Keith7
12-22-2003, 04:15 AM
Leopards got shafted by voters
A column by Sports Editor Darin Allred
When the Associated Press Class 3A All-State football team came across the wire late Wednesday afternoon, I was expecting to see a few Gainesville Leopards on the first team. At least a couple. For sure there would be one.
Instead, all seven of the Leopards selected were on the second team or named honorable mention.
Don't get me wrong, it's an honor to just make an All-State team and for the Leopards to get seven players on there is a credit to coach Jeff Cordell's program.
But for a team to go 15-0 and win a state championship and not have at least one player on the first team is a bit ridiculous.
By contrast, Burnet (the team the Leopards defeated for the state crown) had four players make the first team. They also had the offensive and defensive players of the year.
I'm not saying that all four didn't deserve to be on there. In fact, I voted for all of them and I even placed a vote for quarterback Stephen McGee to be the offensive player of the year, which he won.
I just think that at least one of the Gainesville players should have made the first team. I bet you would have to go back a while to find an All-State first team that didn't have at least one member of the state championship squad.
In fairness to my voting brethren around the state, the AP All-State team is voted on during the first week of the playoffs. Only regular season stats are supposed to be used. I'm sure that voters around Texas assumed that Burnet would win the state title, since they were the No. 1-ranked team all season long. They didn't expect these hard-working Gainesville boys to foil their plans.
Leopard players saved their best performances for the playoffs, after the voting was over. Terrius Purvey rushed for 920 yards in the five playoff games, an average of 184 yards a game. I'm sure if voters would have known that was going to happen, they would have moved him up the ladder.
Kicker Steven Arenas made 10 of 11 field goals in the playoffs. His only miss was a 51-yarder in the state championship game. He was also 66 of 70 on extra points. Collin Knowles of Forney, who made first team All-State, made just 8 field goals and 45 extra points all season. But when the voting was done at the end of November, Arenas had made just 3 field goals, not the 13 he ended the year with, so that is the stat that voters got to see.
So I guess my gripe is with WHEN the All-State team voting is done. The voting should be done after the season ends and should take the playoffs into account.
Another gripe is with some of the information provided to voters on the nomination form. Some players were singled out as having been named All-State last year or for having committed to play at a certain university. To me, that prejudices the voting. Who cares what someone did last year? Was he worthy of being All-State THIS year? That is all that matters.
So the seven Leopards should be proud of making the All-State team and all should know that to us, they are first-teamers all the way. Plus, they are the only ones who will be wearing state championship rings.
A column by Sports Editor Darin Allred
When the Associated Press Class 3A All-State football team came across the wire late Wednesday afternoon, I was expecting to see a few Gainesville Leopards on the first team. At least a couple. For sure there would be one.
Instead, all seven of the Leopards selected were on the second team or named honorable mention.
Don't get me wrong, it's an honor to just make an All-State team and for the Leopards to get seven players on there is a credit to coach Jeff Cordell's program.
But for a team to go 15-0 and win a state championship and not have at least one player on the first team is a bit ridiculous.
By contrast, Burnet (the team the Leopards defeated for the state crown) had four players make the first team. They also had the offensive and defensive players of the year.
I'm not saying that all four didn't deserve to be on there. In fact, I voted for all of them and I even placed a vote for quarterback Stephen McGee to be the offensive player of the year, which he won.
I just think that at least one of the Gainesville players should have made the first team. I bet you would have to go back a while to find an All-State first team that didn't have at least one member of the state championship squad.
In fairness to my voting brethren around the state, the AP All-State team is voted on during the first week of the playoffs. Only regular season stats are supposed to be used. I'm sure that voters around Texas assumed that Burnet would win the state title, since they were the No. 1-ranked team all season long. They didn't expect these hard-working Gainesville boys to foil their plans.
Leopard players saved their best performances for the playoffs, after the voting was over. Terrius Purvey rushed for 920 yards in the five playoff games, an average of 184 yards a game. I'm sure if voters would have known that was going to happen, they would have moved him up the ladder.
Kicker Steven Arenas made 10 of 11 field goals in the playoffs. His only miss was a 51-yarder in the state championship game. He was also 66 of 70 on extra points. Collin Knowles of Forney, who made first team All-State, made just 8 field goals and 45 extra points all season. But when the voting was done at the end of November, Arenas had made just 3 field goals, not the 13 he ended the year with, so that is the stat that voters got to see.
So I guess my gripe is with WHEN the All-State team voting is done. The voting should be done after the season ends and should take the playoffs into account.
Another gripe is with some of the information provided to voters on the nomination form. Some players were singled out as having been named All-State last year or for having committed to play at a certain university. To me, that prejudices the voting. Who cares what someone did last year? Was he worthy of being All-State THIS year? That is all that matters.
So the seven Leopards should be proud of making the All-State team and all should know that to us, they are first-teamers all the way. Plus, they are the only ones who will be wearing state championship rings.