He scored at least one touchdown passing, rushing, and receiving.

“That is right at 1000 total yards and 13 TDs in the last two weeks against two quality opponents.” 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 2-5A DII WEEK 5 REPORT: Cooper, Wylie open district with comfortable wins; Palo Duro blasts Legacy

Abilene Cooper 49, Wichita Falls Memorial 28 — Markquel Sims ran for 129 yards and two touchdowns, and Jamarion Dunson ran for three touchdowns and added a fourth score receiving to lead the Cougars to thorough victory over the Mavericks in the district opener for both teams.

The game featured four ties — the last at 28-all early in the fourth quarter — but Cooper (3-2, 1-0) closed the game with 21 unanswered points to close out the victory.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME REPORT: Wylie overcomes disastrous start to rout Coronado in district opener

Photos by Susanna Jackson, HubCityPreps.com

LUBBOCK — Staring at a 13-0 deficit less than four minutes into its District 2-5A Division II opener against Lubbock Coronado, the Wylie football team found itself in a precarious spot Thursday at Lowrey Field.

But 49 unanswered points before halftime changed that in a hurry as the Bulldogs rallied for a resounding 56-20 victory over the Mustangs.

Wylie ran for 298 of its 490 total yards, getting productive days on the ground from Cooper Jones (5-98, 1 TD), Jett Wilson (9-91, 1 TD) and Kory Gibson (12-80) as it improved to 3-2 on the season and 1-0 in district play.

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by Mike Lee, Special to Big Country Preps

MIKE LEE’S WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Former Stephenville kickers making their mark in college

Note: If you know of a former Big Country Prep athlete now performing in college or professional sports, contact Mike Lee at michaellee7@att.net.

Two former Stephenville High School kickers — Diego Chavarria and Cade Whitehead — are handling the main kicking duties for the respective college football teams this season.

Chavarria is in his second season at the University of Texas-Permian Basin, a member of the NCAA Division II and the Lone Star Conference. The Falcons began playing football in 2016. Although the main campus is in Odessa, the Falcons play their home games at Astound Broadband Stadium in Midland.

Whitehead is kicking for Nelson University, a member of the NAIA and the Sooner Athletic Conference. Nelson, located in Waxahachie, was formerly known as Southwestern Assemblies of God, or SAGU.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Wylie volleyball rolls past rival Cooper to open District 4-5A play

Hosting crosstown rival Cooper to open District 4-5A play, the Wylie volleyball team kicked off league action in dominant fashion Tuesday, sweeping the Lady Cougars  25-5, 25-12, 25-13 at Bulldog Gym.

It was the 11th consecutive victory and 21st in the last 22 matches for the Lady Bulldogs, who are now 27-4 on the year.

Cooper, which split a pair of five-set matches on Saturday with Brownwood and Midland Lee, fell to 11-18 overall and 0-1 in district play with Tuesday’s loss.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Stephenville answers every challenge in 42-23 win over Wylie

The Stephenville football team trailed Wylie midway through the second quarter and led by just five (21-16) after three quarters of play on Friday at Hugh Sandifer Stadium. But strong finishes to both halves allowed the Yellow Jackets to pull away for a 42-23 win in front of a packed homecoming crowd.

The Yellow Jackets scored 14 points in the last five minutes of the second quarter to go to halftime up 21-10 and outscored the Bulldogs 21-7 in the final period to turn a one-score game into a three-touchdown win.

Wylie passed for 301 yards on its way to 400 yards of total offense. But the Stephenville defense allowed just 16 points on five trips inside its own 25-yard line, stopping a fake field goal attempt late in the first half and intercepting a pass in the end zone in the fourth quarter to allow the offense to create some separation with an efficient, workmanlike effort.

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by Daniel Youngblood

FEATURE: Veteran Wylie QB Karleskint maturing into one of area’s top playmakers

With a full season of starting experience under his belt, Wylie quarterback Jadin Karleskint entered his senior year with high expectations — both for himself and from those around him.

Tabbed as a team captain and the undisputed leader of the Bulldogs offense, the talented signal caller came into this season looking — and being leaned upon — to improve on junior campaign that saw him complete 124 of 176 passes for 1,572 yards and 15 touchdowns in leading WHS to a 5-5 record.

While the season started with some frustration in a 13-7 home loss to Brownwood in which the Bulldogs failed to score a point in four red zone trips, Karleskint and his Wylie cohorts have been delivering on their substantial potential since, rebounding from that season-opening setback to blast Lubbock Monterey 49-3 before downing Wolfforth Frenship 28-21 in a game that wasn’t nearly as competitive as the final score might indicate.

And Karleskint has been right in the center of the team’s success, playing at a high enough level to sit fourth in the Big Country Preps coverage area in passing yards (755) and seventh in passing touchdowns (8) as Wylie (2-1) gets set to host area rival and defending state champion Stephenville (3-0) on Friday for homecoming.

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Devan Wright
by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Clyde’s Wright takes this week’s award

It’s still too early to say, but 2026 could be the year of the quarterback in the Big Country. At least it has been that way through three weeks, with Clyde senior Devan Wright taking our latest Big Country Player of the Week award after another eye-popping performance from an area signal caller. 

In the wake of Haskell’s Haegan Pinkerton winning our first two awards with two huge performances in Week 1 and Week 2, Wright followed those up with one of his own in a 57-21 win over Comanche on Friday. 

Helping Clyde improve to 3-0, Wright connected on 12 of 18 throws for 194 yards and four scores. He also rushed nine times for 116 yards and three more TDs, giving him a direct hand in seven touchdowns. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 2-5A DII WEEK 3 REPORT: Cooper, Wylie pick up wins to highlight 4-3 week for league

Cooper 28, San Angelo Central 21 — Jamarion Dunson’s second rushing touchdown run of the second half broke a 21-all tie with just over two minutes remaining, serving as the winning points for the Cougars in a come-from-behind win over the Bobcats.

Cooper trailed at 7-0, 14-7 and 21-14 in the first half, before shutting Central out in the second half. The Bobcats had an opportunity to tie or take the lead in the final minutes, thanks to a long kickoff return that set them up inside the Cooper 30, but an incomplete pass on a fourth-down play allowed the Coogs (1-2) to celebrate their first victory of the season.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME REPORT: Wylie holds off late rally to down Wolfforth Frenship 28-21

Photos by Mark Rogers, HubCityPreps.com

WOLFFORTH — The Wylie football team dominated Wolfforth Frenship for 3½ quarters Friday, but a late Tiger rally left the Bulldogs holding on for dear life in the closing minutes of a 28-21 victory.

Trailing 28-0 entering the fourth quarter, Frenship scored three touchdowns in the final four minutes to pull within seven before WHS was finally able to close out the win to improve to 2-1.

Wylie lost the turnover battle 3-1 and gave up an onside kick return that allowed the Tigers to score two touchdowns in the span of 19 seconds. But huge days from quarterback Jadin Karleskint (25-21-1—327, 3 TDs passing) and receiver Blaze Ruffin (6-123, 3 TDs receiving) provided the Bulldogs with a big enough cushion to hang on for their second consecutive victory.

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by Mike Lee, Special to Big Country Preps

MIKE LEE’S WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Rigdon still making plays in college for Arizona State

NOTE: If you know of a former Big Country Prep athlete now performing in college or professional sports, contact Mike Lee at michaellee7@att.net. 

Rigdon accepts his Offensive MVP trophy following Benjamin’s 2022 victory over Loraine for the 1A DII state title.

Grayson Rigdon is listed as the No. 3 running back on the Arizona State football depth chart, but the former Strawn-Benjamin High School player scored two long-distance touchdowns in the Sun Devils’ 70-7 season-opening win over Morgan State last Saturday.

The 5-foot-11 sophomore scored on receptions of 54 and 56 yards. On both touchdowns, quarterback Cutter Boley threw to Rigdon coming out of the backfield, and he used his running skills to turn the short receptions into long touchdowns.

Rigdon’s first touchdown extended ASU’s lead to 35-7 early in the second quarter. His second score made it 56-7 early in the third quarter.

In addition to the two receptions for 110 yards, Rigdon finished Saturday’s game with four carries for 22 yards rushing and one kickoff return for 18 yards.

The Sun Devils play at No. 10-ranked Texas A&M at 11 a.m. Saturday on ABC-TV.

As an ASU freshman last season, Rigdon played on special teams in six games. He also had two carries and one reception in the Sun Devils’ Sun Bowl loss to Duke.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Pinkerton takes his second award in as many weeks

We prefer to not have the same athlete win our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award in successive weeks, given that it is our aim to share the love. But every now and then, the numbers simply make that impossible. 

So here we have it: Haskell’s Haegen Pinkerton has won our accolade twice in as many weeks, and deservedly so after leading the Indians to a 62-44 win at Bangs on Friday. 

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