Tonight, the Friendswood Mustangs hosted the Santa Fe Indians and performed the annual Patriotic Halftime Show. And tonight I did something I haven't done in the 21st Century, I went to a football game alone. The kiddos were sick, so my wonderful husband offered to stay home with them so I could go to the game. Thanks!!
The Indians came into this game with a district record of 0-3. Friendswood's district record was 1-3. If either team wanted to play in playoffs, this was a must win.
So, for the score board:
1st quarter only Santa Fe 0 - Friendswood 7
2nd quarter only Santa Fe 0 - Friendswood 15
3rd quarter only Santa Fe 0 - Friendswood 7
4th quarter only Santa Fe 0 - Friendswood 6
Final score Santa Fe 0 - Friendswood 35
I'm sure the Mustangs have been looking forward to this week. Not only because the last three weeks the Mustangs have had to play state ranked teams; but also because Santa Fe was the only team to beat Friendswood before the team traveled to College Station to play Lake Travis in the State semi-finals.
Tonight's list of players who weren't dressed out didn't have any surprises. I didn't see Taube or Camarillo on the sidelines. I knew that Camarillo is out for the season, but I didn't know if he'd be at the game. I still don't know what happened to Taube. He came out during the Dawson game. He was on the sidelines during the LaMarque game, but I haven't seen him since. I hope that he's okay and can be on the sidelines, if not playing, again soon.
Tonight was a good night for the Mustangs. With all the injuries that occurred early in the season, several kids got a crash course in varsity football. There was some shuffling of positions and players, and some kids who thought they were backups were suddenly starters. They are all continuing to improve and I think this week they did an awesome job of demonstrating all the lessons they have learned. But of course, there's always something to work on. And you know I'm not a stats person, but I'm fairly sure that JJ went over the 1000 yard mark tonight. Congratulations JJ.
Friendswood's defense continues to struggle, but they are getting better. Santa Fe is a running team, and when they did take to the air, we saw why they like the ground game. As I watched the game, I mentioned more than once that Santa Fe's offense is like the turtle, slow and steady. They consistently gained 3 yards per play. There were some plays where Friendswood had no problem shutting down the Santa Fe offense. But other plays it was much more difficult to bring down their ball carriers. I wish I knew what the difference was between those two events, but I don't. There were several Mustang players who had great defensive plays - Chidester, Longbotham, Brunson, S. Holle, Wood, Stuart, Correa, Montalvo, Martinez, Stevens, & Lewis (listed in the order I mentioned them on twitter). Wood had 2 interceptions tonight. No, he didn't throw any interceptions, he caught two interceptions. Last year he was the team leader in interceptions. I don't know what this year's stats are, but I'm sure the Mustangs haven't had more than 2 in one game, so he currently holds that record. The pass protection was great. When Santa Fe did pass, which wasn't very often, it was intercepted, or was incomplete. They did complete a few, and gain a few yards, but there was almost always a Mustang there to make sure the Indian didn't get very far.
On special teams, there were a few oops tonight, but they didn't change the outcome of the game. First, something happened during one of the PATs. I didn't see the snap, but saw G. Holle pick the ball up and run with it. I don't think it was intended to be a fake, but I could be wrong. G. Holle ran to the outside. He looked like he might have been looking for someone to pass it to. He saw he wasn't getting in on that side, so he ran around to the other side and was able to get into the end zone for 2 points. Later in the game, Montalvo missed a PAT. He missed one last week, too. Hmmmmmm Friendswood only received 1 kick off tonight. Holle, Battle and Holle were deep to receive the kick off. The ball ended up not going deep enough to get to them. It was caught by JJ. He ran all over the field looking for a way to get through. He managed to get out to the 32 yard line.
On offense tonight, Friendswood looked good. JJ was a work horse, as usual. He ran, and ran, and ran. But, I'm sure he was thankful that he was playing one way tonight. Wood's long throws didn't work out as well this week as they did last week. There were a few over throws, not sure if the receiver (usually Battle) was tripped up and not able to run his usual speed, or if Wood overthrew the ball. I found it curious that Scott wasn't in as much as usual tonight, but he did play. One thing that didn't work for our offense tonight - hand offs to Battle. They didn't work very well last week. I'd have to study film from the games to see why those hand offs haven't been working out too well, but it seems that the defense is always ready for that play. I didn't make note of as many names on offense tonight as I did on defense, so I'm going from memory here. But players who had a good night on offense include Wood, JJ, G. Holle, Battle and everyone who blocked for them. Wood had great protection tonight, and I'm sure he was grateful.
Now of course I can't write a blog without giving my observations of things the Mustangs can work on before the next game to help them improve - that is, unless they ever play a perfect game. And if they do, it better not be one of the few games I have to miss. So, what can the Mustangs work on? I've said it over and over again - tackling. Yes, the tackling looked much better tonight. But there were still instances where the defender missed the tackle or the ball carrier slipped though the tackle. It didn't happen as often as it has in the past, but it's still something the team can work on. Something else would be for the quarterbacks, both Wood and Morris, to spend time with the receivers. I noticed during warm up that the receivers were dropping/missing more passes than usual. I know it may sound boring, but the more they practice together, the better they will work as a unit. The better they will be able to anticipate the other's moves and be in the right spot or throw to the right spot. Wood really seemed to do a better job of reading the field this week, and looking to see where everyone was before making a decision. Keep working on that and he'll keep getting better. Give JJ a break more often and let his back ups show you what they can do. We've already seen both Rosales and Longbotham perform well in the running back position. Give them some more playing time and I'm sure they will continue to impress you. I never saw JJ line up as a wide receiver tonight (perhaps he did and I missed it). But I would like to see some more of it. It seemed to be effective when it was tried against Manvel.
Everyone knows that this year's Santa Fe Indians are LaMarque, or Dawson or Manvel. So you would expect to see the Mustangs play better against Santa Fe that the last 3 teams the Mustangs have faced. That being said, the team did look better. I wonder, if we had Dawson or LaMarque or Manvel still left to play, if those games would be different, now that the kids who were sinking instead of swimming have learned to swim well. Of course, those games are in the past, and we can't go back and change them. I just wonder.
The Mustang team that took the field tonight is a very different team that the one that took the field against Angleton, West Orange Stark or even Stratford. Courtesy of all the injuries, the team has had, they've been forced to evolve. So, can the 2011 Mustangs 2.0 (probably more like 2.3 or 2.4 by now) beat the Texas City Stingarees in Texas City? If the Mustangs want to get into the play offs, they have to.
Be sure to be in Texas City at Stingaree Stadium on Friday, November 4, 2011. Kick off will be at 7pm. You know I'll be there.
Friday, October 21, 2011
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Friendswood Mustangs vs. Manvel Mavericks Thursday, October 13, 2011
Thursday, October 13, the Friendswood Mustangs traveled to Alvin Memorial Stadium to take on the Manvel Mavericks. This game was also televised on The Kube. I'm glad this game was televised. We had to miss most of the first half, but I set my DVR so I could watch it later.
Now, I guess I've put this off long enough. It's time to write my blog entry for that game.
But first (yes, I'm stalling) the box scores.
Total
Friendswood 7 0 15 6 28
Manvel. 21 17 15 7 60
This week showed some definite improvements for the Mustangs and a few old bad habits. I watched most of the game on the TV (my DVR cut off after 3 hours instead of recording the entire game). For the most part, I found the announcers to be annoying, and tuned them out. But I found their commentary during the 3rd quarter to be very interesting. The 3rd quarter commentary highlighted things that I and other Mustang fans have been saying for a long time. "The difference between Manvel and Friendswood - Manvel tackles very well. Friendswood does alot of arm tackling." Another comment was that once you've run the same play several times, the defense knows how to stop it. All of this was plainly evident Thursday night.
So, for the bad - first, where was Caleb Taube? He came out of the Dawson game and didn't play against LaMarque. I didn't even see him on the sidelines Thursday. The reason I ask about Taube now is that, during the Stratford game, he did very well on the skill I'm about to complain about. Why, oh why does our defense leave enough room between themselves and the receivers to park a few 1963 Chryslers? They didn't do this all the time, just 95+% of the time. When they were close enough to reach out and touch Manvel's receivers, the pass was incomplete.
Next, it was great to see Battle on the field with a week of practice. And when they faked handoffs between Johnson & Battle, they worked for a while. But, when you run a starburst, or fake handoffs, and the same person ends up with the ball (almost) every time, the fake becomes ineffective and results in a loss of yardage. It also helps when everyone is a good faker. Johnson needs to practice faking. It's always obvious if he has the ball or not. And while he has gotten better at gaining yards while he worked his way outside, he fell into some old habits Thursday night.
Did Montalvo forget his lucky socks or shoes? He missed more kicks than usual (1 PAT, at least 1 field goal - 37 yard). Madera came in to kick after the missed PAT and on the next touchdown the Mustangs went for 2. Normally, I would be inclined to wonder if Montalvo was injured, but he continued to play well on defense. He played well on defense all night.
Okay, more bad, informational stuff before we get to the good stuff. I want to end on a positive note. While I was not counting snaps, I can tell you that Wood & Johnson were on the field for every offensive snap (minus 1 for Wood and maybe a few in the 4th quarter) and most defensive snaps. And they both proved that they know how to tackle & Johnson knows how to intercept. I noticed toward the end of the game that Wood was more herding the ball carrier out of bounds that tackling - work smarter, not harder - good job.
Battle & Scott also played their fair share of defense and they played well.
Injury report - Camarillo came out of the game in the 2nd quarter holding his knee. He did not re-enter the game, but he was seen on the sidelines during the second half, sporting a pair of crutches. Longbotham left the game in the 4th quarter and spent the rest of the game on the sideline with an ice bag tapped to his ankle. I haven't heard anything about either of them. I hope they are both feeling better and ready to play Friday night.
Now, for the good news. Holle didn't drop the ball or miss a catch all night! Good job Holle! Wood is continuing to improve at quarterback. His throws are gaining distance and accuracy. He still needs to practice reading the field, but the only thing for that is practice. Battle & Scott both looked great & displayed some skills that Friendswood fans have come to expect (impossible catches under excellent coverage). Chidester iss looking great & learning to be everywhere all at once. Longbotham is also getting better, though he looked better against LaMarque than against Manvel. There was a JV jersey that should have been wearing a varsity jersey. Someone please get that boy, #82, a varsity jersey with his name on the back. He made some great tackles, read the Manvel offense well & made some smart decisions. I hope to see him on the field this week against Santa Fe. Something else I hope to see, Longbotham get in some time at running back. He's already demonstrated that he can do well in that spot, but we haven't seen him run the ball since the game against Galveston Ball. And while I'm asking, let's have more points on the Friendswood side of the score board than the Santa Fe side.
The Mustangs will take on Santa Fe Friday, October 21, 2011. Kick off will be at 7pm and this will be the FISD's annual Patriotic Half-time. If you haven't seen this show before, you need to. It's a great salute to our servicemen & women, veterans & our nation.
My advice for the Mustangs, do not think you have the week off. Who was the only team to beat Friendswood before we went to College Station last year? Santa Fe.
To the coaches, when you watch the films of earlier games, look to see what you did differently that worked. What experimnets worked, and which ones didn't. Don't be afraid to try something. AND, look at things the other teams did that you didn't that were effective. You might get some good ideas.
In order for the Mustangs to make they play offs, they have to beat Santa Fe & Texas City. Is it possible? Absolutely. Will they? That remains to be seen.
Disclaimer: Please keep in mind that I am watching the game and "taking notes" by twittering during the games. I am at each game with at least one of my kids, if not both. Sometimes, my husband is able to attend with us and sometimes I have other family with me as well. My football education is from attending high school football games for 30+ years and sitting between my dad and my grandpa for the first 12 of those years. I was 3 when my parents bought my first season ticket. I missed 2 home games from the time I was 3 years old through junior high, and started traveling (not missing a single game) during high school. I started taking my kids to games before they could walk and have been taking them ever since.
Now, I guess I've put this off long enough. It's time to write my blog entry for that game.
But first (yes, I'm stalling) the box scores.
Total
Friendswood 7 0 15 6 28
Manvel. 21 17 15 7 60
This week showed some definite improvements for the Mustangs and a few old bad habits. I watched most of the game on the TV (my DVR cut off after 3 hours instead of recording the entire game). For the most part, I found the announcers to be annoying, and tuned them out. But I found their commentary during the 3rd quarter to be very interesting. The 3rd quarter commentary highlighted things that I and other Mustang fans have been saying for a long time. "The difference between Manvel and Friendswood - Manvel tackles very well. Friendswood does alot of arm tackling." Another comment was that once you've run the same play several times, the defense knows how to stop it. All of this was plainly evident Thursday night.
So, for the bad - first, where was Caleb Taube? He came out of the Dawson game and didn't play against LaMarque. I didn't even see him on the sidelines Thursday. The reason I ask about Taube now is that, during the Stratford game, he did very well on the skill I'm about to complain about. Why, oh why does our defense leave enough room between themselves and the receivers to park a few 1963 Chryslers? They didn't do this all the time, just 95+% of the time. When they were close enough to reach out and touch Manvel's receivers, the pass was incomplete.
Next, it was great to see Battle on the field with a week of practice. And when they faked handoffs between Johnson & Battle, they worked for a while. But, when you run a starburst, or fake handoffs, and the same person ends up with the ball (almost) every time, the fake becomes ineffective and results in a loss of yardage. It also helps when everyone is a good faker. Johnson needs to practice faking. It's always obvious if he has the ball or not. And while he has gotten better at gaining yards while he worked his way outside, he fell into some old habits Thursday night.
Did Montalvo forget his lucky socks or shoes? He missed more kicks than usual (1 PAT, at least 1 field goal - 37 yard). Madera came in to kick after the missed PAT and on the next touchdown the Mustangs went for 2. Normally, I would be inclined to wonder if Montalvo was injured, but he continued to play well on defense. He played well on defense all night.
Okay, more bad, informational stuff before we get to the good stuff. I want to end on a positive note. While I was not counting snaps, I can tell you that Wood & Johnson were on the field for every offensive snap (minus 1 for Wood and maybe a few in the 4th quarter) and most defensive snaps. And they both proved that they know how to tackle & Johnson knows how to intercept. I noticed toward the end of the game that Wood was more herding the ball carrier out of bounds that tackling - work smarter, not harder - good job.
Battle & Scott also played their fair share of defense and they played well.
Injury report - Camarillo came out of the game in the 2nd quarter holding his knee. He did not re-enter the game, but he was seen on the sidelines during the second half, sporting a pair of crutches. Longbotham left the game in the 4th quarter and spent the rest of the game on the sideline with an ice bag tapped to his ankle. I haven't heard anything about either of them. I hope they are both feeling better and ready to play Friday night.
Now, for the good news. Holle didn't drop the ball or miss a catch all night! Good job Holle! Wood is continuing to improve at quarterback. His throws are gaining distance and accuracy. He still needs to practice reading the field, but the only thing for that is practice. Battle & Scott both looked great & displayed some skills that Friendswood fans have come to expect (impossible catches under excellent coverage). Chidester iss looking great & learning to be everywhere all at once. Longbotham is also getting better, though he looked better against LaMarque than against Manvel. There was a JV jersey that should have been wearing a varsity jersey. Someone please get that boy, #82, a varsity jersey with his name on the back. He made some great tackles, read the Manvel offense well & made some smart decisions. I hope to see him on the field this week against Santa Fe. Something else I hope to see, Longbotham get in some time at running back. He's already demonstrated that he can do well in that spot, but we haven't seen him run the ball since the game against Galveston Ball. And while I'm asking, let's have more points on the Friendswood side of the score board than the Santa Fe side.
The Mustangs will take on Santa Fe Friday, October 21, 2011. Kick off will be at 7pm and this will be the FISD's annual Patriotic Half-time. If you haven't seen this show before, you need to. It's a great salute to our servicemen & women, veterans & our nation.
My advice for the Mustangs, do not think you have the week off. Who was the only team to beat Friendswood before we went to College Station last year? Santa Fe.
To the coaches, when you watch the films of earlier games, look to see what you did differently that worked. What experimnets worked, and which ones didn't. Don't be afraid to try something. AND, look at things the other teams did that you didn't that were effective. You might get some good ideas.
In order for the Mustangs to make they play offs, they have to beat Santa Fe & Texas City. Is it possible? Absolutely. Will they? That remains to be seen.
Disclaimer: Please keep in mind that I am watching the game and "taking notes" by twittering during the games. I am at each game with at least one of my kids, if not both. Sometimes, my husband is able to attend with us and sometimes I have other family with me as well. My football education is from attending high school football games for 30+ years and sitting between my dad and my grandpa for the first 12 of those years. I was 3 when my parents bought my first season ticket. I missed 2 home games from the time I was 3 years old through junior high, and started traveling (not missing a single game) during high school. I started taking my kids to games before they could walk and have been taking them ever since.
Friday, October 7, 2011
LaMarque Cougars vs. Friendswood Mustangs October 7, 2011 - Homecoming 2011
Okay, I'm going to try very, very hard to show a light at the end of this tunnel, but I'm afraid that light may be the headlight of an oncoming train. Okay, the stats first.
1st quarter only LaMarque 21 - Friendswood 7
2nd quarter only LaMarque 28 - Friendswood 0
3rd quarter only LaMarque 14 - Friendswood 7
4th quarter only LaMarque 0 - Friendswood 7
FINAL SCORE LaMarque 63 - Friendswood 21
And yes, I believe the school record for most points given up during a game has been broken for the second time this season. Please guys, lets not go for three.
This week's sick, lame and lazy club (my husbands phrase, not mine) included Hoke, Dement, Gardner, Camarillo, Taube and Nunez. There may have been others, but I beleive that's all of them. Two names of note that are not on that list are Battle and Scott. I had been told that both of them were out for the season. I learned this morning that Scott was listed as probable for tonight's game. He played the whole game. Battle came in during the second half and played the rest of the game.
Now, what did I actually see tonight? At first, I saw the Mustang defense effectively stop the Cougar offense. The Cougars weren't able to do anything on their first possession and had to punt the ball away. But before that, Sam Longbotham intercepted the Cougars first pass, but as he was tackled from behind the ball was stripped and recovered by the Cougars. Our offense looked good during our first possession, but we weren't able to get into the end zone. The field goal was blocked and the Cougars picked up the ball and ran all the way to the end zone. And that's pretty much sums up the first quarter. All 3 of the Cougar touch downs in the 1st quarter were lucky strikes. The second quarter was another story.
Something happened after LaMarque scored that first touchdown, not sure what exactly, but the Mustangs began a down hill slide that didn't slow down until the last few minutes of the first half.
Sam Longbotham is continuing to make a name for himself. I never saw him play offense tonight (doesn't mean he didn't, I just never saw it). His name was definitely mentioned more than any other defensive player. He was everywhere. I am really looking forward to watching this freshman play the rest of this season and the next 3 seasons.
After halftime, the Mustangs were able to sustain the momentum they had going at the end of the first half. It took 2 minutes and 25 seconds of play time for Wood to find the end zone. Unfortunately, LaMarque answered about 2 minutes later. The rest of the game was much better than the first half. Whatever adjustments the Mustangs made were not obvious, but effective. During the last quarter, both LaMarque and Friendswood brought in their back up quarterbacks and back up running backs (Morris and Rosales for Friendswood). LaMarque used the running game much more than their passing game (surprise, surprise) but when they did pass, we defended better than we did against Dawson. That being said, Tim Wright is fast and can run hard. Taube and Camarillo both being on the sidelines hurt our defense. Hopefully they are back next week. I'd love to see what our defense can do with Taube, Camarillo and Longbotham all on the field.
Two interesting things that happened that should be mentioned before I get into my "analysis". The Cougars faked a handoff that even fooled the refs during the first half. The line of scrimmage was in the red zone. The refs blew the whistles ending the play, not realizing that the ball was not in the dog pile. The ball runner ran right into the end zone a couple of seconds after the whistles. They talked for quite a while about how to handle this situation and the LaMarque coach is lucky he wasn't thrown out of the game for the way he handled the refs decision. The refs came to the conclusion that by blowing the whistles, they told the Mustang defense that the play was over, causing the Mustangs to slack off and head back to the backfield to plan their next move. It wasn't fair to allow the touch down after the whistle, even though the whistles should never have been blown in the first. They decided to give the Cougars a "do-over". Under the circumstances, I think that was the best option. The LaMarque coach and fans were not happy about the refs decision. And I can understand why they would feel that way. But the Mustangs should not be punished (points on the board against them) for the refs mistake. It turns out that it didn't make much of a difference. Two plays later, the Cougars were back in the end zone. But I feel that the LaMarque fans were very disrespectful to the refs in this situation. Speaking of the refs, one of the them was in the way of the ball/players more than once. And I really wish we had instant replay on some of those plays. I'm not sure the refs were entirely accurate. Don't think it would have changed the score too much, but still. Another comment - I wish I knew which player it was, but I want to give props to the Mustang who backed away with his hands up from a Cougar who tried to start a fight. Several other players, from both teams, saw the almost fight and ran over to stop it. That was also good to see. Again, I didn't catch the players number, but since no one was thrown out of the game, I assume it was a different Cougar who got in a late hit a few plays later and landed LaMarque with their second personal foul.
Now, what did I really see? I saw the Jordan and JJ show on offense, and the Sam Longbotham show on defense. All three are outstanding players, but they can't carry the team all by themselves. It was great to see Scott back on the field. He played very well and I'm sure he will improve as the season continues. And seeing Battle back on the field was also great. He wasn't as big of a presence as he was before his injury, but hopefully that will change. Holle played well, but continues to be inconsistent. I don't have any stats in front of me, but it seems that he misses the ball (in and out of his hands, dropped pass, passes he should have caught, etc) as often as he makes the catch. When he makes the catch, it's on great plays. But even when he's wide open, you never know if he's going to catch the ball or not, no matter how well Wood throws the ball. I wish I could offer some advice to help him be more consistent, but all I can say is practice, practice, practice. And maybe come up with some drill where he never knows where the ball is coming from, but has to catch it. I would like to see him improve, and I think he could be an outstanding receiver.
JJ, as always looked great. But I will never understand why he is constantly asked to run up the middle when he rarely goes anywhere that way. He's getting much better about not running parallel to the yard lines. He likes to run on the outside and is getting better at making forward progress while he's getting outside. Another why - why do the coaches work him like a mule? He has some great back ups. Both Rosales and Longbotham have proved that they are capable of taking the hand off and gaining yards. Why not let JJ catch his breath from time to time?
Wood is also continuing to improve. His throws are getting better and better. Both in length, power and accuracy. It helps that the offensive line is getting better at protecting him and giving him time to make a decision and opening holes for him to run through. He's not a Karam or a Maetzold, yet. But he could be. All the tools are there. He still needs to practice making decisions faster and taking in the whole field, but he has the potential. If what I heard is correct, our quarterback is ranked in rushing yards. I think that's a new one for Friendswood. Another new one is to not have our quarterback ranked in the traditional quarterback stats. Who cares if he rushes as often as he throws, as long as the chains move and the points go up on our side of the score board. He also played well on defense tonight. I saw him make a couple of great tackles. One of them being one of the plays I would like to see on instant replay.
Scott looked good, especially seeing as how it was his first game back. He did make a catch out of bounds that probably would have been in bounds if he hadn't been out with an injury. But he didn't miss many, if any, passes & he did a great job of getting open.
Now a question for the coaches. Why, oh why, do you continue to demonstrate the definition of insanity? How many times will you watch a play fail before you stop calling it. How many times does an opponent have to demonstrate that they studied film on a specific player before you change things up and move that player to a different position, or take him out for a while. Even if you only take him out for a few plays. It would be enough to mess with your opponents heads. If they obviously studied film on one player. they probably didn't spend much time worrying about his back up(s). Especially since every coach in the district knows that you will call the same plays with the same players all night long, whether they work or not. They also know that Friendswood will run trick plays more often than any other team. But I'm sure the scouts get very bored watching our games. I'm not sure I would want to scout us. If I was able to stay objective & uninvolved in the game, I'd have a hard time not falling asleep. Or is that the plan? Are you trying to bore the scouts into not paying attention?
Everyone knows that Friendswood is suffering from having a large number of starters watching from the sidelines in their jerseys and shorts. And everyone is taking advantage of it. But we can't let that be our excuse for not winning. It just means that the team will have to continue to work harder than any other team in our district and get creative during practice to find solutions to the obvious problems. Sometimes obvious problems don't have obvious solutions.
The Mustangs' next game will be on Thursday, October 13, 2011 at Alvin Memorial Stadium Kick off is at 7pm and the game is scheduled to be televised. This game has been described as the third in a trifecta of tough opponents for the Mustangs. Let's go boys. Don't give up, don't get discouraged and keep working hard. We're behind you, all the way.
1st quarter only LaMarque 21 - Friendswood 7
2nd quarter only LaMarque 28 - Friendswood 0
3rd quarter only LaMarque 14 - Friendswood 7
4th quarter only LaMarque 0 - Friendswood 7
FINAL SCORE LaMarque 63 - Friendswood 21
And yes, I believe the school record for most points given up during a game has been broken for the second time this season. Please guys, lets not go for three.
This week's sick, lame and lazy club (my husbands phrase, not mine) included Hoke, Dement, Gardner, Camarillo, Taube and Nunez. There may have been others, but I beleive that's all of them. Two names of note that are not on that list are Battle and Scott. I had been told that both of them were out for the season. I learned this morning that Scott was listed as probable for tonight's game. He played the whole game. Battle came in during the second half and played the rest of the game.
Now, what did I actually see tonight? At first, I saw the Mustang defense effectively stop the Cougar offense. The Cougars weren't able to do anything on their first possession and had to punt the ball away. But before that, Sam Longbotham intercepted the Cougars first pass, but as he was tackled from behind the ball was stripped and recovered by the Cougars. Our offense looked good during our first possession, but we weren't able to get into the end zone. The field goal was blocked and the Cougars picked up the ball and ran all the way to the end zone. And that's pretty much sums up the first quarter. All 3 of the Cougar touch downs in the 1st quarter were lucky strikes. The second quarter was another story.
Something happened after LaMarque scored that first touchdown, not sure what exactly, but the Mustangs began a down hill slide that didn't slow down until the last few minutes of the first half.
Sam Longbotham is continuing to make a name for himself. I never saw him play offense tonight (doesn't mean he didn't, I just never saw it). His name was definitely mentioned more than any other defensive player. He was everywhere. I am really looking forward to watching this freshman play the rest of this season and the next 3 seasons.
After halftime, the Mustangs were able to sustain the momentum they had going at the end of the first half. It took 2 minutes and 25 seconds of play time for Wood to find the end zone. Unfortunately, LaMarque answered about 2 minutes later. The rest of the game was much better than the first half. Whatever adjustments the Mustangs made were not obvious, but effective. During the last quarter, both LaMarque and Friendswood brought in their back up quarterbacks and back up running backs (Morris and Rosales for Friendswood). LaMarque used the running game much more than their passing game (surprise, surprise) but when they did pass, we defended better than we did against Dawson. That being said, Tim Wright is fast and can run hard. Taube and Camarillo both being on the sidelines hurt our defense. Hopefully they are back next week. I'd love to see what our defense can do with Taube, Camarillo and Longbotham all on the field.
Two interesting things that happened that should be mentioned before I get into my "analysis". The Cougars faked a handoff that even fooled the refs during the first half. The line of scrimmage was in the red zone. The refs blew the whistles ending the play, not realizing that the ball was not in the dog pile. The ball runner ran right into the end zone a couple of seconds after the whistles. They talked for quite a while about how to handle this situation and the LaMarque coach is lucky he wasn't thrown out of the game for the way he handled the refs decision. The refs came to the conclusion that by blowing the whistles, they told the Mustang defense that the play was over, causing the Mustangs to slack off and head back to the backfield to plan their next move. It wasn't fair to allow the touch down after the whistle, even though the whistles should never have been blown in the first. They decided to give the Cougars a "do-over". Under the circumstances, I think that was the best option. The LaMarque coach and fans were not happy about the refs decision. And I can understand why they would feel that way. But the Mustangs should not be punished (points on the board against them) for the refs mistake. It turns out that it didn't make much of a difference. Two plays later, the Cougars were back in the end zone. But I feel that the LaMarque fans were very disrespectful to the refs in this situation. Speaking of the refs, one of the them was in the way of the ball/players more than once. And I really wish we had instant replay on some of those plays. I'm not sure the refs were entirely accurate. Don't think it would have changed the score too much, but still. Another comment - I wish I knew which player it was, but I want to give props to the Mustang who backed away with his hands up from a Cougar who tried to start a fight. Several other players, from both teams, saw the almost fight and ran over to stop it. That was also good to see. Again, I didn't catch the players number, but since no one was thrown out of the game, I assume it was a different Cougar who got in a late hit a few plays later and landed LaMarque with their second personal foul.
Now, what did I really see? I saw the Jordan and JJ show on offense, and the Sam Longbotham show on defense. All three are outstanding players, but they can't carry the team all by themselves. It was great to see Scott back on the field. He played very well and I'm sure he will improve as the season continues. And seeing Battle back on the field was also great. He wasn't as big of a presence as he was before his injury, but hopefully that will change. Holle played well, but continues to be inconsistent. I don't have any stats in front of me, but it seems that he misses the ball (in and out of his hands, dropped pass, passes he should have caught, etc) as often as he makes the catch. When he makes the catch, it's on great plays. But even when he's wide open, you never know if he's going to catch the ball or not, no matter how well Wood throws the ball. I wish I could offer some advice to help him be more consistent, but all I can say is practice, practice, practice. And maybe come up with some drill where he never knows where the ball is coming from, but has to catch it. I would like to see him improve, and I think he could be an outstanding receiver.
JJ, as always looked great. But I will never understand why he is constantly asked to run up the middle when he rarely goes anywhere that way. He's getting much better about not running parallel to the yard lines. He likes to run on the outside and is getting better at making forward progress while he's getting outside. Another why - why do the coaches work him like a mule? He has some great back ups. Both Rosales and Longbotham have proved that they are capable of taking the hand off and gaining yards. Why not let JJ catch his breath from time to time?
Wood is also continuing to improve. His throws are getting better and better. Both in length, power and accuracy. It helps that the offensive line is getting better at protecting him and giving him time to make a decision and opening holes for him to run through. He's not a Karam or a Maetzold, yet. But he could be. All the tools are there. He still needs to practice making decisions faster and taking in the whole field, but he has the potential. If what I heard is correct, our quarterback is ranked in rushing yards. I think that's a new one for Friendswood. Another new one is to not have our quarterback ranked in the traditional quarterback stats. Who cares if he rushes as often as he throws, as long as the chains move and the points go up on our side of the score board. He also played well on defense tonight. I saw him make a couple of great tackles. One of them being one of the plays I would like to see on instant replay.
Scott looked good, especially seeing as how it was his first game back. He did make a catch out of bounds that probably would have been in bounds if he hadn't been out with an injury. But he didn't miss many, if any, passes & he did a great job of getting open.
Now a question for the coaches. Why, oh why, do you continue to demonstrate the definition of insanity? How many times will you watch a play fail before you stop calling it. How many times does an opponent have to demonstrate that they studied film on a specific player before you change things up and move that player to a different position, or take him out for a while. Even if you only take him out for a few plays. It would be enough to mess with your opponents heads. If they obviously studied film on one player. they probably didn't spend much time worrying about his back up(s). Especially since every coach in the district knows that you will call the same plays with the same players all night long, whether they work or not. They also know that Friendswood will run trick plays more often than any other team. But I'm sure the scouts get very bored watching our games. I'm not sure I would want to scout us. If I was able to stay objective & uninvolved in the game, I'd have a hard time not falling asleep. Or is that the plan? Are you trying to bore the scouts into not paying attention?
Everyone knows that Friendswood is suffering from having a large number of starters watching from the sidelines in their jerseys and shorts. And everyone is taking advantage of it. But we can't let that be our excuse for not winning. It just means that the team will have to continue to work harder than any other team in our district and get creative during practice to find solutions to the obvious problems. Sometimes obvious problems don't have obvious solutions.
The Mustangs' next game will be on Thursday, October 13, 2011 at Alvin Memorial Stadium Kick off is at 7pm and the game is scheduled to be televised. This game has been described as the third in a trifecta of tough opponents for the Mustangs. Let's go boys. Don't give up, don't get discouraged and keep working hard. We're behind you, all the way.
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Frinedswood Mustangs vs. Pearland Dawson Eagles. September 30, 2011
On Friday, October 1, 2011 the Dawson Eagles hosted the Friendswood Mustangs at The Rig. Kick off was at 7pm. To start the game, Dawson won the toss elected to receive. Friendswood didn't have any surprises when it came to the players who weren't dressed out, which is a very good thing. Our defense looked good to start. After 3 Snaps, Dawson was in a 4th & 13 position on their 39 yard line. They were forced to punt, and that's where the problems began. The ball bounced out of Holle's hands. He fell on the ball, preventing the approaching Eagles for gaining possession, but we had to start from our 28 yard line. On the second snap of the drive, Johnson fumbled the ball. It was recovered by Dawson on our 30 yard line. That was not the last fumble of the night. Dawson scored on this drive, and never lost the lead.
When it came to defending against the passing game, it looked like our JV squad was playing against Lake Travis for most of the first half. The Eagle receivers were wide open for most of the half. Our defenders were at least 2 steps away, at least. They made some great tackles, after the Eagles caught the ball & got the 1st down. Why allow them to get the 1st before you tackle them? Why allow them to make the catch?
Our offense did get better after that fumble, but was still riddled with problems. I hate that it happens this way, but Wood's stats were not a good representation of how he played. The incompletion goes to him, even though he hit the receiver in the numbers. Or the ball was in & out of the receiver's hands.
By the time we got to half time, the score was Friendswood 0 - Dawson 26.
Unfortunately,. We had to leave shortly after halftime. We really should have left during halftime, but I wanted to see if the coaches & players would make the necessary adjustments, or if whatever chewing the players got was effective.
A different Mustang team came out of the field house. The offense was much more effective after half time. Wood was still under a lot of pressure when he dropped back to pass, but his offensive line opened holes for him to keep the ball and run. One of those holes was good enough for him to run 49 yards for a touchdown! Our defense came out playing much better, too. Once again Dawson ended up with 4th & 13 deep in their own territory on their first possession. As good as that sounds, we did not dominate the second half the way Dawson dominated the first half. There were still a lot of mistakes. One being a fumble by Friendswood that was touched by several players on both teams before being recovered by the Mustangs. There were an uncharacteristic number of fumbles by the Mustangs last night. And too many were recovered by Dawson.
After the Mustangs scored a field goal, bringing the score to 10 - 26, I had to leave and listen to the rest of the game on Sports Talk 790. As good as they are, it's just not the same as being there.
The final score for this game was Friendswood 16 - Dawson 39.
Friendswood is continuing to improve in some areas, and continuing to make the same mistakes in others. They still need to work on catching the ball. It doesn't matter how good the quarterback throws the ball, if the receivers don't catch it. And we shouldn't be "allowing" the other team to catch their passes. It's great that we can tackle them after they make the catch, but they are making those catches all the way into the end zone. And, whoever is calling plays, please don't call plays that continue to fail. What's the definition of insanity? How many times does a play have to fail (every time its run) before you stop running it, or you change it?
Something else Friendswood has been guilty of for years, why always play the same people? We have some awesome 2nd string/back ups players. Not all of them are awesome, but some are. If a starter is having a bad night, or if the other team has obviously prepared for a particular starter; throw a wrench into the opponents' game plan and put in someone else. If a defense seems to have JJ's number, put in Rosales or Longbotham. If an offense isn't letting Lewis or Chidester get within 5 yards of the ball/ball carrier, put Griffith or someone else in that spot. I know we don't have alot of depth, but the coaches/players should use ALL the tools at their disposal to get the job done.
The next game for the Mustangs will be Friendswood's Homecoming . Friendswood will host the LaMarque Cougars. Tim Wright and company will attempt to accomplish something as seniors that they haven't accomplished in their high school careers - beat Friendswood. And our seniors intend to finish their LaMarque/Friendswood rivalry with a perfect record. The game will be played at Henry Winston Stadium on Friday, October 7, 2011. Kick off will be at 7pm. The pregame dinner will be sponsored/hosted by the junior class.
When it came to defending against the passing game, it looked like our JV squad was playing against Lake Travis for most of the first half. The Eagle receivers were wide open for most of the half. Our defenders were at least 2 steps away, at least. They made some great tackles, after the Eagles caught the ball & got the 1st down. Why allow them to get the 1st before you tackle them? Why allow them to make the catch?
Our offense did get better after that fumble, but was still riddled with problems. I hate that it happens this way, but Wood's stats were not a good representation of how he played. The incompletion goes to him, even though he hit the receiver in the numbers. Or the ball was in & out of the receiver's hands.
By the time we got to half time, the score was Friendswood 0 - Dawson 26.
Unfortunately,. We had to leave shortly after halftime. We really should have left during halftime, but I wanted to see if the coaches & players would make the necessary adjustments, or if whatever chewing the players got was effective.
A different Mustang team came out of the field house. The offense was much more effective after half time. Wood was still under a lot of pressure when he dropped back to pass, but his offensive line opened holes for him to keep the ball and run. One of those holes was good enough for him to run 49 yards for a touchdown! Our defense came out playing much better, too. Once again Dawson ended up with 4th & 13 deep in their own territory on their first possession. As good as that sounds, we did not dominate the second half the way Dawson dominated the first half. There were still a lot of mistakes. One being a fumble by Friendswood that was touched by several players on both teams before being recovered by the Mustangs. There were an uncharacteristic number of fumbles by the Mustangs last night. And too many were recovered by Dawson.
After the Mustangs scored a field goal, bringing the score to 10 - 26, I had to leave and listen to the rest of the game on Sports Talk 790. As good as they are, it's just not the same as being there.
The final score for this game was Friendswood 16 - Dawson 39.
Friendswood is continuing to improve in some areas, and continuing to make the same mistakes in others. They still need to work on catching the ball. It doesn't matter how good the quarterback throws the ball, if the receivers don't catch it. And we shouldn't be "allowing" the other team to catch their passes. It's great that we can tackle them after they make the catch, but they are making those catches all the way into the end zone. And, whoever is calling plays, please don't call plays that continue to fail. What's the definition of insanity? How many times does a play have to fail (every time its run) before you stop running it, or you change it?
Something else Friendswood has been guilty of for years, why always play the same people? We have some awesome 2nd string/back ups players. Not all of them are awesome, but some are. If a starter is having a bad night, or if the other team has obviously prepared for a particular starter; throw a wrench into the opponents' game plan and put in someone else. If a defense seems to have JJ's number, put in Rosales or Longbotham. If an offense isn't letting Lewis or Chidester get within 5 yards of the ball/ball carrier, put Griffith or someone else in that spot. I know we don't have alot of depth, but the coaches/players should use ALL the tools at their disposal to get the job done.
The next game for the Mustangs will be Friendswood's Homecoming . Friendswood will host the LaMarque Cougars. Tim Wright and company will attempt to accomplish something as seniors that they haven't accomplished in their high school careers - beat Friendswood. And our seniors intend to finish their LaMarque/Friendswood rivalry with a perfect record. The game will be played at Henry Winston Stadium on Friday, October 7, 2011. Kick off will be at 7pm. The pregame dinner will be sponsored/hosted by the junior class.
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