I was already imagining all the student athletes who would be returning to there respective teams and getting excited for next season! I was salivating at these thoughts and couldn’t wait for the San Antonio Express News High School football preview to come out. This preview really helps me a lot because they do a fantastic job of breaking down teams, players, and districts. It reinforces my brain to think only about “high school football” till the end of December!!!
As I tell my wife, any important decisions will have to wait till January!!!!!! If she chooses to renovate the house, it must begin on Thursday and end on Friday!!!
So, not only am I a statistician, but I am also a HUGE fan of high school football. I love telling people what I do and I get super hyped about it! I can talk for hours upon hours about high school football.
I will refer to some players as “STUDS!” throughout my blog. Studs are special players who have the ability to change a game at any time because they are exceptional athletes!
Gucci Bowl (Clark Cougars Vs Churchill Chargers)
This is a rivalry game between 2 schools that are considered to be in wealthy and affluent areas. They are 6 miles from each other. The athletes, cheerleaders, band members, coaches, and parents have all grown up together and they circle this game on there calendars. I am a graduate of Clark and know for a fact that this game really matters and has bragging rights for an entire year for the winning team.
Just a few years ago, Clark was making long playoff runs with studs named Hayden and Jock!!!! This year, both teams don’t have any studs, but that can change during the season.
THE GAME (archived on kmys.tv)
Josh Kern is the starting quarterback for Clark and has committed to play for Arizona. There was a lot of hype for Kern in the media, but tonight he didn’t live up to any of it. The Churchill defense got several hard hits on him and he also left the game with cramps. To be honest, I thought his backup Chase Jones was better and that he was the one going to Arizona. It seems like every year, Clark has a tall and smart receiving core!!!
Paul Foster is the running back for Churchill. I had him for 11 carries for 120 yards and 3 touchdowns (he was the player of the game for Thursday Night Lights). He could become the stud, but the Huguley boys will have something to say throughout the season. William Huguley is the quarterback and Grantham Huguley is a wide receiver. They didn’t get a lot of touches tonight since Foster was all they needed. But, when they do touch the ball, they are very dangerous!!!
It is always tough for me when Clark loses, but I will be OK!!!!
Judson Rockets Vs MacArthur Brahmas
Before I start talking about Judson football, let me briefly explain that they are a high school football powerhouse in the state of Texas. They play in a fairly new 10,000 seat stadium. They have played in 12 state championship games, winning 6 of them, the most recent coming in 2002!!!! Every year, I always expect them to make a long playoff run if when they don’t have any studs. This year, they have a stud running back named Quaylon Jones!!! I will be mentioning his name A LOT!!!!!!! Maybe I should rename this blog to KEEPING UP WITH JONES!!!!!!!
Can you believe that the Rockets have had 34 consecutive winning seasons? That is pretty awesome!!!
Mac has a new head coach and they also have a stud running back named Darek Dillard. If the last name sounds familiar, it should. His sister is Tai Dillard, a former WNBA player and current UTSA assistant coach. They did lose a stud quarterback who was a three year starter.
Last year when they played, we all expected Judson to win that game easily, but that didn’t happen. Mac whipped Judson’s defense and offense apart and dominated every aspect of the game. We were shocked and kept asking, is Judson that bad or is Mac that good?
Well, we agreed in the press box that Mac was the team to beat and they could have a long playoff run. Mac only had 1 loss during the regular season, but they ended up losing in the state quarterfinals to the Steele Knights.
THE GAME (archived on tsrnsports.com)
Quaylon Jones looks poised to have his best season ever!!! He is better and faster than last year. For the first half, I had Jones for 7 carries for 127 yards and 2 touchdowns. He ended the game with 14 carries for 189 yards and 4 touchdowns!!! And, he only played 2 1/2 quarters!!!! His runs got oohs and awes and wows from me!!!! I wish I could put a webcam on his feet and watch him make his moves!!! Despite his monster numbers, he wasn’t our player of the game. Jones has won this honor many many many many times in the past. I bet he has a storage unit with all the accolades he has gathered.
Judson always has a plethora of running backs. Tonight, 8 players ran the ball all for positive yards. One wasn’t even on the roster and I had to find out who he was. Even the backup backups got some playing time at the end. Just fun to watch them run the famous toss sweep!!!
We gave the player of the game to a defensive player named Tre Flowers. He is a Junior Safety for Judson and he recovered a fumble and had 2 interceptions (1 was returned for a touchdown and the other was 2 yards short for his 2nd touchdown). Pretty darn impressive debut!!!! Remember his name, he is only going to get better!!!!
The Rockets looked solid on defense and offense and have a lot of experienced players. But, we say this every year about Judson!!!!
Dillard carried the ball 22 times and gained 94 yards, but that was the only bright spot for Mac. The new quarterback, Matt Gramling, looked startled (he hasn’t played football since his Freshman year, he is now a Senior). Hopefully, Gramling will learn from this game and become better throughout the season.
Wagner Thunderbirds Vs Reagan Rattlers
Reagan has a stud quarterback named Trevor Knight who has been starting for 3 years. He has committed to play for the University of Oklahoma. He is a dual threat quarterback and I am excited to see him play.
Wagner lost a stud running back named David Glasco. Glasco will be playing for UTSA!!!!!
Wagner was the surprise team last season. The Thunderbird’s won 4 games and lost 6 and amazingly made the playoffs! They made it all the way to the state quarterfinals! I am very curious to see who is going to step up this season.
THE GAME (archived on tsrnsports.com)
This was by far the best game I worked in Week 0!!! The teams combined for 68 points and 923 yards of total offense.
Trevor Knight is the stud for Reagan, he had 291 yards and 4 touchdowns. He had the chance to tie the game very late in the 4th, but the Wagner defense batted down a pass on a 4th down. I can see why Knight committed to Oklahoma; he has a strong arm, can run the ball, and makes very smart decisions. But I was really blown away by the wide receiver for the Rattlers who had 10 catches for 181 yards and 1 touchdown. His name is Austin Hays. The Express News mentions him as a player to watch in 26-5A. They also have talented kicker named Jake Wilcox who can boot the ball to the end zone for kickoffs!!!
Even though the Rattlers lost, they will still be a top team in there district.
Wagner has several players who played both ways. They have speed and are very athletic. Derrick Kindred is the safety and also made his debut at running back. He had 18 carries for 183 yards and 3 touchdowns, he was the player of the game!!! Robert Gardener is also a safety who got a few touches running the ball. On one of his carries, he went 68 yards down the left sideline for a touchdown. What impressed me most about that run was Gardener’s 4.4 speed, wow!!! Wagner ran the ball 49 times for 397 yards and 4 touchdowns. On my stat board, I thought I was looking at the Judson rushing numbers, unbelievable!!!!
Jacobi Clay is the quarterback. Clay was 12 for 17 passing with 211 yards and 1 touchdown. Several completions were on 3rd down.
If Wagner can keep this up, they will be in the mix for the district championship!!!!!