Here are the Big Country’s receiving leaders through Week 5:
Category: Wylie Bulldogs
District 3-5A Division II: Week 5 Report
Brownwood 33, Wylie 0 — The Bulldogs were shut out for the third consecutive game, amassing just 109 total yards against the unbeaten and ninth-ranked Lions.
Wylie trailed 13-0 after a quarter and 26-0 at halftime, and was never able to find its stride after the break. The Bulldogs rushed for just 34 yards on 19 carries — a stark contrast to Brownwood’s 259 rushing yards on 46 attempts. The Lions (5-0) also passed for 191 yards to Wylie’s 75.
Coach Hugh Sandifer’s Bulldogs (0-5) will get this week off before opening district play Oct. 11 with a home game against Wichita Falls Rider.
GAME STORY: Brownwood mauls Wylie 33-0, spoils Bulldogs’ homecoming
Wylie Bulldog fans crammed into the stands for homecoming on Friday at Bulldog Stadium. So, too, did the maroon-clad Brownwood Lions crowd, who cheered their ninth-ranked Lions to a 33-0 drubbing of the Bulldogs.
The win improved Brownwood to 5-0 on the year, while Wylie’s third consecutive shutout loss dropped the Bulldogs to 0-5.
FEATURE: Wylie LB Morris healthy, ready to lead defense
The 2018 season was a tough one for Wylie linebacker Dax Morris — not because Bulldogs went 0-10 but because he wasn’t there most of the year to help his team fight through that.
Dealing with injuries to both legs — a torn posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee and bone contusion in his left one — Morris spent most of his junior season on sidelines in jeans and boots.
But now that he’s finally healthy after a long and tedious rehab process, the 5-foot-10, 205-pound senior is doing his best to make up for lost time.
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 3-5A Division II: Week 4 Report
Cooper 30, Wylie 0 — A pair of first-quarter interceptions staked Cooper to an early 13-0 lead, and the Bulldogs were never able to recover in falling to 0-4 on the year and 0-2 in the Southtown Showdown.
The early turnovers undermined what turned out to be a strong defensive effort for Wylie, which held the Cougars to 318 yards — 192 rushing and 126 passing. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, they were never able to get going offensively, finishing with just 179 total yards and suffering their second consecutive shutout against their new crosstown rival.
Wylie, which got 71 total yards from Jackson Smith (30 rushing, 41 receiving) and 69 receiving yards from Creed Cooper, will wrap up nondistrict play with their first true home game Friday, when they host undefeated Brownwood at Bulldog Stadium.
GAME STORY: Cooper shuts out Wylie for second straight year
It wasn’t one of Cooper’s cleaner games offensively, but as well as the Cougar defense played, that really didn’t matter.
Coach Aaron Roan’s squad shut out Wylie for the second consecutive year, taking the second Southtown Showdown by a 30-0 margin at Shotwell Stadium.
The Coogs outgained the Bulldogs 318-179, grabbing the momentum early with a couple of big interceptions and cruised from that point to their fourth consecutive win to open the season.
FEATURE: Wylie Bulldogs seek to reverse slow-starting trend
Sitting at 0-3 and sporting a 15-game losing streak dating back 2017, the Wylie Bulldogs are off to another rocky start.
Fighting through a brutal nondistrict schedule — Wylie’s first five opponents have combined to go 13-2 so far — the ‘Dogs have yet to hold a lead at any point this season, having been outscored by an 85-13 margin in the first halves of three lopsided losses.
Stumbling out of the blocks in each of those ballgames, coach Hugh Sandifer’s squad has effectively spent its entire season playing catch-up. That’s a trend the veteran coach wants to see end this week against crosstown rival Cooper, and it must, he said, if the Bulldogs hope to get their season back on track in time for district.
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!
District 3-5A Division II: Week 3 Report
Stephenville 34, Wylie 0 — A disastrous start put Wylie down 21-0 by the end of the first quarter Friday, and the Bulldogs never recovered in a shutout loss at Tarleton Memorial Stadium.
A bad snap on the game’s first play from scrimmage led to a three and out on Wylie’s first possession, and the next two ended on fumbles deep in Bulldog territory. Stephenville capitalized on all three mistakes, scoring on its first three possessions to take a three-touchdown lead it would add to after halftime.
For the game, the Yellow Jackets outgained Wylie 390-93, getting 199 yards and two touchdowns passing from Kade Renfro and 128 yards and two scores rushing from Kason Philips.
The Bulldogs (0-3), who rushed for just six yards in the loss, will have another tough game this week, when they take on Cooper on Friday at Shotwell Stadium.
GAME STORY: Stephenville stings Wylie on homecoming night 34-0
STEPHENVILLE — When asked about his team’s dominant performance on homecoming night, Stephenville coach Sterling Doty had plenty of credit to pass around.
The Yellow Jackets routed Wylie 34-0 at Tarleton Memorial Stadium, shutting down a Bulldog offense that came in averaging more than 280 passing yards per game.
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.
FEATURE: Wylie views quarterback rotation as strength, not weakness
There’s a football axiom trumpeted by fans and some coaches that if you have two quarterbacks, you don’t have one.
The idea there, essentially, is that if you’re playing two quarterbacks, it’s because one hasn’t risen above the other and earned the job outright with his performance.
Wylie’s Hugh Sandifer is not among those who subscribe to this widely held theory. The longtime Bulldog coach is more than happy to utilize two signal callers if he thinks it will help his team.
And in the case of the 2019 Bulldogs, who have seen juniors Jaxon Hansen and Balin Valentine combine to pass for 287 yards per game through the first two weeks of the season, it’s hard to argue with his logic.
BCP Podcast No. 61: Chris Joslin talks Coahoma football with Evan, Daniel
After a late arrival at Coahoma, Chris Joslin led the Bulldogs to a 4-7 record in his first season as a head football coach. This year, with most of that squad back, he has his team off to a 2-0 start, through which it has outscored its first two opponents by a combined 78-9 margin.
This week, Joslin took some time to talk to Big Country Preps’ Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood about this year’s team and his transition to the head coaching role on the Capital Farm Credit Wednesday Night Podcast.
Also in this episode, Evan and Daniel discuss the most interesting developments of Week 2 of the Big Country football season and take a look at the top matchups of Week 3.
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 3-5A Division II: Week 2 Report
Lubbock Monterey 49, Wylie 26 — Wylie had another solid day offensively, particularly through the air, but quarterback Coreon Bailey and the Plainsmen were just too much for the Bulldogs.
The Monterey signal caller hit 21 of 28 passes for 331 yards and four touchdowns, while rushing for 46 yards and another score to lead a 601-yard effort for the Plainsmen. Wylie, meanwhile, gained 341 yards, including 280 yards and three TDs passing.
QB Jaxon Hansen led the Bulldog effort, hitting 13 of 23 passes for 200 yards and two scores while rushing for a team-leading 44 yards on eight carries. Receiver Creed Cooper also had a big night, hauling in 10 passes for 159 yards and one touchdown.
GAME STORY: Wylie unable to keep pace in loss to Lubbock Monterey
LUBBOCK — For one quarter Friday night at Lubbock’s Lowrey Field, the Wylie Bulldogs looked like they had a shot to snap a losing streak that dates back to the 2017 season.
The Bulldogs trailed Lubbock Monterey 21-13 in a high-scoring first quarter before the Plainsmen pulled away en route to a 49-26 win in nondistrict play.
The loss dropped Wylie to 0-2 on the season.
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.
FEATURE: Wylie offense shows promise despite mistakes in season opener
It would be easy to assume based on the halftime score (29-0) and final tally (49-19) that the Wylie Bulldogs’ season opener at Georgetown was a total washout. The type of game you move on from after film study, never to revisit again.
But lost in the lopsided score was a 424-yard offensive output that could have yielded very different results had it been accompanied by fewer mistakes. And while the Bulldogs’ four turnovers and 13 penalties can’t be erased — and the disastrous effects of each stand as the overarching story of that game — there was plenty to like about the effort.
Take, for instance, that Bulldog quarterbacks Jaxon Hansen and Balin Valentine combined to complete 71 percent of their passes (22 of 31) for 292 yards. Or that Wylie ball carriers averaged 4.3 yards per rush attempt behind a relatively inexperienced line. Or that Hugh Sandifer’s squad responded from a nightmarish end to the first half to score 19 points in the second — topping their 2018 per-game scoring average by more than three points in those final two quarters.
All of those are things the Bulldogs can build on, Sandifer said, so long as they learn from and clean up their mistakes.
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 3-5A Division II: Week 1 Report
Georgetown 49, Wylie 19 — A slow start and rough close to the first half cost the Bulldogs any chance they had to put some pressure on the Eagles in the second half Friday. But Wylie showed some fight over the final two quarters, finding the end zone three times after going to halftime down 29-0.
Trailing just 10-0 with less than three minutes remaining the first half, the Bulldogs allowed 19 points over the final 2:01 of the second quarter, turning a manageable deficit into an insurmountable one by the start of the second half.
The loss was the 13th in a row for Wylie, which will travel to Lubbock to take on Monterey this week. The Bulldogs will try to build on a solid second-half showing Friday that included three touchdown passes, including scoring receptions of 53 and 25 yards by Creed Cooper.
GAME RECAP: Georgetown rolls past Wylie 49-19 in opener
GEORGETOWN — A late first-half scoring flurry propelled Georgetown to a 29-0 halftime lead over Wylie, and the Eagles cruised from there to a 49-19 win over the Bulldogs in the season opener for both teams.
Georgetown, which beat Wylie 31-7 in last year’s opener, scored 19 points in the final 2:01 before halftime, putting what was just a 10-point game to that point out of reach by the break.
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 Podcast No. 59: Evan, Daniel catch back up with Dublin’s Bob Cervetto
Dublin football coach Bob Cervetto took on one of the biggest challenges in the Big Country when he accepted his first head coaching job at DHS eight years ago. In the time since, he’s turned a moribund athletic program into one that’s competitive year-round.
Earlier this week, Cervetto took some time to chat with Big Country Preps’ Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood for his second appearance on the Capital Farm Credit Wednesday Night Podcast. Included in the topics discussed: his thoughts on this year’s Lions team, the state of his program and what motivates him to keep showing up to work every day with his signature positive attitude.
Also in this episode, Evan and Daniel discuss some of the top matchups of Week 1 of the high school football season.
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!
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.
BCP Preseason Position Rankings: Offensive Linemen
With the defensive and special teams rankings behind us, it’s time to look at the area’s offensive standouts. And we’ll start where any productive offense begins: on the line.
For the fifth installment of our eight-part preseason position rankings series, we turn our attention to the big boys, ranking the Big Country’s top-10 offensive linemen with a list of others to watch in 2019.
We hope you enjoy reading through our rankings.
BCP 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 five kickers and 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 2019 season.