Four teams that I think are underrated!

[Old Cardinal]

Looking across the state and reading a lot about the teams, I have a feeling the following teams are going to do very well as things progress:

Barbers Hill seems to be prime.

Kirbyville has all the Seniors that know a lot about football.

Snyder is really underrated.

Kennedale is strong and getting stronger.

Navasota and Gilmer look like quality, I will give the nod to Navasota however.

[Chief Woodman]

My math may be bad, but isn't that more than four teams?

[Z motion 10 out on 2]

We will see how Snyder does when they hit district. Sweetwater, Merkel, and Abilene Wylie. Not to metion spoiler Clyde.

[Old Cardinal]

I added Navasota and Gilmer to the list as-- tier two of underrated teams.

[footballfan93]

is Bridge City underrated? nice win against Liberty.

[Keith7]

Kennedale can't really be considered underrated if they are a top 10 team on most polls

[Old Cardinal]

On your question of "Is Bridge City underrated?" Don't you first have to be rated to then be underrated? LOL
Bridge City will struggle in that they have some--people problems. The youth of this team are just great but even of the 7 or 8 Seniors left, some are second stringers.
Another problem on the horizon is that the 9th grade team has only 18 players and no ninth grade second team squad. You can't expect to win in bracket football if you can't maintain an ongoing program!
There is stong talk around town of some folks being jettisoned after this year. On the other hand, Bridge City has some of the best folks on the staff that is possible--Troy Bolton, Rick Deutsch, Josh Smalley, James Robbins, William Dotson, James Johnson--they are just not in the coordinator level roles.
I support this group of youth for sticking it out to play football. There is a dozen Seniors and a half dozen Juniors that had a belly full and are now walking the halls. We can play "what if" all day long, but instead we can all support the youth; plus the Coaches that have been good examples for these fine youth.

I hope that they have a good year. I like others will support these kids win or lose throughout the season...

[Gilmer Buckeye]

Gilmer has three Division I recruits who have already made commitments over the summer--Manuel Johnson (OU), Kevin Hollis (KState) and Tay Bowser (Miss. State).

Terrance Lovely has been a pleasant surprise at running back. Gilmer has just the one running back in the spread. He and Jeremy Skinner alternate, but Lovely is the starter and has had some very explosive runs already. He moved into the Gilmer district from 2A Ore City, where he rushed for well over 1,000 yards last year as a junior.

Johnson is playing QB, although he will be a receiver at OU, I am sure. He is doing the best he can behind a very young and somewhat inexperienced offensive line. If they continue to mature, watch out. It is not the first time he has been at QB. He played QB every year until he got to high school and even started as QB on the JV for the first few games of 2002.

Right now, though, the defense is Gilmer's strength. Only seven points allowed in two games and the TD was set up by a long run late in the first game against the second team D.

I wouldn't say the Buckeyes are underrated anymore. We are in the top 10 or 20 of most ratings services and polls I follow. Harris had us at No. 6 last week and that may be a bit too high.

[BCardbacker]

OldCard, I would suggest that you might want to double check your numbers and get the facts correct. There are 9 or 10 seniors at this time on the BC team. That is down from from about 15 players on the team when they where freshman, which by the way was under the previous administration. The ones not playing have not expressed or suggested that the coaching staff is the reason they are not playing. To make it short, some are following baseball with aspirations of playing D1 baseball next year on scholarship, some have suffered injuries that do not allow them to play any longer, and some just don't like football in general. For the record we do have a very good and successful JV program which did record an impressive win last week. As for the freshman team, the numbers are indeed down. Somewhere along the line the players have gotten the idea that they are now in high school and to be good in a sport then they must chose only one sport and not play any others. They have not even had an opportunity to experience the talented staff we have. I understand that you know or at least see some of the players that are playing and some that are not playing. Why don't you ask them the what, why and where? As for the seniors and juniors playing this year, there is a lot of heart and determination in this group of young men. I would also venture to say that the talent level is running much higher than last year and that some of these players could compete for a starting position on almost any team in the state.

[KTownBalla]

Originally posted by Keith7
Kennedale can't really be considered underrated if they are a top 10 team on most polls

We'll we have been underrated for a while. Personally, i think our team is great, but i don't know if they deserve to be in the top 10...maybe 15.

Now, i haven't seen them play since the Timberview scrimmage, but they looked sharper after every practce/scrimmage...

[DawgFan91]

Originally posted by Old Cardinal
[B

Kirbyville has all the Seniors that know a lot about football.
[/B]

I can't speak for the others you had on your list but Kirbyville isn't very good. They were literally handed that game Friday night at home against 2A Corrigan. And this isn't Corrigan of 2002 either. They only played 15 kids all night. Kifbyville has some speed and a few athletes but if they even crack the Top 20 they are overrated.

[Hupernikomen]

Originally posted by BCardbacker
OldCard, I would suggest that you might want to double check your numbers and get the facts correct. There are 9 or 10 seniors at this time on the BC team. That is down from from about 15 players on the team when they where freshman, which by the way was under the previous administration. The ones not playing have not expressed or suggested that the coaching staff is the reason they are not playing. To make it short, some are following baseball with aspirations of playing D1 baseball next year on scholarship, some have suffered injuries that do not allow them to play any longer, and some just don't like football in general. For the record we do have a very good and successful JV program which did record an impressive win last week. As for the freshman team, the numbers are indeed down. Somewhere along the line the players have gotten the idea that they are now in high school and to be good in a sport then they must chose only one sport and not play any others. They have not even had an opportunity to experience the talented staff we have. I understand that you know or at least see some of the players that are playing and some that are not playing. Why don't you ask them the what, why and where? As for the seniors and juniors playing this year, there is a lot of heart and determination in this group of young men. I would also venture to say that the talent level is running much higher than last year and that some of these players could compete for a starting position on almost any team in the state.

Bridge City seems to have a lot of successful programs for the young men to choose from with football, baseball and cross country. (possibly other that I am not aware of since I don't follow things like golf, soccer, tennis etc.)

It is sad that students are choosing only one sport these days, but with select ball increasing the exposure and probably talent-level in some cases, these kids are choosing their favorite sport and sticking with it. The reality is the vast majority will never play beyond the high school level, but then again some do.

Realistically, if they are good enough to play at the college-level, in my opinion it isn't going to hurt their chances of getting the scholarship by playing more than one sport. You either have the stuff or you don't. Perhaps there is that possiblity of injury and that sort of thing, but I still prefer our best athletes playing more than one sport. However, it's their decision and I know most coaches aren't going to go begging them to be apart of the TEAM if they don't won't to be.

[Hupernikomen]

Originally posted by DawgFan91
I can't speak for the others you had on your list but Kirbyville isn't very good. They were literally handed that game Friday night at home against 2A Corrigan. And this isn't Corrigan of 2002 either. They only played 15 kids all night. Kifbyville has some speed and a few athletes but if they even crack the Top 20 they are overrated.


I don't know about them being handed the game Friday night. CC made the mistakes/Kirbyville pressured them into the mistakes which ever way you want to look at it. Yes they were down Friday night by what? 28-7 or 21-7 at halftime? Either way they came out and took care of business the 2nd half. I am sure that Kirbyville has their fair share of two-way starters as well.

I just heard how the game ended. Sounds like an awesome 4th quarter. Kirbyville scored with one second left and made their extra point to take the lead. CC tried the old multiple-lateral-kickoff-return-for-a-miracle-trick but the Wildcats picked off the 2nd toss and returned it for a TD that made the score look more lopsided that it was.

Make no mistake about it CC is solid and so is Kirbyville.

[DawgFan91]

It was an awesome 4th quarter and yes, Kirbyville did have some kids that played both ways but not all game like CC. They had 3 different kids at RB alone. The thing is though, of all the fumbles (at least 6) that Corrigan had, only 1 was forced. The others were literally bad pitches, bad exchanges or just flat out drops. Pressure had nothing to do with it. Ask your buddy. Of course it is my opinion and we'll see as the season wears on, but unless K-ville improves a lot, they aren't going anywhere.

As far as the end of the game, they scored with 2 secs left to make the score 29-28, went for 2 and got it to make it 31-28. The score was 28-21 but Corrigan mishandled a pitchout that went into the endzone which they recovered for a safety. Ironically, it was the only fumble they had that they actually recovered all night. Kirbyville then got the ensuing kickoff inside the 40 and drove for the winning score.

CC will be fine but they are down this year in comparison to the last few. They have no depth and they aren't nearly as fast as they were 2 yrs ago.

[Old Cardinal]

To BCardbacker: Glad to have you on board this 3A Down Low site. I enjoyed your first post ever....As for the 9-10 Seniors the roster carries 8- Stevens, Landry, Smith, Zimmerman, Guidry, Church and Carlton. Who are the others?
I am sorry about the JV statement, I edited the statement to clarify-- it did not re-print the edit. In clarification, I meant a second team of ninth graders did not exist; be it called Ninth Grade "B" team, Ninth Grade JV or Ninth Grade Second team... Two ninth grade teams and/or a Sophomore team and a Junior Varsity are being fielded at many progressive schools. My point is, very few Seniors last year, 8 Seniors this year, 18 Total Freshman-- points to a possible suspect program.
I support the youth that are playing and wish that we had a
Senior group of players of 20, this year and last year, like most 3As with our school enrollment.
Could it be there are those involved that are blinded by their own rose-colored-glasses paradigm?
I have made some very very complimentary statements about the team and some of the respected Coaches, here and everywhere. I again reinerate, Bridge City has--some--great people of their staff!
I see you ignored that positive part and only dwelt on the question mark opinions that I expressed. Maybe you should re-examine, we have a host of good athletes that are walking the halls above the ones that are "solo-sporting".
I back these Cardinals just as all of us in town have backed various teams for many years. I have talked to grads during the last decade from Hamshire-Fannett, Center and Bridge City along with some current BC students, you might want to talk to them before you attack me or other fans.
I think this batch of Cardinals warrent our support because they have stuck it out and play as a team. My "what if" remains however; this could have been an even better year for the Cardinals.
I also support the Bridge City teaching Staff. They have worked with sub-par levels of classroom teacher pay and help pay extra- high school taxes to boot. How can we express our graditude for those that could become discouraged by an assortment of challenges, yet give their all to the students? Thank you classroom teachers that are dedicated servants to the youth of BCISD.

[Hupernikomen]

Originally posted by DawgFan91
It was an awesome 4th quarter and yes, Kirbyville did have some kids that played both ways but not all game like CC. They had 3 different kids at RB alone. The thing is though, of all the fumbles (at least 6) that Corrigan had, only 1 was forced. The others were literally bad pitches, bad exchanges or just flat out drops. Pressure had nothing to do with it. Ask your buddy. Of course it is my opinion and we'll see as the season wears on, but unless K-ville improves a lot, they aren't going anywhere.

As far as the end of the game, they scored with 2 secs left to make the score 29-28, went for 2 and got it to make it 31-28. The score was 28-21 but Corrigan mishandled a pitchout that went into the endzone which they recovered for a safety. Ironically, it was the only fumble they had that they actually recovered all night. Kirbyville then got the ensuing kickoff inside the 40 and drove for the winning score.

CC will be fine but they are down this year in comparison to the last few. They have no depth and they aren't nearly as fast as they were 2 yrs ago.


Thanks for the description of what really happened. My source didn't have very accurate details. The fumbles are best in the early part of the season than later. CC will be fine and Kirbyville will only get better. The fact that they beat CC no matter what the reason might be says that they are a fine team.

[NHSRattler60]

Reiteration on a point I made 3 weeks ago:

EVERYONE is either overrated or Underrated. Normally true teams dont shine until close to or in district. District and the playoffs bring out the absolute best in all teams.

[BCardbacker]

Old Card, for the record, I am not trying to attack anyone. I am merely trying to make sure that the right message is sent out. The only player that comes right to my mind that is a senior and is not on your list is Brandon Cronk. As far a the coaches are concerned, I did not miss the fact that you did agree that we had some good coaches. I also did not miss the fact that nothing positive was stated about the entire staff, only a selected group of the coaches. In case you might be wondering, I do fully, totally, and wholeheartedly support the young men that are playing this year. I understand the amount of work, dedication, and sacrifices that have to be made to make the team successful. I do happen to know most of the players personally. I am sure that you also know a good host of them. I have talked to a vast majority of the players not playing this year. I do know the reason most have given me for not playing. In some cases it is somewhat personal and doesn't need to broadcast here for everyone's knowledge. I do agree that it would be great to have 20 seniors this year. Like I stated in the previous post, this years senior class only had about 15 players as freshmen. This years junior class on the other hand started thier 7th grade year with something like 120 players. We are down quite a bit from that number also. I would expect that some of the freshmen not playing this year will be back next year when they discover that they can play more than one sport.

[Old Cardinal]

To BCardbacker: Sorry I left out Brandon Cronk's name--that makes 8 not "9 or 10" as you stated. I am puzzled, in talking to a number of folks that also followed the 9th grade teams through the years. We all remember a fairly large group of ninth graders that year(not 15 as you keep posting!) Could it be possible that you might be talking about the JV that year they had 14 or 15 dressed out at most of the games?
Yes I did point out some Coaches from the group that are exemplary and commendable. I think there are some "sad facts" that you may be unaware of that have happened to some youth in this town.

[Oakflat]

Dawg91--
Were you at the game in Kirbyville this past Friday. A friend or mine and I went the game and Kirbyville was far from handed the game. They played horrible in the first half on both offense and defense spotting Corrigan 28 pts. One of Corrigan's tds was on a short field and the other was scored by their defense on a fumble return. I give credit to Kirbyville coaches and to the kids of coming out an playing up to thier potential the 2nd half. C-C was well coached and played hard, but like you said, they are a little down. But to say Kirbyville is no good is crazy. They outscored a good football team 30 to 0 the last 24 min. after being down 21. You can expect a team to play poor at times this early in the season, hopefully that will be Kirbyville's only bad half of the year. If they can come out and play a full 48 min. like the did against Cleveland and the 2nd half against C-C they can play with anyone.

[DawgFan91]

Oak- I'll give you the fact that K-ville played hard in the second half and did make a nice run, but THEY scored on a short field all night. And to counter what you say about CC's fumble return for a TD, Kirbyville's only score of the first half was a fumble return on a mishandled snap by CC. The only reason I say CC gave the game away is b/c they had unforced fumbles. The fumble that CC scored on was a 150 lb DB stripping it away from the RB and running it back---that's a forced fumble. If CC had more than 15 or 16 players they could've rotated into the game, they would've held that lead. You were there, those boys were cramping in the first half. The other team running out of gas is a luxury the Cats won't have against Jasper, Silsbee and whoever they may meet in the playoffs. Hey, I'd like to see them represent our district and area but I just don't see it. I think people are overestimating there ability. Before the game was played there were people on here talking about a 30 pt victory for the Cats. You yourself said that they would win by more than 2 TD's and I guess you like to throw in that fluke TD at the end to make your prediction look better. But anyone unbiased at that game would say if CC doesn't DROP the ball, THEY win by 2 TD's.

[spiveyrat]

To be fair, I think their conditioning will be much improved by the time district starts.

[BCardbacker]

OldCard, I do stand corrected on a couple of things. There were 9 seniors that started the season. One quit during the scrimmages to participate in the band. As far as the numbers of seniors are concerned, I took a look at the yearbooks and during the freshman year there were 24 players. Only 13 of these players played JV ball during their Soph. year and two of the players played varsity ball that same year. It is also interesting to note that the same year (2 years ago) we had about the same number of players on the varsity team as we do this year. It is entirly possible that there are some "sad facts" that I am not aware of. Do to the fact that I am very close to the program, I find it hard to imagine what they might be. As both of us know, there are very few people in this world that go through there entire life (school, friends, work, etc.) without running into a few people that they do not like. If, for instance, someone was to not play becasue they did not "like" a coach or the coach "pushed them to their full potential", even on days they did not want to produce, then it is really a coaching issue? or that just another excuse? It's a sad fact that the coaches end up being the scapegoats alot of times instead of real reason being brought to light. I have not seen our coaches go any farther than any other coach in this area, and in some cases, they haven't gone as far as other coaches.

[Oakflat]

Dawg91
I was wrong in my prediction last week and yes the "fluke" touchdown at the end of the game did count, didn't it. Since when does it matter if it is fluke or not, or by how many you win by. I don't care if they win by one. I give them 13 pts. this week against Bridge City. If they win by one I'll be happy. I'll agree with you and admit they they played poorly and they are definitely going to have to get better. But I think that they will. Any good team is going to improve. I do think you are sadly mistaken if you believe that they can't get into the playoffs and make a little noise. Good luck to the Dawgs tonight also. Just my thoughts.

[DawgFan91]

Never said they wouldn't make the playoffs, just don't think they are going to make much noise once they get there. They can back into 3rd place in this district. But good luck tonight.

[BHtheHILL]

Old Card you are right about one thing. BH is definately undrrated, hopefully they will get the respect they desserve as the season goes.