ANSON — Friday’s Big Country Preps Game of the Week was expected to be a street fight of sorts, pairing off Albany and Anson —two of the more physical small school teams in the area.
It didn’t disappoint.
Anson (5-0), behind a top-notch defensive effort and a big night from Malachi St. John, shut down an Albany rally attempt in a 20-6 win to remain unbeaten.
Led by Shawn Keen’s 60 yards rushing and one score, Albany slipped to 3-2.
The Cooper football team took every punch Wichita Falls Memorial had and counter-punched harder Friday, eventually landing the knockout blow in the second half of a 42-27 win at Shotwell Stadium.
The Cougars overcame a number of tough breaks throughout the game, using a punishing rushing attack and an opportunistic defensive effort to frustrate the favored Mavericks enough to pull away late in the District 2-5A Division II opener for both squads.
After going to halftime with the score tied at 21-all, Cooper outscored Memorial 21-6 over the final two quarters, finishing with 357 yards rushing and a 3-1 advantage in the turnover battle to improve to 3-2 on the season with its second consecutive victory.
COLORADO CITY — After going 2-8 in his first year as a head coach, Bangs’ Colton Buzzard set the bar high for his second year leading the Dragons.
“Our expectations are to make the playoffs and win that first-round game,” he said. “We wanted to treat this trip like a playoff road trip because in the second round we are going to have to travel like this.”
Friday night, the Dragons ruined Colorado City’s homecoming with a 56-0 win at Wolf Stadium, using two turnovers and a special teams score in a span of 60 seconds to turn a scoreless game into a blowout.
COAHOMA — Most successful football programs have an identity of sorts — an aspect of the team which most fans quickly think of when the subject of that ballclub is brought up.
At Coahoma, where coach Chris Joslin is currently in his eighth year of guiding the Bullldogs, that identity has largely been built around offense. And heading into this season with quarterback Boyd Cox expected to improve on an already impressive set of numbers, offense was again what most area fans were talking about when the subject of the Bulldogs came up around the water cooler.
Not anymore.
Week 5 is upon us, and we have another strong slate of six-man games in the Big Country Preps coverage area.
Topping that list this week is a high-profile Division II matchup between unbeaten Zephyr and perennial power Strawn, our “Six-Man Lookahead” Game of the Week, but there are a number of others worth diving into as well.
So let’s stop wasting time and do just that. We hope you enjoy this look at the Week 5 schedule and encourage you to check out our Six-Man/Class 1A Central page for more information on your favorite team(s).
Each week here at Big Country Preps, we’ll post our picks for all of that week’s 11-man games, in addition to the results of our weekly fan polls for each matchup.
For those interested in voting, polls go up on Sunday night each week and close Thursday evening.
Disagree with our picks or the fan poll consensus? Let us know in the comments section below.
LAST WEEK: 38-10, .791
SEASON TOTAL: 199-56, .780
ALBANY (3-1) AT ANSON (4-0)
Nothing stirs my interest early in the football season more than having a surprise team square off with an established powerhouse.
So when selecting our Big Country Preps Game of the Week for Sept. 26, Albany’s visit to Anson (4-0) was a big blip on the area radar screen.
Albany (3-1) a perennial power coming off a loss to unbeaten Coahoma, will now face an Anson club that some believe is the biggest surprise in the Big Country thus far.
Over the past five decades, the Cooper football program has become known for the quality of rushers that have called its backfield home.
From Terry Orr (2,485 yards from 1977-79) to Allen Gunter (2,933 yards from 1981-83) to Mike Rose (4,271 yards from 1991-93) to Dominic Rhodes (3,102 yards from 1994-96) to Brandon Diles (3,145 yards from 2000-02) to A’mon Pimpton (3,102 yards from 2006-08) to Devin Johnson (3,106 yards from 2014-16) to Tyrees Whitfield (3,916 yards from 2015-17) to Noah Garcia (5,389 yards from 2017-20) to Daniel Bray (2,079 yards from 2022-23), CHS has been a veritable factory when it comes to producing game-breaking running backs.
If things continue on their current path, that list should grow by one this season, as senior Peyton Ewing looks to etch his name in permanent ink in the annals of excellent Cooper backs. While he still has some work to do to build the credentials those before him did, the third-year varsity lettermen is playing at a similar level this fall for a Cougar offense that is reaping the benefits of his big-play ability.
When Bangs visits Colorado City at 7 p.m. Friday, the Dragons will have a chance to take a giant step toward something that hasn’t happened in recent years: three football victories and a winning record heading into district play.
Bangs has finished each of the past two seasons with a 2-8 record. But after splitting their first four games, the Dragons are primed to create the foundation for a campaign that could extend beyond the first week of November. In fact, coach Colton Buzzard said, save for some first-game jitters and an unfortunate bounce or two in Week 2, the Dragons could be undefeated.
“We had chances to be 4-0,” he said as his team was preparing to wrap up preparation for the game against the 0-4 Wolves. “But that’s how it goes sometimes. Our offense is starting to jell, and our defense understands what needs to be done. If we continue to improve and cut down on the mistakes, we could be pretty competitive moving forward.”
Speaking of “moving forward,” no Dragon has done that better this fall than senior fullback Cason Tidwell. While he is only 16 years old — and a newcomer to the position — the 5-foot-11, 175-pound Tidwell has rushed for 464 yards and six touchdowns. He has been Bangs’ most prolific player on both sides of the ball during the team’s recent two-game win streak that included a 31-26 victory over San Angelo Grape Creek and a 71-0 rout of Abilene TLCA.
Digital photos, prints and keepsakes may be purchased by clicking the link below. The “BigCountryPreps.com” watermark will be removed from all purchased photos.
Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: Albany-Abilene TLCA volleyball (52 images)”
The Wylie volleyball team opened District 4-5A play in dominating fashion Tuesday, traveling four miles north to hand crosstown rival Cooper a 25-7, 25-7, 25-17 loss at Cougar Gym.
It was the fifth consecutive win for the Lady Bulldogs, who notched victories over ranked squads from Bushland and Stephenville last week to ride a wave of positive momentum into league play.
Now 25-7 on the season, WHS will take a 1-0 district mark into road matches against Wichita Falls Legacy on Friday and Abilene High next Tuesday. Cooper, meanwhile, will look to regroup quickly before taking on Abilene High on Friday at Eagle Gym.
Albany coach MJ Reneau said before Tuesday night’s District 6-2A opener that she was hoping to see her team snap out of a funk that had seen them lose nine of 13 matches and 12 of their last 14 sets.
While the Lady Lions struggled, including six service errors in the final set, Albany still began district play with a 25-16, 25-10, 25-19 win over Abilene TLCA at Eagle Gymnasium.
The win pushed Albany to 10-10 overall while the Lady Eagles are now 2-10.
Week 4 yielded a number of eye-popping results and statement wins.
Whether it was May knocking off unbeaten Newcastle in our “Six-Man Lookahead” Game of the Week or Gordon going up a classification to thump Thorndale in a 11-man game, there was no shortage of intrigue for area six-man fans.
As has become custom the past two years around here, it’s time to recap the week that was in our “Six-Man Rewind” column. We hope you enjoy this look back at last week’s action and encourage you to check out our Six-Man/Class 1A Central page for up-to-date standings, results and upcoming matchups.
Continue reading “SIX-MAN REWIND: High-profile matchups deliver in wild Week 4”
Wylie junior Haddie Mock was at her very best against difficult competition last week, helping the Lady Bulldogs to wins over seventh-ranked 3A Bushland (25-8) and 21st-ranked 4A Stephenville last week.
Mock finished a whopping combined total of 19 blocks in the two matches to help the Lady Bulldogs improve to 24-7. She also had 16 combined kills.
Each week here at Big Country Preps, we offer fans the chance to pick the winners of all games involving our local and area football teams. The results of these weekly polls, which will close at 5 p.m. each Thursday, will be included in our weekly Pick ‘Em Panel.
Here are the games for Week 5:
Continue reading “WEEK 5 FAN POLLS … Pick this week’s 11-man winners!”
Prior to the season starting, much of the attention garnered by Coahoma came through its offense, with veteran quarterback Boyd Cox expected to put up some of the best numbers in the area.
As it has turned out, Cox is gone for the season with an injury suffered in a season opener with Forsan. But the Bulldogs have found compensation with a defense that has been nothing short of spectacular.
Coahoma enters this week at 4-0, having topped Forsan (60-8), Roscoe (14-3), Kermit (51-0) and perennial power Albany (15-12).
Continue reading “BIG COUNTRY PREPS NOTEBOOK: Coahoma defense among top area surprises”
Midland Legacy 42, Abilene High 28 — The Eagles took a 28-21 lead into halftime and had a chance to stretch that advantage to two scores in the second half, but an interception in the end zone ended that threat, and the Rebels closed with 21 unanswered points to rally for a two-score win.
JP Reyes passed for 469 yards and three touchdowns for Legacy, which got 135 yards rushing and three TDs from Hayes Hamm and 162 yards and a score receiving from Jermaine Laster.
Abilene Cooper 59, Lubbock Coronado 0 — Jaden Carrillo passed for 101 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 77 yards and another score, and Peyton Ewing had two TDs rushing and another receiving as the Cougars trounced the Mustangs.
Ewing finished with 126 yards rushing on just seven carries and 48 yards receiving on one catch, helping Cooper (2-2) build a 38-0 lead by halftime.
Digital photos, prints and keepsakes may be purchased by clicking the link below. The “BigCountryPreps.com” watermark will be removed from all purchased photos.
Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: Cooper-Lubbock Coronado football (102 images)”
San Saba 56, Katy St. John XXIII 7 — The Armadillos had an easy time with St. John XXIII, rushing for 463 yards as a team.
Luke Tharp accounted or 296 of those yards with four touchdowns to help the Armadillos improve to 2-2.
Coahoma 15, Albany 12 — The Bulldogs earned an always-tough win at Albany (3-1) by limiting the Lions to only 131 yards in total offense.
CHS in the meantime, finished with 268 total yards, led by Austin Joslin, who threw for 167 yards and two TDs.
Coahoma improved to 4-0 with the win.
Santo 19, Rio Vista 14 — Rylan Griffith ran for 114 yards and Dillan Branham added 92 yards as the Wildcats amassed 346 yards rushing in a hard-fought win over the Eagles.
Santo also got 60 yards and a touchdown from Jackson McKinnerney and 33 yards and two scores from Justin Hollingsworth in improving to 4-0 on the year.
Anson 26, Haskell 8 — Hunter Teichelman passed for 260 yards and two touchdowns, and Levi Diaz ran for 86 yards and two scores to lead the Tigers to a three-score win over the Indians.
Haskell held a brief 8-6 lead after rushing for its only touchdown in the first quarter, but Anson closed the first half with 14 unanswered points, before putting the game away with touchdown pass in the final period.
Wink 48, Forsan 14 — Leading just 7-0 at halftime, the Wildcats put up 20 points in the third quarter and 21 in the fourth to turn a previously competitive game into a lopsided win over Buffaloes.
Wink’s big second half left Forsan with its third loss in four games after rallying for the first win of the Casey Thompson era last week at Stanton.
Hico 55, Itasca 7 — The Tigers improved to 3-1 with a thorough win over the Wampus Cats.
Hico did all of its scoring before halftime, building a 55-0 lead at the break before allowing a its only points of the game after the outcome had long since been decided.
Brady 36, Ballinger 19 — Sean Jacoby passed for 134 yards and four touchdowns and added 101 yards on the ground, while Ashton Taylor ran for 156 yards to lead the Bulldogs to a three-score win over the Bearcats.
As a team, Brady (3-1) ran for 351 yards on 39 carries, getting 61 yards and a TD from Johnny Roque in addition to what Jacoby and Taylor provided. Taylor also also had a 40-yard TD reception for the Bulldogs, who got two TD catches from Rylan Pedigo (2-39 receiving).
Hamlin 48, Munday 14 — The Pied Pipers improved to 3-1 with a convincing win over Munday.
Isaiah Hutchings threw for 222 yards and two scores to lead Hamlin. Reece Rainey led Hamlin on the ground with 116 yards and two scores on only eight carries.
The Moguls fell to 3-1.
Comanche 36, Tolar 33 — Ladainian Smith rushed for 141 yards and three scores and Zaden Tello rushed for 103 yards and another TD to help Comanche even its record at 2-2.
Tolar (2-2) was led by Briton Rice, who threw or 259 yards and three scores.
Comanche will next see action when it travels to Early next Friday. Tolar will play host to Breckenridge on the same evening.
Brock 69, Fort Worth Southwest 0 — Holt Frazier passed for 258 yards and six touchdowns, and the Eagles defense pitched a shutout in a runaway win over the Raiders.
Colt Matlock (2-87 receiving) and Braden Ray (4-63) both had two receiving touchdowns apiece to lead Brock, while Davis Lee (2-43) and Charles Hibbler (3-37) also caught scoring passes.
Clyde 49, Snyder 7 — The Bulldogs piled up 242 yards rushing while limiting the Tigers to 118 yards of total offense on their way for a comfortable win.
Clyde scored the first 19 points of the game and led 27-7 at halftime, before shutting out coach Anthony Gonzales’ squad in the second half.
Waco Robinson 41, Glen Rose 40 — The Rockets improved to 3-1 with a win over Glen Rose (0-4).
Robinson amassed 515 yards in total offense, including 293 yards rushing. Evan Moreno led the way for the Rockets with 277 yards rushing and three scores.
Big Spring at El Paso Bel Air (no contest) — Lightning cut a potentially thrilling game short here as both coaches mutually decided to call this one a no contest despite playing 2½ competitive quarters.
Big Spring trailed by seven when the game was stopped midway through the third period, but the Steers were on the Bel Air 4-yard line with a chance to tie.
Waco La Vega 38, Brownwood 16
The Pirates limited Brownwood to only 148 yards in total offense and seven first downs to improve to 3-1.
La Vega rushed for 224 yards via committee and got 202 yards passing and three scores from Kourtney Parr.
Brownwood (1-3), was led by Judson Coalson with 99 yards passing.
MIDLAND — Abilene High scored the game’s first 14 points and took a 28-21 lead into halftime Friday, but the Eagles couldn’t add to their point total in the second half, allowing Midland Legacy to rally for a 42-28 win at Astound Broadband Stadium.
The Eagles had an opportunity early in the second half extend their lead to two scores, but an interception in the end zone ended that scoring chance, and the Rebels closed the game with 21 unanswered points to earn the come-from-behind victory.
The loss dropped AHS to 2-2 on the season, while Legacy improved to 1-3 against one of the state’s toughest schedules with the win.
DE LEON — Both schools have Bearcat mascots. Both wear maroon and both entered Friday’s Big Country Preps Game of the Week with 2-1 records.
The similarities, however, ended there.
De Leon dominated their guests from Hawley in a 52-34 win that saw DHS substitute liberally after building a 44-14 lead through three quarters.
STEPHENVILLE — Hosting Wylie for homecoming Friday at Art Briles Stadium, the Stephenville football team put on a heck of a show for those in attendance, dominating every phase in a 52-13 win over the Bulldogs.
The Yellow Jackets started fast, scoring two touchdowns in the first eight minutes of the game, and were never threatened after in growing their lead to 31-7 by halftime and 45-13 by the start of the fourth quarter.
SHS outgained Wylie 442-251 for the game, limiting the visitors to just 36 yards rushing on 26 attempts in improving to 4-0 on the season.
The Cooper football team entered Friday night’s homecoming against Lubbock Coronado having been involved in a pair of thrilling games the last two weeks — even though they’d come out on the wrong end of the decision against crosstown rival Abilene High and San Angelo Central.
Any frustrations that the Cougars had from those two games were quickly vanquished as Cooper closed out nondistrict play with a 59-0 thumping of Lubbock Coronado at Shotwell Stadium.
It was a total team effort for the Cougars as coach Aaron Roan’s squad used three quarterbacks and had nine players carry the ball, six receivers catch passes, three kickers convert extra points and 18 players record a tackle.
The Coogs also had three players intercept a pass and got two fumble recoveries from Dycin Davis.
BROCK — Ask Brock two-way senior Colt Matlock which position he prefers to play — wide receiver or safety — and he may have to think it over for a while.
Ask the Brock coaching staff where the 18-year-old is better-suited to play and you may find yourself waiting again.
The final say might be determined by the coaching staff of the University of Texas at El Paso, where Matlock has committed to play beginning next season. At present, the Miners plan to use him as a safety. But the option of using him at receiver or as a weapon on special teams will always be there.
Anson 26, Haskell 8 — Hunter Teichelman threw or 260 yards and two TDs and Levi Diaz rushed for 86 yards and two more scores to lead Anson (4-0). 
Goldthwaite (2-1), idle — The Eagles enjoyed an open date on Friday night.