3afan
12-15-2005, 06:50 PM
3A DIVISION II CHAMPIONSHIP Tatum (15-0) vs. Hutto (13-2) 6 p.m. Saturday, Irving's Texas Stadium
http://texasfootball.com/image_lib/huttorb.jpg
Of all the teams vying for state championships this weekend, none have as many losses as Hutto. But don't dismiss the Hippos because of that triviality.
The defeats handed to the Hippos were by a combined 13 points. One came to Liberty Hill, which lasted until the regional finals before a loss to Cuero. And it's hard not to wonder how Liberty Hill would have fared had Casey Kociuba -- their all-state RB -- not watched that Cuero game from the sideline on crutches.
Hutto already has vindicated its other loss -- a 17-13 defeat to Cameron Yoe in the regular season finale -- in the playoffs. Hutto got its spot in the state semis with a 35-14 win over Yoe in the Region III finals.
Then, and perhaps most impressive, was last week's 23-21 win over Cuero, the No. 1 team in state since the 2005 DCTF hit the shelves in late June.
Hutto led by as many as two TDs, only to watch Cuero climb back in it and grab a 21-20 lead in the fourth quarter.
Playing as if it had ample state semifinal experience, Hutto took over with 9:18 remaining, then proceeded to carry out a clock-draining drive. With just 46 ticks remaining, Alex Diaz kicked a wobbly, 25-yard FG for a 23-21 win.
That game-winning drive typified Hutto's night. The Hippos rushed it a jaw-dropping 51 times, chalking up 295 yards in the process. Shiloh Wampler, converted to running back from fullback midway through the game, recorded 98 yards and two TDs on the night. He had 46 yards on the last drive alone.
However, with the defense of Tatum (we didn't forget to mention them), it's possible a game-winning drive such as Hutto established would be squashed from the beginning.
Atypical of most schools at that level, Tatum has -- by several recruiting services and web sites -- as many five DI recruits. All of them have made their names on defense.
There's LB Daylon McCoy, a finalist for the Class 3A Player of the Year. McCoy already has passed the 150-tackle mark this season, and he's cashed two INTs into TDs in the playoffs alone.
You can't leave out Teo Freeney, who rose to the occasion against Canton's prolific passing offense in their Region II final. Freeney picked of G.J. Kinne (the AP 3A Player of the year) not once, not twice, but three times in the Region II finals.
And, of course, there's DB Carson Blackmon, an early commitment to Houston.
Throw in other standouts like Cashas Pollard (only a sophomore) and Lennon Creer (over 1,800 yards rushing as well), and you get a defense that's allowing just more than 11 points per game in the playoffs.
And in the second halves this postseason, Tatum has given up 13 total points, or an average of less than a FG per opponent. (And let us not foget Tatum's offense, averaging 380 yards per game.)
But with a versatile QB in junior Jeremy Kerley (averaging 119 yards rushing per game in playoffs, 40 more yards than his season average) and multiple other rushing options, Tatum will be hard-pressed to shut out Hutto completely.
The finals of last year's 3A Division II bracket was a topsy-turvy affair, a shootout of epic proportions. Gilmer, which held leads of 21 points or more four different times, barely escaped Jasper's late lunge at the title with a 49-47 win.
Don't expect a repeat. With two very strong defenses, points will be at a premium. The one who tallies the most?
We see it coming from the team from East Texas. Tatum ends Hutto's run to the title, giving Tatum its first-ever state championship.
http://texasfootball.com/image_lib/huttorb.jpg
Of all the teams vying for state championships this weekend, none have as many losses as Hutto. But don't dismiss the Hippos because of that triviality.
The defeats handed to the Hippos were by a combined 13 points. One came to Liberty Hill, which lasted until the regional finals before a loss to Cuero. And it's hard not to wonder how Liberty Hill would have fared had Casey Kociuba -- their all-state RB -- not watched that Cuero game from the sideline on crutches.
Hutto already has vindicated its other loss -- a 17-13 defeat to Cameron Yoe in the regular season finale -- in the playoffs. Hutto got its spot in the state semis with a 35-14 win over Yoe in the Region III finals.
Then, and perhaps most impressive, was last week's 23-21 win over Cuero, the No. 1 team in state since the 2005 DCTF hit the shelves in late June.
Hutto led by as many as two TDs, only to watch Cuero climb back in it and grab a 21-20 lead in the fourth quarter.
Playing as if it had ample state semifinal experience, Hutto took over with 9:18 remaining, then proceeded to carry out a clock-draining drive. With just 46 ticks remaining, Alex Diaz kicked a wobbly, 25-yard FG for a 23-21 win.
That game-winning drive typified Hutto's night. The Hippos rushed it a jaw-dropping 51 times, chalking up 295 yards in the process. Shiloh Wampler, converted to running back from fullback midway through the game, recorded 98 yards and two TDs on the night. He had 46 yards on the last drive alone.
However, with the defense of Tatum (we didn't forget to mention them), it's possible a game-winning drive such as Hutto established would be squashed from the beginning.
Atypical of most schools at that level, Tatum has -- by several recruiting services and web sites -- as many five DI recruits. All of them have made their names on defense.
There's LB Daylon McCoy, a finalist for the Class 3A Player of the Year. McCoy already has passed the 150-tackle mark this season, and he's cashed two INTs into TDs in the playoffs alone.
You can't leave out Teo Freeney, who rose to the occasion against Canton's prolific passing offense in their Region II final. Freeney picked of G.J. Kinne (the AP 3A Player of the year) not once, not twice, but three times in the Region II finals.
And, of course, there's DB Carson Blackmon, an early commitment to Houston.
Throw in other standouts like Cashas Pollard (only a sophomore) and Lennon Creer (over 1,800 yards rushing as well), and you get a defense that's allowing just more than 11 points per game in the playoffs.
And in the second halves this postseason, Tatum has given up 13 total points, or an average of less than a FG per opponent. (And let us not foget Tatum's offense, averaging 380 yards per game.)
But with a versatile QB in junior Jeremy Kerley (averaging 119 yards rushing per game in playoffs, 40 more yards than his season average) and multiple other rushing options, Tatum will be hard-pressed to shut out Hutto completely.
The finals of last year's 3A Division II bracket was a topsy-turvy affair, a shootout of epic proportions. Gilmer, which held leads of 21 points or more four different times, barely escaped Jasper's late lunge at the title with a 49-47 win.
Don't expect a repeat. With two very strong defenses, points will be at a premium. The one who tallies the most?
We see it coming from the team from East Texas. Tatum ends Hutto's run to the title, giving Tatum its first-ever state championship.