Evan Ren

A couple of quick thoughts on realignment.

First off, at the 1A and 2A levels, I like the fact that the UIL has split both classes into two separate divisions at the season's outset.

This has been a long time coming, and it should eventually be used from 3A-5A.

There's some extra travel involved, but the new system will pump life into a multitude of programs which have been buried at the bottom of the enrollment game for decades.

Teams like Baird, Ranger, Cross Plains, Hawley, and many others, too numerous to mention, have just been given a level playing field.

Other schools, who have enjoyed playing the role of "bully on the block," will now be playing teams with a similar enrollment.

This is a terrific idea, which will bring a dash of parity in areas where it is desparately needed.

My second thought is on travel.

Though I like the new system and accept that increased mileage is a natural byproduct, I think it is borderline criminal that San Angelo Central is being shipped to the Panhandle again.

A 610-mile round trip for a district game is insane, and you can't tell me that that there isn't some way of shipping SA Central to its old digs in the little Southwest Conference.  

Ridiculous.

Cisco coach Brent West and Clyde coach David Ritchey don't have the luxury of being able to look ahead.

West has to concern himself with Anson this week, and Ritchey can't afford to take his eye off an underrated Merkel team.

But as fans, we are free to look beyond Friday night, and it doesn't take long to see that these two programs are again on a collision course, with the district title likely to be decided in Week 7.

Last year's game was nothing short of a classic, with Clyde scoring two late touchdowns to win 20-6 on its home field. The venue switches to Cisco this year, but I'm guessing that the majority of the 6,000 people who showed up for last year's matchup will be on hand again -- perhaps even more.

For those of you who are planning on getting a seat for the rematch, don't forget, the bleachers were jam-packed 90 minutes before kickoff last year, so get there early.

See you on the road.

San Saba may isn't in the circulation area of the Reporter-News. Nonetheless, the Armadillos were involved in the Big Country Game of the Week on Friday, when they hosted one of our area teams, the Bangs Dragons.

Final score: San Saba 17, Bangs 14 in overtime -- pushing the Dillos to 5-1 on the year and 2-0 in district play.

Keep in mind, San Saba hasn't had a winning season since 2000. It hasn't sniffed the post-season since 2003, and it had lost to Bangs -- the defending district champs -- seven straight times dating back to 2002 by an average margin of 40-7.

In short, Friday's win was nothing less than huge for San Saba, and might be the biggest victory the Dillos have seen in 10 years.

Congratulations to San Saba coach John Pannell, and a special thanks to his pressbox crew, which went out of its way to make visiting media feel welcome.

See you on the road.

Seven Big Country quarterbacks are averaging more than 200 yards per game passing, including three athletes who are averaging more than 250.

They are: Ballinger's A.J. Keesee, Eastland's Jarred Moylan, Graham's Case McCoy, Coahoma's Josh Paniagua, Big Spring's Tyler Tannehill, Stamford's Hayden Nauert, and Jim Ned's Jordan Gibbs.

Remember the old days when you were considered "pass happy" if you threw for 175 yards per game?

Football is evolving, even at the high school level, with 7-on-7 leagues, professional camps, and of course, the advent of the spread offense.

Do you like the way the game is heading?  Or are you more old-school?

Your opinions are welcome.  

See you on the road.

Will the Big Country Game of the Week finally live up to it's billing?

Good question.

Through the first four games I've covered this season (including one Thursday night contest) the combined tally has been 124-7!

Needless to say, I'm ready to see some competitive football.

Whether or not that will take place tonight is largely up to Bangs (2-0), which has the physical ability to compete with Cisco (3-0).  The question is, do the Dragons BELIEVE they compete with Cisco?

 See you on the road.

One had to feel for the folks out at Clyde on Friday night, wanting to unveil their brand-new Bulldog Stadium in style against Graham.

Unfortunately, very little went right, beginning with a stubborn storm cell which hovered over the Big Country most of the evening. The strong wind gusts, lightning and rain forced a delay, pushing the opening kickoff to 9:10 p.m., with a second 30-minute delay coming in the middle of the first half.

Then there was the Graham Steers, who limited the Bulldogs to just 96 yards in total offense and five first downs in a 34-0 win.

Not the best of beginnings, but there is reason to take heart.

This Graham team is one of the best 3A clubs in Central Texas, and is certainly one of the 20 best in that classification in the state. The Bulldogs will not face a team this good for the rest of the season.

Clyde will be back.

If you are not seeing the stats/scores of your favorite Big Country team in Saturday's paper, please ask the coaching staff to phone in the results on game nights by 11 p.m. at 325-676-6770.

It is our intention to provide statistical information on every Big Country team. But in order to accomplish this, cooperation from each coaching staff is vital.

A friendly reminder is usually all it takes.

See you on the road.

How about those Rotan Yellowhammers?

Teams will normally struggle at first when running a triple-option offense for the first time. But Rotan didn't have that problem in its season opener with Ranger.

Marking the debut of new coach Dustin Altmiller, the Yellowhammers not only executed their new wishbone attack, they ran wild with it.

Running 55 offensive plays, Rotan produced an astounding 580 yards rushing on 44 carries in a 61-15 win. And of those 44 rushes, 25 were option plays -- the toughest part of the offense to learn.

Former Brownwood High School baseball pitcher Shelby Miller inked a deal with the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday, with a signing bonus of $2.875 million.

The kid is 18 years old and has more bank than most of us will make in a lifetime!

If someone had given you that much green at the age of 18, what path would you have chosen?

For a young punk who's fresh out of Baylor University, Dan Youngblood is an OK guy. 

He is, however, strategically challenged when it comes to the game of football -- a fact which will grow more and more annoying for me as the season approaches.

You see, Dan was born and raised in the modern era of spread football. And like many young lads, he's become convinced that several offenses of the past such as the wisbone, flexbone, veer, wing-T, etc, cannot win a championship above the Pop Warner level.

It's not Dan's fault.

In fact, I blame a nationwide mindset for brainwashing him.

It is a mindset which has forgotten the simple principle that execution, not schemes, is what wins championships.  

I don't care if you're running the spread, the wishbone, or the stinkin' single wing, for that matter. If your players do what they are assigned to do, each play will work. And I can tell you with certainty, that an option offense falls under this principle.

I will use Georgia Tech as the only fair example.

Aside from the talent-poor service academies, Tech is the only Division I college team currently using the flexbone. It was 9-4 in its first year of using the attack in 2008, which was the best Tech team in eight years under new coach Paul Johnson.

The Jackets scored 45 points against Georgia, 41 against Miami of Florida, and 31 against Florida State. They scored more points (38) against a bad Mississipi State team than any team in the SEC with the exception of Ol' Miss. And, keep in mind, the Jackets accomplished this with personnel which Johnson's predecessors had recruited for a modern passing game.

It is my assertion that once Johnson has players who are better-suited for the option in place, Georgia Tech will, quite simply, explode.  

It may take four or five years, but the Jackets will eventually win an ACC title under Johnson, and reach a Top 10 ranking.   

Bank on it.

You heard it here first.