Go Friday Night

Abilene High 33 Rockhurst 14

When Abilene Cooper takes the field, a couple of their guys come out carrying an American flag. The first time I saw it and the last time I saw it and every time in between it has given me chill bumps. Last night in Texas Stadium, the Abilene High Eagles took the field with one of their players hoisting the Texas flag. The Eagles were not trying to copy Cooper. What they were doing was sending a message to the other team, which happened to be from Missouri. The message was “you’re in Texas now boys”.

That isn’t the only way the Eagles sent a message. They sent a message on the field with their offensive, defensive, and special teams play. It was loud and clear. “DON’T MESS WITH TEXAS” and don’t mess with the Eagles of Abilene High. Eagle fans could not have been any more proud of their team.

Rockhurst, a private school from Missouri came into the confines of Texas Stadium with an undefeated record this season and the Number One ranking in Missouri high school football. They have a talented team. They have good size and some speed but they had a hard time getting into their regular rhythm on offense and never really got their defense in a consistent mode either. They turned the ball over on either fumbles or interceptions and were never able to use the game plan they had in mind. Basically they, Rockhurst, made too many mistakes.

Abilene High’s defensive unit contributed heavily to the mistakes made by the other team. They were hitting hard and putting pressure on the Rockhurst quarterbacks. The pressure was on from the front defensive line and linebackers because the Eagle pass defenders covered the Rockhurst receivers like a blanket most to the night. A couple of times when the receivers were open they dropped the ball. No matter if Rockhurst used their passing qb or the scrambling qb the Eagles defensive unit was their to make the stop, recover the fumbles, make an interception or just throw a wrench in whatever the Rockhurst team was wanting to accomplish.

I have noted in past blogs that the Abilene High offense has sputtered in recent weeks. Against Rockhust Friday night they were very effective putting points on the scoreboard when the defense presented them with the ball. They did it with equal precision running and throwing the ball. The Eagles passing attack accounted for 220 yards while the rushing attack gained another 190 yards plus on 31 rushing attempts. Through it all the Eagles built a 20-0 halftime lead and won the game 33-14.

Rockhust had a beautiful offensive series in the third quarter where they drove for their first touchdown. They were forced to converting three 4th downs into first downs. They moved the ball well on the ground and through the air. It was too little to late. It did eat up something like five minutes of the third quarter which also kept the ball away form the Eagle offense. However, Rockhurst could not sustain other drives consistently and the Eagles scored on two additional possessions. Xavier Beaver scored on an 18 yard pass play. He then came back and scored on and electrifying 60 yard run that had him running east and west much more than his usual North and South style of running. He managed to get out wide to the left side line and made some very ninth moves and then out ran the defenders to the end zone. It was a beautifully executed run aided by great downfield blocks.

Rockhurst came back with a beautiful pass play that almost scored and their qb eventually got in for a touchdown on a quarterback sneak to end the scoring.

The Eagles are now a perfect 5-0 for the year. Next week is an open date and then the following week Odessa High will bring their 5-0 record to Shotwell Stadium as the second season, better know as District will begin.

• September 24, 2005 3:16 AM

Tough Road Trip Ahead for Eagles

The Eagles are just coming off the road against a previously unbeaten squad. It was not an easy win for Abilene High but they found a way to come home 4 and 0 with a 24 -17 win over the Belton Tigers. Belton has a good team and had a great plan of attack against Abilene High.

Grinding out yardage picking up a first down here and there and a tough defense, the Tigers gave Abilene High a good game. The first half ended with Belton on top 10-3 and Abilene High only running 18 offensive plays. Needless to say, the head coach was not happy with that. He drove the point home to the Eagles that he wasn’t happy. I understand he has a sore hand today from driving home his point. He said he was so upset that he couldn’t call one of his star players by name. He just looked at him and called him “you”. That’s funny! By the way, “you” played a prevalent part in the Eagle come from behind win.
You know the rest of the story already. The Eagles came out and played a much better second half and drove the ball 90 yards for the winning touchdown when the game was on the line.

The Eagles are back on the road this Friday night when they travel to Texas Stadium to take on Rockhurst from Kansas City, Missouri. Without a doubt, this will be the toughest team the Eagles have faced this season so far and could be the toughest team they will face all year. Rockhurst is a private school that has had a tremendously successful program over several years. Private school guys. You know what that means.
This years version is undefeated. They rank number one in the state in 6A in Missouri. They have won by the scores of 37-17, 37-6, and 27-0. They have several players that will go Division I after the season. They are fast and they have good size. The O-Line goes 235, 270, 225, 295, 285. I don’t believe the Eagles have faced that this season. They run more than they pass because they can run the ball so well but they can pass and pass very well. On defense they have an outstanding safety and also a linebacker that is 6’1” 250 with speed to burn. The team I am told is very anxious to see some Texas high school football up close and personal.

Abilene High will need to play their best game of the season just to keep this interesting. The Eagles will then have their open date on September 30th and will then face Odessa High October 7th at Shotwell to begin district play.

Support the Eagles. Travel safely if you go to the game. Listen on the radio if you can’t be there.

• September 19, 2005 2:48 PM

Eagles Rally For Road Win 24-17

Last week the Abilene Eagles had their hands full with Lions, as in Brownwood Lions. The Eagles escaped with a hard fought homecoming victory 17-15. Their reward for that win was to carry their 3 and 0 record on the road to take on a bunch of undefeated Tigers, as in Belton Tigers. The task of winning on the road was no easier than the victory over Brownwood last week at home.

Several things happened in the game with Belton that had not occurred this season for this particular flock of Eagles. These pesky Tigers scored on a 39 yard pass play before the Eagles had an opportunity to put the ball in play offensively. Abilene High as a result found themselves trailing for the first time this season. Adding insult to injury, these same pesky Belton Tigers also stopped Abilene High from scoring on the Eagles first offensive possession of the game, another first for this season. Not only that, they almost shut the Eagles out completely in the first half. The Eagles did manage to get on the board by virtue of the leg of Cory Rodriguez who kicked a 22 yard field goal as the first half was winding down making the half time score 10-3 in favor of Belton.

For the second week in a row, the Eagles of Abilene High made some very uncharacteristic mistakes. Missed tackles, especially on kick coverage, punting problems caused by not getting the ball snapped to the punter put the Eagle D in some very tight and uncomfortable situations. Throw in a fumble and primarily what you have is your defense on the field for a long time and a very short field at that. Penalty flags. Did I mention those?

Without a doubt, the Belton team played inspired football against the visiting Eagles the entire game. Another factor that hampered the Eagles from moving the ball when on offense in the first half was the absence of some key players. The Eagle offense did not get untracked in the first half at all. I don’t believe that time of possession stats are kept in high school football but trust me, the Eagles were way on the short end of that, especially during the first half.

Once the second half started, the Eagles looked like the Eagles of old. The offense started strining plays together for the first time all night. Lyle Leong and Jason Boone made their presence felt and the long awaited running game finally came around. When you can run the ball, good things happen and that allows you to pass as well. I have not seen any stats on this game but I doubt the Eagles had a 100 yards of offense in the first half and I am thinking they must have wound up with 400 or so yard by the time the game was over.

Time and time again, the Eagle D responded when it had to and they really seemed to step it up in the second half. The great running back for Belton got some yardage against the Eagles but was no where close to his average of over 250 yards a game he has enjoyed this season before tonight.

Kick coverage and punting need special attention this week and I suspect both areas will be tweaked.

Good game overall Eagles. You are now 4-0!

• September 17, 2005 1:02 AM

Eagles face turnaround Tigers

The Belton Tigers have certainly done a turnaround so far this season. After going winless all of last season, Belton is undefeated at 2-0 this season. Both wins have come on the road and the Tigers have been forced to come from behind each time. Tonight they play their home opener against Abilene High.

There may be several factors contributing to the Tigers being 2-0 this season. For sure one of the leading factors would have to be the play of running back Quincy Daniels. Daniels has rushed for 517 yards and scored nine touchdowns in the first two games. As a team, Belton has scored 41 points in a double overtime game against Bastrop in which Daniels rushed for 306 yards and they scored 36 points against Georgetown where he rushed for 211 yards. It seems obvious the key to winning this game for Abilene High is to contain Daniels.

Defensively, the Tigers gave up 34 points against Bastrop and 23 points against Georgetown. I heard that Georgetown had multiple touchdowns called back. The Abilene High Eagles hope to rev up their offense this week after sputtering last week agaist Brownwood. The Eagles may have one of their star offensive players sidelined in Lyle Leong. There were other Eagles that were listed as doubtful earlier in the week. Game time will tell if they are ready.

The scouting report indicates that Belton's defensive line is a bit small and the Eagle coaches feel like Abilene High's offensive line should be able to open some holes. Though the Tigers may be small on their defensive front, they are quick and do not stay blocked too long. The Eagle running backs will need to be quick in hitting those holes. Taylor Potts should have the protection he needs to find his receivers when passing.

In my last blog, I mentioned the game in Belton will be played in a new stadium. Actually it will be played in a refurbished stadium complete with a new monofilament fiber turf.

Enjoy the game in person or on the radio. GO EAGLES!

• September 16, 2005 2:12 PM

Eagles Prepare for Belton

Well, you can expect some new faces in the starting lineup on Friday night against Belton. The Eagles will enter this battle of unbeaten teams more than a little banged up. Some Eagles will have to sit this one out because of injuries. That will mean other players will need to step in and step up. I feel these young men have been challenged to come out full tilt against Belton and I expect they will more than answer the challenge,

Last Friday night the Eagles were put to the test by a stout hearted Brownwood Lion team. Brownwood played an extremely good game against the Eagles. Abilene High on the other hand looked very good at times on offense and then looked bad at other times. The Eagles are unaccustomed to turning the ball over and the offense placed the Eagle D in between a rock and a hard place more than once.It is no secret that the defense, rising to the occasion again and again, won that game for Abilene High. The goal for Abilene High this week is to play well consistently all night long on offense and maintain their intensity on defense. If that happens, Belton will wind up with their first loss of the year.

Belton came to Abilene last year and took a pretty good whipping from the Eagles. They have back a lot of their same kids this year. They have a quality QB and tailback. The two make for a real good combination and the Eagle D will need to be on top of their game to control these guys. They don’t throw the ball a whole lot. They like to run and do a good job of it. Their tailback rushed for about 300 yards in their first game of the season.

I understand that this game will be played in a new stadium at Belton and they have a brand new turf that is the latest and greatest in artificial turfs. It will be fun for the Eagles to go in and light up the place. The passing game has been good this year and the running game has been adequate. Look for the Eagle running game to get in high gear in this game.

Support the Eagles this week and make the trip to Belton and be loud!

• September 12, 2005 8:07 PM

Whew! 3 and 0

It has been awhile since I have come from a game that the team I was pulling for outscored the other team but I felt like we lost the game. The Brownwood Lions came limping into Shotwell without a win this season and left the same way reading the 17-15 numbers on the score board. If you witnessed the game you might feel as I do that the Eagles were defeated. I know that will not make many Abilene High fans happy but that is my take. Regardless if you feel that way or not, Abilene High had an off night and the Brownwood Lions contributed to it.

The Eagles did not block well nor tackle well. Playing like that, how did we escape with the win against a team that has not won this year? The Eagle D made some huge plays at the most opportunistic times. Let’s give the Defensive game balls out now. The paper this morning says Andrew Hamaty blocked the field goal that would have put Brownwood ahead . Enjoy your game ball Andrew. Mr. Wade Baker gets a game ball for his interception that set up an Eagle TD. I also give a game ball to Braden Kehl for his punting. He averaged nearly 40 yards a punt last night. That is a tremendous increase over last weeks average. I mentioned the turnovers that the Eagles had. It seemed like watching the game that the Eagles defense was on the field a lot. Reading the stats in the paper I am not sure that was true. They indicate that Brownwood ran the ball 37 times and passed the ball 13 times for a total of 50 touches. What doesn’t show in those stats is the TD Brownwood scored on an 84 interception return by Bart Johnson.

The Abilene High Eagles had 53 touches on offense with 27 rushes and 26 passes. Once again the Eagles showed great balance between rushing and passing. What did not happen was the high percentage of completed passes usually enjoyed by Abilene High. Taylor Potts was 14 of 26 for 161 yards with two interceptions, one of which was the aforementioned play made by Bart Johnson. Game ball for the offense goes to kicker Cory Rodriguez for his 28 yard FG with less than four minutes left in the game that put Abilene High up 17-7.

Lyle Leong caught 4 passes for 92 yards and one TD leading the Eagle receivers. He injured his foot or ankle early in the second half and did not return. Xavier Beaver led the ground attack for the Eagles gaining 65 yards on 15 carries.

To the Eagles credit, they won a tight game even though they struggled. I expect those who vote for the Top 10 will have Abilene High slipping in the rankings. This game may well make Abilene High more focused for games in the weeks to come. Let’s hope so.

Next week finds the Eagles on the road to play Belton who is also undefeated for the year, Belton beat Georgetown last night. Eagles fans will remember that Phil Blue is the coach at Georgetown this season after serving at Abilene High as offensive coordinator.

FOCUS!

• September 10, 2005 11:49 AM

Homecoming already?

The calendar says September 9th and the schedule says it is game three of the year. What I can’t believe is it is homecoming already. Well, someone had to draw the duty of playing the Eagles for homecoming and this year it happens to be the Brownwood Lions. The Lions have lost their first two games of the season. That in itself does not translate to an automatic win for Abilene High. Brownwood has a storied past that is rich in history. Believe me, they would love to make a statement by knocking off undefeated Abilene High and spoil the Eagle’s homecoming. Looking at the Lions for this season, their first loss came at the hands of Brenham. You may not know it but they do more than make ice cream in Brenham. They are good football team. Loss number two for the Lions came at the hands of Abilene Cooper last week and Brownwood could have won that game. The Lions, are reminiscent of last years squad in the fact they are again playing a strong schedule and early on they are banged up. Be that as it may, don’t look for Brownwood to come in thinking they are defeated before they get started. Their players are not that kind of players and their coach certainly is not that kind of a coach. Coach Freeman will have the Lions ready to play!

Abilene High is rolling along looking very good with wins over Lubbock Monterey and San Angelo Central. The offense of course is led by QB Taylor Potts and company. Playing with a conservative game plan, the Eagles put 37 points up against Lubbock Monterey in game one. Last week the coaches opened up the play book a bit wider and the Eagles responded by scoring 48 points. More players are touching the ball meaning that opposing team’s defense will have even more to watch for.

The defense is led by, well, the defense. I mean that in a very positive way. If I named one, I would have to name eleven. They play very well as a unit. WARNING! The Abilene High D, for everyone who might be reading along, will DRILL you. The Eagle D is also a little stingy. The Eagles gave up 14 points in game one and 7 points in game two. Can a zero be far behind?

I believe the Eagles will be wearing their throwback jerseys with this being homecoming. To the best of my knowledge, Abilene High is undefeated when they wear those jerseys and that would be bad news for Brownwood. Perhaps worse news for Brownwood is Abilene High started the season being a good team. They were better after the game against Monterey and better yet after the game with San Angelo Central. The Eagles know they are a good team and they know they can be a better team. They are working hard to do just that.

Eagle fans, far and near, come home and see the Abilene High Eagles of 2005. If you can’t make it out to Shotwell, tune in on the radio Friday night at 7:30 PM on KZQQ 1560 on the AM dial. You can also follow along with a play by play on the GoFridayNight.com site.

Hope to see you at the game!

• September 8, 2005 9:17 PM

Week One completed!

The Abilene High Eagles continued their winning ways Saturday night in San Angelo with a 48-7 victory over the San Angelo Central Bobcats. This was the second game of the season for the Eagles and the first game for the Bobcats and it was very apparent. The turnover bug bit San Angelo often and the Eagles capitalized on the mistakes made by San Angelo.

Let’s get right to this week’s game balls. On offense, the game ball goes to the entire Offensive line. This group of young men are quickly becoming an outstanding unit. These guys are eager to do whatever it takes to get the job done but the main reason for their success goes to Coach Randy Smith. Coach, makes the boys share this game ball with you. Coach Smith has many years coaching experience and his highly regarded by those in the know as being one of the best in the business. A San Angelo Central fan said Abilene High’s quarterback could have had two minutes if he needed it to find a receiver because of the outstanding work done by the line. Congratulations to all.

Taylor Potts, the senior QB verbally committed to Texas Tech, had a very good night throwing the ball 29 times and completing 22 of those attempts for 305 yards and three touchdowns. He did throw one interception at the end of the first half. Abilene High’s reserve QB was 2 of 2 for 14 yards and one touchdown. The Eagles also continued to have a strong running game with Casey Bell running the ball 17 times for 101 yards anda touchdown. Xavier Beaver gained 70 yards on 10 carries. Sophomore RB Dmidrick Harrell had 4 carries for 34 yards and two touchdowns. The passing game played a huge part of the Eagles offensive production. Lyle Leong caught 10 passes for 209 yards and two touchdowns including one for 70 yards. Luke Kittley caught 5 passes for 41 yards and Jason Boone caught 2 passes for 27 yards and a touchdown. Bryson Walker also caught 1 pass for 11 yards and a touchdown. The Eagles converted 6 out of 7 PAT’s.

Defensively the game ball goes to the Defensive line. That isn’t a cop out. They well deserve the honor. We have already discussed the willingness of the Eagle D to plant the headgear on the opponent. This week was no different and as a result the Eagles got 5 more turnovers. In keeping with the Total Team Effort concept, the Defense gave the ball to the Offense and the Offense in turn put points on the board. Folks it doesn’t get any better than that. It is truly nice to have three or four “star” players on your team but when you have 11 guys that are playing as a team then good things happen. Lots of good things have happened to this squad in two games this season.

Next Friday night, September 9th at 7:30 PM the Eagles will take on the Brownwood Lions at Shotwell stadium. The Lions are 0-2 losing their last game played to the Abilene Cooper Cougars by a score of 21-14 in Brownwood. Be sure and come out and support the Eagles at home.

• September 4, 2005 5:30 PM

Ready for San Angelo Central??

Welcome Eagle fans. No game day on Friday again this week. Saturday at 7:30 PM in San Angelo, the Eagles will take on San Angelo Central. Last season when these two teams met in their pre district encounter, Abilene High was victorious.

Abilene High should have an advantage in that the Eagles have a game under their belts after beating Lubbock Monterey in week zero, 37-14. San Angelo Central on the other hand will be opening their season Saturday night against the Eagles. The Bobcats would truly love to beat Abilene High to start their season in a positive way.

San Angelo Central’s head coach begins his third season at the helm of the Bobcats. Coach Bob Bellard has a respectful 15-10 record in the two years he has been at Central. His overall record over 16 years is 96-66-1. Central finished last year at 6 and 6 overall with a 3 and 2 record in District 2 5A. They were beaten in the second round of the playoffs. Central returns 2 offensive starters and 5 defensive starters with a total of 20 lettermen from their 2004 squad.

My understanding is that offensively they use a power running game and will have a sophisticated passing attack and run from multiple sets. That will be a good test for the Eagle defense. The defense that Central will use against the Eagle offense is known as a 50 defense. They will blitz a good portion of the time. They feel that their strength on defense is their linebackers and the secondary.

The 2005 edition of the Eagles looks pretty good to me. For those who want to compare this squad to the outstanding 2004 team, there are some comparisons to be made. To my ii, if there is bad news , it is the Eagle offense is not the big play machine that it was a year ago. The good news is it would appear that Abilene High will be well balanced as far as running and passing. The offensive line had a wonderful game against Monterey. That one game of experience will be tremendously beneficial against this weeks opponent. The Eagles will have success driving the ball on longer drives. Longer meaning time of possession. Once again, the Eagles have their go to receiver but several capable young men will make for a super set of receivers.

Defensibly speaking, the Eagles appear to be not as quick as last year and somewhat smaller but remain very active in going to the ball. Once they get to the ball, they are capable of making the tackle. This past week the first game highlight reel showed several plays where there were 6 or 7 or even 8 Eagle defenders that swallowed up the ball carrier. Every week these young men play they are going to get better and gel as a unit. That will not be good news for teams farther down the schedule as the Eagle D is solid right now.

The kicking game looked good in week zero and will improve with each week as well.

For those who make the trip to San Angelo to support the Eagles, travel safely. If you can’t go to the game, be sure and listen on the radio on KZQQ 1560 AM or tune in through the internet.

• September 1, 2005 9:41 PM