MonkeyJoe
12-15-2003, 07:34 PM
With all apologies to David Letterman, Darin Allred offers his own Top 10 List.
From the home office in Gainesville, Texas (aka Titletown Texas), here
are the Top 10 reasons the Gainesville Leopards won the state
championship Saturday.
10. Texas Governor Rick Perry brings the Leopards good luck. Gainesville
is 2-0 in sporting events that Perry attends. He was also in attendance
when the Leopards won a Class 3A state basketball championship in 2002.
Perry was on hand Saturday to present the state championship trophy
after the game.
9. The Leopards really do own the second half. Gainesville outscored
their playoff opponents 104-25 in the second half. In three of those
games, the Leopards trailed at the half before coming back to win.
8. Terrius Purvey could not be stopped. The junior running back had 232
yards rushing. In the five playoff games, Purvey ran for 920 yards, an
average of 184 a game. He finished the season with 1,981 yards and 33
touchdowns.
7. Senior leadership. The Leopards had 22 seniors that worked hard,
hustled on every play, and just refused to let their team lose.
6. Sensational sophomores. Linebacker Jeremy Franklin and lineman Clint
Stoffels both had huge games against Burnet. Each recovered fumbles on
defense at key points in the game. Each turnover eventually led to a GHS
touchdown. Kicker Steven Arenas was Mr. Reliable in the playoffs. His
only miss was a 51-yarder Saturday that had the distance but was wide
left. He kicked the game winner against Forney two weeks ago.
5. Incredible fans. The support this team received, especially in the
playoffs, was amazing. To see close to 9,000 Leopard fans at Texas
Stadium Saturday cheering for the Big Red put chills up my spine. And
the crowd for the sendoff that afternoon was good as well. Fans stood
along California Street as the team bus made it's way through town.
4. I didn't wash my car. Although I really wanted to several times, for
the good of the team I let it stay dirty and allowed the shoe-polished
message of support to stay on the windows. (By the way, I tried to wash
it Sunday after the game, but the shoe polish wouldn't come off, so now
I have to pay a detailer to clean it. Wow, I'm a true fan.)
3. The offensive line. Like David matching up with Goliath, the Leopard
offensive line was overmatched size-wise all season long. But they
always found a way to get the job done. Gainesville managed to average
240 yards rushing a game this year.
2. Great coaching. From head coach Jeff Cordell to all of his
assistants, the Leopards have some great coaches. I truly think that
Gainesville was the best-coached football team in the state. Offensive
coordinator Phil Young and defensive coordinator Patrick Harvell and
their assistants had great schemes for every opponent. And the coaching
staff was always able to make adjustments at halftime to whatever had
caused the team problems in first half.
And the No. 1 reason the Leopards won the state championship ...
1. HEART. The Gainesville Leopards have it and it showed. Liberty Eylau
scored on the second play of the game in an area playoff game, but the
Leopards didn't get down. Instead, they responded. Forney scored on
their first offensive play and had a 14-0 lead in the first quarter of
the quarterfinal playoff two weeks ago. The Leopards didn't get down.
Abilene Wylie led 17-13 at halftime in the semifinals but Gainesville
responded with a brilliant third quarter. Burnet scored on the opening
kickoff and had a 24-21 lead in the fourth quarter, but again, the
Leopards didn't give up. They did what it took to win.
www.goredsports.com (http://www.goredsports.com)
(By Darin Allred, Sports Editor of the Gainesville Daily Register)
<small>[ December 15, 2003, 06:41 PM: Message edited by: MonkeyJoe ]</small>
From the home office in Gainesville, Texas (aka Titletown Texas), here
are the Top 10 reasons the Gainesville Leopards won the state
championship Saturday.
10. Texas Governor Rick Perry brings the Leopards good luck. Gainesville
is 2-0 in sporting events that Perry attends. He was also in attendance
when the Leopards won a Class 3A state basketball championship in 2002.
Perry was on hand Saturday to present the state championship trophy
after the game.
9. The Leopards really do own the second half. Gainesville outscored
their playoff opponents 104-25 in the second half. In three of those
games, the Leopards trailed at the half before coming back to win.
8. Terrius Purvey could not be stopped. The junior running back had 232
yards rushing. In the five playoff games, Purvey ran for 920 yards, an
average of 184 a game. He finished the season with 1,981 yards and 33
touchdowns.
7. Senior leadership. The Leopards had 22 seniors that worked hard,
hustled on every play, and just refused to let their team lose.
6. Sensational sophomores. Linebacker Jeremy Franklin and lineman Clint
Stoffels both had huge games against Burnet. Each recovered fumbles on
defense at key points in the game. Each turnover eventually led to a GHS
touchdown. Kicker Steven Arenas was Mr. Reliable in the playoffs. His
only miss was a 51-yarder Saturday that had the distance but was wide
left. He kicked the game winner against Forney two weeks ago.
5. Incredible fans. The support this team received, especially in the
playoffs, was amazing. To see close to 9,000 Leopard fans at Texas
Stadium Saturday cheering for the Big Red put chills up my spine. And
the crowd for the sendoff that afternoon was good as well. Fans stood
along California Street as the team bus made it's way through town.
4. I didn't wash my car. Although I really wanted to several times, for
the good of the team I let it stay dirty and allowed the shoe-polished
message of support to stay on the windows. (By the way, I tried to wash
it Sunday after the game, but the shoe polish wouldn't come off, so now
I have to pay a detailer to clean it. Wow, I'm a true fan.)
3. The offensive line. Like David matching up with Goliath, the Leopard
offensive line was overmatched size-wise all season long. But they
always found a way to get the job done. Gainesville managed to average
240 yards rushing a game this year.
2. Great coaching. From head coach Jeff Cordell to all of his
assistants, the Leopards have some great coaches. I truly think that
Gainesville was the best-coached football team in the state. Offensive
coordinator Phil Young and defensive coordinator Patrick Harvell and
their assistants had great schemes for every opponent. And the coaching
staff was always able to make adjustments at halftime to whatever had
caused the team problems in first half.
And the No. 1 reason the Leopards won the state championship ...
1. HEART. The Gainesville Leopards have it and it showed. Liberty Eylau
scored on the second play of the game in an area playoff game, but the
Leopards didn't get down. Instead, they responded. Forney scored on
their first offensive play and had a 14-0 lead in the first quarter of
the quarterfinal playoff two weeks ago. The Leopards didn't get down.
Abilene Wylie led 17-13 at halftime in the semifinals but Gainesville
responded with a brilliant third quarter. Burnet scored on the opening
kickoff and had a 24-21 lead in the fourth quarter, but again, the
Leopards didn't give up. They did what it took to win.
www.goredsports.com (http://www.goredsports.com)
(By Darin Allred, Sports Editor of the Gainesville Daily Register)
<small>[ December 15, 2003, 06:41 PM: Message edited by: MonkeyJoe ]</small>