Bordertown

Nice season for PNG. Maybe we will meet again next year, but most think we will go back to Region II. Tigers fight for another day. Looks like a rematch with Crosby.

Great season for the Indians. Maybe we will meet again next season. Glad my Tigers pulled it out.

Tigervision was able to do the first two playoff games. Guess that was a blessing. Hope Texan Live’s production is better than last year versus Crosby. Seemed like it was video only from one camera with no commentary. They had 1200+ simultaneous viewers for Texas City game.

The game will NOT be live-streamed by Tigervision, but will be on Texans Live for $$$s. Sad the UIL value the $$$s over the educational value of a student production [editorial opinion].

Now if Texas followed Louisiana and Texas High met a team from Brownsville in the semifinals, the trip to Texarkana be about 650 miles. Neutral sites are more practical.

I saw somewhere they were having a hard time finding a neutral location due to Thanksgiving. Hosts did not want to have to work their staffs. Understandable with all the stress of dealing with Covid. Glad the PNG fan base is so loyal to the team. Enjoyed following the Tigers each week in their run to the State Championship in 2002. Unfortunately, I have relocated to another part of the state and can’t make the games. Glad UIL has loosened up on the live-streaming.

They have requested permission from the UIL, but have not heard back per their website. Figures crossed.

Crite is a junior. He has taken Clayton Smith’s spot in the lineup. Suspect he will get some looks. The D-Line coach (Harrell) played on the 2002 State Championship team and went on to start for Arkansas. He has done a good job developing defensive lineman at Texas High.

The chat is painful, but good way to keep up with other teams you like to follow such as districts mates. You can create a personalized scoreboard.

Bummer…. Was hoping they couldn’t find the stadium. Their presentation was subpar last year. Hope they have picked up their game.

I was surprised at the lack of D1 offers at PNG and especially Crosby. I suspect Texas High does a better job promoting their players. They have a program called Tigervision that is a video arts program. One of the thing the students do is editing film and producing recruiting videos for the coaches to send to school and create interest in the kids. The result is usually half a dozen kids get scholarships. Some of those I listed may end up playing D2. Across the various sports (boys & girls) probably average 15 athletic scholarships. Mainly offered list as a way to know our kids (your coaches already know).

A couple of players to watch: #3 Derrick Brown - Edge- Committed to Texas #2 Braylon Stewart - RB - 6 D1 offers (Colorado, etc…) #12 Bryson McHenry - QB - 1 D1 offer (New Mexico) #7 Braxton White - DL - Committed UNLV #5 Keyvuntae Featherson - LB - 1 D1 offer (Kansas) #15 Ean Crites - DL - JR

Not a UIL issue. Back in the mid 2000s, Texas High and Highland Park played in Shreveport. Story goes Highland Park did not feel Rose Stadium in Tyler was a large enough venue to host the game. They wanted Ford Stadium at SMU to be the neutral site. Texas High said no as that is in their backyard. Agreed to flip for a neutral location. HP picked Ford Stadium and expected TH to pick Rose. Texas High won the coin toss and picked Independence Stadium in Shreveport. Not sure on the back story on Nachitoches, but suspect PNG did not want Lufkin as the Tigers had familiarity with the facilities. Only reason SFA was not selected was (1) not available or (2) PNG had an issue with Nac is in our district. Pure speculation on my part.

After Texas High beat Fulshear, I watched the end of the Texas City/Madison game. I felt at the time, the Tigers could contain the Stingeree’s rushing attack and they exceeded my expectations. Only watched the last couple of plays of the PNG games, so have no preconceived notions on the Indians offense which appears to be prolific. However, it appears the Indian’s defense is pedestrian. What caught my eye was they allowed the running back rush for 300 yards. Stewart the Tiger running back rushed for 311 against Fulshear. Texas City held him to 80 yards which opened up our dormant passing attack. Texas High’s defense is the strength of the team and the defensive coordinator is very good at making adjustments. I am impressed with the PNG quarterback and hopefully he is healthy for Friday. He appears to make good decisions. He will be facing an opportunistic secondary that has in excess of 20 interceptions. My final observation is both teams have opposite views of offense and defense. PNG seems to stack their offense with athletes and Texas has its defense. Will make this an interesting contest of strength v strength. I believe the difference will be an underrated Tiger offense.

University

Texas City’s drove the field on the first series, only to turn it over on downs inside the 20. From there on, the Tiger defense totally dominated the Stingarees offense. It was a game dominated by the front 7 of both teams. With the exception of one breakaway run by Stewart of TH, Texas City contained the Texas High rushing attack. The game was decided by the secondaries of both teams. Texas High’s dormant passing attack came alive and methodically keep the chains moving. Conversely, the Tiger secondary and defensive line disrupted the Texas City passing game. My take on last night.

Yes, Texas High won a toss on neutral site against Highland Park and played the game at Independence Stadium in the mid 2000s. Nothing sure of how Nachitoches was chosen.

I like my crow roasted. Branch, Dunn, & Herman are very good. congrats on the win and good luck going forward.

He is projected as an OLB but will play DE for the Tigers.

Feedback from knowledgeable folks watching film of Crosby acknowledge the speed and athleticism of the Cougars and feel this is the best team the Tigers have faced. Maybe my 21 point prediction was too optimistic, but I will hold on to my predicted winner. From an athleticism standpoint, I think the Tigers match up even. It will come down to line play. Which team’s offensive line can give their quarterback protection and open holes for the run. Should be a fun game.

Thank you Cougtalk for an honest analysis. I respect your dual threat of Branch and Dunn. I feel the key to the game is whether Crosby’s offensive line can hold up to the pressure of the Tiger defensive line. Your OL coach has his work cut out for him this week. The defense ends have the ability to bring pressure. They are play disrupters. While the offense took the night off against Lake Creek, the defense did not. They had 9 sacks and 15 tackles behind the line.

Not sure why you think District 9 is weak. If your check out MaxPreps on the UIL website, you will discover the strongest district in Region III is 10. District 9 follows close behind. District 12 is third with district 11 a distant 4th. If you line up the 8 teams in district 9 & 12 in order of finish, each team in District 9 is higher ranked than their counterpart in district 12. In fact Pine Tree was ranked higher than A&M Consolidated. You still have to play the games and Nederland may win, but don’t underestimate Pine Trees district schedule.

The is reportedly the best Pine Tree team ever. It is senior laden and the offense revolves around their QB - Freeman. He is a mobile QB. Do not be deceived by their thrashing by Texas High. Freeman had been nicked up in the prior game. Without his legs, he could not evade the Tiger pursuit. He was knocked out of the game just before halftime. I understand he is now healthy. Think it will be a competitive game. Since I don’t know anything about Nederland, I make no prediction of the winner.

Friday 18th at Stephen F Austin stadium. Think time is 7pm.

As a point of reference, Texas High dropped down from Div 1 in the last realignment. They were not in Marshall’s district last year. As a 4th seed, the Tigers upset #5 Lufkin in the first round.