Go Friday Night

Starting Off The New District 3-5A

It's the start of District play and a bunch of new faces are around. It just doesn't seem right not traveling to Midland or Odessa. But we will still play our hardest.

To start off 3-5A play, we take on the Burleson Elks. The only game they have won so far this season was their opener against Arlington Seguin 16-14. But as we all know, things are different once District starts.

The past couple of weeks the Abilene High O has not played to their full potential. We have played against some good defenses, and that has made our offense much better for District. I know that we will be able to find weak spots in the Elk defense and take advantage of them and put points up on the board. I know that we will get after it and play like the Eagle O from the beginning of the season.

The Black Shirts will once again have a great week. Burleson is a run heavy team and I know that we will have no problem shutting them down. I have a feeling that they will be like Lubbock Monterey of years past when they kept running and then one play they pass for a big gain. Our Secondary can't give up that big play. We will have to stay home and take care of business. I know that Coach Fullen has the Warbirds prepared to have another great showing.

I am looking forward to seeing a big crowd supporting the Black and Gold as we start off the new District 3-5A. I know that the Warbirds will walk out with that all important first District win to go 5-0 on the season. Let's go out there, fly high, and knock some heads around. GO EAGLES!!!

• David Craghead
• September 26, 2008 12:38 AM

Showdown At Shotwell

Here it is just the 3rd game of the season and the game against Cooper is already upon us. It is strange not having it Week 9. Most of the people think this is nothing more than a 5A vs. 4A, much like the game against F.W. Dunbar, and to a certain extent, that is true. It is still the Crosstown Showdown, and there are bragging rights to have, but since there are no district titles on the line or playoff spots to be won, the game's intensity is brought down a little bit. Yes this game has significance, but nowhere near as the most recent 2001 and 2002 bouts when the District Bell was up for grabs.

All week long I have heard that Cooper's defense is so fast and so physical that they will shut us down and shut us out. They may be fast and physical, but there is no way that they can shut us off. We have so many weapons that we will be able to pick apart their defense and have long sustained drives resulting in points on the board. The Eagle O is also fast and physical, much more than Cooper's defense. I know that the Warbirds will have no problem walking up and down the field and putting more points on the board.

I have also heard that their offense is fast and physical, and the Black Shirts will not be able to stop them. It is obvious that those guys that say that have never seen us play. Our Offense and Defense are on a higher level than Cooper. I see us having no problems shutting down their offense. The Eagle D has played well the first two games, and I know that we will continue that tonight.

I know that we will have a huge crowd on the East side of Shotwell cheering on the Warbirds. I know that once the dust has settled from opening kickoff, the Eagles will fly away with this game and walk out with a 3-0 record. Let's go out there, fly high, and knock some heads around. GO EAGLES!!!

• David Craghead
• September 12, 2008 10:13 AM

Looking To Make It 2-0!!

This week Abilene High travels to take on Plano East. This is one of three out of town games in the regular season. Most people think that is a bad thing further down the road during playoffs. But we have always traveled well and had a big group of fans right there too. I know that we will have no problems this week.

Last week there were so many questions about the Offense. Well, those were written off in a hurry. We had no problems completing drives. The O Line was almost perfect. I was impressed with the way they worked together and handled everything. I expect another great showing. East's defensive line is a strong point and they play physical. But, we will be very well prepared, and we will play even harder. I see us having no problems driving the field and putting points on the board against a defense that gave up almost 400 yards and 40 points last week.

I know that our Warbird D will have an outstanding game. Last week for a small moment in time, we had a hard time keeping up the intensity. This week will be different. I know that Coach Fullen will have the Black Shirts flying high throughout the game. Plano East had very small numbers last week against Flower Mound. They had a little over 100 yards on the ground, but most of that was a 78 yard run by Toben Opurum in the 1st Quarter. They only had 6 first downs. I am sure that Coach Ringo has made improvements from last week, but it will not be enough to get past our D. I am sure that East will start off the game running the ball, but that will soon be abandoned for the passing game. But they will be in a world of hurt once they realize that they won't be able to pass on us either. I know that we will once again have a great game on Defense.

I am looking forward to this game. I know that we will do great. I am hoping that the Eagle fans outnumber the fans from Plano. I wish all that are going to the game to have a safe trip there and back. I am looking forward to seeing the Eagles walk out 2-0. Let's go out there, fly high, and knock some heads around. GO EAGLES!!!

• David Craghead
• September 5, 2008 12:30 AM

A Great Way To Start Off The Season!!

Fort Worth Dunbar came into the game against the Warbirds knowing that they were overmatched in several aspects of the game. But they never gave up. They played hard throughout the game (and dirty at times, but I know they have done that several times before so I wasn't surprised). I was very happy with the way things went and the way we handled things throughout the game.

One of the questions that I stated in my last blog was if Stephen had the composure to lead the offense. And that he did. He had great pocket presence and field vision. Although it did seem like he didn't take his eyes off of his first target a few times, he did really well in my opinion. Another question was if the O Line would work together. And once again, the answer is yes. The pass blocking was great. The run blocking was great. I was very pleased with the way they played as a whole. Yes, there were a few missed assignments, but that happens from time to time. I was really excited that the #2's got in for some playing time and put some points on the board. Ian Williams and the rest looked good. It seems that we have more depth than most people had thought before the season started.

The defense played like they should have. The only time I was not happy was the drive when Dunbar scored in the 2nd Quarter. We had a big lead and I could tell that we had started to let up. It was really noticeable on the play when they scored. There were several players that missed their assignments. I knew that Coach Fullen would yell them back into shape, and he did that very well. They stiffened up and played hard like they did at the start of the game. The defense did really well. With the fumble returned for a touchdown along with a few more fumble recoveries, several tackles for loss, a couple of interceptions, and just overall hard-nosed playing, I would say that we are right where we need to be and will continue to get better. And remember that several of those turnovers were because of the backups. We have great depth on defense too.

I am really excited for this season. We had a great showing against Dunbar. We are loaded on both sides of the ball in my opinion. We have a great following of fans. The Abilene High Eagles are on the march. And I hope that this week against Plano East (who lost 40-8 against Flower Mound last week) we will have a great number of fans traveling to cheer on our Warbirds. I smell one great memorable season for this year's team, especially the Seniors. It's your time, your team. Make it happen. GO EAGLES!!

• David Craghead
• September 1, 2008 1:00 AM