Morton Ranch Mavericks @ Katy Tigers - September 12, 2025I

     On Friday, September 12, 2025, the Katy Tigers opened district play by hosting the Morton Ranch Mavericks at Rhodes Stadium. Kick off was at 7:30pm.

    Before the game, it was announced that students would be running the audio and visual technology during the game. Those students did a great job. I especially liked the starting line ups for each team. Also before the game, a group of ROTC students presented the colors for the National Anthem. I was impressed that the students waited until the colors had left the field before leaving their respectful positions. Some of the fans didn't know this piece of ettiquite, but once they realized what was going on, they quickly corrected.  Kudos! Something else I noticed, I do not recall there being a moment of silence. Whatever the opposite of kudos is, that's what is deserved for forgetting this important part of the customary pre-game routine.

    Interesting piece of trivia - before the moment of silence was common at games, there was a student-led prayer. A high school student would recite a prayer for safety before each game. In the 1990s, a law suit was filed against Santa Fe High School in regard to this custom.  Despite the prayer being student-initiated and student-led, the United States Supreme Court in 2000 ruled 6-3 that this violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. In response to the decision, a moment of silence replaced the prayer.

    Now to the game.

    I have to say that the outcome of the game was not unexpected. Katy is a perennial powerhouse and Morton Ranch is an aspiring team that is working hard to have a winning season. To be honest, my hope for this game was 0 injuries and that Morton Ranch would put some points on the board before the game was over. Half of my hopes were fulfilled - there were no injuries. It wasn't that every Tiger played better than every Maverick on every play.  It was that Katy was bigger, stronger, and knew the Maverick's defensive scheme. I saw a Katy player drag a Morton Ranch Player. I saw a Katy Tiger push Mavericks out of the way. I also saw the Tiger defense effectively defend against the pass - to the point that they intercepted more than one. Morton Ranch on the other hand, simply did not have an effective pass defense. The Mavericks did not have the strength to create holes for the running back. And the Mavericks didn't have creative play calling. One thing that the Mavericks did display was heart. More than one Maverick did not give up on the chase. Not until the Tiger that they were chasing crossed the goal line.

    My hope as the Mavericks prepare for next week is that the coaches would spend time with the players - watching film and taking the time to explain what they are seeing, what went right and what could have been done better. I hope that the coaches take the time to raise the players' football IQ and that the student-athletes would understand more about the game after the film sessions. I hope that they are able to correct the mistakes (offsides, false starts, delay of game). I hope that as the Mavericks prepare for their next game that they are able to put this loss behind them and focus on the next team and not what happened during this game.

Box Score
	1st Q	2nd Q	3rd Q	4th Q	Final
Morton Ranch Mavericks	0	0	0	0	0
Katy Tigers	23	10	21	3	57

    The box score really says it all.

    

    Despite the score, there are still plenty of players who deserve attaboys for the efforts in this game. If you see any of these players this week, please be sure to give them a pat on the back. They earned it. This week's attaboys go to J. Jenkins, C. Williams, M. Washington, T. Eli, #31, K. Jenkins, R. Nichols, H. Reed, C. Meche, E. Rios, D. Hamilton, T. Robinson, T. Williams, S. Fontenette, M Kinlaw, G. Obikili, T. Alexander, & J. Wilson. I take note of jersey numbers during the game and look up names on MaxPreps. If there is a better source for the roster, please let me know.

    

    Next up for the Mavericks is a Thursday game on September 18. The Mavericks will attempt to get back on track when they play the Katy Taylor Mustangs at Rhodes Stadium. Kick off is scheduled for 7pm.

Go Mavericks!

Disclaimer: My football education is from attending high school football games for 45+ years and sitting between my dad and my grandpa for the first 12 of those years. I continue to learn more about the game and strategies every week. My vocabulary may be lacking, but I know what I see and describe it as best I can.