Friday, July 29, 2011

Two A Days

Yes, even in this heat, the process begins. Will it be worth the work? There are several teams that will be looking for the opportunity to be playing in December in Abilene. Some teams will only dream while others will set it as their goal to win it all. In the end, talent, coaching, luck, and fate will decide what four teams make the finals.

Between Monday and December the 10th, there will be lots of football. That is great for us as fans. During that same time there will be wins and losses. There will be goals achieved and dreams shattered.

It takes a special group of kids to come out that first day of practice and devote themselves a hundred percent plus to the challenge of being champions. No less difficult will it be for some teams whose kids that will commit to a season knowing full well they might finish the season without as much as a single win.

So approximately 130 schools start laying it on the line in the dreaded two a day workouts and after the district games there will be 62 teams that advance as district champions or as the runner up of their districts and we play on and we finish with four finalist and eventually two Champions and a lifetime of memories.

Good Football To You!!!!!!!!

Don Hardin
Abilene, Texas
Is and will be “Six-Man Central”

http://lonestarfootball.net

Follow me on Twitter @sixmancentral

donhardin1@gmail.com

Thursday, July 21, 2011

WEEK ZERO CLASSICS

If this doesn't scratch your itch, nothing will.
DISCLAIMER: Dates and Times are subject to change.

**********************************************************************************
WEEK ZERO and the Classics

8th Annual HICO SIX-MAN SUPER SATURDAY
FIVE GAMES ALL IN ONE DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
August 27, 2011.
10 am Strawn v Calvert
12 noon Motley County v Garden City
2 pm Throckmorton v Valley
4 pm Ira v Follett
6 pm Walnut Springs v Rising Star

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8th Annual JAYTON GRIDIRON CLASSIC
THREE games all on Saturday. Home team listed first.
1:30 PM Lueders-Avoca vs.New Home
4:30 PM Loraine vs. Miami
7:30 PM Jayton vs. Aspermont

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4th Annual TRENT “RUMBLE IN THE JUNGLE”
SIX GAMES spread over THREE DAYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Home teams are listed first.
THURSDAY August 25th, 2011
7:00 PM Highland vs. Bryson

FRIDAY August 26th
7:30 PM Trent vs. Moran

SATURDAY August 27th
10:00 AM Saint Jo vs. Abilene Christian
1:00 PM Lohn vs. Greenville Christian
4:00 PM Veribest vs. Newcastle
7:00 PM Knox City vs. Crowell

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2ND Annual ZEPHYR “BULLDOG BONANZA”
FIVE GAMS SPREAD OVER 3 DAYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THURSDAY August 25th, 2011
7:30 PM Zephyr vs. Woodson

FRIDAY August 26th
7:30 PM Richland Springs vs. Avalon

SATURDAY August 27th
12:00 NOON Lometa vs. Penelope
3:30 PM Jonesboro vs. Rochelle
7:00 PM May vs. Milford
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2nd Annual McCAMEY Kick Off CLASSIC
FIVE GAMES ALL IN ONE DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Home teams are listed first.
August 27th, 2011
10:00 AM Eden vs. Buena Vista
12:30 PM Grady vs. Sanderson
3:00 PM Water Valley vs. Blackwell
5:30 PM Robert Lee vs. Fort Davis
8:00 PM Rankin vs. Borden County
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GO WATCH YOU A GAME SOMEWHERE!!!!!!!

Don Hardin
Abilene
Six-Man Central


http://lonestarfootball.net

http://sixmancentral.blogspot.com/

@sixmancentral

donhardin1@gmail.com

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

65 years!!!

No I am not talking about my age! Close but no cigar. Today, I am in Lubbock at the 65th Annual Texas Six-Man Coaches Association clinic and All-Star Games. Say that three times as fast as you can.

Things seem to be off number wise or at least from last year. Maybe it is just me. I stand corrected. I am being told around 300 coaches have registered and a large group will be in around 3:00 PM possibly pushing the total over 4oo! Regardless, I am having a great time seeing old faces and new faces. The renewal of friendships past and the dawning of brand new ones I suppose is what keeps me coming back.

I am not a coach, never have coached, and never will coach. Nothing against the coaching profession. Six-Man coaches are the finest folks in the world. Several vendors are set up in the exhibit area. It is a happening place.

I am registered once again paying dues to be a associate of this wonderful group. I was here early and still was #54.

Don Hardin
Abilene, Texas is and will be Six-Man Central

http://lonestarfootball.net

http://sixmancentral.blogspot.com/

@sixmancentral

donhardin1@gmail.com

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Let's be friends!!!

Know your audience, let the audience know you. You know my name, Don Hardin. You know I live in Abilene, TX and you know I refer to Abilene as Six-Man Central which I named my first blog after.

You could easily guess that I have a fondness for the sport we call Six-Man football. I have chosen to title my blog on Blogger S.E.E. Six-Man News in honor of Dr, Stephen Edward Ephler who invented Six-Man football.

I was born in Stamford, TX in 1951 on October 5th. Then and to some extent now, Stamford was/is a football town. Both of my parents were hard core football fans. The saying “the nut doesn’t fall far from the tree” would certainly apply with me. My brother played on the last State Championship team that Stamford produced. That added fuel to the fire so to speak.

I played Six-Man my senior year at Lueders-Avoca. I WAS HORRIBLE as a player. That being said, I loved the game then and I LOVE THE GAME NOW 40 PLUS YEARS LATER.

I married my childhood sweetheart and together we raised three children girl, boy, girl. We have been blessed with 5 grandchildren so far along with various grand-dogs. Our children live near San Antonio, near Waco, and in Spearfish, SD.

I have worked four real jobs in my life. 1)Oil and GAS, 2)Telecommunications, 3)HealthCare 4) Insurance. My job now as a field videographer/photographer in the area of insurance is one that I enjoy immensely and allows me to remain close to the wonderful sport of Six-Man.

Six-Man is more than a hobby but less than a job with me. I see games every year usually starting with all-star games, then maybe a scrimmage or so, then pig out in Week ZERO seeing as many as 8 games in three days, then at least a game a week through the State Championships. Now the only real problem I have is I want to go to many games each week being played the same night and sometimes hundreds of miles apart. I usually see public schools rather than private schools. I am gaining an appetite to watch or at least learn about Six-Man teams in other states such as NM, CO, WY, MT, NB, and even Canada.

My dreams are I would like to see several web sites combine into a SUPER SIX-MAN SITE. I would love to see a Six-Man Hall of Fame built in Abilene, I would like to see a ESPN type of network for Six-Man, and I would like to see a Six-Man stadium built in Abilene near the S-M HOF that would play host to the State Championship on a permanent basis.

I thank you for reading and I appreciate your feedback or comments.

Don Hardin
Abilene, Yexas
Six-Man Central

http://lonestarfootball.net

http://sixmancentral.blogspot.com/

@sixmancentral

donhardin1@gmail.com

2011 Summer Vacation Road Trip


Hulett WY looks like a beautiful place to play Six-Man Football!!!!!

On the Road


Made my way to Idalia, CO. Impressive past.

Six-Man Rankings From DCTF

DCTF TOP TEN DIVISION 1
1. Borden County 6. Follett
2. Throckmorton 7. Rankin
3. Garden City 8. Petersburg
4. Valley 9. Ropes
5. Ira 10. Walnut Springs

DCTF TOP TEN DIVISION 2
1. Richland Springs 6. Miami
2. Sterling City 7. Strawn
3. Motley County 8. Iredell
4. Calvert 9. Jonesboro
5. Milford 10. Cherokee

Dave Campbell Texas Football presented these rankings in their 2011 magizine. Question: Are you ready for some Six-Man football? I sure am and it is a much preferred way of ranking teams getting the teams going at each other on the field. There will be some tough games around the state starting with the WEEK ZERO kick off classics. More on that soon.


Don Hardin
Abilene
Six-Man Central


http://lonestarfootball.net

http://sixmancentral.blogspot.com/

@sixmancentral

donhardin1@gmail.com

Monday, July 18, 2011

THE 2011 Season is Just around the Corner

How does one know this? I was scooped on this one by my favorite sports writer, Bill Hart. The usual suspects have all made appearances.

Dave Campbell’s 2011 Texas Football is on the newsstand. Debate is in full swing about the Top Ten’s.

Six-man coaches are on the move, again.

The temperature is extremely hot and has been for weeks.

6 on 6 tourneys have been played.

July has brought us the 15th Annual CanAm bowl. The game was played July 9th in Raymore SK. USA wins again by the score of 63-24. The Texas Bowl was held in Garden City on July 16th and this week Lubbock is hosting yet another Texas Six-Man Coaches Association Clinic and All-Star games which will be played July 22nd and 23rd.

What could possibly be next? Two-a-days! The next thing will be scrimmages and finally we will get to WEEK ZERO and then “let the games begin” on Thursday August 25th. There will be several excellent “kick off classics” during WEEK ZERO. I will post more on that later.

Don Hardin
Abilene, Texas is and will be “Six-Man Central”

http://sixmancentral.blogspot.com/

donhardin1@gmail.com

Name change of sorts

S.E.E. Six-Man News is the new title of this blog named after Dr. Stephen Edward Ephler, inventor of Six-Man Football on or about June 20th of 1934 in Chester, Nebraska. This information was provided by his daughter Charlotte (Ephler) Gezi. She states her dad kept a daily diary most of his life and the very first mention of the game was dated June 20th, 1934, when he wrote in his diary, "Went to Football Class. I intend to adapt football to the small school. Have six players and make rules to require less equipment and less chance of injuries." As they say, the rest is history. If you love the game as I, place your hand on the nearest football paraphernalia you can find (ok to substitute kitchen table or place your hand over your heart) and repeat these words. THANK YOU DR. STEPHEN EDWARD EPHLER. Once you have done that and purchased your heirloom SMFN token you are qualified to be a Certified SMFN!!! (SixManFootballNut). They cost $2.00 cash and are available where ever you find me.