S.E.E. SIX-MAN NEWS

The Day After in SIX-MAN

2012-02-03T04:26:00.000-08:00

February 3rd, 2012
Every two years it happens. It happened yesterday. It will happen again in two years, Lord willing.

I believe the sun will rise another day for all involved in yesterday’s Texas U.I.L. realignment process. All public schools in Texas are involved in all classifications 5A to 1A with our beloved Six-Man in the mix.

So what does the SIX-MAN landscape look like the day after? Here you go.

2012-14 Official Football District Alignment Conference 1A 6-Man Division 1
REGION 1
District 1
Happy
Hart
McLean
Miami
NAZARETH

District 2
Kress
Paducah
Petersburg
Spur
Turkey Valley

District 3
Anton
Lubbock Harmony
Meadow
Ropesville Ropes
Whiteface

District 4
Gail Borden County
Lamesa Klondike
Lenorah Grady
O’Donnell

REGION 2
District 5
Fort Davis
Garden City
MARFA
Rankin

District 6
Eden
Paint Rock
Sterling City
Veribest
Water Valley

District 7
Hermleigh
Ira
Roscoe Highland
ROTAN

District 8
Bryson
Crowell
Haskell Paint Creek
Knox City
Throckmorton

REGION 3
District 9
Lometa
May
Rochelle
Santa Anna
Zephyr

District 10
Evant
Gordon
Gustine
Lingleville

District 11
Blum
Covington
Kopperl
Walnut Springs

District 12
Irving Universal Acad
Saint Jo
SAVOY
Waxahachie Advantage

REGION 4
District 13
Abbott
Aquilla
Avalon
Bynum

District 14
Buckholts
Coolidge
MOUNT CALM
Penelope

District 15
Bloomburg
CAMPBELL
Fruitvale
Ladonia Fannindel
Laird Hill Leveretts Chapel

District 16
Apple Springs
Chester
HIGH ISLAND
Oakwood

2012-14 Official Football District Alignment Conference 1A 6-Man Division 2
REGION 1
District 1
Darrouzett
Follett
Higgins
Lefors

District 2
Groom
Hedley
Matador Motley County
Silverton

District 3
Amherst
Cotton Center
Lazbuddie
Whitharral

District 4
Lorenzo
New Home
Southland
Wilson

REGION 2
District 5
Ackerly Sands
Loop
Welch Dawson
Wellman-Union

District 6
Balmorhea
Dell City
Grandfalls-Royalty
Imperial Buena Vista
Sanderson
Sierra Blanca

District 7
Loraine
Lueders-Avoca
Trent
Westbrook

District 8
Blackwell
Lohn
Robert Lee
Valera Panther Creek

REGION 3
District 9
Afton Patton Springs
Aspermont
Guthrie
Jayton

District 10
Benjamin
Chillicothe
Harrold
Rule
Vernon Northside

District 11
Bowie Gold-Burg
Forestburg
Newcastle
Woodson

District 12
Moran
Rising Star
Sidney
Strawn

REGION 4
District 13
Blanket
Brookesmith
Mullin
Richland Springs

District 14
Cherokee
Oglesby
Prairie Lea
Star

District 15
Cranfills Gap
Iredell
Jonesboro
Morgan

District 16
Calvert
Karnack
Milford
Trinidad

What Will Be and Could Have Been

2012-01-19T07:18:00.000-08:00

U.I.L. realignment is upon us in just a couple of weeks. Those of us that are fans of Six-Man football are excited that some 11-Man schools with qualifying enrollment numbers (99.5 in top four grades) made the decision to join our ranks for the upcoming season.

As much as I love the Six-Man version of the game, I understand the potential conflict that exist when a community decides to move away from the 11-Man version and come "up" to the Six-Man level.

UNOFFICALLY, the schools that have chosen to make "THE MOVE" for the upcoming 2012 season that I am aware of are as follows:

CAMPBELL INDIANS
HIGH ISLAND CARDINALS
MARFA SHORTHORNS
NAZARETH SWIFTS
ROTAN YELLOWHAMMERS
SAVOY CARDINALS

WELCOME OT THE WORLD OF SIX-MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

There are other schools that could have elected to play Six-Man but CHOSE not to. We will welcome them when they are ready.

Those schools and their enrollment numbers are:

Roscoe 97
Union Hill 97
Bronte 96
Menard 93.5
Baird 93
Cross Plains 92.5
Frost 91
D'Hanis 87
Roby 81
Gorman 80
Leakey 78
Rocksprings 76

There are many other schools with enrollments 99.5 or below that CHOOSE not to field a football team that have a standing invitation to join our ranks as well. It is an extensive list that I am not posting at this time. YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE.

February 2nd, the U.I.L. will release OFFICIAL classifications and realignments.

MORE TO FOLLOW AT THAT TIME.

DECEMBER 31, 2011

2011-12-31T12:19:00.001-08:00

The end is near for 2011. Another fun year full of Six-Man as usual. Saw lots of football starting with two a day visits, scrimmages, the regular season, playoffs, and ultimately the State games in Abilene. The question is what will I do in January while waiting for realignment on February 2nd?

Another Season in the Books

2011-12-11T13:27:00.001-08:00

"Turn out the lights the party is over. They say that all good things must end".

Just a few hours ago at "my house" known to far more people by its real name as P.E. Shotwell Stadium in Abilene, Texas, the curtain fell on the 2011 Six-Man football season. There have been many seasons in the past and for some of us there will be many more in the future. Just speaking for me, I don't think I will ever forget this one. I saw some things that I believe will stay with me for as long as my feeble brain remembers anything. I saw some things that I want to remember and one or two things that even though I have tried to push from my mind it would appear at this time are indelible impressions.

Where should I begin as I recount the now finished "season"? The D2 State Championship between Richland Springs and Motley County is the freshest. I picked RS to win this game by 21 points. The Coyotes of Richland Springs took slightly more than a half of a regulation game to defeat the Matadors of Motley County by the score of 76-28. For the unschooled, Six-Man games are divided into four quarters lasting 10 minutes each. Over the course of the season almost as many games are over at half time as those that go all four quarters. That is because of the "mercy rule" that states when a team is leading by at least 45 points at the half or thereafter, the ball game is over. That sometimes prevents some scores from being "bad to nothing". This game took 21 minutes and 29 seconds of playing time and ended with the Coyotes winning by 48 points. The outcome of this contest was never really in doubt.

MC won the toss, received the opening kickoff. They began an 11 play drive at their own 21 and marched to the RS 10 yard line before being stopped. The drive was fueled by the running of #3 Aaron Rogers. The Matadors actually had a 1st and goal on the RS 10 yard line that quickly turned into a 4th and goal from the 17. Rogers picked up 7 yards to the ten and that produced a turn over on downs (TOD) with 4:11 left in the first. RS,s first drive consisted of one play, a 70 yard TD by #8 Denim Reeves. Just like that the Shar... no make that the Coyotes with a successful PAT were up 8-0 with 4:41 showing on the clock. Maybe there was some doubt to this contest but it did not linger long.

MC had the ball four plays and netted 4 yards. 4th down was a punt that netted 5 yards and RS set up shop on MC's 24. Two passes by Reeves covered the necessary yardage to put the Coyotes up 16-0 with 2:02 left in the 1st.

MC would respond with an electrifying run by #4 Augy Chavez that covered 50 yards and a TD. The PAT was unsuccessful and with 1:51 left in the 1st MC trailed by the score of 16 to 6. RS facing a 2nd and 20 from their own 38 countered with a 42 yard run by who else other than Denim Reeves. The PAT was true and the Coyotes led 24-6 with with 1:37 remaining in the 1 st quarter of play.

MC would have the ball back with 1:33 left on their own 21. 1st and 15 Rogers ran off 17 yards with a nice run. Four more plays ran out the first quarter and gave the ball back to RS with 9:08 in the second and the ball on MC's 28. On first down #11 Ben Vancleave ran for 20 yards to the 8. The next play Reeves was in the end zone again and with 8:28 left in the half RS was up 32-6.

MC would start a new drive on the 40 yard line but a fumble recovered by #13 Chance Bush gave RS back the ball on the 34 yard line. Lo and behold, MC holds RS to 4 plays without a first down. When you get a defensive stop, then is the time to make the other team pay. MC did just that with #14 Braden Mason passing 41 yards to Austin Taylor for a score. The PAT was no good and the score stood 32-12 RS with 5:42 in the half. With a good break MC could position themselves to get back into the game.

That break did not come... What ensued was another RS TD coming from yet another Reeves run. This time it was for 41 yards and with the PAT kick by Cory Bessent RS was now up 40-12 with 5:31 left in the half. Lots of teams would have quit at that point but MC answers with a 75 yard kickoff return for a TD. This time Augy Chavez converts on the PAT and RS's lead was cut to 20 points as they led 40-20 with 5:18 in the half.

RS would start a new "drive" at their on 35. On 1st and 15 Chance Bush made a terrific run covering 45 yards and another RS TD. The PAT failed and RS led 46 to 20 with 5:07 left in the half. Moments later it would be Denim Reeves going in from 37 yards out and the good PAT RS is up 54-20 with 4:12 left in the half. Folks, there is blood in the water and the sharks that hide as Coyotes are making the move. At the 2:17 mark left in the half some kid named Reeves rips off another TD run, this one covering 26 yards and again the PAT is true and RS is up 62-20 with 2:17 in the half.

With the season in peril, and showing the heart of a true Matador, Arron Rogers would dig deep enough to score on a 33 yard run with just 7 ticks on the clock until half. Chavez converts on the PAT and the score becomes 62-28 RS. The half should be over right? With 7 seconds left MC kickoffs. RS has enough time for one more play. You guessed it. Reeves goes 41 yards to the house as time expires in the half, Bessent converts PAT and it is 70 to 28. Don't wander far away during half time because RS receives the kick off to start the second half. One minute and 29 seconds into the third quarter, Mr. Denim Reeves does the honors scoring from 25 yards out and this one is mercifully over. Richland Springs 76 Motley County 28.

Worth mentioning, with this win, RS now has 5 State Championship tying them with Fort Hancock for the most State Titles. RS won their first one in 2004. They won again in 2006 and 2007. They entered today's contest as defending Champions from 2010 and now have added the 2011 title. Congratulations to Athletic Director/Head Coach Jerry Burkhart and Offensive Coordinator Shawn Rogers and their Assistants Michael Brand who serves as Special Teams Coordinator and Assistant John Greenwood, as well as all the players, Administrators, and their GREAT FANS many of whom I consider friends.

I almost forgot to mention that the media types of which I am one vote for the Offensive and Defensive MVP of the State game.

The Defensive MVP went to Chance Bush of Richland Springs

The Offensive MVP went to......Denim Reeves of Richland Springs

Close to the real stats as I could get:
Rushing:
RS Reeves 12-290 Bush 2-53
MC Rogers 19-128 Chavez 6-69 Osborne 2-5 Brooks 1 (-1)

Passing:
RS Reeves 3-5-0 44 VanCleave 1-1-0 14
MC Mason 1-2-0 41 Rogers 0-5-0 0

Receiving:
RS Vancleave 1-20 Phillips 1-18 Bush 1-14 Tillery 1-6
MC Taylor 1-41

Scores by Quarter
RS 24 46 6 x
MC 6 22 0 x

Earlier this same day the D1 State Championship was played, also at "my
house" again better known as P.E. Shotwell Stadium in Abilene, Texas USA. The two teams involved were the Throckmorton Greyhounds coming from the East side of the bracket. You can take that up with the U.I.L. about the East thing. The other team was the Borden County Coyotes coming from the West Bracket. I picked BC to win this game by 21 points. They were battled tested coming out of the West and Throckmorton wasn't so battle tested.

Borden County won the toss and elected to receive the opening kickoff. Throckmorton kicked deep and BC was pinned on their 4 yard line. Not the way the BC Coyotes wanted to start the game. On 1st and 15 #4 Austin Fields races for 76 yards and a TD. The PAT by Helio Rosales was good and BC led 8-0 with 9:43 left in the first. I am thinking to myself 21 points wasn't enough for BC in my prediction.

Throckmorton would begin their first drive in much better field position starting on their 30 yard line. 1st and 15 and #1 CJ Hantz goes 15 yards on a run. It is 1st and 15 again and again the ball carrier is CJ Hantz but this time only picks up one yard. 2 and 14 from the BC 34 the ball goes to Levi Taylor who follows his blocker as far as he can then pushes the blocker out of the way cuts to the outside and goes the distance for the score. Initially on the PAT the kick was no good but a flag on the defense allowed a second chance and a successful PAT and we are knotted up at 8 to 8 with 8:23 left in the first. Looks like it will be a better ball game than I thought.

BC gets the ball back for a five play drive that has a holding on BC and ends in a turn over on downs (TOD). Throckmorton takes over on the BC 36. Six plays later and a couple of Greyhound penalties, #7 Tucker Brown finds Levi Taylor for a 19yard TD pass with 5:12 left in the 1st quarter. Throckmorton's Jordon White once again converts the PAT and it is Throckmorton leading 16 to 8.

BC gets the ball back running three plays for little yardage. I note on my play by play sheet that the Greyhounds have come to play this day. On 4th and 18 BC decides to punt the ball. The punt is partially blocked. Throckmorton has great field position and in three plays, one of which is an offensive holding penalty, Brown finds his big target #33 Gary Farquhar for a 34 yard TD pass. White converts and Throckmorton now leads 24 to 8 with 2:35 left in the first. I let out my first "HOLY COW" that draws the attention of everyone in the press box levels 1 and 2.

BC begins another drive this one starting at their own 15 yard line. The drive consist of 6 plays with flags on both the offense and defense. It comes up 4th and 1 for BC and Tucker Brown makes a fantastic defensive play that gives the Throckmorton Greyhounds the ball with time running out in the 1st quarter. CJ Hantz eventually completes an 11 yard pass to Tucker Brownand with the PAT by White Throckmorton now leads 32-8 and out rolls my second HOLY COW of the day. Only a few glance my way this time. I am counting on my fingers and toes and finally figure out that if BC is to win by 21 they will have to put some serious points on the board and need to get started asap. Checking the clock I see there is 8:30 left in the half and I have seen BC scorre quickly and I think to myself BC is going to win this game but not by 21,

BC causes a turn over on downs that ended with a long 4th down pass by the Greyhounds going incomplete. I write down on my play by play sheet MISTAKE and circle it so I can look back later and say that was the turning point in the game. Four plays later Austin Fields for BC finds the end zone on a 5 yard run and the PAT is true and BC has cut the Throckmorton lead to 32 to 16 with 5:18 in the half. The teams swap possessions and the half ends at 32-16 Throckmorton. I am stunned at the score as I set in a cold press box that got colder before the day was over. The Guru came over to see what condition my condition was in. I put on my best face but he could see through me. We both knew that BC probably missed their opportunity to get a win when they had the ball 1st and goal on the 8 right before the half and couldn't cash in. Still I claimed BC wins this game.

Throckmorton got the ball opening the second half and went on an 11 play drive that was capped with a Hantz to Farquhar TD pass for three yards and another White PAT to take a lead of 40 to 16. That was the drive that sealed it as it also ate up 5 minutes and 14 seconds off the clock. With that, I starting thinking hey my friend Mike Reed is going to get his first State Title as a Head Coach. Still the sting of picking BC by 21 was there.

The final play of the third quarter saw BC score on a 13 yard pass from Tanner Richey to TJ Basquez. Again the PAT failed. New score 40=22 Throckmorton as we went to the 4th.
BC would get an interception by Tanner Richey that would lead to another Austin Fields TD of 1 yard. BC was inching closer 40 to 28. They would force a Throckmorton punt and Basquez would snag another 8 yard pass from Richey and convert on the PAT. It is now a 40 to 36 Throckmorton lead with just a minute and 42 seconds left. I had now totally forgotten about my BC 21 point favorite pick and I was thinking BC is going to steal the ring from Mike Reed.

That led to a fateful play no matter what side of the fence you came down on in this game. It is a big play and very uncharacteristically Coach Trey Richey decides to blitz. Mike Reed and the Greyhounds are ready for that and the center Blayton Oliver gets free and Hantx gets the ball to him for a 41 yard TD pass with 1:19 left in the game. White converts the PAT and your final is Throckmorton 48 Borden County 36. It was a classic Championship game.

Congratulations to Coach Mike Reed and His Greyhounds. What a season? The teams goes 14-0, the HC gets is 100th victory along the way and finally after three defeats in the big one, Mike Reed gets his first ring as a Head Coach. It just doesn't get much better than that.

Your MVP on Offense : CJ Hantz

Your MPV on Defense : Tucker Brown

Stats

Rushing:
Throckmorton Hantz 17-115 Taylor 5-67 Farquhar 3-6 Haggard 1-2 Brown 1 (-7)
Borden County Fields 21-196 Richey 4-35 Telchik 22-166 Shafer 2-8 Basquez 1-4

Passing:
Throckmorton Hantz 7-10-1 94 Brown 4-8-0 77
Borden CountyRichet 4-10-1 41 Fields 2-2-0 15

Receiving:
Throckmorton Farquhar 3-59 Taylor 4-55 Oliver 2-44 Brown 1-11 Hantz 1-2
Borden County Basquez 2-26 Shafer 2-15 Rosales 2--15

Thank you to those who follow me on Twitter @sixmancentral and to those that read my blog where ever it shows up. Thanks to www.lonestarfootball.net for the privilege to post there and to all who take time to read it.

Don Hardin
Abilene, TX
Six-Man Central

It Is THAT Time

2011-12-08T19:25:00.000-08:00

SWEET! It is championship week in Abilene, Texas home of sixmancentral and yours truly. Abilene has a history of hosting the game or games as it now stands. Actually this will be the third year in a row that Shotwell Stadiium has hosted the Texas Six-Man State Championship games. Six-Man was split into two divisions in 2006. The games were held here at Shotwell that year as well before going to San Angelo in 2007 and a split venue of Lubbock and Wolfforth in 2008.

The four teams involved this weekend are hoping to add another State Championship trophy to their display cases. Richland Springs, competing in the D2 game Saturday night against Mötley County, happens to be here to defend the title they won last season. RS has won state in 2004, before the split into two divisions, then won the D1 titles in 2006 and 2007. After their enrollment numbers moved them into D2 they roared back and won the D2 title in 2010. Their opponent, the Mötley County Matadors own a state title from 2007 when they won the D2 title.

The participants in the D1 game Saturday afternoon are Throckmorton and Borden County. Yes, they both own state titles as well. In 2005, again before the split into two divisions, Throckmorton won their title by beating Valley 68-22. That game was played here at Shotwell as well. Borden County won a title back in 1997 and then won back to back titles in D2 in 2008 and 2009.

Here is a little more history of state titles in the ranks of Texas Six-Man football. The first State Championship game played on this level was in 1972 and was won by the O'Brine Bulldogs led by the legendary Coach C H Underwood. There have been 44 State Championship trophies awarded. An interesting fact is only 22 schools have won titles during that time due to multiple titles held by those teams. Here is that list.

Fort Hancock 5 titles 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, and 1991
Richland Springs 4 titles 2004, 2006, 2007, and 2010
Borden County 3 titles 1997, 2008, and 2009
Cherokee 3 titles 1973, 1975, and 1978
Panther Creek 3 titles 1992, 1993, and 2000
Amherst 2 titles 1994 and 1995
Garden City 2 titles 2009 and 2010
Gordon 2 titles 1996 and 1999
Highland 2 titles 1982 and 1983
Jayton 2 titles 1984 and 1985
Marathon 2 titles 1974 and 1976
Milford 2 titles 1979 and 1980
Strawn 2 titles 2003 and 2008
Whitharral 2 titles 1981 and 2001
Calvert 1 title 2002
Lohn 1 title 1987
May 1 title 1977
Motley County 1 title 2007
Northside 1 title 2006
O'Brine 1 title 1972
Throckmorton 1 title 2005
Trinidad 1 title 1998

Is the math correct? 44 titles and 22 schools.

There are going to be two more trophies awarded this weekend. Which schools will add to their totals?

If you are in Abilene or even close to Abilene, if you are a huge fan of Six-Man or never have heard of the sport, you owe it to yourself to go and watch the finest Six-Man has to offer.

Savor the moment.

WINDING DOWN

2011-12-03T20:40:00.000-08:00

READY OR NOT................
This season is winding down. TAPPS playing State games today and U.I.L. are in the SEMI-FINALS. I

I attended the Mötley County Sterling City game Thursday in Gail, (Borden County). It would be a terrific understatement to say that the wind was blowing. The wind blew in a fired up Mötley County team that jumped on the Eagles of Sterling City early and often causing Coach Clyde Parham to explain " you can't spot a team 40 points and expect to win". He was referring to his team falling behind 48-8 in the first half. The final score read Mötley County 84 Sterling City 36. SC came into this one beaten up and turnovers really did them in. My belief is MC would have won regardless but in a much closer game. I had the Matadors by three.

Friday night in Jim Ned the Richland Springs Coyotes defeated a good Newcastle Bobcat team 54-8. No surprise here. I picked Richland Springs by 28. The Sharks have had an eye on returning to Abilene for about a year now. Not a team has been able to slow them down this season as they return to the title game for the second year in a row. There is absolutely NO need to tell the Matadors of Mötley County they don't have a chance of shocking the world next Saturday in Abilene. They have a mindset that they can play with anybody and they only listen to one guy.

Up the road, I picked Valley to beat the most physical Six-Man team I have seen, the Borden County Coyotes, by 11. I was wrong. Those Coyotes don't care too much what I pick. They took down the Valley Patriots 61-56 with BIG plays and a determined defense. Missed PAT's took a toll on Valley. They, Borden County, began the season with the idea of being in Abilene next weekend and they have beaten the finest teams the tough west side of D1 had to offer. It is as if they played for state since the second round of the playoffs. I know, I know, IF AND BUTS WERE CANDY AND NUTS..... these Coyotes could be going for their fourth consecutive State Championship. Last May, at the H.O.T. Coaching Clinic in Richland Springs, Coach Richey was the last coach out the door and Coach Burkhart said to him as he walked out, "let's make this up coming season the year of the Coyotes". There will be two "packs" in Abilene next Saturday.

Throckmorton is coming back to Abilene for another shot at a title there. They won it all back in 2005. They want to win for many reasons but perhaps the biggest reason is getting a ring for their beloved Coach Mike Reed. Tonight Abbott played a great first half with the game tied 30-30 at the half but Throckmorton took over and final score was 78-52.

ACHS HAS A GREAT TEAM.
I watched them early in the season and it was evident they were something special. The only blemish on their record was to a talented Ira bulldog team that defeated the Panthers by 8. It is very fitting that the Panthers would face their old foe Dallas Covenant in the TAPPS finals. Dallas Covenant has ended the season for ACHS 3 years in a row. Not this year as the Panthers claim the TAPPS D1 State Championship 66-44.

I Am Back

2011-11-29T19:03:00.000-08:00

IS LATE BETTER THAN NEVER??

Don Hardin reporting for duty. Sorry I have been tied up lately and have not published my blog on a timely schedule. Between work, making insurance pictures, and play, watching Six-Man football, I have logged 28000 mile on the little HHR that I drive. That is since the middle of August. Coupled with fact I turned 60 back in October, things finally caught up with me and I couldn't or didn't answer the bell on time. Of all times for me to falter, it is playoff time!!!!!!!!!!!!

Let's rehash a bit shall we?

WHERE WE HAVE BEEN

Round One

D1
Valley 56 Paducah 6
No surprise here. Valley has performed well all season. WEEK ZERO in Hico saw Valley go down to Throckmorton 65-62. They have not lost since and have improved every week. There only serious challenge was in a 54-42 victory over Crowell. Valley may very well be the state representative from the west.

Ropesville 40 Petersburg 38 Ok, here is one that goes down as a major upset in my way of thinking. The GURU had picked Petersburg by 45. Previously the Buffaloes, ranked #7 for the last five weeks or so, had one loss and that was to Borden County. Ropes entered the contest 7-3 with losses to Ira, Garden City, and Meadow. Early on Ropes had been ranked as high as #9 in the state but had fallen in the rankings to #23. Shelve everything, Ropes advances to round two.

Meadow 79 Spur 38 Meadow entered this game with a #10 ranking and a 7-3 record. Their three losses were consecutive losses to Borden County, Rankin, and Petersburg. The Broncos had defeated Spur in WEEK ZERO 42-28.

Crowell 67 Follett 53 Ranked #9 coming into this contest with n 8-2 record, the Wildcats were 18 point favorites. Crowell's losses were to Valley by 12 and a sound defeat at the hands of Petersburg. Follett's highest ranking of the year came back in WEEK ZERO when they were #5. The Panthers came in to this game ranked #14. Previous losses were to Ira in WEEK ZERO, Mötley County, and Valley.

Borden County 66 Aspermont 27 The Coyotes began the season ranked #1 in the state in WEEK ZERO and were ranked #5 most recently. Their only loss of the season occurred in WEEK ZERO to the Rankin Red Devils 38 to 26. Aspermont, the two seed from their district, entered the game with only one loss and that was to Ira by the score of 50-0.

Rankin 64 Robert Lee 0 Twice defeated, Rankin came into this game as #1. I don't agree with that but we are using the GURU's system. Their losses were to Ira and Water Valley in back to back weeks. Robert Lee enter this contest with 6 wins and 4 losses and ranked #28. There has to be a sacrificial lamb and in this case it was the Steers.

Water Valley 54 Fort Davis 8 The GURU had installed undefeated #3 Water Valley as a 43 point favorite to which I laughed out loud. Fort Davis entered the game 7-2 and a #11 ranking. Their losses were to Throckmorton and Rankin. Fort Davis had done some things very well that I thought would be problematic for WV. Granger, you are the man.

Ira 56 Sands 40 Great game. Tied 0-0 at the end of 1st quarter and 16-16 at the half. Ira remains undefeated while Sands finishes the season at 8-3. Their previous losses were to Water Valley and Borden County.

That is just the West. THE WILD WEST!!!!!!!! Buckle your chin straps and hang on to all things you consider dear because there are some train wrecks coming down the track.

Moving East.

Throckmorton 66 May 36 The Greyhounds of Throckmorton were ranked #1 for five weeks during the regular season and #6 entering this game and undefeated were 45 point favorites. May entered 7-3 with losses to Milford, Newcastle, and Zephyr. May played very well trailing 24-14 at the end of the 1st quarter, and 38-30 at the half. Throckmorton pulled away late.

Avalon 89 Irving Universal Academy 40 Avalon entered as a 5-5 team while Irving Universal Academy was 7-3. Avalon was never the less a 34 point favorite.

Walnut Springs 50 Gold-Burg 0 WS entered the contest 8-2 and ranked #30 and a 45 point favorite over the 3-7 Bears of Gold-Burg. Certainly no surprise here. WS losses were to Abbott and Milford.

Knox City 65 Zephyr 46 Zephyr entered the game undefeated and a slight 1 point favorite over a 5-5 Knox City team. Zephyr had wins over six playoff teams in winning their district to get to this game. KC losses were to Crowell, Ira, Newcastle, Spur, and Throckmorton. All playoff teams. Some will say this was an upset while others won't. Knox City is a very senior laden team.

Oakwood 79 Aquilla 52 Oakwood per the GURU came in undefeated as a 5 point favorite and ranked #15 in the state. Aquilla on the other hand entered once defeated losing to Penelope by 7 in district and creating a 3 way tie. Abbott and Aquilla advanced to the playoffs from one if not the most competitive districts across Six-Man.

Lometa had a bye in round one and will face Oakwood in round two.

Rochelle also had a bye in round one and will face Abbott in round two.

Abbott 78 Leverett's Chapel 30 A 45 point favorite, Abbott, 8-2 and ranked #18 lost to Austin Hill Country by a wide margin and a close district contest to Aquilla. LC came into the playoffs riding on an 8-2 record.

D2

Miami 80 Hedley 34 Miami ranked #9 and 9-2 was a 45 point favorite over the Owls of Hedley. The Warriors dropped two games to D1 playoff teams in back to back weeks against Follett and Petersburg. Hedley came in to the playoffs as a 4-6 team.

Amherst 60 Guthrie 22 Once beaten #7 Amherst, losing to Mötley County was installed as a 31 point favorite against Guthrie 6-3. The Jaguars 3 losses came at the hands of D1 Sands and to Trent and in district to Mötley County.

Motley County 53 Whitharral 8 Mötley County entered this game as #6 with one loss and that was to the D1playoff team Crowell Wildcats. Whitharral ranked #15 was a 33 point dog in this game. They brought a 7-3 record with them.

Groom 76 Lefors 59 The GURU installed the #17 ranked 8-2 Groom Tigers as a 3 point favorite over the 7-2 Lefors Priates despite the fact that Lefors defeated Groom 54-50 earlier in the season. How does he do it? BTW Groom's other loss was to D1Follett

Dawson 51 Balmorhea 36 6-4 Dawson started out slow this season losing their first three games. Later they lost to Sands decisively but then finished the regular season strong winning five in a row going into the playoffs. Balmorhea entered into the playoffs with a 5-5 record and was a 31point dog in this contest.

Sterling City 59 Panther Creek 12 Defending state finalist and currently ranked #3 Sterling City brought their 8-2 record in with losses to D1 Water Valley and Sands. Panther Creek entered the playoffs 6-4 and a 45 point underdog.

Loraine 64 Paint Rock 42 Loraine ranked #10 carrying a 7-3 record was a 25 point favorite over the Indians of Paint Rock and their 8-2 record. PR losses were to Robert Lee and Santa Anna. Loraine was previously beaten by Miami in WEEK ZERO and Robert Lee in WEEK TWO then lost in district to Sterling City in WEEK TEN.

Grandfalls-Royalty 61 Loop 42 GF-R, 10-1 and ranked #8 making some noise this year after going 5-23 the previous three years combined. Good to see the Cowboys back in the saddle again. They entered the tourney as a 38 point favorite over the Loop Longhorns, 4-6.

That's the West half of D2. Let's head East!

Lueders-Avoca 40 Strawn 38 WARNING. Be on the look out for a dangerous 45 point dog on the loose. Last seen in Throckmorton headed for round two of the playoffs.

L-A Raiders rode into the playoffs as district champion for the first time in 40 years with an overall 6-5 record counting a 1-0 gift from Benjamin. Even so, they came in as 45 point underdogs. Strawn let the Raiders hang around long enough that the Raiders started believing they could compete with the Greyhounds. On to round two.
Bryson 71 Fannindel 23 The 5-5 Bryson Cowboys were 20 point favorites to defeat Fannindel who brought a 6-4 record. The Cowboys rode home with a big win.

Milford 46 Forestburg 0 Milford opened WEEK ZERO with a win over a d1 playoff team and then lost their next four games all to very good teams. The b
bulldogs put the break on at that point and reeled off five impressive wins to enter the playoffs 6-4 and a 45 point favorite over Forestburg. The Longhorns finished the regular season 7-3 and was district runner up to Bryson.

Newcastle 52 Jayton 0 Newcastle ranked #4 entered this game with only one loss to a very good private school team in Abilene. Jayton finished the regular season 2-7 and district runner up to the Lueders-Avoca Raiders. Six of Jayton's seven regular season losses were to teams that advanced to the playoffs. That is a tough schedule.

Jonesboro 46 Rising Star 0 the Jonesboro Eagles started out the season in WEEK ZERO ranked #10 in the state. After playing ten games and being undefeated along the way they came into the playoffs as the #2 team in the state allowing their opponents to score a total of 42 points. 22 of those were to Strawn. Prior to this playoff game, they had shut out six teams. Make that seven shut outs now. Rising Star finishes their season at 5-6 district runner up to Gustine.

Richland Springs 48 Buckholts 0 What can you say? The Coyotes are ranked #1 and have been for most of the current players lives or so it seems. They are the D2 defending state champions and well on their way to another. Where does it stop? When does it stop? It does have to stop doesn't it? Short answer is it was not with Buckholts. The Badgers finish the season 6-5 overall.

Calvert 77 Cherokee 32. Calvert made it to the playoffs again. This is something like 13out of 14 years! This time with a 5-4 record and just outside of the TopTen. After finishing the season for Cherokee they are on a four game winning streak. Cherokee was a 17point dog coming in with a 6-4 regular season record.

Gustine 62 Cranfills Gap 14 Gustine came in as a 14 point favorite with a regular season record of 6-4. Their opponents made the playoffs for the first time in a long time with a regular season record of 6-4. Congratulations to the Lions for their first winning season since 2003. They were 5-5 in 2010.

Round Two

D1

Valley defeated Ropes 67-22
Valley is doing what every team strives to do. They are getting better every week.

Meadow defeated Crowell 49-30
The Broncos are playing great ball at the right time despite a line up that has had more than their share of injuries.

Borden County defeated Rankin 36-32
Borden County has played well all season and it took a huge effort to get past the Rankin Red Devils. As is always the case in the playoffs, one team goes on while the other team goes home.

Ira defeated Water Valley 56-34
This game had been highly anticipated for sometime and rightfully so. Two dominate and undefeated teams lived up to the hype. In the end, the speed of Ira was too much.

Throckmorton defeated Avalon 70-22
The Greyhounds have been running full stride all season but are now hitting their playoff stride toward yet another deep run.

Knox City defeated Walnut Springs 32-14
Revenge is sweet. KC lost to Walnut Springs last season in the playoffs. This sets up a playoff game with district foe Throckmorton. Yet another chance at revenge.

Lometa defeated Oakwood 84-54
Lometa enjoyed their first round bye and came out scoring.

Abbott defeated Rochelle 61-16
Abbott is responding very well to the opportunity presented them in the playoffs after serving an extremely tough district race that ended in a three way tie.

D2

Amherst defeated Miami 64-50
Some called this an upset. However you look at it, this one went to the second overtime before it was settled. The score sounds crazy for overtime but I believe what happen was Amherst scored and when Miami took their turn to match or beat what the Bulldogs had put up they threw an interception which Amherst returned for a touchdown. The Bulldogs want a rematch with Mötley County in the worst way.

Motley County defeated Groom 53-8
Motley County has but one thing on their mind. That one thing isn't necessarily Amherst unless they get in the Matadors way to Abilene.

Sterling City defeated Dawson 89-42
Team Eagles from Sterling City are determined to get back to the finals this year. Dawson gave them a good game but not enough to advance.

Grandfalls-Royalty defeated Loraine 78-72
This was a hard fought game as the score would indicate. GFR raked out the win.

Bryson defeated Lueders-Avoca 57-12
The Raiders slipper fell off to a tough Bryson team on this night.

Newcastle defeated Milford 75-38
The Bobcats of Newcastle continue to amaze as they walloped Milford.

Richland Springs defeated Jonesboro 60-14
This game featured the #1 and #2 team in the state going at each other in a highly anticipated game played in Hico. What happened? What you would have expected if you have followed the Coyotes of Richland Springs!!!!

Calvert defeated Gustine 65-36
Most people picked Calvert to win and they did just that. Gustine gave them all they wanted and then some before an injury.

Round Three

D1

Valley defeated Meadow 76-48.
These two teams have been here before several times. Valley knew that they would have to slow down HQ if they were to win. They managed to do that. You don't stop him.

Borden County defeated Ira 49-32
Borden County scored early forcing Ira to play from behind all day. More importantly, BC was able to contain the tremendous speed of Ira. #12 Lance Morris of Ira had to be carted off the field with a scary looking injury. Glad to report he is extremely sore but that is all. The West side of D1 was loaded this year. Several great teams that could of represented well at the State game. Borden County and Valley will determine the best representative.

Throckmorton defeated Knox City 78-43
In a rematch of district foes, Throckmorton once again prevailed. Is this the year the Greyhounds win the title? Stay tuned.

Abbott defeated Lometa 118- 100
Lometa scored 84 the week before and 100 this week but that was not enough as Abbott put up 118 points to advance. Abbott playing for themselves and the rest of tough District 14.

D2
Motley County defeated Amherst 73-24
Be careful what you ask for!

Sterling City defeated Grandfalls -Royalty 74-23
The Sterling City Eagles were flying high.

Newcastle defeated Bryson 66-18
Newcastle had little problems here. Great season for Bryson.

Richland Springs defeated Calvert 77-22
Anyone see a pattern here?

WHERE WE ARE GOING

PUBLIC SCHOOLS

D1
Valley vs. Borden County
Friday December 2nd 7:30 PM
Wolfforth Frenship
I like VALLEY by 11

Throckmorton vs. Abbott
Saturday December 3rd 7:30 PM
Springtown
I like THROCKMORTON by 18

D2
Newcastle vs. Richland Springs
Friday December 2nd 5:00 PM
Jim Ned
I like RICHLAND SPRINGS by 28

Motley County vs. Sterling City
Friday December 2nd 7:30 PM
Jim Ned
I like MOTLEY COUNTY by 3
PRIVATES

Dallas The Covenant vs. Abilene Christian
Saturday December 3rd 12:00 PM
Moody
I like ABILENE CHRISTIAN by 4

Granbury Happy Hill vs Fredericksburg Heritage
Saturday December 3rd 6:00 PM
Moody
I like FREDERICKSBURG HERITAGE by 20

Lord, I hope to do better in the future of reporting in a timely manner.

Playoff Recap Round One

2011-11-12T19:23:00.000-08:00

Under the presence of a full moon, the Texas Six-Man state playoffs are under way. As usual, there were games that went the way you would expect and there were upsets along the way. Major upsets. Here is a recap of round one.

D1
Valley 56 Paducah 6
No surprise here. Valley has performed well all season. WEEK ZERO in Hico saw Valley go down to Throckmorton 65-62. They have not lost since and have improved every week. There only serious challenge was in a 54-42 victory over Crowell. Valley may very well be the state representative from the west.

Ropesville 40 Petersburg 38 Ok, here is one that goes down as a major upset in my way of thinking. The GURU had picked Petersburg by 45. Previously the Buffaloes, ranked #7 for the last five weeks or so, had one loss and that was to Borden County. Ropes entered the contest 7-3 with losses to Ira, Garden City, and Meadow. Early on Ropes had been ranked as high as #9 in the state but had fallen in the rankings to #23. Shelve everything, Ropes advances to round two.

Meadow 79 Spur 38 Meadow entered this game with a #10 ranking and a 7-3 record. Their three losses were consecutive losses to Borden County, Rankin, and Petersburg. The Broncos had defeated Spur in WEEK ZERO 42-28.

Crowell 67 Follett 53 Ranked #9 coming into this contest with n 8-2 record, the Wildcats were 18 point favorites. Crowell's losses were to Valley by 12 and a sound defeat at the hands of Petersburg. Follett's highest ranking of the year came back in WEEK ZERO when they were #5. The Panthers came in to this game ranked #14. Previous losses were to Ira in WEEK ZERO, Mötley County, and Valley.

Borden County 66 Aspermont 27 The Coyotes began the season ranked #1 in the state in WEEK ZERO and were ranked #5 most recently. Their only loss of the season occurred in WEEK ZERO to the Rankin Red Devils 38 to 26. Aspermont, the two seed from their district, entered the game with only one loss and that was to Ira by the score of 50-0.

Rankin 64 Robert Lee 0 Twice defeated, Rankin came into this game as #1. I don't agree with that but we are using the GURU's system. Their losses were to Ira and Water Valley in back to back weeks. Robert Lee enter this contest with 6 wins and 4 losses and ranked #28. There has to be a sacrificial lamb and in this case it was the Steers.

Water Valley 54 Fort Davis 8 The GURU had installed undefeated #3 Water Valley as a 43 point favorite to which I laughed out loud. Fort Davis entered the game 7-2 and a #11 ranking. Their losses were to Throckmorton and Rankin. Fort Davis had done some things very well that I thought would be problematic for WV. Granger, you are the man.

Ira 56 Sands 40 Great game. Tied 0-0 at the end of 1st quarter and 16-16 at the half. Ira remains undefeated while Sands finishes the season at 8-3. Their previous losses were to Water Valley and Borden County.

That is just the West. THE WILD WEST!!!!!!!! Buckle your chin straps and hang on to all things you consider dear because there are some train wrecks coming down the track.

Moving East.

Throckmorton 66 May 36 The Greyhounds of Throckmorton were ranked #1 for five weeks during the regular season and #6 entering this game and undefeated were 45 point favorites. May entered 7-3 with losses to Milford, Newcastle, and Zephyr. May played very well trailing 24-14 at the end of the 1st quarter, and 38-30 at the half. Throckmorton pulled away late.

Avalon 89 Irving Universal Academy 40 Avalon entered as a 5-5 team while Irving Universal Academy was 7-3. Avalon was never the less a 34 point favorite.

Walnut Springs 50 Gold-Burg 0 WS entered the contest 8-2 and ranked #30 and a 45 point favorite over the 3-7 Bears of Gold-Burg. Certainly no surprise here. WS losses were to Abbott and Milford.

Knox City 65 Zephyr 46 Zephyr entered the game undefeated and a slight 1 point favorite over a 5-5 Knox City team. Zephyr had wins over six playoff teams in winning their district to get to this game. KC losses were to Crowell, Ira, Newcastle, Spur, and Throckmorton. All playoff teams. Some will say this was an upset while others won't. Knox City is a very senior laden team.

Oakwood 79 Aquilla 52 Oakwood per the GURU came in undefeated as a 5 point favorite and ranked #15 in the state. Aquilla on the other hand entered once defeated losing to Penelope by 7 in district and creating a 3 way tie. Abbott and Aquilla advanced to the playoffs from one if not the most competitive districts across Six-Man.

Lometa had a bye in round one and will face Oakwood in round two.

Rochelle also had a bye in round one and will face Abbott in round two.

Abbott 78 Leverett's Chapel 30 A 45 point favorite, Abbott, 8-2 and ranked #18 lost to Austin Hill Country by a wide margin and a close district contest to Aquilla. LC came into the playoffs riding on an 8-2 record.

D2

Miami 80 Hedley 34 Miami ranked #9 and 9-2 was a 45 point favorite over the Owls of Hedley. The Warriors dropped two games to D1 playoff teams in back to back weeks against Follett and Petersburg. Hedley came in to the playoffs as a 4-6 team.

Amherst 60 Guthrie 22 Once beaten #7 Amherst, losing to Mötley County was installed as a 31 point favorite against Guthrie 6-3. The Jaguars 3 losses came at the hands of D1 Sands and to Trent and in district to Mötley County.

Motley County 53 Whitharral 8 Mötley County entered this game as #6 with one loss and that was to the D1playoff team Crowell Wildcats. Whitharral ranked #15 was a 33 point dog in this game. They brought a 7-3 record with them.

Groom 76 Lefors 59 The GURU installed the #17 ranked 8-2 Groom Tigers as a 3 point favorite over the 7-2 Lefors Priates despite the fact that Lefors defeated Groom 54-50 earlier in the season. How does he do it? BTW Groom's other loss was to D1Follett

Dawson 51 Balmorhea 36 6-4 Dawson started out slow this season losing their first three games. Later they lost to Sands decisively but then finished the regular season strong winning five in a row going into the playoffs. Balmorhea entered into the playoffs with a 5-5 record and was a 31point dog in this contest.

Sterling City 59 Panther Creek 12 Defending state finalist and currently ranked #3 Sterling City brought their 8-2 record in with losses to D1 Water Valley and Sands. Panther Creek entered the playoffs 6-4 and a 45 point underdog.

Loraine 64 Paint Rock 42 Loraine ranked #10 carrying a 7-3 record was a 25 point favorite over the Indians of Paint Rock and their 8-2 record. PR losses were to Robert Lee and Santa Anna. Loraine was previously beaten by Miami in WEEK ZERO and Robert Lee in WEEK TWO then lost in district to Sterling City in WEEK TEN.

Grandfalls-Royalty 61 Loop 42 GF-R, 10-1 and ranked #8 making some noise this year after going 5-23 the previous three years combined. Good to see the Cowboys back in the saddle again. They entered the tourney as a 38 point favorite over the Loop Longhorns, 4-6.

That's the West half of D2. Let's head East!

Lueders-Avoca 40 Strawn 38 WARNING. Be on the look out for a dangerous 45 point dog on the loose. Last seen in Throckmorton headed for round two of the playoffs.

L-A Raiders rode into the playoffs as district champion for the first time in 40 years with an overall 6-5 record counting a 1-0 gift from Benjamin. Even so, they came in as 45 point underdogs. Strawn let the Raiders hang around long enough that the Raiders started believing they could compete with the Greyhounds. On to round two.
Bryson 71 Fannindel 23 The 5-5 Bryson Cowboys were 20 point favorites to defeat Fannindel who brought a 6-4 record. The Cowboys rode home with a big win.

Milford 46 Forestburg 0 Milford opened WEEK ZERO with a win over a d1 playoff team and then lost their next four games all to very good teams. The b
bulldogs put the break on at that point and reeled off five impressive wins to enter the playoffs 6-4 and a 45 point favorite over Forestburg. The Longhorns finished the regular season 7-3 and was district runner up to Bryson.

Newcastle 52 Jayton 0 Newcastle ranked #4 entered this game with only one loss to a very good private school team in Abilene. Jayton finished the regular season 2-7 and district runner up to the Lueders-Avoca Raiders. Six of Jayton's seven regular season losses were to teams that advanced to the playoffs. That is a tough schedule.

Jonesboro 46 Rising Star 0 the Jonesboro Eagles started out the season in WEEK ZERO ranked #10 in the state. After playing ten games and being undefeated along the way they came into the playoffs as the #2 team in the state allowing their opponents to score a total of 42 points. 22 of those were to Strawn. Prior to this playoff game, they had shut out six teams. Make that seven shut outs now. Rising Star finishes their season at 5-6 district runner up to Gustine.

Richland Springs 48 Buckholts 0 What can you say? The Coyotes are ranked #1 and have been for most of the current players lives or so it seems. They are the D2 defending state champions and well on their way to another. Where does it stop? When does it stop? It does have to stop doesn't it? Short answer is it was not with Buckholts. The Badgers finish the season 6-5 overall.

Calvert 77 Cherokee 32. Calvert made it to the playoffs again. This is something like 13out of 14 years! This time with a 5-4 record and just outside of the TopTen. After finishing the season for Cherokee they are on a four game winning streak. Cherokee was a 17point dog coming in with a 6-4 regular season record.

Gustine 62 Cranfills Gap 14 Gustine came in as a 14 point favorite with a regular season record of 6-4. Their opponents made the playoffs for the first time in a long time with a regular season record of 6-4. Congratulations to the Lions for their first winning season since 2003. They were 5-5 in 2010.

There you go. Round one of 2011.

HARD WORK

2011-11-11T10:41:00.000-08:00

Upon his arrival at Lueders-Avoca Coach Eric Hearn began teaching the Raider players, parents, fans, and Administrators that hard work pays off. What else would you expect a coach to say? Actions speak louder than words.

This season, the Raiders won their first District Championship in over 40 years. Their efforts in doing so lead them to an encounter with the Strawn Greyhounds last night in a Bi-District game played in Throckmorton. Strawn, a perennial Six-Man powerhouse, that has been ranked this season as high as #4 in the state, entered the contest as a 45 point favorite. The Lone Star Football Network favored Strawn as well but by a much less margin, 12 points to be exact.

The Raiders dug deep enough inside themselves to score the big upset winning the game 40-38. They will meet Bryson in the second round of the playoffs at a place and time TBA.

A victory of this magnitude only comes about by team play. It must be said that two Seniors lead the way last night. Robert Hubbard and Nathan Niehaus both had outstanding games. Both players benefitted from outstanding downfield blocking by team mates. Often one hears that a team and or player is fast or quick. The Raiders or both. I might also add tough as one of their attributes. The Raiders gave up several pounds in a man for man matchup with the Greyhounds. None were more apparent than the matchup of Strawn's #99 senior Zach Hetrick listed at 6'1" 275 lbs and the Raider's #3 Wade Nix at a 105 on a good day.

The game scoring began in an ominous way for the Raiders. Strawn took the lead two minutes into the game by scoring a safety. 2-0 isn't a score you see often in Six-Man football. The Raiders by rule then kicked off to Strawn. The Greyhounds made a very impressive drive deep into Raider territory but didn't finish the drive because of a fumble that Lueders-Avoca recovered. The Raiders quickly moved the ball down the field and Nathan Niehaus capped the drive off with a 23 yard run. A successful PAT pass to Hubbard made the score 7-2 Raiders with 6:37 left in the first quarter.

Strawn answered shortly on a five yard run for a touchdown by Aaron Doyle. Zachary Hetrick made the kick and with 5:01 left in the first quarter the Greyhounds lead 10-7.
Lueders-Avoca came back to score with 3:26 left in the first on a 1 yard run by Hubbard. The PAT was unsuccessful and the Raiders led 13-10. It was a very entertaining 1st quarter of play by both teams but the scoring was not finished as Cole Abbott of Strawn scored on a beautiful 35 yard run. Once again Hetrick made the PAT kick and Strawn regained the lead 18-13 which would be the score at the end of the 1st quarter.

Both teams relied on their respective defenses in the 2nd quarter as each team managed one score. Strawn scored with 5:58 left in the 2nd quarter on a 4 yard touchdown run by Ismail Martinez. The PAT was no good and the Greyhounds led 24-13. It appeared that Strawn was beginning to take control of the game but the Raiders would once again battle back and score with only 22 seconds left in the half on a five yard pass from Niehaus to Chay Sconce. The PAT pass to Tye Jones brought the Raiders to within 4, 24-20 but gave the the Raiders momentum going into the locker room at half. Sometimes, the last couple of minutes in the first half and the first couple of minutes in the second half are the most important moments of a game. True to form with that line of thinking, the Raiders came out and scored with 8:54 left in the third quarter to take the lead 28-24 on a Niehaus pass to Hubbard and a successful PAT kick. With 6:42 left in the third quarter Niehaus again found Hubbard on a 6 yard pass play. Though the kick failed, Lueders-Avoca now lead 34-24. Strawn had let the Raiders hang around too long plus the fact Lueders-Avoca was beginning to believe they could make a game of it.

Momentum is a wonderful thing albeit a fickle thing wandering about to and fro. Strawn, realizing their back was against the wall, came back strong. The Raiders were driving once again but the Greyhounds stop them. Just like that, Bobby Wells breaks loose on a 74 yard run for a touchdown giving the Greyhounds new life. With :40 seconds left in the 3rd quarter Strawn cuts the lead now trailing by 34-30. When momentum comes along, ride it for all it is worth. With 2:27 left in the game Strawn did just that. Wells with a one yard touchdown run and a Hetrick kick the Greyhounds has regained the lead 38-34.

The Raiders drove deep with little time remaining. A flag moved the Raiders Bach from the goal line. A defensive play set them back even farther. 4th down and the Lueders-Avoca team was in a do or die situation. Was there anything left in their tank? With a mere 20 seconds left in the game, Niehaus makes a 15 yard run that scores. The kick is missed but the Raiders reclaimed the lead 40-38. A last ditch effort by Strawn would fall short and a 45 point underdog advances to round two.

This game had everything in it. Touchdowns called back, long plays negated by infractions. Turn over on downs. Fumble recoveries. Timothy Campbell for the Raiders made his presence felt making key recoveries.

In the end,it was hard work and desire. Believe in it.

SAVOR THE MOMENT, EVERY MOMENT.

2011-11-06T16:12:00.000-08:00

Each year for the last 100 or so in mid August things start jumping around the football fields all over Texas. The dreaded workouts, usually two a day, start the new season. You are best off in you find your way to "camp" already in good shape. The old coach will sure smile if you do. Inside he is smiling if you don't cause he is going to put you through the paces to get you in shape. The work is hard and it is HOT! You decide right then and there what you are willing to put into it. This sounds cheesy but the more you are willing to put in the more you will get out of it in the long run. The more of your team puts into it the better the chances your team has of attaining goals you set team wise and as an individual.

Looking ahead from two a days, the season looks long. Two weeks later, WEEK ZERO rolls around. I can't explain it to you! You have to experience it yourself and then it is really too late. Savor the moment. Every moment. WEEK TEN comes before you know it. Looking back you realize what mid-August was all about. Ten weeks of games have been played and the season is over for lots of teams. Not only is the season but lots of careers are over. Savor the moment, every moment.

This is where we are. Playoff time. Those of you still playing this week deserve to be where you are no matter your record. More than circumstances dictated where you are. To be a playoff team it requires you win your district or you place second in your district. Sometimes it is better to be lucky than good. Now, it is apparent, WIN OR GO HOME.

The Lueders-Avoca Raiders have made the playoffs this year. DCTF projected L-A to finish second place. They were wrong. They won the district championship! Not many if any figured that the Raiders would have it in them with ten freshman making up the lion share of their roster. They finished their season with 5 wins and 5 losses. I guess if you figure in a forfeit from district foe Benjamin, they were 6-5 for the year. Regardless, they are district champions of D2 District 9 made up of Jayton, Rule, Benjamin, and of course L-A. The Raiders will compete against the Strawn Greyhounds in Bi-District Thursday November 10th at Throckmorton. Strawn enters the game 6-4 but a totally different story than the Raiders team. They happen to be ranked as the #12 team in the state by Granger. He has had Strawn ranked as high as #4. They have had many injuries all season. Strawn will be a 45 point favorite to end the Cinderella season of the Lueders-Avoca team. Strawn has been plagued with injuries all season looking like world beaters one game and struggling to compete the next week. I say to the Greyhounds and the Raiders, savor the moment. WIN OR GO HOME.

One would like to believe that the playoffs would have great match ups across the board. It doesn't work that way boys and girls. As a matter of fact, there will be considerably more games decided by 45 than ones that won't. It is the nature of the beast. A strong One against a weak Two from another district can be down right ugly.
Oughta ain't is. Sorry.

BREAKING DOWN THE REST OF THE PLAYOFFS"............
Team (record) Sir Granger Huntress SPREADS
D1

Valley (9-1) vs. Paducah (3-7) Valley 45+
Petersburg (9-1) vs. Ropes (7-3) Petersburg 45+
Meadow (6-3) vs. Spur (4-6) Meadow 14+
Crowell (8-2) vs. Follett (7-3) Crowell 17+

Borden County (9-1) vs. Aspermont(9-1) Borden County 45+
Rankin (8-2) vs. Robert Lee (6-4) Rankin 45+
Ira (10-0) vs. Sands (8-2) Ira 21+
Water Valley (10-0) vs. Fort Davis (7-2)

Throckmorton (9-0)vs. May (7-3) Throckmorton 45+
Irving Universal Academy (7-3) vs. Avalon (5-5) Avalon 31+
Zephyr ( 10-0) vs. Knox City (5-5) PICK 'EM
Walnut Springs (8-2) vs. Gold-Burg (3-7) Walnut Springs 45+

Oakwood (10-0) vs. Aquilla (9-1) Oakwood 5+
Lometa (7-3) vs. BYE Lometa advances to round two to play winner of Oakwood/Aquilla
Abbott (8-2) vs. Leverett's Chapel (8-2) Abbott 45+
Rochelle (6-4) vs. BYE Rochelle advances round 2 to play winner of Abbott/ L. Chapel

D2

Miami (8-2) vs. Hedley (4-6) Miami 45+
Amherst (9-1) vs. Guthrie (6-3) Amherst 31+
Motley County (8-1) vs. Whitharral (7-3) Mötley County 36+
Groom (8-2) vs. Lefors (7-2) Groom 2+

Dawson (6-4) vs. Balmorhea (5-5) Dawson 31+
Sterling City (8-2) vs. Panther Creek (6-4) Sterling City 45+
Grandfalls-Royalty (10-1) vs. Loop (4-6) Grandfalls-Royalty 37+
Paint Rock (8-2) vs. Loraine (7-3) Loraine 24+

Lueders-Avoca (6-5) vs. Strawn (6-4) Strawn 45+
Bryson (5-5) vs. Fannindel (6-4) Bryson 16+
Newcastle (9-1) vs. Jayton (2-7) Newcastle 45+
Milford (6-4) vs.Forestburg (7-3) Milford 45+

Jonesboro (10-0) vs. Rising Star (5-5) Jonesboro 45+
Richland Springs (10-0) vs. Buckholts (6-4) Richland Springs 45+
Gustine (6-4) vs. Cranfills Gap (6-4) Gustine 15+
Calvert (5-4) vs. Cherokee (6-4) Calvert 16+
SAVOR THE MOMENT, EVERY MOMENT. WIN OR GO HOME.

WEEK TEN

2011-11-01T18:26:00.000-07:00

Being on the road can be tough. Living on the road is a killer. I am spending way too much time with work and not near enough time with my blog. That might make the few that reads this happy but it is wearing me out.

Well, I took in the Aquilla/Abbott game. It was a hard fought game. Aquilla led 18-0 at the half. Abbott came out the second half and made a game of it. In fact Abbott scored with 7:42 left in the game to pull with in one point 25-24. Aquilla would answer with 5:39 left in the game to go up 31-24. That would be the final score. Things were a little chippy between the teams almost the entire game. One young man was ejected from the contest which is always unfortunate. I think I am safe in saying these schools respect each other, but don't necessarily like each other.

I love Six-Man because it is a great sport. Now that I have have dedicated it as my sport of choice, I have made lots of friends in the circle of Six-Man communities so where ever I chose to go I can not only watch the sport I love I can visit with friends. The Aquilla/Abbott game allowed me to meet up with friends as well as making new friends. This week I met Peter from Waco. Super nice guy and very knowledgeable about the sport I love. He already has hotel reservations in Abilene for the State games December 10th. My kind of guy. I really thought about making him a member of the Certifiable Six-Man Nut club but didn't. He certainly qualifies. Met a couple of other guys from Whitney. They were "crowded field" fans but showed promise. Definitely not ready for the club yet.

Looking at other WEEK NINE games of interest, who saw the pounding coming that Rankin put on Garden City. I was looking for a Red Devil victory but not a 60-12 whipping. It has been an unique season for the Bearkats of Garden City.

Number one and number two seeds for the third season will ALL fall in place this week. Season one was all the games played before district. We plays these because we don't have enough teams to play all district games. Bummer! District games are played to get rid of the terrible teams and give two schools the opportunity to "represent" their respective districts. Then it in tourney time, playoffs to all others. Win or go home. Four teams will play December 10th in ABILENE. All four will go home that day. Two as State Champions, two as State Finalist. Going home as Champions is desired.

To those teams that make the playoffs, GOOD FOOTBALL TO YOU.

Ready to rank? Here we go. Last one for the season from me. Playoffs will make the real final decision over the next few weeks. It has been a great season but now the fun begins with the playoffs after the final week of district games.

DIVISION 1

Ira
Water Valley
Throckmorton
Aquilla
Borden County
Rankin
Sands
Petersburg
Fort Davis
Aspermont

DIVISION 2
Richland Springs
Jonesboro
Sterling City
Newcastle
Motley County
Miami
Milford
Amherst
Grandfalls Royalty
Loraine

WEEK NINE

2011-10-22T10:27:00.000-07:00

CRAZY EIGHTS (WEEK EIGHT) leading to A WACKY WEEK NINE?

Let's look at the games of interest from WEEK EIGHT and their results shall we?

Aquilla at Bynum
Per my friend, the Guru, Aquilla entered this game as a 40 point favorite over Bynum.
Scoring went like this:
Bynum 8 8 16 16 16 16 24 24
Aquilla 0 6. 6 14 20 26 26 33 Final

Garden City at Fort Davis
The Guru installed the visiting two time defending state champion Garden City Bearkats as a 22 point favorite over the Fort Davis Indians.
Scoring went like this:
Fort Davis. 8 8 16 22 Half. 22 22 30 30 38 Final
Garden City 0 8. 8 14 Time 22 28 28 34 34
Here is the rest of the story. Fort Davis took the 30-28 lead with 2:50 left in the game. Garden City regained the lead 34-30 with 1:40 left. Fort Davis scored winning TD with just 42 ticks left on the clock on a 30 yard pass from Steve Enriquez to freshman Vincent Perez. The game ended with Garden City turning the ball over on downs with 9 seconds left on the clock.

Groom at Happy
Groom entered the game as 17 point favorites.
Final Groom 36 Happy 22

Jonesboro at Iredell
Jonesboro a 45 point favorite by the Guru.
Final Jonesboro 46 Iredell 0

Cotton Center at Lazbuddie
Lazbuddie entered as a 45 point favorite.
Final Lazbuddie 52 Cotton Center 6

Lefores at Miami
Miami favored by 25
Final Miami 44 Lefores 33

Newcastle at Strawn
Newcastle came in as a 29 point favorite per the Guru.
Final Newcastle 30 Strawn 27

Paint Rock at Panther Creek
Panther Creek was a 3 point favorite.
Final Paint Rock 54 Panther Creek 6

Trent at Sterling City
Last season's state runner up Sterling City was installed as a 45 point favorite.
Final Sterling City 86 Trent 52

Amherst at Whitharral
Amherst was a 17 point favorite.
Final Amherst 64 Whitharral 30

Woodson at Moran
Woodson entered as a 45 point favorite.
Final Woodson 56 Moran 6

I lead this blog as Crazy. Here are some results that made me crazy.

Knox City lead Gordon early 40-8 and won by the final of 92-54.

O'Donnell once lead Borden County 38-32. I received a final that BC won 76-66. BUT WAIT, THERE IS MORE!!!! The REAL FINAL: Borden County 116 O'Donnell 80.

Sands 110 Grady 80

Leverett's Chapel 100 Chester 52

Midland Trinity 102 Anton 56

SIXMANCENTRAL WEEK NINE RANKINGS

DIVISION 1
Ira
Borden County
Water valley
Throckmorton
Sands
Valley
Aquilla
Rankin
Crowell
Bynum.

DIVISION 2
Richland Springs
Jonesboro
Sterling City
Motley County
Newcastle
Miami
Amherst
Loraine
Trent
Whitharral

WEEK NINE GAMES OF INTEREST

Abbott at Aquilla
Borden County at Grady
Throckmorton at Knox City
Jayton at Lueders-Avoca
Spur at Petersburg
Garden City at Rankin
Loraine at Trent

WEEK EIGHT FINALLY

2011-10-20T09:40:00.000-07:00

WEEK EIGHT

I have had hedoublehockeysticks getting stuff done over the last month save for running up and down the highways of Texas making insurance pictures. That is my job!

I was able to find myself to a game on Friday night. It was a good game. No, it was a great game. One that I have had circled on my calendar for quite awhile. Ira vs. ACHS.

When the dust had settled and the stink too, Ira had defeated another great team. When two undefeated teams get together this late in the season, someone is going to have their feelings hurt. Ira defeated ACHS 54-46. The game was in doubt right up to the last minute of play! I suspect that if either team loses again this season it will be a season ending heartbreaker in the playoffs.

Sandwiched in this back week was "Snap Shot" day. Yes, the numbers are in to the UIL. I am totally shocked to say that the number that divides D1 and D2 appears to be going up. I would have bet my last dollar the number would have dropped. Part of the story is some Eleven-Man teams are moving up to the Six-Man ranks. I am not sure how many will actually make the move but three that seem committed are Marfa, Rotan, and Nazareth. Let me be the first to say welcome to the greatest game on the planet!!!!!!

WEEK EIGHT GAMES OF INTEREST
Aquilla at Bynum
Garden City at Fort Davis
Groom at Happy
Jonesboro at Iredell
Cotton Center at Lazbuddie
Lenora at Miami
Newcastle at Strawn
Paint Rock at Panther Creek
Trent at Sterling City
Amherst at Whitharral
Woodson at Moran

SIXMANCENTRAL WEEK EIGHT RANKINGS

DIVISION 1

Ira
Water Valley
Throckmorton
Valley
Borden County
Aquilla
Rankin
Sands
Petersburg
Crowell

Division 2
Richland Springs
Jonesboro
Sterling City
Motley County
Newcastle
Miami
Amherst
Trent
Loraine
Whitharral

WEEK SEVEN

2011-10-11T13:54:00.000-07:00

WEEK SEVEN

The plot thickens as district contest are just around the corner. There are several fans that are just beginning to show interest to what the playoff landscape might look like. Of course there are some of us that filled our brackets out back in late July or early August. Sure, some of us early birds got some districts wrong then and there are some possibilities of other "misses" before the playoff games start. That is part of it when you are a risk taker.

Last week I took in the Trent homecoming game. Nope! I did not graduate there nor did I ever attend school there. I went to that particular game for several reasons. I like the folks out there. I have in recent weeks put quite a few miles in on the road making insurance pictures. My son's son near Waco had a soccer game on Saturday. I just turned 60. Abilene Christian High School was out of town. If you start adding the reasons I just listed into a pile you might come to the conclusion I came to. I needed something close by.

Trent dominated Rule 48-0. Rule played hard. Trent played. That is about the best spin you can put on that game. I am just going to leave it at that.

WEEK SEVEN games of intrigue.
ACHS at Ira
Gold-Burg at Woodson

SIXMANCENTRAL RANKINGS WEEK SEVEN

D1
Ira
Throckmorton
Valley
Borden County
Water Valley
Rankin
Sands
Aquilla
Petersburg
Follett

D2
Richland Springs
Jonesboro
Sterling City
Newcastle
Motley County
Miami
Amherst
Calvert
Bryson
Loraine

WEEK SIX IS HERE

2011-10-02T20:14:00.000-07:00

D1 Has A New # 1

Here we go with WEEK SIX Top Ten team rankings from sixmancentral.

D1
1. Ira
2. Rankin
3. Throckmorton
4. Borden County
5. Valley
6. Water Valley
7. Crowell
8. Sands
9. Aquilla
10. Abbott

D2
1. Richland Springs
2. Jonesboro
3. Sterling City
4. Newcastle
5. Motley County
6. Miami
7. Strawn
8. Calvert
9. Amherst
10. Bryson

WEEK SIX GAMES OF INTRIGUE
Motley County @ Amherst
Garden City @ Borden County
Crowell @ Petersburg
Happy @ Silverton
Rankin @ Water Valley
Ira @ Spur

Lucky or Good????

2011-10-01T08:05:00.000-07:00

The Gordon Longhorns came into the game with the Highland Hornets supporting a perfect record. They left town with a perfect record but they were battered and bruised and lucky. There is an old saying, "sometimes it is better to be lucky than good". This was one of those times.

Gordon just last week beat their arch rival Strawn 57-50 in a come from behind fashion. That victory took a lot out of the Longhorns. They came out flat in the game with Highland. The Hornets scored first at the 5:33 mark in the first quarter to lead 8-0. They forced a turn over on downs and scored again to lead 16-0 with 4:09 left in the 1st Quarter.

Gordon managed to cut the lead to 16-8 with 3:31 left in the 1st Quarter only to see Highland take the lead 24-8. After back and forth possessions that would lead to scores by both teams, Highland lead 32-16 at the half.

Gordon did exactly what they needed to do at the beginning of the second half. They won the coin toss to begin the game and elected to defer. Receiving the ball at the start of the third quarter, the Longhorns returned the kick off for a touchdown. For the first time in this game the PAT was unsuccessful. The new score read 32-22 Highland. Gordon would score again and once again missed the PAT to draw within 4 points, 32-28. They could not hold Highland. The Hornets would lead 40-28. Gordon would score again and one more time miss the PAT trailing 40-34. Highland would answer themselves and extend the lead to 48-34 with 3:34 left in the third.

The problem was becoming more and more obvious. Gordon was not only needing to put more points on the board they also needed some defensive stops. Solving part of the equation, Gordon would come back with another score and yet again miss the PAT to trail 48-40. It is difficult to make every PAT. Four missed PAT's in a row is never a good thing. This game could have been tied at this point. Highland continued to press the Gordon defense and scored yet again to lead 56-40 as the 3rd Quarter closed.

Highland came into this game as a 45 point dog by the Guru. I had the Hornets as 24 point dogs myself. Regardless the Highland Hornets came to play football. Honestly, the Longhorns came out flat. We are talking FLAT. Overcoming much adversity, Gordon would score again and keeping the unmentionable streak going, missed the PAT. Highland still lead 56-46 with 8:27 left in the game.

With 5:21 left Gordon scores and CONVERTS to trail by 2 points 56-54. Amazingly enough Gordon gets a last chance and scores with 1:37 left to lead for the first time in this game 62-56, which would be the final score.

What's that old saying about better to be lucky than good? Gordon could have given up several times during the course of this game but they didn't. Missed PAT's, missed opportunity, missed calls all plenty of reason to throw in the towel. Gordon didn't quit nor did Highland for that matter. Gordon got lucky. It is ok to get lucky but don't depend on being or getting lucky. If Gordon had taken care of business this would have easily been a 24 point or more victory.

EXCUSE ME WHILE I VENT. D A N G Dang

2011-09-25T12:53:00.000-07:00

I am nearly 60 so one might contribute it to my age. I always played on Defense so perhaps that helps explain it as well. We all have our own personal taste for the game. I detest super high scoring games.

Just in this past week (WEEK FOUR) we had the following scores in Six-Man.
124-108 Fort Davis over Midland Trinity
90-71 Austin Hill Country over Kerrville Our Lady of the Hills
96-84 May over Lometa
90-70 Throckmorton over Dallas Covenant

It has been going on for a while.

WEEK THREE we saw this score.
EP Jesus Chapel 96 EP Immanuel Christian 70

WEEK TWO we had this one.
Orange Community Christian 80 Houston Texas Christian 71

WEEK ONE
Crowell 83 Spur 82
122-120 San Antonio The Winston over San Antonio Town East

WEEK ZERO
San Antonio Castle Hills 109 San Antonio The Winston 105

Ever since the earth was cooling down or as far back in time when I first saw a football game, cheerleaders and fans alike would chant the familiar yell:
DEFENSE! DEFENSE! DEFENSE! Well, times have changed.
There is a new yell in town. It goes like this.
D A N G DANG!
We got to score again!
D A N G DANG!
We got to score again!
D A N G DANG!
We got to score AGAIN!

Cheerleading etiquette says this particular cheer cannot or should not be used until both teams have given up 70 points!

Surely I am not the only person that feels this way! I know my good friend Jess Roberts feels this way. He is the head coach at Fort Davis. He was just involved in such a crazy game. This is what he has to say about the subject. “It was not my intention to go for a scoring record. Every time I see a game that the scores is in the hundred I always think holy crap! Where’s the defense?” He goes on to say “I hope God doesn’t strike me down but what’s wrong with out- scoring them? I know that is going to come back to bite me in the long run. We have got to do better on defense.”

Jess, my old friend, you better “git’ er done” soon as Throckmorton is coming to town in a couple of weeks and they just hung 90 on the #2 ranked TAPPS Dallas Covenant Eagles. I suppose the good news is they gave up 70!

TOP TEN’s WEEK FIVE
D1
1. Throckmorton
2. Ira
3. Rankin
4. Borden County
5. Water Valley
6. Valley
7. Sands
8. Crowell
9. Aquilla
10. Abbott

D2
1. Richland Springs
2. Motley County
3. Jonesboro
4. Newcastle
5. Sterling City
6. Calvert
7. Miami
8. Strawn
9. Lefors
10. Amherst

WEEK FIVE GAMES OF INTEREST
Ira @ Rankin
Garden City @ Ropes
Motley County @ Crowell
Lueders-Avoca @ Hermleigh
Bloomberg @ Karnack
Anton @ Lefors

Last week’s games of interest results.

Strawn @ Gordon Gordon 57 Strawn 50
Spur # Knox City Spur won 54-8
Follett @ Motley County Motley County won 41-38
Lazbuddie @ New Home New Home won 62-44
Dallas Covenant @ Throckmorton Throckmorton won 90 to 70
Sands @ Water Valley Water Valley won 58-48
Walnut Springs @ Iredell Walnut Springs won 52-22

It has been a long season and District has not started yet. We are however getting closer. Hang in there and stay healthy if you are and get healthy if you aren’t.

GOOD FOOTBALL TO YOU.

Mike Reed: 100 Career Wins!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2011-09-24T09:02:00.000-07:00

You may have heard this before. I have a saying about Six-Man, "you never know how good a Six-Man game will be until you have seen the game". I made the trek from Abilene to Throckmorton to watch the #1 D1 UIL team in the land take on a highly ranked TAPPS D1 Dallas Covenant. I saw a great game.

Knowing this had the makings of a "good game" because the teams involved were both undefeated and highly ranked made it a easy target for me to desire watching. The added attraction was my friend Coach Mike Reed of Throckmorton was going for his 100th win in his 10th year of coaching. Throckmorton got the win by the score of 90-70 and Coach Reed has the milestone 100th victory! Dallas Covenant proved to be a strong team for those who may have doubted if they could hang with Throckmorton.

A win is a win and you take them no matter what they look like, a thing of beauty or one that is ugly as sin. This Throckmorton victory was somewhere in between. It appeared a time or two in the 3rd Quarter of play that Throckmorton was dominating but the Knights never gave up!

Dallas Covenant received the opening kickoff and came out passing the ball. Unfortunately, the Knights fumbled on their third offensive play and to make matters worse for them, the Greyhounds recovered the ball near midfield.

Seven plays later, Throckmorton scored on a three yard run and made the PAT. 8-0 with 6:37 left in the 1st Quarter. Dallas Covenant would again come out passing. First down was an incompletion but on second down the Knights moved from their 23 yard line to the Greyhound 39. The next play Dallas Covenant went the distance on a beautiful pass play. The PAT was no good and at the 5:57 mark of the 1st Quarter Throckmorton led 8-6.

After the ensuing kickoff, Throckmorton had the ball on their 34 yard line. The Greyhounds picked up 7 yards on first down but after three straight incompletions they turned the ball over on downs. Dallas Covenant took over on their own 39. Seven plays later the Knights score on a 9 yard run and with the PAT good, lead 14-8 with 3:35 left in the 1st Quarter. Throckmorton came right back on a 4 play drive covering 60 yards to knot the score at 14-14. The PAT was wide left.

Throckmorton would out score Dallas Covenant 48 to 16 in the 2nd Quarter to take a halftime lead of 62-30 and seemed to be in control of the game. More of the same in the third with Throckmorton leading 82 to 46 at the end of three and threaten to end the game on the mercy rule more than once during the 3rd.

Dallas Covenant is worthy of their TAPPS ranking and they showed it in the 4th out scoring Throckmorton 20 to 8 to make the final 90 t0 70.

Throckmorton is fortunate to have Mike Reed as their Head Coach and they had a wonderful celebration after the game to honor Reed for his 100th career victory. Administrators, fans and players as well as good people from Rule showed their appreciation to Coach Reed. Many of his former players showed up for the special occasion as well as Reed's former Head Coach and mentor, Hall of Fame member Coach Nelson Campbell.

LOOKING AHEAD WEEK FOUR

2011-09-19T14:08:00.000-07:00

Lets get to it shall we?

Here are the WEEK FOUR Top Tens for D1 and D2 Texas Six-Man Football from sixmancentral.

D1
1. Throckmorton
2. Ira
3. Sands
4. Rankin
5. Borden County
6. Valley
7. Water Valley
8. Aquillal
9. Crowell
10.Petersburg

D2
1. Richland Springs
2. Motley County
3. Jonesboro
4. Strawn
5. Newcastle
6. Calvert
7. Sterling City
8. Miami
9. Gustine
10.Groom

There are always a few games that intrigue me and WEEK FOUR is no different.

Strawn at Gordon
If you are a fan of the game, you will not question the intrigue here.

Spur at Knox City
Knox City needs to "right the ship". This isn't an easy team to do it against. Spur was humbled by Rankin but they aren't afraid of the Greyhounds.

Follett at Motley County
Motley County put D2 on notice when they snapped Garden City's 29 game winning streak in Hico during WEEK ZERO. Could this be an exclamation point?

Lazbuddie at New Home
Speaking of streaks, Lazbuddie just snapped one themselves! Can they win two in a row?

Dallas Covenant at Throckmorton
Man look out! A highly ranked "private" comes to challenge the #1 in the world Throckmorton Greyhounds. What could be better? How about Mike Reed going for his 100th win as a Head Coach? I will be in Throckmorton!!!!!

Sands at Water Valley
This is the place to be but I can only be at one place any given time and as I already stated, I will be in Throckmorton.

Walnut Springs at Iredell
What we have here is a WS team coming off a loss going against the Iredell boys and of course the famous Iredell cheer leaders will be there.

I would not think of forcing you to attend one of these games but I certainly do expect you to go see a Six-Man game somewhere.

LOOKING BACK TO WEEK THREE

2011-09-17T19:06:00.000-07:00

What Happened..........

Those that read my last post know I designated a few games as must see TV. Wait a minute, that was not it. There were a few games that I said I was particularly interested in. Here is the break down on those games.

Borden County defeated Meadow 76 to 50.
It was a good game between teams that sixmancentral had ranked #7 and #8 in the state. That being the case, it should have been a good game. I picked Borden County to win by 8.

Calvert defeated Penelope 62-14.
I thought Calvert could possibly win this game.

Valley defeated Crowell 54-42.
My main interest here was to see how good Crowell really is knowing that Valley was deserving of the #6 ranking bestowed on them by sixmancentral. Crowell is now 3-1 and I would recognize as a solid playoff team.

Gordon defeated Bryson 40-28.
This was a battle of two undefeated teams both being 3-0. Gordon has shown some improvement from last year although I have not seen them this season. I will see them on the 30th of September at Highland when I work the booth with my good friend Shanon Hunt. It would appear even though Bryson lost their first game here they are still on their way to a second straight district crown.

Waco Live Oak defeated Gustine 46-0.
Gustine was previously undefeated this season and ranked #7 in D2 by sixmancentral. Well, the wheels came off.

Newcastle defeated Knox City 60-30.
Newcastle has been an up and coming team in D2. Knox City on the other hand had been dropping in the rankings in D1 for a couple of weeks. The Greyhounds need to come around soon. Newcastle is gaining strength every week and will push Strawn hard for the crown in their district.

Finally, Sands defeated Sterling City 91-47.
D2 Sterling City suffered their second straight defeat. Sands is a D1 dark horse so to speak even though sixmancentral has them ranked 4th in the state. Be on your toes for these guys!

What I Saw...........

Super dog deal! It was a two for one special Friday in Gail, Texas. Rankin and Spur were scheduled to play on Borden County's field
On Saturday but changed the date to 5:30 Friday. Rankin who sixmancentral has ranked #3 beat a top twenty team in the Spur Bulldogs.
The score was 54-8. It was a whipping, no hiding that. Spur was out matched in this game but to make matters worse there were several self inflicted wounds as well as a punishing opponent. Rankin is a large and physical team. Stated another way, Rankin will line up and run over you. Can I say here and now the #9 Rankin Red Devil is a BEAST. His number could just as well be 666. One other thing, don't defense them by bringing everyone to stop the run because they will break your heart with their passing game.

Rankin received the opening kickoff. They went on an eleven play drive that covered 47 yards to score. The PAT was not good and the score was 6-0 with 6:13 left in the 1st quarter. The ensuing kickoff to Spur went deep however #7 picked it up and went 70 yards for the TD. Spur converted their PAT and led 8-6. With :54 seconds left in the 1st quarter, Rankin regained the lead 14-8 and that remained the score as the horn sounded the end of the quarter. Rankin ran 29 offensive plays to 5 for Spur in quarter one. What was typical of this game, Rankin
ground out another drive to lead 22-8 at the half. Three more scores in the 3rd quarter, the last with 9 seconds left salted away the game for Rankin. 54-8.

Borden County outlasted Meadow in the second game of the night by a score of 76-50. Borden County has a great team and this is no excuse for Meadow but they simply ran out of gas. The game started with Meadow kicking to Borden County. The Coyotes ran three plays for short yardage and were forced to punt their first possession. Meadow took over on their own 34 yard line. With 4:20 left in the 1st quarter the Broncos scored and converted to lead 8-0. The game seemed a little slow at that point. BAM!!! Lightning struck! Not from the sky but in the form of back to back 76 yards kickoff returns for touchdowns. The game was tied 14-14 at the start of the second quarter. More of the same and at the half the score was tied 28-28. As the game advanced in the second half, Borden County got stronger and Meadow became gassed. Final: Borden County 76 Meadow 50.

WHAT I DIDN'T SEE THAT I WISHED I HAD.........

The Lazbuddie LONGHORNS came from behind in their homecoming game scoring on the final play with no time showing to defeat Wellman-Union 26-20. Pretty exciting stuff. My idol, the latePaul Harvey used to say " And now, for the rest of the story" . The Lazbuddie win was just a win, NO SIR! The win snapped a 14 game losing streak. I am told that quite a celebration erupted by the homecoming crowd. I say CONGRATULATIONS to Cooach JK Hester his tem and their fans. Hip hip hooray!

Next post I will extoll the games I find intriguing. This one was a little long, sorry. Thanks for the read.

WEEK THREE Rolling Around

2011-09-14T17:20:00.000-07:00

You know the drill by now. Please go and support your favorite Six-Man team this week home or on the road. Let the players know how much you appreciate the hard work they are putting in. Visit the concession stand too and help support whatever group is working the stand.

To the fan in general, like myself, that is running unattached so to speak, there are a few games that generate more than just a wait and see attitude.

These are the games I am particularly interested in the outcome.

Meadow (3-0) vs. Borden County (2-1) at Borden County
Calvert (0-2) vs. Penelope (2-1) at Calvert
Crowell (3-0) vs. Valley (2-1) at Valley
Gordon (3-0) vs. Bryson (3-0) at Bryson
Gustine (3-0) vs. Waco Live Oak (3-0) at Gustine
Newcastle (2-1) vs. Knox City (1-2) at Newcastle
Sterling City (2-1) vs. Sands (3-0)

I have been known to make mistakes of EPLER proportions in my time so before you plan on attending these games you better check dates, places, and times.

Enjoy whatever game you choose to attend. If for any reason you can't make a game this week there are some great ones coming up in the next few weeks.

Long Tough WEEKEND

2011-09-11T20:48:00.000-07:00

I love football. Really, I do. It is hard for me to get enough football. It is a known fact that I see as much Six-Man as I can. I have done that for several years now. Sometimes I have to call an audible because other issues come up that require me to divert from my love of Six-Man. This weekend was such a case.

I surveyed the overall schedule for games that I believed would be good games to see. I narrowed it down to two games. Decision time. Sterling City and Water Valley would hook up in Water Valley and Ira and Ropes would be playing in Ira. Abilene to Ira is roughly 85 miles. Water Valley is a little over a hundred miles. The kicker was I have a grandson who plays in a youth football league in the San Antonio area. It was his first game of the season so I told my wife this would be as good a time as any to go watch him.

Knowing we would need to be on the road Saturday morning no later than 6:00 AM to make Nathan's game and thinking about the drive home on Friday night after the game in Ira or Water Valley, old age whispered in my ear that I might ought to opt for a game in Abilene instead. It so happened that Abilene Christian High School had a home game scheduled. Elmer Gray stadium is about a five minute drive from my house. They were playing Rockwall Christian. I figured ACHS would win by 25 or so but what the heck. Five minute drive back to my house seemed to be just what was needed for my tired and deteriorating body.

ACHS won the game 54-6. The panthers are impressive. The running game needs a little work I think but the passing game looks close to perfection. I will issue a PANTHER WARNING at this time. If ACHS appears on your schedule and you don't have a pass defense, you might want to consider taking a sick day. If you are not sick you will be when your game with them is over. Truly, they are scary good.

I did make the trip to San Antonio to watch the grandson. His team got drilled. Four touchdowns to none. He got to play a little more than half the game as a defensive lineman. The other team had quite a few larger kids and they double teamed Nathan all the time. He lived to fight another day. I was proud he gave it all he had. Coming home on Sunday, my son in the Waco area sent me a text with disturbing news. His four year old son, my number two grandson, has signed up to participate in futbol! Translated, that means he will be playing soccer. None of my three children ever took up such to which I can say I am proud. Number two grandson is the first of my five grandchildren to do so. It is indeed a sad day. His first day to practice is Thursday. Hope with me that the boy comes to his senses and decides his PePaw is right that soccer is a dumb game.

That is enough personal trauma. It is time to release the sixmancentral rankings for WEEK THREE.

D1
1. Throckmorton
2. Ira
3. Rankin
4. Sands
5. Aquilla
6. Valley
7. Borden County
8. Meadow
9. Aspermont
10. Water Valley

D2
1. Richland Springs
2. Motley County
3. Jonesboro
4. Sterling City
5. Miami
6. Strawn
7. Gustine
8. Milford
9. Calvert
10.Newcastle

EPLER the name is EPLER not EPHLER.

2011-09-04T21:37:00.000-07:00

The inventor of THE game is EPLER. STEPHEN EDWARD EPLER.
Heath A Gibson called it to my attention that I spelled Mr. Epler's name wrong!
I have read this a million times and never caught my mistake. How lame is that?
I make an honest effort to bring honor to a gentleman that much honor is due and I can't spell his name correctly. I beg the forgiveness of all ESPECIALLY Mr. Epler's family.

Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler Epler

S.E.E. SIX-MAN NEWS
by Don Hardin
Abilene, Texas
donhardin1@gmail.com

SIXMANCENTRAL WEEK TWO RANKINGS

2011-09-04T20:48:00.001-07:00

SIXMANCENTRAL WEEK TWO RANKINGS

Division 1

1. THROCKMORTON

2. IRA

3. SANDS

4. RANKIN

5. ROPES

6. AQUILLA

7. MEADOW

8. BORDEN COUNTY

9. WALNUT SPRINGS

10. GARDEN CITY

Division 2

1. RICHLAND SPRINGS

2. STERLING CITY

3. MOTLEY COUNTY

4. MIAMI

5. JONESBORO

6. BALMORHEA

7. STRAWN

8. GUSTINE

9. CHEROKEE

10. CALVERT

From WEEK ONE to WEEK TWO

2011-09-04T14:31:00.000-07:00

After seeing eight games in WEEK ZERO, I weaned myself to just one game for WEEK ONE. Strawn hosted Jonesboro in a close game, a low scoring game, and a tad sloppy at times game. Jonesboro won the contest 29-22. Junior Gerrit Buster picked up the opening kickoff and returned it 54 yards for a touchdown. The play appeared to be an onside kick by Strawn. Regardless, it turned into a touchdown for Jonesboro and that was pretty much the difference in the game. I had Strawn ranked #6 in the state and Jonesboro # 7 going into this game. IF you can go by my poll, it should have been close. A slight upset in Strawn.

Speaking of polls, I am sure you heard the quote from Sarah Palin as I suppose she was referring to politics. The quote went something like this, “Polls are for strippers and cross county skiers”. Sounds like a fun girl. Maybe there will be a Palin Perry ticket.

WEEK ONE games I thought might have been GOTW affairs went like this.

Jonesboro defeated Strawn 29-22

Sterling City defeated Garden City 68-56

Aquilla defeated Calvert 32-22

Ira defeated Knox City 72-48

WEEK TWO potential GOTW honors in advance go to:

Follett vs. Miami

Gustine vs. Cherokee

Ropes vs. Ira

Sterling City vs. Water Valley

Take your pick. I am going to the Sterling City Water Valley game. Mercy!!!!!

Looking back at KEEW ENO did you see the outrageous scores?

SA The Winston 122

SA Town East 120

OR

Crowell 83

Spur 82

Maybe Sarah Palin is right about polls. In D2 I had Richland Springs ranked Number One and Panther Creek ranked # 8 in the state. Richland Springs whipped Panther Creek 70-8!!! Halftime!!!! The question: Is there 62 points difference between #1 and # 8 in the state? There was this time and I think it is for real.

Formatting

2011-09-01T00:34:00.000-07:00

I believe once upon a time I actually knew how to format a paragraph. Guess not anymore! Actually, I was able to edit the previous post and it looks better.

LOOKING BOTH WAYS

2011-09-01T00:25:00.000-07:00

LOOKING BOTH WAYS KEEW OREZ TO WEEK ONE

Have mercy football gods! Looking back to WEEK ZERO there were some magical ballgames that matched highly ranked teams against each other. That means a few sore muscles and bruises and a bruised ego to add insult to injury.

Hico’s Eight Annual Six-Man Super Saturday once again provided a full day of action. Strawn defeated Calvert to start off the day’s action. As you and I have seen before, a game between two ranked teams can turn a shade of…..ugly. That is not always the case. More times than not when you get two elite teams together the fans are treated to something special.

Speaking of fans, there we were, my brother from Houston, my son from Waco, along with a longtime friend of mine from Frisco, and myself. We were all sitting under the famed “big oak tree” at the South end of Tiger Stadium when we heard a terrible snap. What was it? Was the tree falling? Did someone break their ankle or leg? No, it was none of those things. What we heard snap was Garden City’s 29 game winning streak when the Bearkats lost to the Matadors of Motley County in overtime by the score of 50-44. BTW, my brother had only seen one Six-Man contest before this one, the Strawn Calvert game. I supposed I may have ruined him for life. That’s ok. What you must understand is the fact he is nearly ten years older than me and he put me through lots of “stuff” when I was a kid. Karma! The last time Garden City had tasted defeat was on the very same field here in Hico at the Sixth Annual Six-Man Super Saturday.

Man they got the next game on the card started almost immediately. The folks in Hico learned their lesson all the way back to the first Classic they hosted. There was a 45 point victory ending a game that year and it was something like three hours before the next game started. It was a good game but lots of people didn’t hang around to watch it. Warning to future participants at Hico, the first game of the day has a “hard” start time. All other games start immediately at the conclusion of the previous game. If you are gonna play in Hico you had better be ready to go. Now, back to the third game of the day. Can I just say WOW?!!! Throckmorton and Valley played to a 65 to 62 score with Throckmorton taking the win.

Games four and five found Ira defeating the perennial power house Follett Panthers 69 to 24 after a fairly close first half and Walnut Springs defeating Rising Star in a tight one 44-24. Coach Toby Goodwin took a moment to visit with me as the Ira Bulldogs came back on the field to start the second half of their game with Follett. Exactly what he told me will remain a private conversation between him and me but the jest of the conversation was “we better start playing football or……..anyway they did just that.

Congratulations to all the great people in Hico that make Six-Man Super Saturday a FANTABOLUS event every year. Same to the boys who played their hearts out whether they won or lost. More congratulations go out to the fans that braved the unforgiving heat to watch one game or all five. It is the best $10.00 you will spend all year.

There was action elsewhere besides in Hico. I would be remiss if I did not mention a great game that took place 300 or so miles west of Hico in McCamey at their Second Annual Kick Off classic. Rankin, in the last game of the day took down Borden County by the score of 38 to 26.

Also, in Zephyr, the Richland Springs Coyotes took down a talented Avalon squad 66 to 20. One game in WEEK ZERO does not win you a State Championship. I have to say though that Richland Springs would appear to be on their way to repeating as D2 Champions. I realize there are lots of football games to be played before that December 10th game in Abilene. Just saying.

Looking forward to WEEK ONE, there will again be some great games to watch although they will be spread out just a tad more than WEEK ZERO. Game of the week honors could go to the Jonesboro and Strawn game. That game I believe is in Strawn. The Sterling City and Garden City game will also contend as GOTW. I am thinking that game is in Garden City. I am also intrigued by the Calvert and Aquilla game in Aquilla. Just for good measure one might consider Ira and Knox City.

Next week there will be tales to tell as we look back at KEEW ENO and forward to WEEK TWO. Be very careful what you ask for BECAUSE you might just wind up getting it.

YOU know WHO I am talking to and what I am talking about.

Each of you could be doing lots of things besides reading my blog.
I truly THANK YOU for your time.

Don Hardin
donhardin1@gmail.com

Earthquakes, Hurricanes, and Upsets

2011-08-28T19:57:00.000-07:00

I will try to compare what I saw in WEEK ZERO with my Preseason Top Ten in D1 and D2. I watched a game on Thursday night, a couple on Friday night and a hand full on Saturday. I picked a few games correctly and I missed a few as well.

Thursday night in Trent I expected Bryson to handle Highland. The game was closer than I thought it would be. Friday I thought Richland Springs would beat Avalon and they did. As a side note to that game, Avalon has a couple of outstanding athletes. Richland Springs was the best team I saw in WEEK ZERO. They are monsters and I believe are on their way to another title. Not just district, the BIG TITLE.

Through the years I have met lots of good folks from Richland Springs. I am happy to report I was able to visit with Richland Springs NUMBER ONE FAN. Pres. He is still going at 87 years young. I was happy to here he was able to make the HONOR FLIGHT out of Abilene not too long ago. He was pretty pumped up about that trip. I am extremely proud of him and for him and to all our servicemen and women past present and those to come in the future.

I thought Strawn would beat Calvert but they did so much more convincing that I thought they would. The second game at Hico saw Motley County snap a 29 game winning streak owned by Garden City. Took overtime and a couple of crazy bounces of the ball but they did it. BTW, I thought MC would win. I had Throckmorton ranked ahead of Valley in the Preseason Poll but I thought Valley would defeat Throckmorton. The Greyhounds proved me wrong but it was a tight game. I believed Ira would take down Follett and that Walnut Springs would do the same to Rising Star. They both did.
Out in far west Texas, McCamey to be exact, my preseason number one was doing battle with my number 8 and I thought it would be a great game with Borden County prevailing. Guess what? Rankin defeated Borden County 38-26. Let that be a lead in to the newest SIXMANCENTRAL POLL.

DIVISON 1
1. Throckmorton
2. Ira
3. Sands
4. Rankin
5. Aquilla
6. Ropes
7. Borden County
8. Garden City
9. Walnut Springs
10. Grady

DIVISION 2
1. Richland Springs
2. Sterling City
3. Motley County
4. Miami
5. Milford
6. Strawn
7. Jonesboro
8. Panther Creek
9. Gustine
10. Balmorhea

The earth moved in WEEK ZERO especially in D1. What will WEEK ONE bring? Thankfully, more SIX-MAN FOOTBALL. I can hardly wait! See you there.

WEEK ZERO = THE LIGHTNING ROUND

2011-08-26T09:26:00.000-07:00

I have a history with the Highland Hornets and lightning. A couple of years ago Ira and Highland had very talented teams. I made my way to Highland to watch them square off. Without either team even so much as taking the field to loosen up before the big game, it was over. LIGHTNING defeated the Hornets and Bulldogs that night around 8:45PM. Nothing but lightning. Not a drop of rain.

Fast forward if you will to last night and the opening game of the 4th Annual Trent Gorillas’ RUMBLE IN THE JUNGLE. The participants last night were the Bryson Cowboys and the Highland Hornets. As I drove out to the game I knew there had been some rain in the area. It is always a good thing around here when there is rain in the area!

This game was set to start at 7:00 PM. I was excited to get the new season underway. The game started promptly at 7:00PM. THAT was a good thing. I soon got a tweet from @sixmanguru who was at Zephyr watching a Jonesboro team defeat Rochelle 50 to zip. Things did not improve for him as the second game he watched ended with Zephyr defeating Woodson 48-0 at the half. The game is Six-Man football and on the average, 50% of the games end as a result of the “Mercy Rule”. Not my game in Trent.

Highland received the opening kickoff, ran four plays and Bryson took over on their own 39. Nine plays later from the 6 yard line, Kirby Hefner runs it in, Bryson with a PAT leads 8-0 3:39 left in the first.

Highland came back with an impressive six play drive covering 84 yards culminating with a 3yard TD run by Tyler Falcon. PAT good and it was tied up 8-8 with 1:32 left in the first quarter of play. The quarter ended in a tie score. Bryson would score on a 27 yard pass play with 7:21 left in the first half and the PAT made it Bryson 16 Highland 8. That was the halftime score. Bryson ran 31 offensive plays to 16 by Highland according to my stats.

With the clock counting down the halftime break, at around 3:00 minutes, BAM!!! Not thunder but thunder’s friend LIGHTNING makes is first appearance of the night. DELAY is in order.

The third quarter gets underway and on their second possession of the second half Bryson scores again with a PAT lead 24-8 with 7:21 left in the third. It would wind up being the final score. With 2:15 left in the third BAM2!!! Not thunder. You guessed it. LIGHTNING, round two and a 30 minute delay.

In the 4th quarter turnovers made this long and low scoring Six-Man game get a little ugly. As Coach Joe Helms of Bryson said after the game, “It was a win and it was ugly. Week 8 when we look back, it is still going to be a win”.

It appeared to me in the second half that Highland was playing better football but in the end a couple of Hornet turnovers kept them from at least getting the score closer if not perhaps winning the game. And so went WEEK ZERO. In fairness to both teams the lightning delays made it hard to get or keep momentum on their side.

Almost like Christmas

2011-08-25T05:14:00.000-07:00

August 25th and football season is open for Texas high schools. No scrimmages but live games commence this very day and I am excited. I will take in eight games between tonight and Saturday. That is a great way to kick off the season.

It truly is Christmas in Hermleigh, though windy. They have a new school and athletic facilities. Take a look at the pictures.

It is Over (2 a days)

2011-08-20T07:24:00.001-07:00

There may well be a scrimmage taking place this morning, perhaps as late as this evening, but folks, the dreaded 2 a days are done. Stick a fork in them they are done.

The season gets underway starting Thursday August 25th at selects spots around the state. Friday will see more action and Saturday there are a number of Kickoff Classics that will seal the deal on WEEK ZERO. That is the good news. The bad news is after Saturday August 27th we will have one tenth of another regular season behind us.

We all know it has been hotter than normal this year. Why do we subject our kids to doing two a days workouts anyway? The reason is simple. There are things the coach wants to work on, but in the bigger picture, the kids need it. Summers are long and busy and some kids take a break. Translated, they are out of shape. This isn't the NFL, I know. However, WEEK ZERO rolls around and we watch the games begin. No more we outscored them 3-2 or they scored 5 to our four. No, from this point on it is we won or we lost. The temperature will most likely be brutal for the first two or three weeks and with two a days behind us, the kids have a much better chance to be in shape.

It has been good for me to make a few scrimmages as I stay out of shape. I pushed myself the last two days trying to somewhat prepare me for opening weekend. Made a trip to Petersburg on Thursday for a 4 way scrimmage between Petersburg, Meadow, Knox City, and Valley. Friday I found by way to a 3 way in Richland Springs to watch them go against Oglesby and Throckmorton. Lots of travel but I have to be ready, right? I went to Trent last week to watch a three way between the Gorillas and Lueders-Avoca and Paint Creek. I am in better shape than I was.

Thursday night I will be in Trent to watch the first game of the Rumble in the Jungle featuring Highland vs. Bryson. Friday night I will find my way to Zephyr for a couple of games, Morgan vs. Zephyr JV and Avalon Vs. Richland Springs. To wrap things up WEEK ZERO a day in Hico.

The 8th Annual Hico Six-Man Super Saturday has five games scheduled. The first game is at 10:00AM, Strawn vs. Calvert. Game 2 sometime around High Noon, Motley County vs, Garden City. Third game of the days pits Throckmorton against Valley. The fourth game of the day if the field is left intact from the previous game will be Ira against Follett and for the 5th game Walnut Springs goes against Rising Star. Come to Hico and pay $10.00 and watch a game or five games if you are in shape.

I would love to be in McCamey and Trent and at Jayton but time travel is not ready.

Don Hardin
Abilene

SIX by Marc Rasmussen

2011-08-19T07:02:00.000-07:00

Martyn Beeny, Marketing Director for the South Dakota State Historical Society asked me to review the book.

Six: A Football Coach’s Journey to a National Record
Marc Rasmussen
South Dakota State Historical Society Press
ISBN 978-0-9845041-4-5, paperback original, $16.95
b/w photographs, maps, appendices, indexes

Historical accounts at times seem like reading a White Paper. This book is tremendously different as it has a wonderful story unfold out of a written history.

SIX is a winner! This wonderful book’s storyline has uncovered an outstanding piece of South Dakota history too long hidden in obscurity. A coach, a community without direction, a ragtag group of athletes that came together to produce a powerful and storied six-man football program well worthy of attention all across this Nation. Set in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s, it tells of a time and place where the townspeople languished in that difficult time shortly after World War II. I believe any sports fans who read this book will enjoy and relish the outstanding feat,( 61 wins in a row), accomplished by Coach Welsh and the Claremont Honkers players as well as the fine folks of the community that gave their support. Three cheers from Texas!!! Hip Hip Hooray! Hip Hip Hooray! Hip Hip Hooray!

Don Hardin
Abilene, TX
sixmancentral.blogspot.com
lonestarfootball.net
On twitter@sixmancentral

For Crying Out Loud..............

2011-08-18T22:41:00.000-07:00

it was just a scrimmage. Drove three hours to Petersburg to watch a four way scrimmage involving Petersburg and Valley and Knox City and Meadow. They're four very good teams.

My belief is Valley looked the sharpest of the four but if you have any of the other three on your schedule you better bring a sack lunch with you because you will need it.

I visited with the coaches afterward and they all said they had lots to work on next week. Coach O'Malley got his players attention more than once with his tender voice directed at their mistakes.

All the coaches had a time or two that they just let the words fly at their guys. Hey, that is what a scrimmage is all about. If there was a coach that seemed to have a bit of hangover heat, it would have been Coach Allison from Meadow. I commented to him that there was some bright spots. He did not particularly respond with "thank you for your kind words". He and I have been friends for several years and I know that look on his face. All the teams have work to do and I am certain that the Meadow team will have the opportunity to do just that.

SixManCentral Preseason TOP TENS

2011-08-17T15:03:00.001-07:00

PRESEASON TOP TEN

DIVISION 1
1.Borden County
2.Throckmorton
3.Valley
4.Garden City
5.Sands
6.Ira
7.Aquilla
8.Rankin
9.Knox City
10.Follett

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

Lord have mercy!!!!!

WEEK ZERO ACTION

2011-08-16T18:39:00.000-07:00

Seems like it has been a year that I have been waiting for WEEK ZERO to get here. Lots of action that week but it is the Classics that are great for the fan in general. I am partial to Hico. I missed the first one but have been ever year since.

Depending on where you live you might rather attend a Classic in Jayton, Trent, Zephyr or McCamey. Great games to watch at all of them. Remember lots of teams are opening up the season all over Six-Man land. Take in a game somewhere. It is a required assignment.

Class dismissed.

Friday August 12th

2011-08-12T03:41:00.000-07:00

What's with the date? Today I am finding my way to Trent, Texas for a 10:00 AM three way scrimmage. Trent, Lueders Avoca, and Paint Creek are the participants. Trent was decent last season. The other two were not. They all three gave it all they had.

My football itch needs a scratch. Tried last night watching a pro game on TV. Sorry pro fans your game doesn't do it for me. Eleven-man in general doesn't do it for me. I know there are lots of folks that don't like Six-Man football. It is kind of like politics, you go with what you like not because it is right but because you like it.

Church and State, Football and Politics............. Separation is best but I can not help but comment on Texas Governor Rick Perry who is supposed to announce soon that he will be in the running for POTUS. Separation is best. Mr. Perry once played the sport I love. That isn't enough for me.

Blaze Herring is back in Six-Man. He left for awhile but he is back now where he is coaching and doubling as Principal at Paint Creek. Maybe one day he will be our Governor. We could do worse. We have done worse. We are doing worse.

Go see some football and thank you Stephen Edward Ephler. One last thing check out the new design over at Lone Star Football Network at lonestarfootball.net.

The C-word

2011-08-07T06:47:00.000-07:00

Not that one. Concussions. There is a new state law (HB 2038), all public schools must have a Concussion Management Plan for their athletic programs. Don't wait until it happens (a concussion). Be proactive in this, PLEASE!!!!

Sorry to report............

2011-08-06T16:47:00.001-07:00

These schools will not be fielding a Six-Man team this season.

Fort Elliott HS UIL D2 Dist 1
Samnorwood HS UIL D2 Dist 2
Dell City HS UIL D2 Dist 6
Byers HS UIL D2 Dist 11
Morgan HS UIL D2 Dist 13

SCHEDULING???????

2011-08-06T14:27:00.000-07:00

What is your take?
How many coaches do you know that when they schedule they look for the softest teams possible? Why do they do that? They might be interested in padding their win totals, you think? I am sure they have a hundred reasons for doing so.

How about the coach who has decided that he is moving on next season and schedules the toughest teams he can find for “the new guy”? Which one do you think is worse?
What about the “elite” team that goes out and is always looking for the very best competition available? This guy would schedule a Top Ten team every week if it was possible?

What difference does it really make? What is the point of the regular season? Win your district or finish as a runner up so as to make the playoffs, am I right? That being the case it would be well to be tested somewhere before Bi District wouldn’t it? Reminds me of the old NBA question, can the Lakers really just turn on the switch when they have to? How does building team confidence play into it? Can you “beat “ yourself to death with a hellish type schedule?

When is it best to risk a loss even to a superior team? Early on? Wait for district and let the chips fall where they may? What is the answer? To each their own?
Why do I enjoy Hico every year? It is the competition! I like coaches that say “let’s see where we are starting in WEEK ZERO”, rather than waiting to WEEK FIVE or worse in the playoffs.

Does a fan and a coach think differently about such business?
What is your take?

Texas Two A Days.....How Hot Is It???????????

2011-08-06T06:52:00.000-07:00

Ode to Texas

The devil wanted a place on earth
Sort of a summer home
A place to spend his vacation
Whenever he wanted to roam.

So he picked out Texas
A place both wretched and rough
Where the climate was to his liking
And the cowboys hardened and tough.

He dried up the streams in the canyons
And ordered no rain to fall
He dried up the lakes in the valleys
Then baked and scorched it all.

Then over his barren country
He transplanted shrubs from hell.
The cactus, thistle and prickly pear
The climate suited them well.

Now the home was much to his liking
But animal life, he had none.
So he created crawling creatures
That all mankind would shun.

First he made the rattlesnake
With it's forked poisonous tongue.
Taught it to strike and rattle
And how to swallow it's young.

Then he made scorpions and lizards
And the ugly old horned toad.
He placed spiders of every description
Under rocks by the side of the road.

Then he ordered the sun to shine hotter,
Hotter and hotter still.
Until even the cactus wilted
And the old horned lizard took ill.

Then he gazed on his earthly kingdom
As any creator would
He chuckled a little up his sleeve
And admitted that it was good.

‘Twas summer now and Satan lay
By a prickly pear to rest.
The sweat rolled off his swarthy brow
So he took off his coat and vest.

"By Golly," he finally panted,
"I did my job too well,
I'm going back to where I came from,
Texas is hotter than Hell."
- Author unknown

(copied)

RIP James Rufus Cobern

2011-08-05T17:27:00.000-07:00

James Rufus Cobern

LAMPASAS James Rufus Cobern, age 73, passed away peacefully at home July 29, 2011, after a long and courageous battle with cancer. Rufus was born in San Saba, Texas, on Aug. 30, 1937, to Lillian (Gage) and L.P. "Slim" Cobern. He was a beloved coach, teacher and mentor and influenced the lives of hundreds of former students from Comstock to Santa Anna to Paint Rock and Lometa, where he retired in 1992, to his ranch on the Cherokee Creek near Bend. He was a member of the Bend Church of Christ and a 32nd degree Scottish Rite Mason with the Masonic Lodge of Paint Rock, Texas. Rufus married Lee Ellen West on Sept. 13, 1958, in San Saba, Texas. She preceded him in death on Aug. 6, 1989. He married Tommye Mae (January) Marley on Aug. 30, 1995, in Bend. Rufus was also preceded in death by his father, L.P. "Slim" Cobern. Survivors include his wife, Tommye Cobern of Bend; his mother, Lillian Cobern of San Saba; his daughter, Vickilee (Cobern) Peters and son-in-law David Peters of Duncanville; and his son, Rusty Cobern and daughter-in-law Pam (Quirk) Cobern of Austin. He is also survived by five grandchildren, Ryan and Garrett Peters and Chase, Mason and Aubrey Lee-Ellen Cobern. When Rufus and Tommye married, his family was expanded. Rufus loved Tommye's children as if they were his own. He was preceded in death by son Wade Marley. Survivors include son Kerry Marley of Katy; daughter Tanya (Marley) Chalfant and son-in-law Jeffrey Chalfant of Austin. He is also survived by grandson Adam Marley and wife Rebekah (Ferrel) Marley of Huffman; granddaughter Lorie (Marley) Williams and husband Oscar Williams, also of Huffman; grandson Kort Marley and wife Morgan (Kreager) Marley of Atascocita; granddaughter Ashley Chalfant; great-grandchildren Christiana Williams, and Kameron and Kandance Marley; and sister-in-law Sammie (Lemmons) Eddleman and Charles Eddleman of Evant. Rufus will be laid to rest in a private burial. A celebration of Rufus' life will be scheduled at a later date pending the return of his two oldest grandsons who are out of the state for the summer. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made to the Lee and Rufus Cobern Scholarship Fund care of Lometa ISD, P.O. Box 250, Lometa, TX 76853. Arrangements are by Sneed Funeral Chapel, 201 East Third Street Lampasas, TX 76550.

Reminder

2011-08-05T12:47:00.000-07:00

/lonestarfootballbanner.jpg" >

Two A Day Sights

2011-08-04T18:19:00.000-07:00

Match the pictures with these captions.
He is NOT praying.
Learning new plays.
Smiling when the day is over.
More Running.
Giving instructions.

Two A Days

2011-07-29T21:36:00.000-07:00

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

WEEK ZERO CLASSICS

2011-07-21T18:34:00.000-07:00

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

*************************************************************************************************************

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

*************************************************************************************************************
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

*************************************************************************************************************

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
*************************************************************************************************************

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
*************************************************************************************************************
GO WATCH YOU A GAME SOMEWHERE!!!!!!!

Don Hardin
Abilene
Six-Man Central

http://lonestarfootball.net

http://sixmancentral.blogspot.com/

@sixmancentral

donhardin1@gmail.com

65 years!!!

2011-07-20T09:10:00.000-07:00

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

Let's be friends!!!

2011-07-19T20:10:00.000-07:00

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

2011-07-19T08:49:00.000-07:00

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

On the Road

2011-07-19T08:39:00.000-07:00

Made my way to Idalia, CO. Impressive past.

Six-Man Rankings From DCTF

2011-07-19T06:13:00.000-07:00

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

THE 2011 Season is Just around the Corner

2011-07-18T11:14:00.000-07:00

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

2011-07-18T09:46:00.000-07:00

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.

2010 Playoff Games

2010-11-16T13:58:00.000-08:00

The regular season is over. We have already boxed up the first round of playoff games. November 18th through the 20th will close the doors on Round 2 of the playoffs. November 25-27 are the dates for Round 3 and December 2-4 will be Round 4. That will leave the State Championships to be played in Abilene, Texas home of SIX-MAN CENTRAL! Division 2 will play December 11th at 2:00 PM followed by Division 1 teams at 7:00 PM.

Folks, there is nothing like it on the planet! Come see what I mean. Heck, it isn't too early to be thinking about the 2011 season. Next season I have a new game. I will pick 6 games each week. You pick the winners along with the scores. No fancy prizes to be given away. The overall winner will own bragging rights for a year. I will not go into all the details right now but I will say this, it will be fun.

Stay tuned. I write a blog about the sport of Six-Man at www,lonestarfootball.net and you can also follow me on twitter @sixmancentral.

Thank you for reading and help me get the word out about this site as well as the fan appeal of Six-Man football!

Don Hardin
Author of Six-Man Central

2010-2012 ALIGNMENT

2010-03-12T09:54:00.000-08:00

2010-2012 FOOTBALL DISTRICT ALIGNMENT
DIVISION 1
Division 1 Region 1 District 1
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Follett	Panthers	52
Hart	Longhorns	78
Kress	Kangaroos	64
McLean	Tigers	67
Valley	Patriots	74

Division 1 Region 1 District 2
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Chillicothe	Eagles	55
Crowell	Wildcats	72
Paducah	Dragons	54
Vernon Northside	Indians	60

Division 1 Region 1 District 3
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Lorenzo	Hornets	59
Petersburg	Buffaloes	78
Southland	Eagles	53
Spur	Bulldogs	66

Division 1 Region 1 District 4
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Lubbock Harmony	Tigers	60
Meadow	Broncos	79
Ropesville Ropes	Eagles	94
Wellman Union	Wildcats	55
Whiteface	Antelopes	94


Division 1 Region 2 District 5
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Ackerly Sands	Mustangs	54
Borden County	Coyotes	65
Klondike	Cougars	58
Lenorah Grady	Wildcats	62
O'Donnell	Eagles	78

Division 1 Region 2 District 6
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Aspermont	Hornets	56
Hermleigh	Cardinals	51
Highland	Hornets	56
Ira	Bulldogs	80

Division 1 Region 2 District 7
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Fort Davis	Indians	68
Garden City	Bearkats	79
Rankin	Red Devils	58
Sierra Blanca	Vasqueros	51

Division 1 Region 2 District 8
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Eden	Bulldogs	78
Robert Lee	Steers	64
Veribest	Falcons	69
Water Valley	Wildcats	93


Division 1 Region 3 District 9
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Gordon	Longhorns	62
Knox City	Greyhounds	58
Paint Creek	Pirates	51
Throckmorton	Greyhounds	70

Division 1 Region 3 District 10
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Blanket	Tigers	61
May	Tigers	69
Santa Anna	Mountaineers	68
Zephyr	Bulldogs	60

Division 1 Region 3 District 11
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Bloomberg	Wildcats	77
Gold-Burg	Bears	52
Greenville Phoenix	Firebirds	75
Saint Jo	Panthers	84

Division 1 Region 3 District 12
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Avalon	Eagles	78
Covington	Owls	84
Kopperl	Eagles	54
Walnut Springs	Hornets	56
Waxahachie Advantage	Eagles	89


Division 1 Region 4 District 13
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Apple Springs	Eagles	63
Coolidge	Yellowjackets	63
Leveretts Chapel	Lions	68
Oakwood	Panthers	64

Division 1 Region 4 District 14
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Abbott	Panthers	88
Aquilla	Cougars	72
Bynum	Bulldogs	65
Penelope	Wolverines	88

Division 1 Region 4 District 15
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Evant	Elks	84
Lometa	Hornets	93
Prairie Lea	Indians	54
Rochelle	Hornets	60

Division 1 Region 4 District 16
School	Mascot	Enrollment
BYE





2010-2012 FOOTBALL DISTRICT ALIGNMENT
DIVISION 2
Division 2 Region 1 District 1
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Darrouzett	Longhorns	45
Fort Elliott	Cougars	38
Lefors	Pirates	39
Miami	Warriors	46

Division 2 Region 1 District 2
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Groom	Tigers	44
Happy	Cowboys	50
Hedley	Owls	50
Samnorwood	Eagles	36

Division 2 Region 1 District 3
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Amherst	Bulldogs	44
Cotton Center	Elks	36
Lazbuddie	Longhorns	43
Whitharral	Panthers	48

Division 2 Region 1 District 4
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Guthrie	Jaguars	34
Motley County	Matadors	43
Patton Springs	Rangers	27
Silverton	Owls	41

Division 2 Region 2 District 5
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Loop	Longhorns	43
New Home	Leopards	44
Welch Dawson	Dragons	34
Wilson	Mustangs	35

Division 2 Region 2 District 6
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Balmorhea	Bears	43
Dell City	Cougars	29
Grandfalls-Royalty	Cowboys	29
Imperial Buena Vista	Longhorns	37
Sanderson	Eagles	42

Division 2 Region 2 District 7
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Loraine	Bulldogs	48
Sterling City	Eagles	50
Trent	Gorillas	46
Westbrook	Wildcats	45

Division 2 Region 2 District 8
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Blackwell	Hornets	39
Novice	Hornets	32
Paint Rock	Indians	40
Panther Creek	Panthers	45

Division 2 Region 3 District 9
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Benjamin	Mustangs	26
Jayton	Jaybirds	38
Lueders-Avoca	Raiders	35
Rule	Bobcats	42

Division 2 Region 3 District 10
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Moran	Bulldogs	40
Newcastle	Bobcats	49
Strawn	Greyhounds	39
Woodson	Cowboys	44

Division 2 Region 3 District 11
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Bryson	Cowboys	44
Byers	Hornets	37
Forestburg	Longhorns	47
Harrold	Hornets	35

Division 2 Region 3 District 12
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Karnack	Indians	36
Ladonia Fannindel	Falcons	47
Milford	Bulldogs	50
Trinidad	Trojans	44

Division 2 Region 4 District 13
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Cranfills Gap	Lions	30
Iredell	Dragons	42
Jonesboro	Eagles	47
Morgan	Eagles	41

Division 2 Region 4 District 14
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Comanche Paradigm	Patriots	48
Gustine	Tigers	50
Rising Star	Wildcats	45
Sidney	Eagles	41

Division 2 Region 4 District 15
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Brookesmith	Mustangs	48
Cherokee	Indians	44
Lohn	Eagles	39
Mullin	Bulldogs	41
Richland Springs	Coyotes	48

Division 2 Region 4 District 16
School	Mascot	Enrollment
Buckholts	Badgers	48
Calvert	Trojans	44
Oglesby	Tigers	45
Star	Tigers	33

2009-04-30T19:06:00.000-07:00

READ
Don Hardin’s Blog
“SIX-MAN CENTRAL”
Exclusively On
LONE STAR FOOTBALL NETWORK
www.lonestarfootball.net

G 10 20 30 40 30 20 10 G

Brackets?

2009-03-21T15:53:00.000-07:00

I was so excited. Lots of people were coming up to me saying "let's compare brackets". My question was always the same. You already have yours finished? Sure! You don't? You are too late man! Too late? I know I am a little slow but it really isn't too late.

Then someone says "hey dumby, we are talking about NCAA tourney brackets". NOPE ! Not me. I am working on my Six-Man FOOTBALL playoff brackets. I do wish people would get their priorites straight.

Needed: Historians

2009-03-10T20:42:00.000-07:00

Record keeping is something I have harped on for along time. I am a huge fan of Six-Man football and that is no secret. Parents, Grandparents, Sisters, Brothers, Girlfriends, I encourage all of you to clips newspaper stories about your kids, grandkids, siblings, boyfriends to give to them. My precious wife, then girlfriend, made me a scrapbook of my Senior Year in high school that I treasure today. That was nearly 40 years ago.

Do you know anything about my friend Leman Saunders? He is a historian. He is in to Six-Man football. Has a couple of projects going that are unbelivable and very important to the game here in Texas. If I have peaked your interest in him, then go to a favorite site of mine and read more about him and his work. The site is www.lonestarfootball.net. Check it out.

By the way, no matter your age, if you have not recorded your family history DO IT NOW! Write it down on paper, make a cd or dvd whatever JUST DO IT!!!!!!!!!

One More Pass

2009-01-23T06:46:00.000-08:00

I wrote briefly yesterday about a girls basketball team that beat another team 100-0. Needless to say that game garnered quite a lot of press coverage locally, state wide, and even national levels.

Turns out the winning school felt badly about their "win" and decided they would request their governing body for permission to forfeit the game. Some questioned if you can forfeit a game after it is played. The answer is yes, you can.

The director who oversees the 236 team league says " You don't have to ask permission to forfeit a game. If they want to forfeit, it's forfeited."

I am not for sure what this league's rules are concerning what happens or what the consequences are when a forfeit is made. I understand from what I believe to be a reliable source that the rules of this league state if you forfeit a game you are not eligible for the playoffs.

That is a stiff penalty especially when the forfeit was self imposed. Regardless of whether it is too stiff, or not, it was the right thing for the "winning" school to do and I applaude them for their actions.

Don Hardin
donhardin1@gmail.com

Just curious

2009-01-22T07:19:00.000-08:00

How do you feel about teams that run the score up on the other team? Here is the twist. Now I am talking about basketball. More percisely, girls basketball. Would you be able to look in the mirror if the team you coached beat another school 100-0?

Let me know.

Don Hardin

donhardin1@gmail.com

Save the Date

2009-01-21T14:15:00.000-08:00

August 29th, 2009

The friendly folks in Hico, Texas are making plans for the 6th Annual Six-Man Super Saturday. I do not know the teams invited or who will play who but the date is set.

I hope you will plan to attend. You should not go alone. This is a celebration. It will be another fun filled day at the historic Tiger Stadium in Hico.

Se there!

txsixii@yahoo.com
donhardin1@gmail.com

Are You Kidding ME?????

2009-01-19T18:15:00.000-08:00

Top TEN? TOP TEN? What are you doing talking about the Top Ten? Don’t be talking about the TOP TEN. Not in January!

I am not ready to name a TOP 10 yet. I totally agree with Granger from sixmanfootball.com fame about the teams he mentioned in the West, Follett, Meadow, and Valley. They will all field tough teams. There are other usual suspects in the West as well.

Division 1, I must also say that once again the Beast is in the East. In fact, there are several Beast in the East. So what's new?

Division 2 appears to me that Borden County, Woodson, and Highland will be the teams to beat. Again I ask, so what's new? Maybe a move in here or there? Maybe a break out team? Lots of teams returning people. Good people according to the All State selections.

Fun for me is to see the crowning of a new Champ every year. I may not have that kind of fun next season if you know what I mean.

It is just January. I am a little crazy. OK, I am totally out of my mind crazy! A dash of 6 on 6 will help ease my pain. Of course I can't get my hands on the real medicine until late August. Speaking of late August, I have for several years used a drug called "Hico". That is the short name for it. A couple of brothers put the concoction together and I take it all in. There are several others that have been known to use the stuff. I tell you it will get you through the regular season and pretty far if not all the way through the playoffs. I endorse it. I might even print some teeshirts about it. "I Need Some HICO"!!!!!!!!!

Don Hardin
Abilene, Texas

Email me at txsixii@yahoo.com or donhardin1@gmail.com

A New Year

2009-01-17T08:46:00.000-08:00

We are a little more than a couple of weeks into the New Year, 2009. Rolling along, I am watching television, with the Obama Express. History in the making. Just saw the first video clips of the Miracle on the Hudson landing. Wow!

Focusing on football, Six-man to be exact, the All State selections were finally released. I am sure there are some that were elated they made the team and others that can't believe they did not. It happens that way every year.

I have read with great interest that plans are in progress for another great National 6 on 6. My understanding is that games will be played in Abilene at the Lee Complex. This is due to some work that will be going on at Abilene Christian University. Dates are mid June. As is usually the case, many schools will hold tournaments in preparations for finals in Abilene.

You can always email me at txsixii@yahoo.com or donhardin1@gmail.com if you would like.

Thought Provoking

2008-12-29T18:06:00.000-08:00

I visit sixmanfootball.com often. There is a thread there right now asking for you to name the top 5 games in Texas Six-Man ball for 2008. Very thought provoking and very difficult. I cheated and listed six games. Check it out and list your top 5 (if you can name just five).

Don Hardin
Abilene, TX

Merry Christmas

2008-12-23T08:46:00.000-08:00

My wish for each of you is have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. To those of you that are inclined to make new year resolutions, make it something attainable so you will at least give it some sort of attention.

We all have some conflict in our lives. My hope is that each of us can work toward resolving whatever our part is. If you are to be angry, be angry with the devil and not the person(s). I am not one for passing advice to another but I will say this, as you try to resolve conflict one would do well to remember that how you say it will be equally as important as what you say.

Don Hardin
Abilene, TX

Same old same old??????

2008-12-16T19:40:00.000-08:00

What are the chances of seeing the same four teams that just played for the Division 1 and Division 2 Championships in the finals again next season? I would not say impossible. I suppose that whoever gets there is more than worthy. I have said it before and I will say it again, I like to see new blood.

Faces of Six-man

2008-12-14T15:28:00.000-08:00

You are invited to visit http://facesofsixman.blogspot.com

Championship Weekend means Triumph and Tragedy

2008-12-14T00:44:00.000-08:00

It happens every season. Two teams started out their season with lofty expectations of winning a championship. They reap a reward of advancing to the state playoffs by virtue of winning their district or finishing second place. It is a well deserved privilege to advance into a tournament that will pit the best of the best against each other until there are only two teams left vying to be Champions. Modern day gladiators, they are put on stage for the entire world to watch. On that fate filled day, one team will realize great triumph with a victory while tragedy falls upon the team that falls in defeat.

Many will read this and say the description is too harsh. Perhaps it is but I tell you the members that do not win on that day feel like they have been shot in the gut at close range. Yes, they should realize that it is a wonderful thing to have played at that level for truly it is. With time, they will hopefully realize, it was a significant accomplishment to just be in that venue.

December 13th, 2008 such a thing happened. The Borden County Coyotes defeated the Woodson Cowboys 54 to 8 in the Division 2 State Championship and a couple of hours later Strawn defeated Follett in the Division 1 State Championship. For Woodson, the loss was the second year in a row that they advanced to the finals and left without what they had come for. There are many teams that envy the Cowboys two straight appearances in the Championship game. The hurt remains. Follett closed a wonderful season with their first appearance in a Six-Man Championship. They had lost to Strawn 46-0 earlier in the year and were beaten this game 58 to 29. A much better showing but the hurt remains.

Borden County and Strawn with their victories were able to claim the prize and joy of being crowned State Champions. It happens every year that there are victors and those who fall in defeat. Next season will be no different. Prepare now.

Division 2 Championship at 2:00 PM

2008-12-08T12:22:00.000-08:00

The Division 2 Championship game will be played at 2:00 PM December 13th. Sorry for the error.

Texas High School Six-Man State Championship Games

2008-12-08T09:23:00.000-08:00

Division 1

Follett vs. Strawn
Saturday December 13th 7:00 PM
Lowery Field in Lubbock

Follett (11-2)
week 0 Strawn 46 Follett 0
week 1 Follett 57 Hart 6
week 2 Follett 54 Miami 0
week 3 Follett 45 Kress 0
week 4 Follett 55 Northside 48
week 5 Follett 57 Throckmorton 46
week 6 Valley 30 Follett 28
week 7 Follett 50 Fort Elliott 0
week 9 Follett 64 McLean 22
week 10 Follett 61 Happy 12
week 12 Follett 56 Ropes 30
week 13 Follett 44 Meadow 39
week 14 Follett 64 Fort Davis 42

Strawn (13-1)
week 0 Strawn 46 Follett 0
week 1 Strawn 72 Prairie Lea 0
week 2 Strawn 62 Zephyr 14
week 3 Strawn 64 Eden 16
week 4 Strawn 54 Woodson 0
week 6 Strawn 72 May 28
week 7 Strawn 62 Rising Star 8
week 8 Strawn 54 Blanket 0
week 9 Gordon 60 Strawn 30
week 10 Strawn 60 Gustine 8
week 11 Strawn 83 Richland Springs 72
week 12 Strawn 60 Saint Jo 8
week 13 Strawn 89 Gordon 58
week 14 Strawn 102 Abbott 70

Division 2

Borden County vs. Woodson
Saturday December 13th 3:00 PM
Wolfforth Friendship

Borden County (13-0)
week 0 Borden County 40 New Home 12
week 2 Borden County 48 Wellman-Union 0
week 3 Borden County 56 Rule 24
week 4 Borden County 70 Klondike 20
week 5 Borden County 74 Sterling City 40
week 6 Borden County 57 Buena Vista 12
week 7 Borden County 60 Grandfalls-Royalty 8
week 8 Borden County 59 Sands 14
week 9 Borden County 54 Westbrook 6
week 11 Borden County 62 Klondike 16
week 12 Borden County 64 Sanderson 18
week 13 Borden County 64 Sierra Blanca 36
week 14 Borden County 52 Silverton 6

Woodson (10-4)
week 0 May 50 Woodson 42
week 1 Woodson 55 Newcastle 44
week 2 Throckmorton 58 Woodson 8
week 3 Woodson 75 Rising Star 40
week 4 Strawn 54 Woodson 0
week 5 Northside 64 Woodson 7
week 6 Woodson 58 Lueders-Avoca 8
week 8 Woodson 76 Paint Creek 6
week 9 Woodson 56 Rule 8
week 10 Woodson 48 Bryson 0
week 11 Woodson 57 Blackwell 12
week 12 Woodson 71 Fannindel 27
week 13 Woodson 38 Highland 24
week 14 Woodson 101 Walnut Springs 63

History happened on November 4th, 2008

2008-12-07T19:22:00.000-08:00

November 4th, was a historic day. You might be jumping to conclusions and I may be jumping to conclusions as well. What I am talking about is the fact that the Federal Communications Commission decided to open the unused radio airwaves between broadcast TV channels for wireless broadband service. I believe this is GREAT NEWS for six-man communities!

The FCC's vote on this should allow broadband services to underserved areas. Timing is everything. The vote will allow companies to sell devices that use these airwaves, known as "white spaces," after the nation's transition to digital television broadcasts in February of 2009.

People in the know say these airwaves are ideal for broadband because they have stronger signals than Wi-Fi. They could be especially valuable in extending high-speed Internet service in rural areas, which typically have little or no service. It should be a better service and also cheaper.

Stay tuned.

Title Picks

2008-12-07T18:10:00.000-08:00

Division 1
Strawn 66 Follett 42

Division 2
Borden County 68 Woodson 58

Title Games

2008-12-06T19:20:00.000-08:00

Division 1
Strawn vs. Follett

Division 2
Borden County vs. Woodson

Dates and Sites TBD

Old School

2008-12-06T08:44:00.000-08:00

Old school. That is where I am from. When it comes to football I like defensive games. I don't get to see as many as I would like now days.

Last night two teams went over 100 points. I hate that. I want to see football, not a circus. I have been told I need to get over it. I have been told the scores will get higher. Well, maybe that is true but now I am doing the telling and I am telling I DON'T LIKE IT.

Yes, six-man is usually a high scoring kind of thing but this is crazy. I love six-man. I really do. I detest teams being able to score 100 points.

Did I say I was from the old school?

First photo in Blog

2008-12-05T07:27:00.000-08:00

Well, that wasn't too good. Maybe I will get better. Maybe I won't.

Fort Davis vs. Follett in Trent

2008-12-05T07:19:00.000-08:00

Most of the folks that follow Six-man here in Texas will say you should be going to Glen Rose to see the game with Strawn and Abbott. They may well be correct. I can't make that game but I do intend to go to Trent to watch the Fort Davis and Follett game. If you have never been to the Trent football stadium, you are in for a real treat.

SEMIFINALS

2008-12-01T12:53:00.000-08:00

TEXAS SIX-MAN SEMIFINALS

Division 1

Follett Panthers (10-2) vs. Fort Davis Indians (13-0)
Friday December 5th 7:00 PM in Trent

Follett (10-2)
week 0 Strawn 46 Follett 0
week 1 Follett 57 Hart 6
week 2 Follett 54 Miami 0
week 3 Follett 45 Kress 0
week 4 Follett 55 Northside 48
week 5 Follett 57 Throckmorton 46
week 6 Valley 30 Follett 28
week 7 Follett 50 Fort Elliott 0
week 9 Follett 64 McLean 22
week 10 Follett 61 Happy 12
week 12 Follett 56 Ropes 30
week 13 Follett 44 Meadow 39

Fort Davis (13-0)
week 0 Fort Davis 46 Midland Trinity 0
week 1 Fort Davis 48 Balmorhea 0
week 2 Fort Davis 46 Sanderson 0
week 3 Fort Davis 66 Sierra Blanca 44
week 4 Fort Davis 62 EP Faith 0
week 5 Fort Davis 78 Dell City 22
week 6 Fort Davis 66 Rankin 20
week 7 Fort Davis 58 Sterling City 8
week 8 Fort Davis 54 Garden City 33
week 10 Fort Davis 72 Water Valley 26
week 11 Fort Davis 72 O'Donnell 22
week 12 Fort Davis 64 Northside 42
week 13 Fort Davis 63 Garden City 56

Strawn Greyhounds (12-1) vs. Abbott Panthers (13-0)
Friday December 5th 7:30 PM in Glen Rose

Strawn (12-1)
week 0 Strawn 46 Follett 0
week 1 Strawn 72 Prairie Lea 0
week 2 Strawn 62 Zephyr 14
week 3 Strawn 64 Eden 16
week 4 Strawn 54 Woodson 0
week 6 Strawn 72 May 28
week 7 Strawn 62 Rising Star 8
week 8 Strawn 54 Blanket 0
week 9 Gordon 60 Strawn 30
week 10 Strawn 60 Gustine 8
week 11 Strawn 83 Richland Springs 72
week 12 Strawn 60 Saint Jo 8
week 13 Strawn 89 Gordon 58

Abbott (13-0)
week 0 Abbott 57 Garden City 14
week 1 Abbott 46 Cranfills Gap 0
week 2 Abbott 61 Temple Central Texas 14
week 3 Abbott 58 Penelope 13
week 4 Abbott 50 Kopperl 0
week 5 Abbott 62 Aquilla 14
week 6 Abbott 68 Bynum 0
week 7 Abbott 53 Milford 8
week 9 Abbott 66 Covington 0
week 10 Abbott 59 Blum 14
week 11 Abbott 61 Penelope 16
week 12 Abbott 56 Lometa 22
week 13 Abbott 38 Calvert 28

Division 2
Silverton Owls (9-4) vs. Borden County Coyotes (12-0)
Saturday December 6th 7:30 PM in Lubbock Lowery Field

Silverton (9-4)
week 0 Petersburg 35 Silverton 34
week 1 Happy 26 Silverton 6
week 2 Crowell 72 Silverton 26
week 3 Silverton 67 Groom 20
week 4 Lorenzo 55 Silverton 8
week 5 Silverton 60 Whitharral 14
week 6 Silverton 57 Motley County 12
week 7 Silverton 54 Amherst 6
week 8 Silverton 62 Lazbuddie 14
week 10 Silverton 80 Cotton Center 0
week 11 Silverton 71 Groom 24
week 12 Silverton 60 Jayton 21
week 13 Silverton 70 Lefors 62

Borden County (12-0)
week 0 Borden County 40 New Home 12
week 2 Borden County 48 Wellman-Union 0
week 3 Borden County 56 Rule 24
week 4 Borden County 70 Klondike 20
week 5 Borden County 74 Sterling City 40
week 6 Borden County 57 Buena Vista 12
week 7 Borden County 60 Grandfalls-Royalty 8
week 8 Borden County 59 Sands 14
week 9 Borden County 54 Westbrook 6
week 11 Borden County 62 Klondike 16
week 12 Borden County 64 Sanderson 18
week 13 Borden County 64 Sierra Blanca 36

Woodson Cowboys (9-4) vs. Walnut Springs Hornets (9-3)
Friday December 5th 7:30 PM in Hico

Woodson (9-4)
week 0 May 50 Woodson 42
week 1 Woodson 55 Newcastle 44
week 2 Throckmorton 58 Woodson 8
week 3 Woodson 75 Rising Star 40
week 4 Strawn 54 Woodson 0
week 5 Northside 64 Woodson 7
week 6 Woodson 58 Lueders-Avoca 8
week 8 Woodson 76 Paint Creek 6
week 9 Woodson 56 Rule 8
week 10 Woodson 48 Bryson 0
week 11 Woodson 57 Blackwell 12
week 12 Woodson 71 Fannindel 27
week 13 Woodson 38 Highland 24

Walnut Springs (9-3)
week 0 Richland Springs 82 Walnut Springs 36
week 1 Gordon 76 Walnut Springs 28
week 2 Walnut Springs 38 Aquilla 20
week 3 Blum 38 Walnut Springs 32
week 4 Walnut Springs 56 Jonesboro 28
week 5 Walnut Springs 66 Granbury Happy Hill 21
week 6 Walnut Springs 60 Oglesby 14
week 7 Walnut Springs 72 Leverett's Chapel 66
week 8 Walnut Springs 48 Iredell 0
week 10 Walnut Springs 54 Morgan 8
week 12 Walnut Springs 48 Sidney 42
week 13 Walnut Springs 80 Star 73

ROUND FOUR PICKS

2008-11-30T13:14:00.000-08:00

Round 1 I had 14 right 2 wrong.

Round 2 I had 14 right and 2 wrong.

Round 3 I had 2 right and 6 wrong.

Dare I pick round 4? Sure!

Division 1
Fort Davis 42 Follett 24
Strawn 38 Abbott 24

Division 2
Borden County 58 Silverton 37
Woodson 51 Walnut Springs 30

Round Three

2008-11-26T14:40:00.000-08:00

It has been a great year so far. The excitement continues to builds. I can't wait for this round of games. I wished I could see them all.

Hope all of you have a great Thanksgiving. For those who are on the road for the holidays or for the games or both, have a safe trip.

ROUND 3 PREDICTIONS

2008-11-25T05:41:00.000-08:00

DIVISION ONE
Calvert 46 Abbott 24
Gordon 45 Strawn 32
Fort Davis 38 Garden City 24
Meadow 46 Follett 34

DIVISION TWO
Highland 54 Woodson 38
Borden County 44 Sierra Blanca 28
Star 68 Walnut Springs 52
Lefors 42 Silverton 36

GREAT EIGHTS

2008-11-24T12:57:00.000-08:00

Folks, we are now down to the EIGHT remaining team in each division.

DIVISION ONE
Calvert
Gordon
Abbott
Strawn
Fort Davis
Garden City
Follett
Meadow

This week's match ups are:
Calvert and Abbott
Gordon and Strawn
Fort Davis and Garden City
Follett and Meadow

DIVISION TWO
Highland
Borden County
Woodson
Sierra Blanca
Star
Lefors
Silverton
Walnut Springs

This week's match ups are:
Highland and Woodson
Borden County and Sierra Blanca
Star and Walnut Springs
Lefors and Silverton

CONGRATULATIONS to the GREAT EIGHTS of each division.

Round 2 Predictions

2008-11-17T20:00:00.000-08:00

Valley 48 Meadow 46
Follett 58 Ropes 38
Garden City 38 Throckmorton 34
Fort Davis 60 Northside 50

Strawn 46 Saint Jo 0
Gordon 58 Greenville Phoenix 8
Abbott 66 Lometa 18
Calvert 58 Milford 20

Lefors 42 Benjamin 26
Jayton 38 Silverton 22
Sierra Blanca 46 Sands 34
Borden County 58 Sanderson 24

Woodson 58 Fannindel 12
Highland 48 Goldburg 0
Walnut Springs 34 Sidney 18
Star 66 Leverett's Chapel 40

Round 1 Predictions vs. Actual

2008-11-17T19:38:00.000-08:00

Round One Predictions

Meadow 44 Petersburg 24 Actual Meadow 47 Petersburg 20
Ropes 61 Hart 16 Actual Ropes 60 Hart 14
Ira 34 Garden City 24 Actual Ira 48 Garden City 50 Wrong
Fort Davis 51 O'Donnell 6 Actual Fort Davis 72 O'Donnell 22
Strawn 48 Richland Springs 44 Actual Strawn 83 Richland Springs 72
Gordon 68 Robert Lee 16 Actual Gordon 56 Robert Lee 8
Abbott 54 Penelope 8 Actual Abbott 61 Penelope 14
Milford 58 Trinidad 36 Actual Milford 52 Trinidad 12
Lefors 46 Motley County 16 Actual Lefors 72 Motley County 26
Silverton 38 Groom 24 Actual Silverton 71 Groom 24
Sands 42 Dawson 38 Actual 60 Dawson 52
Borden County 54 Klondike 6 Actual Borden County 62 Klondike 16
Woodson 38 Blackwell 30 Actual Woodson 57 Blackwell 12
Highland 58 Rule 14 Actual Highland 46 Rule 0
Zephyr 54 Sidney 46 Actual Sidney 52 Zephyr 38 Wrong
Star 48 Panther Creek 46 Actual Star 98 Panther Creek 66

Round One Predictions

2008-11-13T14:20:00.001-08:00

Meadow 44 Petersburg 24
Ropes 61 Hart 16
Ira 34 Garden City 24
Fort Davis 51 O'Donnell 6
Strawn 48 Richland Springs 44
Gordon 68 Robert Lee 16
Abbott 54 Penelope 8
Milford 58 Trinidad 36
Lefors 46 Motley County 16
Silverton 38 Groom 24
Sands 42 Dawson 38
Borden County 54 Klondike 6
Woodson 38 Blackwell 30
Highland 58 Rule 14
Zephyr 54 Sidney 46
Star 48 Panther Creek 46

It is Playoff time

2008-11-13T12:00:00.000-08:00

The second season had finally gotten here. Playoff time. This is what it was all about during the season. Playing for the playoffs. Sure there were lots of important games during the season. Even some before district started. Now all the games are serious. You know the routine. Lose and the season is over.

Good Football To You!!

Correction

2008-11-01T13:57:00.001-07:00

Petersburg
Meadow

Division ONE Playoff Parings

2008-11-01T13:47:00.000-07:00

They are not totally set yet. Looks like it will be something like this:

REGION ONE
Valley
BYE

Petersburg
Meadow

Hart
Ropes

BYE
Follett

REGION TWO
Northside ??
BYE

Ira
Garden City

O'Donnell
Fort Davis

BYE
Paducah ??

REGION THREE
Richland Springs
Strawn

Saint Jo
BYE

BYE
Greenville Phoenix

Robert Lee
Gordon

REGION FOUR
Abbott
Penelope

Calvert
BYE

BYE
Lometa

Milford
Trinidad

These are best guess projections.

compliation of recent blogs at Abilene Reporter News

2008-10-06T18:00:00.000-07:00

Six-Man Central by Don Hardin

October 6, 2008

SMC WEEK SIX GAMES OF THE WEEK

Division 1 District 5 Contest
# 8 Northside (4 - 1) at # 12 Paducah (4 - 1)
The preseason script was written with the idea that the Throckmorton and Northside game to be played on Friday November 7th would determine the District Champ and Runner up. That may indeed be the case yet. Let's take a look at the records of Northside and Paducah.

Northside (4-1)
week 0 Northside 74 Happy 29
week 1 Northside 61 Valley 55
week 3 Northside 52 Saint Jo 6
week 4 Follett 55 Northside 48
week 5 Northside 64 Woodson 7

Paducah (4-1)
week 0 Paducah 67 EP Immanuel Christian 18
week 2 Paducah 47 Rule 14
week 3 Meadow 58 Paducah 24
week 4 Paducah 38 Ira 37
week 5 Paducah 38 Valley 28

The official spread says that Paducah is a six point underdog to Northside. Could there be an upset here? I believe it is possible.

Division 1 District 1 Contest
# 7 Follett (5 - 1) hosting # 13 Valley (3 - 3)
From the gitgo, these are the two teams believed to be the District champ and runner up. Here in the very first week of district they will battle it out. The official spread has Valley as a 10 point underdog to Follett. The last two wins by Follett have been on quality teams. Valley will enter the game after losing to Paducah last week. Here is a closer look at the season for these two teams.

Valley (3-3)
week 0 Gordon 60 Valley 38
week 1 Northside 61 Valley 55
week 2 Valley 60 Kress 12
week 3 Valley 63 Crowell 30
week 4 Valley 65 Meadow 46
week 5 Paducah 38 Valley 28

Follett (5-1)
week 0 Strawn 46 Follett 0
week 1 Follett 57 Hart 6
week 2 Follett 54 Miami 0
week 3 Follett 45 Kress 0
week 4 Follett 55 Northside 48
week 5 Follett 57 Throckmorton 46

October 6, 2008 5:44 PM

TOP TEN RANKINGS WEEK FIVE

DIVISION 1

# 1. Calvert (5 - 0)
# 2. Strawn (5 - 0)
# 3. Richland Springs (5 - 0)
# 4. Abbott (4 - 0 )
# 5. Fort Davis ( 6 - 0)
# 6. Gordon (4 - 1)
# 7. Follett ( 5 - 1)
# 8. Northside (4 -1)
# 9. Throckmorton (4 - 1)
#10. Milford ( 6 - 0)

DIVISION 2

# 1. Highland (5 - 0)
# 2. Borden County (5 - 0)
# 3. Sierra Blanca (3 - 1)
# 4 Woodson (2 - 4)
# 5. Zephyr (3 - 2)
# 6. Sanderson (3 - 3)
# 7. Lefors (3 - 2)
# 8. Blackwell (5 - 0)
# 9. Panther Creek (3 - 2)
#10. Cherokee (3 - 2)

October 6, 2008 5:40 PM

TOP TEN RESULTS WEEK FIVE

Division 1 Top 10

1. Calvert (5-0) beat Waxahachie Eagle Advantage 70 - 20
2. Strawn (5-0) did not play
3. Richland Springs (5-0) beat Buckholts 64 - 18
4. Abbott (6-0) beat Aquilla 62 - 14
5. Fort Davis (6-0) beat. Dell City 78 - 22
6. Gordon (4-1) did not play
7. Throckmorton (4-1) lost to # 8 Follett 57-46
8. Follett (5-1) beat # 7 Throckmorton 57-46
9. Valley (3-3) lost to Paducah 38-28
10. Northside (4-1) beat Division 2 # 4 Woodson 64-7

Division 2 Top-10

1. Highland (5-0) beat Water Valley 52 - 6
2. Borden County (5-0) beat Division 1 Sterling City 74 - 40
3. Sierra Blanca (3-1) did not play
4. Woodson (2-4) lost to Division 1 # 10 Northside 64 - 7
5. Sanderson (3-3) beat Buena Vista 58 - 21
6. Zephyr (3-2) did not play
7. Lefors (3-2) lost to Happy 28 - 27
8. Sands (4-2) lost to Dawson 64 - 58
9. Blackwell (5-0) did not play
10. Panther Creek (2-2) did not play

October 6, 2008 5:37 PM

October 2, 2008

WEEK FIVE SMC GAMES OF THE WEEK

Division 1 # 7 Throckmorton hosting Division 1 # 8 Follett
It is a BIG weekend in Throckmorton! Not only is it Homecoming time but it is also the Throckmorton County Sesquicentennial celebration. 150 years! Too bad the game with May wasn't on the schedule for this weekend. I look for a great game between T- Rock and Follett. Throckmorton is a one point favorite.

Follett (4-1)
week 0 Strawn 46 Follett 0
week 1 Follett 57 Hart 6
week 2 Follett 54 Miami 0
week 3 Follett 45 Kress 0
week 4 Follett 55 Northside 48

Throckmorton (4-0)
week 0 Throckmorton 42 Ira 24
week 1 Throckmorton 75 Waxahachie Eagle Advantage 26
week 2 Throckmorton 58 Woodson 8
week 3 Throckmorton 102 May 100

Division 2 # 2 Borden County travels to Division 1 # 25 Sterling City.
Sterling City is enjoying a 4-1 season in their debut in Six-Man. They have a seasoned HC in Clyde Parham. The community has rallied around the program but better yet the young men have bought into the program. Those three things combined definitely lend a hand toward the program being successful. They are entering a tough three weeks starting with Borden County. The SC Eagles are 26 point underdogs against Borden County. BC is very quick and plays well as a team. District starts next week for Sterling City and the Eagles will face # 14 Garden City and # 5 Fort Davis back to back. This game with Borden County will be helpful in judging where the Eagles stand.

BTW it will also be a good game for HC Trey Richey and the Coyotes of BC to solidify their Division 2 # 2 ranking. Coach Richey believes in teaching the fundamentals of blocking and and tackling. That sounds simple but it is extremely important and especially so in the game of Six-Man. The Coyotes were very close to making the playoffs last season and are very determined to this year. This game will serve as the last tune up before BC opens district play. Preseason picks had BC and Sands at the teams projected to advance to the playoffs from Division 2 District 6. The current situation appears to reinforce those preseason picks. Sands, currently ranked # 8 in Division 2, lost to Sterling City 58 to 40 a couple of weeks ago.

Borden County (4-0)
week 0 Borden County 40 New Home 12
week 2 Borden County 48 Wellman-Union 0
week 3 Borden County 56 Rule 24
week 4 Borden County 70 Klondike 20

Sterling City (4-1)
week 0 Santa Anna 34 Sterling City 28
week 1 Sterling City 40 Loraine 34
week 2 Sterling City 46 O'Donnell 14
week 3 Sterling City 58 Sands 40
week 4 Sterling City 106 Robert Lee 64

Division 1 # 19 Ropesville Ropes travels to Division 1 # 20 Petersburg
The official spread for this game favors Ropes by three. Coach Joseph O'Malley of Petersburg chose as his teams motto for the season "Rasing The Bar". It would appear they have done so thus far into the season.

Coach Lane Jackson and Ropes' last years edition advanced to the area round of the playoffs. Ropes lost key players from that team but returns good players as well. A win here will have them on the right track as district will begin the next week.

Petersburg (5-0)
week 0 Petersburg 35 Silverton 34
week 1 Petersburg 47 Amherst 0
week 2 Petersburg 42 Lorenzo 8
week 3 Petersburg 77 New Home 48
week 4 Petersburg 61 Wellman-Union 14

Ropes (3-2)
week 0 Ropes 62 Hart 30
week 1 Ropes 58 Kress 12
week 2 Ira 76 Ropes 56
week 3 Ropes 60 Whitharral 12
week 4 Grady 42 Ropes 40

GOOD FOOTBALL TO YOU

Don Hardin
Abilene, TX

Email txsixii@yahoo.com

October 2, 2008 11:09 AM

October 1, 2008

ACKERLY SANDS # 8 Division 2

I had an opportunity to stop by Ackerly today. Had a great visit with the Principal, Zelda Bilbo, and the Head Coach, Wayne Henderson. The Principal is a home grown product. She has been at the school for 31 years. There are several things she likes about the community but she is most proud of the students that attend there. As she discussed the students the smile on her face said a lot but it was the sparkle in her eyes that really told me how proud she is of them.

Coach Wayne Henderson was surprised by my visit. I introduced myself and he said he reads my comments on SixManFootball.com. Here is a sample of how that all went down.

SMC: I also write a blog on GoFridayNight.Com. called Six-Man Central.

Coach Henderson: At the Abilene Reporter~News?

SMC: Yes, that's correct. Can we talk a moment?

Coach Henderson: Sure.

SMC: You guys are currently ranked # 8 in the state in Division 2. How do you feel about that? Is your team worthy of the ranking?

Coach Henderson: Well, it feels good. The team has worked really hard. That was a goal we set as a team, that and making the playoffs. What I talk to my guys about is the # 8 ranking is just on paper. A computer beat out some numbers and we are ranked # 8. It is exciting. We are doing good. We are 4-1. We got down a couple of scores to Sterling City early and never made it up. We know we have to play the games.

Here is the season record injected my SMC.
Sands (4-1)
week 0 Sands 30 Hermleigh 16
week 1 Sands 47 Wilson 0
week 2 Sands 48 Trent 0
week 3 Sterling City 58 Sands 40
week 4 Sands 88 Spur 40

SMC: You guys are Division 2. How much did you miss the cutoff on being Division 1?

Coach Henderson: It was close, we did not miss it much. Those numbers fluctuate as you know. If we were to turn in numbers today, we would be in Division 1 by a couple or so. Of course we are in Division 2 this season and next. Then, we will see how it goes. We believe we can compete in either Division. This season we are 1 and 1 against Division 1 teams.

SMC: There are several factors that one has to take into account when determining if you can compete at whatever level, right?

Coach Henderson: That is for sure. Numbers would be one thing and of course injury will always plat a role in your numbers. I started out one season a couple of years ago with 21 boys and wound up with nine. That season went South in a hurry.

SMC: How healthy are you right now? I believe you go to Dawson Friday?

Coach Henderson: We are looking pretty good. I have one player that they are looking at a knee today. We hope for the best. I have another player with a health related issue being checked out today as well. Worst case we may go to Dawson with 10 players. I usually try to carry twelve.

SMC: An injury can indeed turn a promising season into a disaster.

Coach Henderson: Yes sir.

SMC: I noticed there is lots of construction going on.

Coach Henderson: Yes sir. We are building a new gym and auditorium.

SMC: (laughing) How about turf for the field?

Coach Henderson: Actually that has been discussed. Water source or lack thereof is a problem for us as I am sure it is for many other six-man schools. We got around six inches of rain a couple of weeks ago that has sure helped out.

SMC: What about the playoffs? You guys in for sure?

Coach Henderson: Staying healthy means everything and you have to win your games. Yes we think we will be there. October 24th is a big game with us. That is Borden County. We have to take care of business between now and then for sure. We have Dawson this week. We are open the next week. That is kind of funny. We have had the last week of the season open for the last two seasons. I am having to rethink the open date here in the middle of the season.

SMC: I know coaches feel like open dates can get you out of sync. At least it gives you a week to nurse any injuries before district play.

Coach Henderson: Yes sir.

SMC: I don't like to rely on luck so I say Good Football To You.

Coach Henderson: Thanks. We just need to stay healthy and play hard and smart.

October 1, 2008 3:32 PM

September 30, 2008

WEEK FOUR TOP TEN RANKINGS

DIVISION 1

# 1. Calvert 4-0
# 2 Strawn 5-0
# 3. Richland Springs4-0
# 4. Abbott 5-0
# 5. Fort Davis 5-0
# 6. Gordon 4-1
# 7. Throckmorton 4-0
# 8. Follett 4-1
# 9. Valley 3-2
#10. Northside 3-1

DIVISION 2

# 1. Highland 4-0
# 2. Borden County 4-0
# 3. Sierra Blanca 3-1
# 4. Woodson 2-3
# 5. Sanderson 2-3
# 6. Zephyr 3-2
# 7. Lefors 3-1
# 8. Sands 4-1
# 9. Blackwell 5-0
#10.Panther Creek 2-2

September 30, 2008 3:14 PM

September 26, 2008

Why is the EAST such a BEAST????????

There are four regions in Division One. The common thought being Region 1 and Region 2 make up the West and Region 3 and Region 4 make up the East.

Let's go to the top 10 teams in Division 1 for a moment shall we?

# 1. Calvert Region 4 East
# 2. Strawn Region 3 East
# 3. Richland Springs Region 3 East
# 4. Abbott Region 4 East
# 5. Fort Davis Region 2 West
# 6. Gordon Region 3 East
# 7. Throckmorton Region 2 West
# 8. Northside Region 2 West
# 9. Milford Region 4 East
#10.Follett Region 1 West

Based on paper and not on the field, the playoffs wind up looking like this:
Follett and Fort Davis would meet in Semi finals for the West.
Calvert and Strawn would meet in the Semi-finals for the East.

The Championship game would be between Calvert and Fort Davis with
Calvert winning by 23 points. This is all on paper remember.

Strange things can happen between now and then. Some teams start district this week and others are 2 or 3 weeks away. Then the playoffs start and who knows what might happen there?

GOOD FOOTBALL TO YOU

September 26, 2008 9:38 AM

Six-Man Central by Don Hardin

Blog Search

Dave Campbell's 2008 Texas Football 6-Man

2008-06-24T17:56:00.000-07:00

The "preseason" rankings are out. For what it is worth. Jawing is about all it is worth Fans can say WOW look at us, we are ranked! Or what is going on? We're not even mentioned.

The information regarding Six-Man is written by a gent named Granger Huntress. If you follow Six-Man in Texas you know Granger is a legend. He has done as much as anyone for the sport. I glad to call him a friend. I hope the friend thing is mutual. I certainly am not a legend. When you read the magazine or read the rankings elsewhere, you don't have to agree with them. Granger has done his homework. He might not make straight A's but he has studied things. Let's take a look at this year's preseason rankings.

Division I
1. Calvert
2. Turkey Valley
3. Strawn
4. Richland Springs
5. Fort Davis
6. Follett
7. Abbott
8. Garden City
9. Milford
10.Vernon Northside

Division II
1. Woodson
2. Motley County
3. Highland
4. Zephyr
5. Borden County
6. Sanderson
7. Rule
8. Sierra Blanca
9. Sidney
10.Lefors

Interesting! The last couple of seasons appeared to be decided even before the first week of the season. That was especially true in Division I. It appears the landscape may have changed. Again, we are talking preseason rankings and that is the idea. Get people talking.

Track Season

2008-03-11T14:14:00.000-07:00

It is track season. I like track. Really! You must know by now that I am a football nut. Certified. August is like 5 months off. That is a long time when you are waiting for football. I am not talking just any football. No sir. I am talking Texas High School Football and on top of that Six-Man football. There is nothing in the world like it. I just gotta wait. Dang!

Sterling City has a new HC

2008-02-26T12:43:00.000-08:00

I will let him or the school spill the beans as to who it is. Great guy. Deserving.

Matching Coaches and Schools

2008-02-20T19:59:00.000-08:00

I am working on trying to get an idea of where everyone will wind up for the upcoming season. This is a hard task but I am up to it I think. Stay tuned.

If some how you have found this and don't know about the six-man bible, find your way to sixmanfootball.com. You won't be dissappointed.

February 2008 Re-Alignment has struck

2008-02-17T20:00:00.001-08:00

The UIL has done its thing once again. Now that is out of the way it is time to start trying to figure out who the head coach will be. Lots of changes. Stay tuned.