WOSgrad

Congrats, Stew.  This man was responsible for ending my baseball career.  In Pony-Colt, he threw three ptiches.....I didn't see any one of them...I knew it was time to hang it up!

If you make it into Houston, traffic is fine.  Drove from Katy into Downtown and west bound traffic wasn't even that heavy.

Some good ones going in Dayton!

Coop, why you not in Dayton?

There's a little thing he does on the weekend called a "weathercast."

This is just speculation on my part, but in looking at the Louisiana schedules, it looked like Lousiana High School season started September 5, not August 28th, like it does in Texas.

It could be that Vinton would not have been allowed to play a game on the 29th as it would have been too early for them.  I agree with Gasilla, though that cancelling it this late is curious.  But perhaps the Vinton officials did not snap to that until recently.

That's true.

Didn't I read that they played last year? Maybe this was something that LA did after last year (move the season back a week). At any rate, I would be highly upset if a team up and dropped on me 2 weeks before the season started. I'm surprised that they were able to find someone to play on such short notice.

Yes, they did play last year.  Lousiana's Week 1 and Texas' Week 0 started on the same weekend (August 31) last year.  I agree, if that is the reason, Vinton officials shouls have been a little more on that ball. 

As for the opponent, it looks like Sabine Pass was the only team in the area which had an open date in Week 0 AND did not already have 10 games on their schedule.  In that respect, the Pirates were lucky.

This is just speculation on my part, but in looking at the Louisiana schedules, it looked like Lousiana High School season started September 5, not August 28th, like it does in Texas.

It could be that Vinton would not have been allowed to play a game on the 29th as it would have been too early for them.  I agree with Gasilla, though that cancelling it this late is curious.  But perhaps the Vinton officials did not snap to that until recently.

Have mercy! 

Wow! setxsports is becoming the TSRN of Southeast Texas!

87, if I had to pose between Kay Parkhurst and Cullen Pendleton, I would have had that scowl on my face, too.

;D

Grad where are you in this scene?

I just wasn't an important enough person, I guess.

87, if I had to pose between Kay Parkhurst and Cullen Pendleton, I would have had that scowl on my face, too.

Man, jealousy is the only word you could come up with though?

Oh, I'll help my man, dirk out.  How about bitter?  Will envious do?  Troublemaking? Spineless?  I am sure that dirk will think of more but had other things to do.

You make a comment about the Mustangs scrimmaging in their first day in pads followed by the number to the UIL trying to imply that something was illegal and then when you are called on it you go to the "AW SHUCKS, I was just funnin" card.

I guess spineless is the best choice.

Looks good to me.  ;D

Well if your from Huffman it probably does, good luck.

Well let me ask it this way, who would you put at #5 instead of Huffman?

LOL! Coop, Larry Beaulieu doesn't make enough to cover the Katy ISD taxes without having to take out a second mortgage.

Here in Katy, 6 schools share one stadium.  Although word has it another one is on the way(greeeeaaaat...ever higher property taxes.

Sorry, AAW, you are on your own on that one.  I don't think anyone around here is brave enough to try and separate Coop from his computer.

Best Team - WO-S (1987)

Best Game - LaMarque vs. Denton Ryan (4A DII Championship 2003)

Best player - Deon Beasley

WOS has to change their thinking from total athletics to more academics. That change will be made whether it is by the people in charge or by the state.

I guess given recent football success and TAKS problems that the above would be an easy generalization to make...but not necessarily accurate.  In the same years that Coach Hooks and the football team was racking up victories, folks like Jim Ramsden, Ken Rush, Claire Shiffman, Bob Coombs, Dr. Carol McGill, Glen Finley, Barbara Dardeau, Mr. Booth (i'm sorry I don't remember his first name) and many others were coaching Mustangs off the football field to victories in academic, band choir and vocational competitions throughout the state.  Unless you walked the halls on Newton Street, you have probably not heard of a lot of these folks simply because, well, there isn't a whole section of the Orange Leader devoted to debate tournament results.  During the years I was going to school, and as I understand well into WO-S' tenure in 4A, we didn't just win the UIL Academic Meets during the spring, we dominated them.  So enough about the emphasis not being on academics within WOCCISD.

In reading the threads that have touched on this, I think if you take the individual reasons and mesh them all together, you will come up with the reason for the decline in WO-S' enrollment.  The collapse of Levingston and American Bridge in the mid-80's certainly led to a mass exodus from the Orange area.  The next biggest industry in Orange, petrochemicals, has been stagnant, if not declining, as well.  Last year, the Schulman plant was shut down and other plants on Chemical Row have reduced their employees either through attrition or limited job cuts.  And quite simply, you aren't going to stay where you aren't able to work.

Of course, I am not going to be naive enough to say that the current situation within the school district doesn't have something to do with the reduction of enrollment in the district.  Particularly now that because of the district's rating it MUST provide vouchers to any student to pay for out of district tuition should his or her parents wish to have their child attend school in another district. And it is a situation that must be corrected by Dr. Collins and the trustees very soon, or their successors if they are unsuccessful.

But one factor that I have not seen is the reduction of population in the area as a whole.  I'll use my senior year of 1985-1986 as a reference.  That year, the Golden Triangle had enough 5A enrollment schools to fill a single eight team district.  Today, of those eight schools, only West Brook is able to maintain a 5A enrollment in essentially the same makeup it had back then.  Heck, three of those schools no longer exist!  In the same time, there has been only one new high school, Ozen, which has not been the result of a merger of two or more high schools. 

Hopefully, the promise of the expansion of plants in the area with boost the population of all of the school districts, including WO-S.

Don't think we'll ever drop to 2A.

Well, that is what I thought 10 years ago about going to 3A.

I am sure that there are some 4A teams which would still agree to play the Mustangs.  The question is whether Coach Hooks (or his successor) would ever schedule teams two classifications higher.  Take this years predistrict for instance.  I know that there are some who are complaining about the strength.  However, as he did when the Mustangs ceased playing 5A teams while in 4A, Coach Hooks will (and maybe has) at some point determine that playing schools with much bigger enrollments is actually hurting the team rather than toughening them up.

Gotta agree with my bro, e.  The Eagles took some lumps last year as a young team, but they appear to be ready to make a run in 19-4A.  I expect to see them in the playoffs come November.

Livingston

Congratulations and Good Luck to Coach Landry....I'm sure the entire Landry clan is happy about this one.

Got to get them W's in Non District.

Your Raiders had a pretty weak schedule last year and you heard alot of smack  about it.

Does anyone know the overall game records for Lumberton and Vidor ? I think they owned your Lumberton so you have know room to talk .

They only thing that you had going for you last year was Hussey . Them other guys did not impress me!!

You mean to tell me that the Dogs couldn't stop one guy?

What was that score last year?  Oh yeah, that's right.  33-7.

I agree, could happen. I spoke to a coach as well and they said they would look for other teams that have the same off week as their other off week.

That will be a little easier said than done.  The coaches are not only going to have to find teams that not only have that week off, but also only have 9 games on their schedule.  Probably not many of the Texas public schools fit that bill.  Might have to go looking east of the Sabine for that game like e said some are doing now.

This thread contains the article I was talking about.  Looks like the UIL won't have the 5A/4A problem in this case:

I don't know what the UIL will do with the merged North Forest school.  My guess is that they will just keep them in 19-4A.  Even if they do have 5A numbers, chances are it won't be by much and won't give them an advantage over the other schools.  Actually, I think the UIL, in a move pretty unusual for them, used some foresight and figured this merger would occur in setting the districts and setting 19-4A with 9 schools.

As for rescheduling within the district to free up non-district games....that will be a bit difficult as all the schools in the area have already filled in their non-district dance card.  In fact, I believe I had read an article that the district coaches had already planned for this contingiency and had a contingient schedule set up in case this merger took place.  Unfortunately, if I remember correctly, that contingiency creates two bye weeks per year for the other schools in 19-4A.

I, too, hope that young Fitzhenry is okay and that the MRI doesn't show any severe damage to his ankle.  Over the past few years, he has shown himself to be a gifted young athlete and will hopefully show his gifts beyond high school.  One man I really feel for is Coach Fitzhenry, I can just imagine his emotions are just exponentially higher for him given his dual position as coach/father.

However, if the tests show that Fitzhenry is unable to play, I would caution against any premature punching of the 'Stangs ticket to the next round.  I'm quite sure Giddings didn't their ranking this year by being a one-trick buffalo.  With or without Brock Fitzhenry under center, the Mustangs will have a fight on their hands.