The Mule Fan

A SUDDEN END TO A GREAT SEASON

Killeen 19, Heights 16

Don't worry...the game summary of this blog posting will be short. Nobody wants to to replay the details of this game, though The Mule Fan has notes summarzing the entire game available upon request. Suffice it to say, on this cold night in Round Rock, the Mules season ended far too quickly. Had the Mules played 4 quarters of football, they'd still be playing ball. The summary will be only of the big plays--both ways--then we'll get into the positives of the season.

Killeen kicked and went three and out. The two teams exchanged possessions, then, the Mules were poised for a score but a Roos defender knocked the ball from Drew Allen and the Roos took over at the Mules 4. The Roos drive from there included many third down conversions and runs by Soph. QB Michael Cummings and Jr RB LeMarquis Jones. The quarter ended 0-0. Killeen's drive continued in the second quarter, but the defense held and the Roos field goal attempt was blocked. The Mules drove but had to punt. Tamarcus Brown had a huge return of the punt to the Mules 10. The defense played well---with notable stops by Greg Rubiola and Sergio Acosta (adding extra hitting-power to the tough Mule defense). But, on 4th and 1 from the 1, the Roos punched it in and led 7-0. After a Collin Bibb return to the 30, on the Mules next drive, a big play was called back--the first of a few untimely penalties by the Mules. Killeen returned a pick all the way to the 15. The Mules defense stiffened and held the Roos on a 4th and 1. The Mules converted a key 3rd and 10 pass from Allen to Trevor Lovelady, which gave the Mules some breathing room. The Mules drive stalled and Killeen took over at the 50 with a minute left in the half. After a couple of short passes, Cummings found Epps in the corner of the end zone for a 13-0 (kicked failed) Roos lead at halftime. Our Mules seemed down but not out.

Heights took the kickoff to start the second half but Killeen mixed up its defense, picked off a pass and Killeen was back on the move. On a fourth and 5, the Mules appeared to have Cummings stopped, but somehow the elusive QB got away, scrambled and found a receiver for a 22 yard pass all the way to the Mules 4. The defense had played so well but this play was a tough one as a couple plays later, Cummings bootlegged it in from the 2 for a 19-0 lead. But the Mules never quit and never stop believing in themselves. The offense, having struggled through the entire first half, finally settled down. Allen found Nicky Helm for 45 yards and the running game got rolling as well. On a 4th and 6, down by 19, the Mules went for the touchdown and converted on a screen to Justin Rosenthal who followed his entire line into the end zone---a 95 yard drive. Rosenthal took the Allen pitch for the two point conversion and the Mules were down 19-8. The defense held again and Collin Bibb's fair catch set the Mules up at the 45. Allen passed to Victor Givens for 13 and suddenly, the Mules were at the Roos 25, ending the 3rd quarter down 19-8.

The Mules drive continued as Allen hit Richter on the crossing pattern. From there, Rosenthal took the pitch to the outside and, led by a great Victor Givens block, ran 19 yards to the end zone for the Mules touchdown. The two point pass was good and the score was 19-16 Killeen. The Roos took the ball and put together a nice drive including a throwback option pass to the QB and it looked like the Roos were going to put the game away. However, the drive stalled when a 4th and 9 pass was picked off by Collin Bibb at the 1. The Mules took over but could get only one first down before they had to punt. The Roos tried to run out the clock on the next possession but Heights held and forced a 4th and 4 punt. The punt was high and was fielded by Bibb at the Mules 30. It looked like the Mules were in business. But, a late flag was thrown back at the line where the call was offsides Mules, giving the Roos the ball back and a first down---effectively taking away any chance for a Mule victory. Needless to say, the fans and radio announcers could not believe that such a call was made as it had no bearing on the play other than to GIVE the game to the Roos. It is not our place to judge, and time will take care of things, but it sure seemed that the referee took the game into his own hands making such a call. There is no assurance that the Mules would've scored, but they sure would've had a chance and definitely had the momentum. The dejected Mules sidelines could do nothing but watch as they were unable to stop the clock. The defense did its job again and held but the Mules got the ball back with only 15 seconds left in the game and out of "Hail Mary" range.
Final score: Roos 19, Mules 16, Referees 1.

A Few Words with the Head Coach of the Mules – Don Byrd
December 1, 2008 (Season Wrap-Up)

The Mule Fan: The Mules have concluded a fine season against very tough competition with an 8-4 record. And in each division we are reminded that only one team and one head coach winds up happy at the end of the season. Nevertheless we know that it was a disappointing loss to Killeen in Round Rock. You spent the first half trying to claw back with no field position and behind on the scoreboard but the Mules snagged the momentum in the second half and came back strong. But as is often the case in games at this level, it is the one which has the fewest turnovers and fewest penalties that wins the game.

Coach Byrd: Yeah we put ourselves in harm’s way a lot that night. Penalties, stopping drives, keeping their drives going, making them have one extra possession were huge. Then we had turnovers on our side, not getting turnovers from them, lack of field position, and a big play before half. There were so many things that you can’t do in a big ball game. I was proud of our kid’s effort. They tried hard, they represented Alamo Heights High School and our community well. It’s a shame that they didn’t win that game and move on. But you look at the picture-we had four losses, three of them are still playing for a regional championship, two of them 5A and one of them 4A, one team that we beat (Kerrville) is still playing and Steele got knocked out by Lake Travis which is picked to win State. So it was a great challenge for our program and a great challenge for our young men. All in all you look at the big picture and they represented our community in a very fine fashion.

The Mule Fan: Each year every high school coach goes through this but what is it like for you and your staff to have to say goodbye to a bunch of kids whom you’ve had for four years and for the most part aren’t going to play organized football anymore?

Coach Byrd: It’s so hard. Its four years. You know in education, most teachers have kids for one year which is really eight months and even shorter when you take the holidays out. We get these kids as freshmen. We spend some time with them at the Junior High. And then watching them mold and be up here before school and after school, the summer programs and seven-on-seven and all these things where we’re able to watch these young men grow. It’s a great feeling. One part you’re excited because you’ve seen what these young men have accomplished, you’ve seen what its done for their self-esteem, how its taught them to get along, how its taught them some life lessons. So you’re excited about watching them go through college, get careers going and see the things that you worked hard to try instill in their mind start to pay off. But it is sad because you have invested a lot of time and it’s come to an end. There are a lot of special memories with each and every player in each and every year. These guys are great. They represented our school well. They took one of the most challenging schedules that Alamo Heights has seen and did a great job with it.

The Mule Fan: How long does it typically take you to move on from the end of the season and start to think about the next year?

Coach Byrd: Well it’s a hard one because usually we’re playing on Thanksgiving. This is the first time in a while we haven’t been. So it was hard to move on from this. You hurt for the kids. You know when it comes down to plays like it did there and we had great opportunities to win and it just didn’t quite bounce our way then you hurt for them. Because you want them to experience practice during Thanksgiving week and then hopefully after that. As the numbers get divided by two each and every week then you can start looking at teams in other regions and in other parts of the state knowing that they can be your competition that’s just a great feeling. Like I said this one took a little longer because the kids played well but the ball just didn’t go our way when we needed it to.

The Mule Fan: Well let’s look ahead then. Last time we checked with you on this you weren’t sure whether you were going to do spring training again after having done it for the first time in a long time this past year. Have you come to a decision on that yet?

Coach Byrd: Not quite yet but we probably will. I really thought it did a lot of good things for us. It gave us a chance to really study the kids a little bit more. Work on fundamentals. Work with the younger kids. It gives the families a little more vacation time. And it makes the season one week shorter where the kids aren’t going through the grind of a season quite as much. So there’s a good chance we’ll do that. What we’ll do now is get the equipment picked up this week. We’ll test the young men and see where they are. I’ll visit with each and every senior and tell them what I thought and how they did, all their accomplishments and so forth and give them one last pat on the back and thank them for what they’ve done for us. And I’ll get their feedback. As a program, you know high school ball has gotten so competitive that you’ve really got to analyze it inside and out. It’s been a great tool talking to the seniors and getting their input on what they experienced throughout their four years and things we need to look at. I ask them questions on areas and things I’m thinking about doing and seeing what their feedback is. So we’ll do that and then we’ll break for Christmas. Then we’ll come back and go through our circuit training boot camp. Basically it’s designed to get them out of their comfort zone and teach them how far they can push themselves. I’ve had great feedback from the seniors. After we won state in 2006 we didn’t have it and almost every kid the next year said that they wished we would have had it. They learned so much more about themselves, what they’re capable of and how they are with leadership, how they handle adversity and all the different things we set up. Then we’ll go to a heavy lifting and running period where we’ll try to become better athletes. Then we’ll start slowly doing some football skills, spring training most likely then seven-on-seven this summer. So it’s that part of the cycle. It’s a part where it’s different for the kids. They’re so used to playing a game and getting instant gratification on Friday nights for how hard they’ve worked. Whereas in this case there are no crowds, no bands. It’s just them and a weight lifting bar, or them and a track or them in an agility type situation. They have to believe mentally how hard they have to work to form great habits so they will show up the next season.

The Mule Fan: You’ll put your third consecutive quarterback into a Division I program as Drew Allen goes off to Oklahoma. I know you’re proud of him and proud of that stat. One assumes a patient Cullen Mills is waiting in the wings for his shot. What are your other priorities for the off-season?

Coach Byrd: We really don’t think a lot right now about position. We really don’t even talk to them about that. It’s just becoming a better athlete. Everybody talks about off-seasons but football is different. Some of the other sports do more skill work. In football, to protect ourselves safety-wise and to become better athletes, we have to spend so much time running and lifting. Those kids won’t see a football until after spring break. The quarterbacks will a little earlier. But most of them won’t see a football until after spring break. It’s about becoming a better athlete. But what a great lesson to learn. You learn how to work out in the weight room, how to work out your cardio-vascular, how to improve your agility. These are things that I know are monotonous for them but its something that I know they can use for the rest of their life.






THE WONDERFUL SEASON (Read on)

So, all Mule fans are saddened by the abrupt ending but that's what happens in the playoffs. It is time to look at the positives and all that we have to be thankful for as we head to the Holiday season. Thanksgiving is a time to reflect, and a time to recall just how fortunate we are to have what we have. Let's evaluate:

1. INJURIES-Most importantly, the Mules came through the season with no injuries that are life threatening or permanent. Yes, many, many injuries did occur during the season, but that is part of football--some were much worse than others, some caused a boy to miss an entire season, others caused a player to miss a few games. Thankfully, everybody will recover from his injury at some point in the near future.

2. THE CLASS OF 2009. This senior class was awesome. Your Mule Fan reporters are fathers of juniors, and we can both assure you that this senior class treated everyone in the locker room with respect and truly turned this group of boys into a TEAM. This senior class worked together starting last spring, during their junior year, as the Mules went to spring football for the first time in recent history. This continued for the skill players with 7-on-7 in the spring and for everyone with workouts throughout the summer. In the fall, the seniors led the way. This year's juniors (and their parents) can learn a lot from the senior class, as this will be their first job next year. We applaud you seniors and your families, as we know much of this starts at home. The seniors have meant so much to AHHS and we appreciate all you have done. The Mule Fan will sure miss reporting about the following young men:


Alamo Heights Mules 2008 Senior Varsity Football Roster

Andrew Bailey, Terry Andersen, Collin Bibb, Jake Everhart, Drew Allen, Greg Rubiola, Andrew Bagnall, Tyler Marshall, Nicky Helm, Sergio Acosta, Richard Garza, Beau Wilson, Andrew Richter, Matt McCaleb, A.J. Lewis, Stewart Korte, Kyle Flores, Brett Benton, Ryan Murphy, Zack Peoples, Armour Strunk, Miguel Vasquez, Prio Ball, Rett McSween, Ross Studer, Kody Bowen, Rory Godley, Vincent Dawson, Robert Saavedra, Cullen Neely, Austin Amaro, Will Yancy, Victor Givens, Harrison Park, Tyler Keller, Zander Smith

We will miss your leadership gentlemen (and parents).

3. THE STAFF. Where would a group of boys be without the coaches to teach them about life and about football? Any boy who plays high school football in Texas likely spends more time with his coaches than with his parents. Thus, it is important for them to respect the coaches and for the coaches to respect the youth they are teaching. Our boys learn more than we can imagine from these men in these countless hours they spend together. They learn hard work, and how it pays off---as it says in the locker room..."Championships are won in the off season." They learn when to have fun and laugh--as they replay bumbled plays in Saturday morning film or pull pranks on each other or on their coaches during "Mule for a Day." They cry together--like in the locker room after the Killeen game--but somehow the coaches make things better. This dedicated group of men are there for our boys 24/7 and for that we are thankful. With the returning staff, three new coaches, the athletic director, trainers and managers, our boys were in good hands.


Thank you all:


Coaches:

Don Byrd, Head Football Coach/Quarterbacks
Mike Norment, Offensive Coordinator/Offensive Line
Randy Osborne, 1st Assistant/Wide Receivers
Bobby Newton, Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Ends
Ron Harris, Tight Ends
Jeff Hooks, Defensive Backs
Glenn White, Secondary
Mike Walker, Running Backs/Receivers
Chris Troilo, Head Freshman Coach/Defensive Line
Luke Moody, Inside Linebackers

Trainers:

Mike Post, Head Trainer
Adriana Hernandez, Assistant Trainer


Managers:

Trey Grun, Roger Howell and Gary Stephens

Athletic Department:

Gene Phillips, Athletic Director
Patty Juarez, Athletic Department Manager

4. THE SUPPORTING CAST. We can't begin to thank everyone but it is awesome to watch the entire community pull together to support AHHS football. Thanks to the Cheerleaders and the house decorations. Thanks to Caledonia for always being there to show support! Thanks to the Spurs and their cookie deliveries. Thanks to the band, as their entrance to the stadium sends chills down the spine not to mention a welcomed re-introduction to the West Side Story soundtrack (We're serious! They were awesome. It takes no imagination to play a Chicago song or Tusk by Fleetwood Mac. Whoops we dated ourselves on that one!) Thanks to the ROTC as they teach us what respect is all about. Thanks to the volunteers who man the concession stands during the games and organized special events. Thanks to Rick Shaw and his spotter John Thomas and to our radio team for bringing the games into the homes of so many folks. Thanks to the Murfman for the videos and to Mary Candee for the pictures. Thanks to the captain moms (and dads) who worked so hard to organize everything from team lunches to pre-season picnics to banner painting to selling AH souvenirs. Thanks to all the other moms who without whom the captain moms would've gone stark ravin' mad. Thanks to Jack Everhart and the guys who schlepped the inflatable helmet all over Texas and the ones who worked the chains at home games. Thanks to Sue Wernette and folks that helped put together the souvenir program and all the advertisers. Thanks to the Junior Varsity and to the Freshmen---you are our future. And thanks to the fans...you are the true Mule Fan.


5. THE YEAR. There is certainly much more to football than wins and losses. Learning how to be part of a team is important. No one person can do it all. It takes 11 players on the field on each play to do their job, for anything to work. It takes the practice and effort by some who don't get on the field often for a team to succeed. It takes off season training and late nights during the school year. This year, we had the bonus of good results on the field. Remember the first three Thursday games--including the Laredo game that was moved on 24 hours notice? Remember the tough Boerne game and the Kerrville comeback? Remember the solid games against Laredo, Clemens, New Braunfels, San Marcos and Seguin? The Mules ended the year at 7-3, District Co-Champions and were fortunate enough to get two extra games at the end of the year. This was a fun year of football. Thanks to all of the folks above.

That's it ya'll---we'll stay in touch during the offseason as we see whether spring football will return. We'll keep up with 7-on-7 in the spring and we'll try to provide information about football in college for some of this year's senior class. We'll be looking for talent (though very, very little is needed) from a current sophomore parent to carry on the Mule Fan.


Mule Fan reporter Cohen here: A special note of thanks must go out to Coach Byrd, his coaching and training staff and the team for allowing the Mule Fan to come behind the curtain on so many occasions with our handy video camera. That access gave us all a real inside view of the Mules football program and we hope you realize how special it was to be given that access. We sincerely hope that you enjoyed those features. Trust us on this one. Not many coaches would have been so keen to let parents of players traipse through the locker room toting our double-secret double naught spy video camera during important and intense halftime meetings or pre-game or in the press box or along the sidelines (we don't figure they cared about us being in the inflatable helmet). You got to see stuff that most fans never get to see in a high school program. AND---A very big thank you to Coach Byrd for sitting down with the Mule Fan each and every week for our exclusive interviews. Most of those little talks were conducted after Coach Byrd did his weekly film night at the end of a long day. We thank Don for giving us his candid thoughts about the team and our opponents.

It's been our pleasure to serve the football community...we hope we haven't wasted too much of your time. But then again, this wasn't required reading and there were no pop tests. Thanks for putting up with some of our silliness. To those punctuation, grammer and journalism police out there, we know you might have wanted to smack us every now and then but c'mon, we've got day jobs. For those of you who paid the subscription, we can only wonder why. As Mule Fan reporter Rosenthal said, we'll check back with you if there's a Spring game. Until then, hit your free throws.


AND DON'T FORGET, NEXT YEAR ALAMO HEIGHTS CELEBRATES A CENTURY! That's right. Alamo Heights has a birthday next school year and it is a big one! Numero 100. Keep your eyes open. You'll have lots to think about with that big event comin' round the corner.


Thanks for all your support and again, thanks for reading our little weekly messages. If we left ANYTHING or ANYONE out please let us know and we'll fix it (but use your nice words please.)

Bob Cohen bobcohen@sbcglobal.net


Bobby Rosenthal brosenthal@trpsalaw.com