CHS_Grad '85
10-30-2007, 10:19 AM
Bowen: Rockdale refuses to quit, and it's paying off
By Larry Bowen
Eagle Columnist
The Rockdale Tigers just didn't know when to quit, bless their hearts.
Many high school football teams would have given up hope after starting the season 1-6. Players' minds would have started to wander to basketball, deer hunting or girls ... maybe all of them.
The Tigers kept giving all they had to football and -- what do you know? -- football finally gave them something back.
Rockdale has won its last two games, beating Hutto 34-14 two weeks ago and whipping Taylor 35-21 last week, to clinch a berth in the Class 3A state playoffs. The Tigers can finish no worse than third in five-team District 18-3A, so they are playoff-bound no matter what happens this week in their regular-season finale against Cameron.
Folks around the state will look at the playoff pairings and see that Rockdale got in with a 4-6 or 3-7 record and they will shake their heads. Second-year Rockdale coach Jeff Miller will look at the team and point to his chest, thinking about the heart his players showed to make the postseason.
"Before the Hutto game, these seniors that have played for me for two years were 3-14," Miller said. "These seniors didn't win as seventh graders. They didn't win as eighth graders. They didn't win as ninth graders. But they never quit working. I'm sure they had days when they wondered if it was really worth it, but they kept plugging. I'm just so danged happy that they're going to get the opportunity to play some extra ballgames."
Blame Rockdale's bad start on a rugged schedule and injuries. The six teams that have beaten Rockdale have combined for a 39-8 record, and that includes a couple of unavoidable losses because they played each other.
Even a district that includes second-ranked Liberty Hill and tradition-rich Cameron probably didn't seem so tough after the Tigers tangled with teams such as Caldwell, Madisonville, Mexia and Waco Robinson.
Rockdale started 18-3A play against second-ranked Liberty Hill. The Tigers had a three-point halftime lead, but defending state champion Liberty Hill rallied for a 37-25 victory. Still, Rockdale's season took a good turn.
"We were 1-5, playing the No. 2 team in the state, and we just went out there with the attitude that we wanted to beat them, not to play them close," Miller said. "We played extremely well."
Somehow, the Tigers carried the momentum from that good loss to Hutto, where they beat a team that reached the playoffs last year.
"Why we would have confidence at 1-6 going into the Hutto game, I don't know, but we did," Miller said. "We were sky-high. They went over there expecting to win, and do it convincingly."
Last week's victory over Taylor clinched a playoff spot and rewarded a team loaded with leaders. On offense, the Tigers follow senior linemen Austin Dodds and Nick Moorehead, along with senior tailback Kortlin White. The defense is paced by junior middle linebacker Nic Hammett and senior outside linebacker Bobby Joe Tindle.
For now, you can hold the celebration. Cameron and Rockdale are longtime rivals, and this year the Battle of the Bell will determine which team is seeded first in the Division II playoffs.
"We're really excited around here, but we're not content with just being in the playoffs," Miller said. "We want to go make a little noise."
• Larry Bowen's e-mail address is larry.bowen@theeagle.com.
By Larry Bowen
Eagle Columnist
The Rockdale Tigers just didn't know when to quit, bless their hearts.
Many high school football teams would have given up hope after starting the season 1-6. Players' minds would have started to wander to basketball, deer hunting or girls ... maybe all of them.
The Tigers kept giving all they had to football and -- what do you know? -- football finally gave them something back.
Rockdale has won its last two games, beating Hutto 34-14 two weeks ago and whipping Taylor 35-21 last week, to clinch a berth in the Class 3A state playoffs. The Tigers can finish no worse than third in five-team District 18-3A, so they are playoff-bound no matter what happens this week in their regular-season finale against Cameron.
Folks around the state will look at the playoff pairings and see that Rockdale got in with a 4-6 or 3-7 record and they will shake their heads. Second-year Rockdale coach Jeff Miller will look at the team and point to his chest, thinking about the heart his players showed to make the postseason.
"Before the Hutto game, these seniors that have played for me for two years were 3-14," Miller said. "These seniors didn't win as seventh graders. They didn't win as eighth graders. They didn't win as ninth graders. But they never quit working. I'm sure they had days when they wondered if it was really worth it, but they kept plugging. I'm just so danged happy that they're going to get the opportunity to play some extra ballgames."
Blame Rockdale's bad start on a rugged schedule and injuries. The six teams that have beaten Rockdale have combined for a 39-8 record, and that includes a couple of unavoidable losses because they played each other.
Even a district that includes second-ranked Liberty Hill and tradition-rich Cameron probably didn't seem so tough after the Tigers tangled with teams such as Caldwell, Madisonville, Mexia and Waco Robinson.
Rockdale started 18-3A play against second-ranked Liberty Hill. The Tigers had a three-point halftime lead, but defending state champion Liberty Hill rallied for a 37-25 victory. Still, Rockdale's season took a good turn.
"We were 1-5, playing the No. 2 team in the state, and we just went out there with the attitude that we wanted to beat them, not to play them close," Miller said. "We played extremely well."
Somehow, the Tigers carried the momentum from that good loss to Hutto, where they beat a team that reached the playoffs last year.
"Why we would have confidence at 1-6 going into the Hutto game, I don't know, but we did," Miller said. "We were sky-high. They went over there expecting to win, and do it convincingly."
Last week's victory over Taylor clinched a playoff spot and rewarded a team loaded with leaders. On offense, the Tigers follow senior linemen Austin Dodds and Nick Moorehead, along with senior tailback Kortlin White. The defense is paced by junior middle linebacker Nic Hammett and senior outside linebacker Bobby Joe Tindle.
For now, you can hold the celebration. Cameron and Rockdale are longtime rivals, and this year the Battle of the Bell will determine which team is seeded first in the Division II playoffs.
"We're really excited around here, but we're not content with just being in the playoffs," Miller said. "We want to go make a little noise."
• Larry Bowen's e-mail address is larry.bowen@theeagle.com.