Gilmer vs Liberty Eylau at TMF in Tyler

[lostaussie]

Both teams seem to be loaded up. Who you got and why?

[lostaussie]

Thursday night also. We got any visitors coming?

[Bosqueville]

Gilmer by 14.

[buckeyebob]

We are home side...the Boys have looked pretty good.

Question: Is LE in shape & ready for the Buxs?

I see +14 as a realistic number.

[Gsquared]

Man, I sooo cant wait to see this one. I think Gilmer takes it but I think its gonna be a tight game for the most part. See you boys in Tyler Thursday! Orale!

[d0tc0m]

Both teams seem to be loaded up. Who you got and why?



Most intriguing/exciting Week One matchup, in my opinion, and there are some good ones to choose from. There will be some crazy athleticism on display Thursday night in Tyler. The question I have for this matchup is what kind of depth does LE have on defense? Gilmer runs its offensive attack at such a breakneck pace, that it makes it tough on defenses, especially early in the season. It's much easier to condition your offensive guys to run at that pace than it is to condition your guys to defend that kind of pace.

If LE has some quality depth on the defensive side and can rotate some guys in and out to give their defenders a breather, I think they have a great shot at winning this game. Offensively, the Leps are going to score some points. If they can take care of the ball, get their kicking game in order and limit penalties, they'll put a lot of pressure on Gilmer's young QB.

On the flip side, I really like Gilmer's defense. If Hurt is healthy, and I assume he is, they're going to be really, really good on that side of the ball. I think they'll defend LE well, and will have the athletes to keep up with the Leps quick-strike attack. Offensively, if Gilmer has figured out its QB situation - and by looks of the scrimmages, it appears they have - then look out. With Collier, Morton, Jones and company back - and maybe with Hurt getting some snaps at receiver - the Buckeyes are going to be lethal on that side of the ball.

On paper, this looks like a high-scoring affair, and I think it will be. That said, because it's Week One, I think Gilmer's defense will be just a bit ahead of LE's defense, and for that reason, I'll take the Buckeyes in a single-possession game.

[waterboy]

Most intriguing/exciting Week One matchup, in my opinion, and there are some good ones to choose from. There will be some crazy athleticism on display Thursday night in Tyler. The question I have for this matchup is what kind of depth does LE have on defense? Gilmer runs its offensive attack at such a breakneck pace, that it makes it tough on defenses, especially early in the season. It's much easier to condition your offensive guys to run at that pace than it is to condition your guys to defend that kind of pace.

If LE has some quality depth on the defensive side and can rotate some guys in and out to give their defenders a breather, I think they have a great shot at winning this game. Offensively, the Leps are going to score some points. If they can take care of the ball, get their kicking game in order and limit penalties, they'll put a lot of pressure on Gilmer's young QB.

On the flip side, I really like Gilmer's defense. If Hurt is healthy, and I assume he is, they're going to be really, really good on that side of the ball. I think they'll defend LE well, and will have the athletes to keep up with the Leps quick-strike attack. Offensively, if Gilmer has figured out its QB situation - and by looks of the scrimmages, it appears they have - then look out. With Collier, Morton, Jones and company back - and maybe with Hurt getting some snaps at receiver - the Buckeyes are going to be lethal on that side of the ball.

On paper, this looks like a high-scoring affair, and I think it will be. That said, because it's Week One, I think Gilmer's defense will be just a bit ahead of LE's defense, and for that reason, I'll take the Buckeyes in a single-possession game.

That sounds like a good synopsis. I'll take it. A win is a win, and Liberty-Eylau is definitely going to be a contender. Conditioning is usually the issue this early in the season, and I think Gilmer's offense puts a whole lot of pressure on the Leopard defense. They will be gassed I think. That is usually why Gilmer is usually well ahead of the curve early in the season, having a good off-season conditioning program.

[lostaussie]

We are home side...the Boys have looked pretty good.

Question: Is LE in shape & ready for the Buxs?

I see +14 as a realistic number.

I actually thought we were on visiting side. Can you confirm Bob?

[Aesculus gilmus]

I bought a ticket today and it says "Home General Admission" on it. The Gilmer athletic secretary also says we are home.

[waterboy]

Yes, we are the home team. The last time we played in the Classic in 2014 we were the visitors. Four year deal between Gilmer and L-E.

2014 - Gilmer vs. Liberty-Eylau (home team) in the Classic: Gilmer 55, L-E 16
2015 - Liberty-Eylau @ Gilmer: Gilmer 50, L-E 45
2016 - Liberty-Eylau vs. Gilmer (home team) in the Classic
2017 - Gilmer @ Liberty-Eylau

[buckeyebob]

Man, I sooo cant wait to see this one. I think Gilmer takes it but I think its gonna be a tight game for the most part. See you boys in Tyler Thursday! Orale!

We are on the Home Side out of the sun...you are welcome to sit with us if you behave (& please no black fish nets or see thru teddy tonight...you remember last time...or maybe not...it was ugly)

[Bosqueville]

Last I heard LE was up on Gilmer 14-7.

[lostaussie]

If I didn't know better I would think we are playing Liberty Hill. 20-7 LE

[Bosqueville]

If I didn't know better I would think we are playing Liberty Hill. 20-7 LE

Wow!! :1omg!:

[lostaussie]

And just like that 20-13

[lostaussie]

Wow!! :1omg!:

Long way to go lol. But they are running at will on us. We may wear on them in 2nd half though. We will see.

[lostaussie]

LE has thrown 4 passes. We have caught 3 of them.

[lostaussie]

TD Buckeyes�� 20-20

[lostaussie]

We ain't playing Carthage.......but it's fixing to storm. And I mean literally fixing to storm.

[lostaussie]

Another Buckeyes int

[lostaussie]

8 Seconds left in half. Gilmer on the 2

[lostaussie]

TD Gilmer. LE don't know what hit them 28-20
I think we scored 3 times in 4 minutes

[Bosqueville]

Wow... LE with the choke. They'll never recover mentally now..

[lostaussie]

Wow... LE with the choke. They'll never recover mentally now..

May go 0-10.......might go 1-0

[lostaussie]

59 seconds in its 28-28

[lostaussie]

Another minute gone by. Gilmer 35-28. We may be here all night.

[lostaussie]

Another minute played another TD 35-35. I'm out for a bit. Check in at end of 3rd.

[lostaussie]

End of third. Gilmer leads 48-35.

[Bosqueville]

Offense!!

[slingshot]

Either team playing defense?

[lostaussie]

It's 54-48 with 8:12 left.
We ain't stopped their backs and they ain't stopped our air attack

[lostaussie]

61-48 it may never be over

[lostaussie]

61-55 4:29 left:doh:

[lostaussie]

It wasn't pretty......but it gonna be over. Buckeyes QB can chunk it. It will be interesting to see how many total yards he has and how many we gave up. Final Gilmer 61 LE 55

[WOS1]

it wasn't pretty......but it gonna be over. Buckeyes qb can chunk it. It will be interesting to see how many total yards he has and how many we gave up. Final gilmer 61 le 55

wow!

[d0tc0m]

Wow. I expected Gilmer to have more defense than that, even if it is the first game of the season. It'll be interesting to watch the film on this one.

[poisoned10]

Poppy finished with 567 yards passing with 6 TD's and ran for another.

That broke the Gilmer single game passing record set by GJ Kinne in 2006.

That's according to Clint Buckley's twitter.


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[regaleagle]

Well......I reckon next week's practices will be all about defense for both teams, LOL.

[toddg]

Impressive to see 2 highly ranked teams in the state put such little effort in playing defense and the fans be ok with it, citing first game of the season kinks...I'm sure the effort will improve, but still...

[lostaussie]

Impressive to see 2 highly ranked teams in the state put such little effort in playing defense and the fans be ok with it, citing first game of the season kinks...I'm sure the effort will improve, but still...

We are used to it and it's worked out well for us 3 times before. Lots of folks would like to be able to say that. :thinking:
Besides that, our defense will improve. I don't think we will see many ground attacks as good as the one we saw last night. It's early and both teams will improve.

[toddg]

We are used to it and it's worked out well for us 3 times before. Lots of folks would like to be able to say that. :thinking:

Understood..but, teams who put heavy emphasis on defense, perennial high ranked teams like Katy, LT, SLC,..that..has worked out well 5, 7, and 8 times before...a lot of teams have 3 or more..I wish my team had just 1..que sera sera..

[waterboy]

Wow. I was afraid this game was going to be similar to last year. Lots of offense and very suspect defense. Both these teams have very good offenses, and normally very good defenses. It just seems that when these two teams match up they expose the weaknesses of the other team's defense very well. Just like last year, the offenses were well ahead of their defenses.

Several things stick out in my mind after seeing these two teams:

1) Liberty-Eylau is very big and athletic, with some good speed. They are also completely out of shape. I don't how many times there were "injury" time outs because of "cramping". I saw many times where some of their defensive players were waving to the sidelines after a play wanting a sub to come in to give them a breather because they were gassed. With the size and athleticism L-E always has, if they had a better off-season conditioning program they would likely be much better than they already are.

2) Gilmer is not there yet defensively. Uncharacteristically, they looked like they were getting worn down a lot earlier in this game than in past seasons. They are undersized as usual, but that usually doesn't keep them from being able to get stops. There was a lot of sloppy tackling due to fatigue. Yards after contact kept many drives alive for L-E.

3) Gilmer's kicking game is much weaker than usual. Special teams in general not where they need to be. Lots of improvement needed.

4) Gilmer has found a really good QB in "Poppy" Brown. He was amazing in his first varsity start. The receivers can catch the ball, too. 11 receivers caught passes last night, and LeMarcus Morton is a stud. The running game needs work, but I know it will come eventually.

5) Penalties, penalties, penalties killed several drives by Gilmer, and kept a couple of drives alive for L-E. This definitely needs to be addressed and cleaned up.

6) L-E started hitting some passes late in the game. They were alternating QBs, thinking #1 was the better passer, while #2 was the better runner. When they put #1 at receiver, with #2 at QB they started connecting on some pretty passes. It's a good thing they didn't figure this out earlier in the game. That makes me think they will be much better as they get more balanced, and much tougher to stop on offense.

7) L-E's secondary got torched a lot by Gilmer. They are young, though, and will get better as the season progresses.

All in all, I think both of these teams are very good. I also think both teams will get much better as the season progresses.

[Aesculus gilmus]

Found? You can never go back in time, but I already knew where Poppy was this time last year. He was on the JV and everyone was wondering exactly why.

He probably could have had the same kind of year at QB as Stump did as a sophomore, but we'll never know.

I talked to Poppy's mom after the game out in the parking lot. She said Poppy's brother Derek McKenzie (our starting QB in 2002 and 2003, for the non-Buckeyes reading this) missed the game due to being in Mexico.

On edit: Now that I think about it, the coaches did the same thing to Derek as they did to Poppy. Derek was also on the JV as a sophomore in 2001. Instead of him, they started a senior who'd never even played the position. That 2001 team won district, but probably wouldn't have lost to Pleasant Grove in bi-district if Derek had been starter.

[d0tc0m]

Found? You can never go back in time, but I already knew where Poppy was this time last year. He was on the JV and everyone was wondering exactly why.

He probably could have had the same kind of year at QB as Stump did as a sophomore, but we'll never know.

I talked to Poppy's mom after the game out in the parking lot. She said Poppy's brother Derek McKenzie (our starting QB in 2002 and 2003, for the non-Buckeyes reading this) missed the game due to being in Mexico.

On edit: Now that I think about it, the coaches did the same thing to Derek as they did to Poppy. Derek was also on the JV as a sophomore in 2001. Instead of him, they started a senior who'd never even played the position. That 2001 team won district, but probably wouldn't have lost to Pleasant Grove in bi-district if Derek had been starter.



I know he put up some big numbers last night, but after watching some of that film, he made some ill-advised throws on several occasions. He'll have some hiccups against a good defense. What he saw last night was anything but that.

That being said, he looks like he'll do a great job in shotgun for the Buckeyes this season and next.

[waterboy]

Found? You can never go back in time, but I already knew where Poppy was this time last year. He was on the JV and everyone was wondering exactly why.

He probably could have had the same kind of year at QB as Stump did as a sophomore, but we'll never know.

I talked to Poppy's mom after the game out in the parking lot. She said Poppy's brother Derek McKenzie (our starting QB in 2002 and 2003, for the non-Buckeyes reading this) missed the game due to being in Mexico.

On edit: Now that I think about it, the coaches did the same thing to Derek as they did to Poppy. Derek was also on the JV as a sophomore in 2001. Instead of him, they started a senior who'd never even played the position. That 2001 team won district, but probably wouldn't have lost to Pleasant Grove in bi-district if Derek had been starter.

I knew about him, and had heard about him. "Found" wasn't meant that he wasn't already known about. I guess settled on a starter would've been better wording? I've been hearing about Poppy since he was in junior high. Jeff Traylor was very high on him, and mentioned him several years ago. And please don't talk about last year... Geesh! I'm still having nightmares about that... I agree that it should've been Poppy starting last year.

[lostaussie]

And please don't talk about last year... Geesh! I'm still having nightmares about that... I agree that it should've been Poppy starting last year.
Hush yo mouth. There are people around town that would have you tarred and feathered for those remarks:D

[waterboy]

Hush yo mouth. There are people around town that would have you tarred and feathered for those remarks:D

I know you're right in that they would want to...., but they'd die of lead poisoning first. :D

I'm not going there out of respect for the kids. They played their hearts out, and almost overcame their shortcomings.

[Aesculus gilmus]

I know he put up some big numbers last night, but after watching some of that film, he made some ill-advised throws on several occasions.

Agreed, but something we never saw last night is one of his passes being batted up in the air and run back for a pick six. Celina wasn't the only team doing that to us last year. It happened at least three games in the playoffs. It is absolutely amazing that that team went that far. Agree with waterboy and others who give kudos to the team for almost overcoming the "shortcoming" (and I saw what you did there).

Poppy himself is only about 5'9" (or maybe 5"10" when he first wakes up in the morning). But he has the "it" factor that his brother Derek McKenzie also had. Derek was/is also not tall. There are certain personalities, though, that you just want to rally around as a team. Any of us who has ever played team sports knows this. Derek and Poppy look to me like natural-born leaders. So was Stump Godfrey, I think.

On edit: Manuel Johnson had "it" also.

[lostaussie]

I like a kid with that "it" factor. Poppy last night, he looked like the one we been looking for!!!

[Aesculus gilmus]

https://youtu.be/Brnwy0EztUk

[Aesculus gilmus]

I remember when they would only allow Poppy on the field on Friday nights to enter the kicking contest to win a GoPro camera from Etex Communications.


https://youtu.be/kbe8YNn7lm0