Bi-District Preview: McCallum vs. Lake Travis

By Sam Bohmfalk

Colin Lagasse picks up some yards. Photo by jrandallc.

Thursday, 7 p.m., House Park

Lake Travis lost two games this season the first time since 2006 when they went 4-7.  This year, the three-time defending state champions enter the playoffs at 8-2, good enough for in 25-4A.  The always-prolific Cavaliers passing game has been at it again this season under the direction of senior slinger Michael Brewer, who threw for 1821 yards and 15 touchdowns in just seven games.  Brewer struggled in the Cavaliers’ loss to Cedar Park last week, throwing 3 interceptions as Lake Travis fell by 14.

The task of stopping Brewer falls on a McCallum defense that has played solidly against the pass for most of the year.  However in the Knights’ only district loss to Travis, the Rebels’ backup quarterback Adam Solis picked apart the McCallum defense to the tune of 13-17 for 200 yards and 4 touchdowns.  Lake Travis may turn to the run to open up the pass, as they should have an obvious advantage in the trenches.

Knights’ running back Michael Sorrells will be a handful for the Lake Travis defense.  The FBS recruit managed 1,500 yards against a district slate in which he was often pulled after just one half of action.   Sorrells managed over 100 yards in every game this year except his last, when he was held to just eight carries.  It’s no secret who McCallum will be leaning on as they try to unseat the defending champs.

Flashback (2000): A 37-7 week 2 victory over McCallum was the Cavaliers’ first of the season, and put them on the right track as they rolled to a 5-5 record and earned the school’s first playoff birth.  A bi-district victory over Pflugerville put Lake Travis in the second round where they fell to New Braunfels, 28-25.

All time Series: McCallum leads 3-1

2003: McCallum 35, Lake Travis 20

2002: McCallum 38, Lake Travis 6

2001: McCallum 28, Lake Travis 15

2000: Lake Travis 37, McCallum 7

Prediction: Lake Travis 42, McCallum, 14

Poll: Which 26-4A player will have the most collegiate success?

Since they were built, the AISD schools now zoned into District 26-4A have had a strong tradition of producing good college players. Chris Houston and Bruce Scholtz have shown that 26-4A talent can extend beyond college and to the NFL.  Now it’s time for you to peer into the magic 8-ball, and decide which District 26-4A alumnus or soon-to-be alumnus will end up with the best college career.  I’ve narrowed the choices down to four: LBJ alumni Kerry Hyder (2009) and DJ Johnson (2009), and soon-to-be college freshman Jaquarias Daniels (2011) and Michael Sorrells (2011).

McCallum Win Creates Three-way Tie Atop 26-4A

By Sam Bohmfalk

McCallum 55, LBJ 41

Don’t be surprised if Michael Sorrells soon garners a few more offers from D-I schools.  Already with scholarship promises in hand from Louisiana Tech, New Mexico State and Tulsa, Sorrells dismantled the LBJ defense scoring six touchdowns in leading the McCallum Knights to a 55-41 victory over the LBJ Jaguars.  The win creates a virtual three-way tie between one-loss teams LBJ, McCallum and Travis.

Held to just 58 first-half yards, Sorrells put the Knights on his shoulders in the third quarter as he bullied his way into the end zone three times, scoring on runs of 3, 7, and 44 yards turning a 21-13 Knights deficit into a 41-28 lead heading into the fourth.  The change of quarter did nothing to stop Sorrells, who quickly added his fifth touchdown of the game to push the McCallum lead to 20.

LBJ wasn’t about to lie down, however, and Trey Porter’s second touchdown run pulled the Jaguars within 13.  After a defensive stop, the Jaguars struck again as quarterback Darius Collins found Emiliano Espinoza from 45-yards out to pull LBJ within 7.

Collins, who finished 22-36 for 293 yards and three touchdowns, was hoping for a chance to tie the game, but McCallum’s Sorrells proved to be too much.  The 6-3, 200-pounder scored his sixth touchdown from 7-yards out to ice the game and send the district title picture into disarray.

Elsewhere around 26-4A

Crockett 28, Reagan 6

Crockett’s 240 rushing yards controlled the clock, but it was quarterback Paul Wagner’s arm that won the game for the Cougars.  Wagner threw for touchdowns of 23 and 28 yards in the second half as the Cougars scored 21 unanswered to knock the Raiders out of the playoff chase, 28-6.

Lanier 41, Eastside 14

The Lanier Vikings remained in a tie for fourth-place in District, as they drubbed the Eastside Rams 41-14.  The Rams’ last game is next week against Travis, although the team is guaranteed to remain in the district cellar by virtue of their record.

District 26-4A Week 8 Preview

By Sam Bohmfalk

Crockett (1-6, 1-2) vs. Reagan (1-6, 1-2)

The Reagan Raiders enter this game riding high off a 51-20 victory over Eastside.  The win against the Rams snapped the Raiders’ 19-game losing streak.  The Raiders were led by all-everything Jaquarias Daniels, who threw touchdown passes of 15 and 23 yards, rushed 55 yards for a score, returned an interception 55 yards for a touchdown, and returned a fumble on a two-point conversion 100 yards for two points.  The Crockett Cougars enter having fallen last week 43-16 to district leaders LBJ.  Quarterback Paul Wagner led the Cougars offense with an efficient line of 17-28 for 137 yards and 2 touchdowns.  Crockett’s defense struggled to stop LBJ, allowing over 500 yards while forcing the Jaguars to punt just once.  Both teams need this win if they want a shot at grabbing the last playoff spot in 26-4A.

Prediction: Crockett 38, Reagan 12

LBJ (4-4, 4-0) vs. McCallum (3-4, 2-1)

The McCallum Knights are the last real challenge for an LBJ Jaguars team that is looking to run the table in district play.  The Jaguars had no trouble last week in their 43-16 victory over Crockett.   McCallum’s defense will have to find a way to stop LBJ quarterback Darius Collins, who has lit up district opponents, completing 74% of his passes in four games, for 574 yards and 7 touchdowns.  A win by McCallum would put the Knights in position to repeat as district champions.  The Knights are led by the district’s leading rusher, Michael Sorrells, who has amassed 1086 yards and 13 touchdowns on just 130 carries.

Prediction: LBJ 42, McCallum 27

Lanier (2-5, 1-2) vs. Eastside (1-7, 0-4)

The Lanier Vikings and Eastside Rams each enter this game as teams that would put a dictionary definition of the word defense to shame.  Lanier fell to the Travis Rebels last week, 51-14, due in large part to the fact that the Rebels amassed 438 rushing yards.  On the other side, the Eastside Rams fell victim to Reagan last week, giving up 51 points—the least they’ve allowed in a district game to date.   The Rams pass defense, which has been suspect all year, will have to find a way to stop Vikings quarter back K’Len Britton if they want to win.  Britton, who has thrown for 1,091 yards and 13 touchdowns on the year, was held in check against Travis completing just 10 of 21 passes for 88 yards and a touchdown.

Prediction: Lanier 56, Eastside 13

Rangers-Rays Game 4 Recap and Game 5 Preview

After taking the first two games in Tampa, the Texas Rangers will be heading back there.

The Rays once again beat the Rangers 5-2 in Arlington, as Wade Davis had a good enough start, going five innings giving up one solo home run, as the bullpen took the reins and only gave up one more run in 4 innings. Rafael Soriano recorded the save for the Rays.

The Rangers’ Tommy Hunter took the loss, only able to go 4 innings while giving up 3 runs, 2 of them earned. Derek Holland came in for a long relief appearance in the fifth inning, and gave up a two-run homer to Evan Longoria.

Longoria racked up three hits, two runs, and two RBIs for the Rays, who have scored 11 runs in their two games in Arlington compared to the one run they scored in both games at Tropicana Field. The Rangers, by comparison, scored a total of five runs in both games in Arlington against the 11 they scored in Tampa.

Texas is still looking to win a playoff series for the first time in its franchise history, and will be sending Game 1 starter Cliff Lee to the mound to try to get that accomplished. Lee, in six combined playoff starts with the Phillies and Rangers, hasn’t lost a playoff game. Tampa will also be using its Game 1 starter, David Price, in Tuesday’s game. So far, the away team has won all the games in the series.

The winner of Tuesday night’s game will host the New York Yankees in Game 1 of the American League Championship Series on Friday. The Yankees advanced after sweeping the AL Central champion Twins Saturday night.

First pitch is scheduled for 7:07 p.m. CST Tuesday night from Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.

District 26-4A Week in Review

Travis Rebels 52, Reagan Raiders 6

Rebels quarterback Jonathan Sterling threw for 170 yards and three touchdowns and added another two on the ground in the Rebels’ 52-6 victory over the Raiders.  The game was put away early with Travis opening up a 21-point cushion in the first fifteen minutes thanks to Sterling’s arm and the legs of running back Isaiah White, who piled up 187 yards on just seven carries.  The Raiders had some success moving the ball against the Travis defense, but eight first half penalties sullied any chances Reagan had of keeping the game close.   The loss makes it 19 in a row for the Raiders, who find themselves at the bottom of the 26-4A standings.  Travis’ win moves the Rebels to 5-2, 2-1 in a tie for second place.

LBJ Jaguars 69, Eastside Memorial Rams 0

The LBJ Jaguars scored 48 first-half points en route to a 69-0 route of the Eastside Memorial Rams.  LBJ quarterback Darius Collins passed for touchdowns on three of the Jaguars first four drives and finished the night 8-9 for 127 yards and 3 touchdowns.  Eastside running back Antonio Rangel was the only glimmer of hope for the Rams, rushing for 28 of the teams 30 yards.  The win by LBJ keeps the Jaguars in sole possession of first place in the district at 3-0 (3-4 overall).  The loss keeps Eastside in the district cellar at 0-3, 1-6 overall.

McCallum Knights 27, Crockett Cougars 14

Michael Sorrells’ first quarter 20-yard touchdown run put McCallum (3-4, 2-1) up by 7 and his three-yard plunge in third quarter iced the game as the Knights bested the Crockett Cougars (1-5, 1-1) 27-14.  Sorrells finished with 144 yards on 20 carries, and found help in the form of Tee Tolliver who added a 41-yard rushing touchdown and a 62-yarder through the air.  Crockett struck first in the first quarter when quarterback Paul Wagner took it in from three yards out but 27 straight points from McCallum put the game out of reach for Crockett.  The Cougars, currently in a tie for fourth in district, will attempt to upset LBJ next week while McCallum takes a bye week.

Friday Night Light Memories

With the high school football season well under way, I thought it would be nice to relive memories of those days through the eyes of current college students. Its a few people and what they came to their minds when talking about those halcyon days.

Elly Ray – For me, it meant the wonderful sounds of cowbells and coin clankers. I’d get up every Saturday with some hearing loss but it would be well worth it.

Oliver Lee – Friday night football wasn’t as great for me because we always had a bad team. We’d always be up for the first half and then just be disappointed. The games weren’t that great, but atmosphere and parties were cool.

Scott O’Campo – Well, I went to Southlake Carroll so it always meant a great football team and state championships. It’s always a bit more fun when you know what you’re rooting for is actually going to be good.

Jeffrey Chan – It meant butterflies in my stomach and adrenaline in my system every time I crashed through that banner.  Lacing up those shoes and getting into that huddle was a feeling that you don’t forget. Senior night was also one of those things that sticks in your mind, a once in a lifetime moment.

ALDS Game 2 Rangers-Ray Live Tweet

Hey people, this is Brett, a little more than a half hour away from Game 2 of the American League Division Series between the Texas Rangers and Tampa Bay Rays. The Rangers took Game 1 behind the arm of ace starter Cliff Lee 5-1, with solo home runs by Nelson Cruz and Bengie Molina. Today’s match-up sees The Rangers’ C.J. Wilson and the Rays’ James Shields. This post will be updated with my tweets after the game, but to follow me live, just follow me on Twitter @BrettAwith2Ts and look for the hashtag #Game2Rangers. Enjoy the game.

Preview: Travis vs. Reagan

Quarterback Jonathan Sterling and the Travis Rebels (4-2) enter this rivalry game against the Reagan Raiders (0-5) looking to reach the 5-win plateau for the second consecutive season.  Sterling torched the Raiders last year, running for 169 yards and four touchdowns on just six carries and adding another two through the air in the Rebels’ 50-0 victory over Reagan.  The Rebels’ quarterback was solid in last week’s 49-21 loss to Johnson, going 18-32 for 290 yards and two touchdowns.  The key for Travis will be holding on to the ball.  In their four wins, Travis has turned the ball over just six times while they’ve lost it seven times in their two losses.

If Reagan is to break their 18-game losing streak, quarterback and all-everything Jaquarias Daniels will have to come up big.  Daniels, 0-3 as a starter against Travis in his career, accounted for 426 yards of total offense in Reagan’s 56-35 loss last week to Lanier.  Daniels has scored seven of the team’s eight touchdowns this season.  A lack of depth on the offensive line and inconsistent play from the Raiders’ receivers have plagued the Reagan offense this season while the defense has not shown an ability to stop anybody.

Prediction: The Rebels’ running game will overpower the Raiders defense and put the game away pretty fast.  2A school Lago Vista put 49 on Reagan before halftime, and it wouldn’t be too surprising to see Travis do the same.  Travis romps, 56-6.

Who: Travis Rebels vs. Reagan Raiders

When: Thursday, 7 p.m.

Where: House Park