On Friday, I was at Heroes stadium for a HUGE 26-6A match-up between the Johnson Jaguars (6-2, 4-0) and the Reagan Rattlers (6-1, 3-0). I know you can’t tell by the records, so I will tell you that these two teams are number 1 and 2 in the district; basically 1st place is on the line.
Now, even though I was prepared for the cooler weather on Friday; it was about 50 degrees, but felt colder on the field, I decided to hang out in the press-box.
Disadvantages
- I didn’t bring my laptop, but a writer is always prepared. My backpack is armed with a pen and paper; you know, just in case! So, most of this article was written before the game started. I just had to make sure I could read my own handwriting because I have been told by other people that my handwriting isn’t the best. Maybe that is why I prefer writing on my laptop. When I opened my spiral notebook, I saw my chicken scratch from a 1st round Playoff game in 2015 between the Johnson Jaguars and the Clemens Buffaloes. All I will say is the performance of Frank Harris, the junior quarterback for Clemens, was by far the best individual performance I have ever seen in a high school football game. He had 23 carries for 340 yards with 6 touchdowns and was 10 of 15 passing for 153 yards with 1 touchdown and 1 interception; 493 total yards! His 7th touchdown was a 77 yard run and that gave Clemens the lead and the win 54 to 51. Frank a quarterback on the UTSA football team and I expect big things when he gets game action!
- I didn’t get to take a lot of photos.
- I found myself zoning out throughout the game; I was actually getting bored.
Advantage
- I finally got to meet Adam Zuvanich from the San Antonio Express News. I enjoyed chatting with him about sports and a little bit about St. Anthony and it’s nice when I can match a name, a face, and a twitter handle together.
Now, I did hang out on the field for a few minutes before the game started. You know something, I am getting more and more fascinated by the pre-game warm-ups and all the routines the teams do. Do jumping jacks really help? If so, I should add this to my evening routing at home after I put Niko to sleep in his crib.
This was my first time back in the press-box since the 2015 high school football season; in 2016, I covered St. Anthony football and for all those games, I was on the field. And, so far the games I have covered this year, I have been on the field. I actually felt out of place in the press-box. But, I did enjoy watching the game as a fan and was no help to Adam when he needed clarification on some of the plays. He has to do a lot of things and sometimes, a play will be missed or he won’t catch the player who just did something. Yes, I was a statistician but my brain is done numbering things; for now, it’s about words and photos. Next week at New Braunfels, I will be back on the field and the weather outlook says it will be warmer.
I did get back on the field for the 4th quarter and I was happy to be back in my comfort zone. I picked a great sport and got a video of Mike Chandler, the sophomore quarterback for Johnson, scoring a touchdown to give them the lead and eventually the victory by a score of 21-14. When he scored, the Johnson faithful erupted in a super loud happy cold cheer!
Before that touchdown, the Johnson Jaguars stopped the Reagan Rattlers on a 4th and goal from the 1 yard line. Seventeen plays, 99 yards, and almost 8 minutes of time of possession; the Jaguars scored that touchdown.
Had Reagan scored on that 4th down, the outcome may have been different. But, to be honest, Johnson looked a lot more sharp and focused in the 2nd half; they trailed 14 to 7 and halftime. Whatever Ron Rittimann, the head coach at Johnson, told the team at halftime, it worked!
I was really impressed with Mike Chandler, the sophomore quarterback at Johnson. He had 23 carries for 125 yards with 2 touchdowns and just 37 passing yards. I can’t even begin to imagine how good he will be as a senior; it’s kind of scary!
The Johnson Jaguars (7-2, 5-0) have a bye week and they will end the season against the Madison Mavericks on November 10th at Heroes stadium.
The Reagan Rattlers (6-2, 3-1) will play the Madison Mavericks(6-2, 3-1) on Thursday at Heroes stadium.
If you want to share my photos, all I ask is for you to either give me credit or tag me on Twitter @statmanspeaks or Facebook @ The Mark Speaks. The entire photo galley for the game can be found here: https://thestatmanspeaks.smugmug.com/High-School-Football/Football-Games-2017/Reagan-at-Johnson-10272017/.
Here are some photos from the game:
On Friday, I will be at New Braunfels (6-2, 3-2) as they host the Clemens Buffaloes (7-1, 4-1) in a 27-6A match-up. Clemens is coming off there 1st loss of the season to the Judson Rockets; a lot of teams lose to Judson, and New Braunfels is fighting for a playoff birth.
