Archive : June 2005

June 18, 2005

Mustangs earn No. 14 ranking from Texas Football Magazine

Mustangs earn No. 14 ranking from TF

By RON HOWELL/Reporter Sports Editor

The 2004 season was a great one, even by Sweetwater's lofty standards, as the Mustangs advanced to the Class 3A Division II quarterfinals and had an 11-3 overall record.

And Dave Campbell's Texas Football magazine, scheduled to go on sale to the public starting Monday, is predicting good things again in 2005.

Sweetwater is ranked No. 14 in Class 3A by the annual publication, thanks to the return of five offensive and seven defensive starters.

The Mustangs' season ended with a 21-20 loss to Snyder, a team that along with Wylie -- shared the District 4-3A crown with Sweetwater.

Snyder, which is returning 13 starters including nine on defense, is ranked No. 3 in Class 3A by Texas Football but Wylie, which won the Division I state title, failed to crack the top 25. The magazine picks Snyder to win the District 4-3A championship, with Sweetwater finishing second, Wylie third, Merkel fourth and Clyde fifth. Wylie is expected to again make the Division I playoffs with Sweetwater and Snyder in Division II.

Sweetwater lost several top players such as quarterback Jeremy Thompson, the district MVP who will play for Easter New Mexico this fall, and fullback Alan Copeland, now at Abilene Christian University.

But the Mustangs do return safety Kendal Carrillo, the district's defensive MVP who is al-so listed as a quarterback. The magazine also lists four others who are "players to watch" -- cornerback-wide receiver Brittan Pittman, running back-linebacker Joseph Banyard, fullback-linebacker Justin Adames and cornerback-running back Skye Green. All four were all-district players in 2004, and Banyard was chosen as the district's offensive newcomer of the year.

Carrillo had 168 tackles and five interceptions, and was also an all-district running back who rushed for 803 yards and 15 touchdowns. Banyard ran for 681 yards and 12 TDs, while recording 138 tackles and three sacks on defense. Adames had 142 tackles and Pittman recorded 72 tackles and a team-high eight interceptions. Green ran for 586 yards and had four interceptions. Other top prospects listed are quarterback-safety Sonny Birdwell, defensive end-offensive guard Bran-dan Fangman, defensive end-offensive tackle Taylor Jones, center-defensive tackle Lance Clark, tight end-defensive tackle Russell Clayton, kicker-wide receiver Parker Morrow, cornerback-RB-QB Duone Cun-nings, defensive tackle-offensive guard Casey Toland, defensive tackle-center James Beckwith, guard-defensive tackle Britt Glover, and fullback-linebacker Auston Davis.

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