Photos courtesy of Mary Candee-Dulce Designs

NOT FOR LACK OF TRYING

MULES FALL TO LAKE TRAVIS 27-13

Terrific season comes to an end

Oh the weather outside was frightful,

but football in December was delightful

Up north to San Marcos we will go,

let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.

Quite an interesting week around Alamo Heights. The beginning of the week was cold and rainy. While Lake Travis practiced inside its covered bubble, the Mules weathered the elements to prepare for the State Quarterfinals matchup. The middle of the week was nice, but Friday evening was to be cold and possibly snowy. The teams made contingent plans for a Saturday game in case IH35 froze but the snow skipped the area clearing the way for football on a Friday night.

The day was special on campus. At the First Friday in The Oaks, Ms. Cade and her team bubbled with team spirit. The pep rally was moved to the afternoon, allowing the team to filter directly onto the buses with a great sendoff. In case you missed it, the pep rally featured the cheerleaders and the band at their finest. Jonathan Barshop and Parker Jessee would've recieved a thumbs up from Simon and Paula and Brandt Bakke thrilled the ladies (but likely not the administration) showing his six pack to the crowd during a dance routine. The theme of the pep rally was "heart"...a word that became the theme of the Mules during their playoff run. The boys left the school and headed north to Bobcat Stadium.

A nice crowd braved the cold weather as most jackets appeared to have lft tickets clipped to the pockets. Some 09 women used the game as an excuse to pull the fur coat from the closet. Lake Travis, the #1 team in the State received the opening kickoff. The Mules held and started at their own 43. The Mules picked up some first downs but the drive stalled aroung the LT 30. Lake Travis moved the ball and Brewer ran it in from the 7 for a 7-0 LT lead with a minute left in the first quarter.

In the second quarter, the Mules put together a nice drive behind the passing of Cullen Mills. Mills completed passes to Clark Hudnall and John Cabell before throwing to Bryson Marshall who made an outstanding catch for a touchdown and the game was tied at 7-7 with 6:30 left in the 2nd quarter. Lake Travis took over at the 48. The Lake Travis line gave Brewer great protection on the drive and the Junior QB completed several third down passes, the last to Andy Erickson for a 16 yard touchdown and a 14-7 LT lead with 3:16 left in the 2nd quarter. The Mules then went on one of their patented ball control drives. Starting at their own 22, the Mules moved the ball behind the running of Justin Rosenthal and the passing of Cullen Mills. The offensive line played extremely well, both on the run block and the pass block. David Cantu, Sam Hall and Bryson Marshall all made nice catches on the drive. The Mules could not close the deal from the red zone and relied on the kicking of Kristian Stern, whose 20 yard boot as time expired cut the Lake Travis lead to 14-10. Halftime.

At halftime, Mules fans seemed fairly upbeat. Their beloved Mules trailed by 4 though the Mules had played step for step with LT. The Heights defense, which became stronger and stronger as the season progressed, was holding the explosive Cavalier offense in check. The Mules offense was moving the ball fairly well. However, at halftime, LT made defensive adjustments, coming with numerous blitz packages in the second half that caught the Mules off guard.

The Mules started the third quarter receiving the ball. William Thompson's kick returns were a highlight on the evening and he put the Mules in business on the 32. The teams exchanged possessions in the third quarter with neither team threatening. A big play in the quarter was a strip and recovery by Garrett Hisle. The quarter ended with LT up 14-10. Heights was hanging with the very best.

The Mules continued moving the ball to start the 4th quarter. However, the Mules again could not put together a drive and forced Stern to attempt a long field goal. The Cavaliers got the ball back but the ball was picked off by Cliff Molak. On the day after the game (and since it doesn't matter now), Molak reported exclusively to The Mule Fan that he was "not exactly, positively, without question certain that I caught the ball" continuing that "it all happened so fast and it is more than remotely possible that the ball may have skipped off the turf". We appreciate Molak's post-game honesty, but we applaud him more for his in-game acting which gave the Mules the ball again. The LT blitzing scheme gave the Mules a hard time on the next drive, forcing the Mules to turn the ball back to LT. Still folks, with 7 minutes in the game, Heights was within 4 of #1 Lake Travis. The Cavs then went deep to Gilbert for a touchdown giving Lake Travis a 20-10 lead with 5:19 left in the game. The Mules took the kickoff and moved downfield. Needing two scores, the Mules elected to pick up three of them on a 29 yard Stern field goal. The Mules went for the onside kick but it was recovered by Lake Travis. LT ran for a late score and the final was Lake Travis, 27, Alamo Heights 13.

A Few Words with the Head Coach of the Mules – Don Byrd
December 8, 2009

Mule Fan: Coach the Mules gave Lake Travis a heck of a fight but it didn’t go our way in the end with the 27-13 loss. You trailed by 4 at the half and until about seven minutes to go in the game. How did you feel about the way the game had gone until that point? What adjustments did each team make at the half?

Coach Byrd: Well I felt going in that we had a great plan offensively and defensively. Of course we knew that it was imperative that we keep the ball out of Lake Travis’ hands on offense and we had to get yardage but we had to be very patient about it. I thought we had an outstanding defensive plan. We were giving them a lot of different looks and disguising things. We had ways to help our corners against their larger receivers. So the first half fell into place pretty well. We didn’t get a first down that we should have. We should have gotten a little bit more offensively but we did have the ball about 17 out of 24 minutes. Defensively it was great to give them a lot of different looks. With the offense using the clock the way it did it gave us a chance at halftime to be right there with them. And we even had a shot to be ahead of them. They were a very athletic team and I knew there was no margin for error anywhere in the game. When you’re going against a team that is that well coached and that athletic it’s going to be tough to overcome things. That got us to that point. On halftime adjustments, they did some things to move their secondary up and take away our short passing game. I knew that we couldn’t just run on them and that we were going to have to throw the ball a little bit. When they moved everybody up and “collisioned” our receivers it made it a little tougher because the play was going to be slower developing and our offensive line was going to have to hold some very good athletes and pick up some great blitzes. That eventually got us in trouble. We missed a field goal which hurt. We also jumped offside a few times which made for longer drives for us and that was hard to overcome.

Mule Fan: The defense was keeping it close but as the game wore on as you mentioned it became harder and harder for our receivers to get open against their secondary and it was compounded by more long yardage situations. There were so many things going on in those situations. You mentioned how physical they were with our receivers. What other tactics were they using to slow down the Mules offense at that point?

Coach Byrd: They collided with our outside guys pretty heavily. They put their linebacker (#51) on the tight end. He was very physical and grabbed a hold of them. They were worried about giving help outside. They were worried about our tight end. They were signaling to make sure they were very aggressive with him. That hurt us with the passing game. As it unfolded and we started having to make some more plays, their athleticism and physical play really showed up on defense.

Mule Fan: We’ve talked earlier in the year about the recent history of your program. Keeping things in perspective, this was an exciting 10 win season with a lot of success. Ten wins is right up there with some of your best seasons. How did you sum it up with the boys and the staff either after the game or this week?

Coach Byrd: It’s really tough on that last game, especially being on the road, to get everybody together. And it’s tough after you work so hard for a game, you’re right there and you’re a couple of plays away and it just doesn’t get done. But basically I’m proud of these young men. The number one thing that will always come to mind with this team was the chemistry. And not being selfish. The other thing that comes to mind is I think the program has taken that last big step and realizing that Alamo Heights is not scared to play anybody. You look at this season. Two losses by one point. The Lake Travis game was very close, closer than the score indicated. With Stony Point, it was just tough playing a team that was that athletic that early in the season. Kerrville Tivy is still playing and we beat them 42-14. So it just shows where the program is. The thing I noticed is that the community and everybody really believes in Alamo Heights. We’re not scared to play anybody and that’s where this program needs to be. That’s the last ingredient that we needed. Also the school spirit and participation of the fans at the game was phenomenal. It was an unbelievable crowd up in San Marcos. We had a phenomenal pep rally that day. It’s exciting what’s going on here with the student body.

Mule Fan: You’ve talked about chemistry today and lot this year. That is something that obviously sticks out in your mind about this 2009 team. What is the effect that has on a team?

Coach Byrd: They played so well together. I’ve said this for many years at Alamo Heights. Year in and year out, there’s not a whole lot of difference in the athleticism. But how unselfish they are and how well the players get along is the difference. How they focus less on themselves and more on our team dictates what kind of season we have. The other thing that will always be in my mind about this team is that we were tremendous over-achievers. We really don’t have the speed and size of a lot of teams that we went against but we had more fight than anybody we played.

Mule Fan: Teachers have to say goodbye to seniors every year but they have them for an hour each day for one year or a semester. You’ve got these boys sometimes six days each week for hours and throughout the year for four years. We know you’ve been doing this a while. This group of seniors was the last bunch that was around here for the state championship run. How different is it to say goodbye to a senior class in football?

Coach Byrd: Everything you mentioned is true. The hours you spend with them for 12 months for three and a half years are just phenomenal. But the other difference in education is that every boy is out there because they want to be. A lot of them get assigned to a class because the computer puts them into it and the state says that you have to take these classes. But these young men are there because they want to be. To show you the power of it; you come up here during the summer at 6:30 in the morning and you’ll see more than 100 athletes giving up part of their summer to try and become something special and that puts it all in perspective. It helps to win football games. But the ultimate guide is to see where these young men are going to be when they’re 20, 30 and 40 years old. My main goal for these young men is to apply this kind of passion and this type of work ethic and lessons of winning and losing. If they can do that as college students and parents and employees, then their future is unbelievably bright. All of this packaged together gives them the drive and self-confidence and the tools they need to be productive in our society.

Mule Fan: Off-season training begins soon. What will that entail?

Coach Byrd: We will talk about our goals. Number one and two will be strength and quickness. It’s huge. We cannot win here at Alamo Heights unless we have an unbelievable off-season program. We’ll talk about the self-discipline and all the little things about being responsible. To play at the intensity that we need to in order to win here we need to make sure that off-season is that way. That has to become the norm and not just something that happens during the football season. We’ll set down strict rules that they have to be here a few minutes after the bell and sprint to where they’re going. It’ll be a “fly-around”, moving situation. It’ll be intense for 45 minutes during the athletic period. Hopefully they’ll run track and do the things that will help them become better athletes.

Mule Fan: Coach on behalf of all the parents and fans who regularly visit this website, we want to thank you and your staff for your cooperation, support and access to your entire program each week. Hopefully we were able to show some Mule fans parts of the football program that they had not seen before plus give them a deeper look at each week’s game and next opponent. We feel that everyone appreciated it. We thank you on everyone’s behalf.

Coach Byrd: There’s not a better place to work than the Alamo Heights community. I enjoy it. These young men put in so many hours just like all the sports. But we’re talking about football now and it’s great to get the exposure and let people see some of those things. I’m proud of everything we do here and it’s neat with the internet and the things that we have these days to be able to present that to everybody and see what our program is about. I appreciate everything that y’all brought to the table and your time. It’s been great.

THANKS

The season is now behind us and we are all somewhat sad that it came to an end without a State Championship BUT we will all look back and be thankful for this terrific season. The Mules were Co-champs of the toughest district in Texas. [We look forward to February 1 and redistricting which will, among other things, likely move Steele to 5A.] And what a thrill for our team to go four rounds into the playoffs--to the State Quarterfinals.

THANKS to these boys for their hard work and dedication. In each of the 14 games, the Mules were normally the smaller team physically. However, the Mules played with such heart. With no egos on the team, the offense pulled for the defense and the defense pulled for the offense. These boys gave up sleeping in in the mornings and goofing off (or studying) in the afternoons. The boys went to the weight room without complaining and ran sprints with only minor complaining. The boys practiced on the grass in August when the heat on the turf was 120 degrees and on the turf in December when it was 30 degrees. These boys gave up August trips and Thanksgiving week, all for the thrill of the game. Some played a lot and some did not...but they all contributed to the success of the program. What school our size has 41 seniors stick with a program through their senior year--when only 11 line up on offense and 11 line up on defense? We will miss the seniors and hope that they passed on the dedication and leadership to the underclassmen. We thank the underclassmen in advance for what they will have as leaders of next year's team. THANKS BOYS.

THANKS to the coaches and their families: Don Byrd, Mike Norment, Randy Osborne, Ron Harris, Jeff Hooks, Glenn White, Mike Walker, Chris Troilo and Luke Moody. Thanks, gentlemen, for all you have taught our boys about football, but more importantly about life, discipline and respect. Thanks for being so committed to our school and our community. During football season, these men do not take a day off. They do not have long weekends at the coast or day trips to see the family. They are excited with 4 extra weeks of 90+ hour weeks that come with post-season preparation. They never complain (at least to us) about the early mornings, late nights and weekends. These coaches become almost like father figures to our kids as they spend time teaching, each in their own way (is that a fair word, Mike N.?). And to their families who rarely see their husband or dad...thanks so much for letting them be with us. This year we've worked begin incorporating the coaches families into the AH family, with tailgates, etc. Let's hope that trend continues. So to the Coaches and their families (and dog...Chris), THANKS.

THANKS to all the others at the school that make the program work. Thanks to Gene and Patty for making things run smoothly in the Athletic Office. Thanks to the trainers Mike and Adrianna and their student staff for being there early in the mornings for treatment and closing up in the evenings--allowing our injuries to heal quicker. Thanks to the administration--Dr Brown and Dr Foster for their support of Mules football. With so many activities on campus, attempting not to favor one while recognizing the community importance of football. THANKS.

THANKS to the countless hours put in by other students. The Band, the Spurs, the Cheerleaders, the Caladonia, the JROTC, the Team Manager and the Faculty behind each of these. While the boys are on the field, the music, the cheers and the dances all keep the spirit going during the games and before. The band puts in countless hours on the field, oftentimes well into the evening after football practice has ended, or early in the morning, trying to get everything right for Friday night--these things are noticed. And the Spurs and Cheerleaders practice throughout the week and make treats for the parents (I mean the boys) on Thursdays. To you all, THANKS.

THANKS to the parent volunteers. To the Mule Team and The Mulepushers and all the helpers in the concession stands. To the donors who supported the kickoff barbeque and those whose financial contributions allowed so many people to listen on the radio or through the computer. To Sue Wernette whose programs rival any high school program in the country. To the captains moms for all their dedication and hard work. To Rick Shaw...not only for allowing us to poke fun at him, but also for allowing us to be more spirited at the game (and to his entire crew). THANKS.

THANKS to any one we missed here...and for their understanding that we are sorry about that...Send us an e-mail. THANKS.

AND most of all we can all be thankful that the season ended with no life-threatening or life-altering injuries. Many boys were injured during the season and several missed many games. We saw the disappointment on their faces or the pain as they moved on crutches or in back braces. But the season is over, their bodies will heal over time and that, in my opinion, is the item for which we are the most THANKFUL.

Now let offseason begin, boot camp:), spring practice , 7 on 7 and summer workouts. Before we know it, it will be time for Mules Football 2010.

Thanks to Mary Candee for providing the Mule Fan with great photos these last two seasons. Please remember to get your photos of all the activities of the 2010 season.

Photos courtesy of Mary Candee http://www.dulcedesigns.photoreflect.com/
Your Personal Photographer Your Community Photographer
Dulce Design Photography

“The Drawer”

A Reflection by Bob Cohen

While looking in my son’s closet for one of my shirts recently, I opened “the drawer”. Not “a” drawer. It was “the drawer.” After a pause, the realization of what I was seeing hit square. I’ll bet nearly everyone reading this has one of these drawers as well. Folded up inside the drawer, or wadded up to be truthful, were pants, jerseys, sweat bands, belts, 8 ½ inch long shin guards, mouth guards small enough to fit a puppet, socks and more representing the game gear from a career in kid’s sports.

How is it possible that my oldest son has played his last game? All the 8:00 am Saturday soccer games, the nights at the Little League fields, spring afternoons in the batting cage, the weekday fall afternoons watching football practice and then finally those indescribably wonderful Friday nights under the lights in all those stadiums in all those places. Poof-over! Only the intramural fields await but I won’t see any of those contests, not without causing nearly irreparable embarrassment anyway.

Obviously this is a moment that is typically reserved for the parent of a senior, or at least a senior that isn’t moving on to the next level of organized athletics. But most of us are having our own little moments like this right about now. While I watched it all wind down last Friday night in that cold stadium in San Marcos, I struggled hard to put a period on the sentence. Can you be ready for that moment? Those were hard yards…
I stood there silently with all of the other dads, moms, grandparents and friends surrounded by my own emotions and a teary wife. Mentally it felt like being yanked out of that stage of my life into the next (with this kid anyway). I watched him kneeling down on the goal line watching the other team's celebration and wondered what he was thinking. Did he realize that he would probably never again experience the feeling of “team and camaraderie” in quite the same way? Did he recognize that he had shared an experience and a journey that he will always remember with some guys with whom he will remain life-long friends and some with whom he will lose touch? He’ll remember them all and that includes the coaches. It’s a different memory than the one about the guy who sat next to you in biology.

From running up and down a soccer field at the age of 6, right arm thrust in the air shouting encouragement to teammates while staying as far away from the ball as one can and still be in-bounds to the first year of pads and getting into a three point stance that looked like something from a Three Stooges episode to locking up in the biggest game of his life with a defensive lineman with a weight and height advantage and probably a future of playing on Saturdays…these are the images that will be etched in this parent’s memory.

There are people to thank and I’ll leave some out but not mean to do so. You fill in the blanks with your own list as you look into your drawer. Thanks to all the dads who coached him early and gave positive encouragement and constructive criticism. Thanks to the moms who cheered from the camp chairs on the sideline and who car-pooled to practice and who went to Vivroux for the umpteenth time for another batting glove or mouth guard. Wait a minute; come to think of it Vivroux should probably thank me. There was enough merchandise in that one drawer to cover their rent for a month! Thanks to the trainers and docs for keeping him patched up especially for that all-important senior year. Thanks to all the parents and grandparents and other dads for the camaraderie. These are kindred spirits brought together for an experience that is naturally shared from the inside out. To all those people who were sick of the football parents who could seemingly talk about nothing else for four years, thanks for your understanding. It will ease off now we promise. Thanks to the boys for all of the time and effort spent making themselves the best players they could be and for the priceless memories. Yes it sometimes was a hassle to tell us about every syllable that was uttered by the coaches at halftime and after the game. We’re not sorry. It was as close as we could come to a do-over. And finally, thanks to the coaches at the junior high and high school. When we hand off to you, you play a vital role. In my very ordinary playing career I had a few good coaches and a few that were dreadful. I remember each of them. I personally am grateful , and I know others are as well, for the experience, skills, values, lessons and confidence that this Mules coaching staff imparted to our kids from junior high on up.

If you haven’t done so yet, approach “the drawer” with caution. Do it because you have to eventually cross over. But give yourself a few minutes and reflect on the importance of the moment. Don’t just open it and shut it like you would the one just above it. Remember the hours in the backyard tossing the football or baseball, tackling the guys in the hallway in their pajamas before bed, hauling the juice boxes and donuts on your snack day, painting their helmets, throwing batting practice, car-pooling to practice, playing H-O-R-S-E, and all the rest. Then close the drawer. Maybe you can use the stuff for the younger brother. If this is truly the end of it, I hope you soaked up every minute of this year and stored the memory in its own special place. I did.

Best Wishes from Bob Cohen and Bobby Rosenthal

As we have indicated for several weeks, we knew this day would come. This is the last Mule Fan post from the leaking pens of Cohen and Rosenthal. As we write this we are hearing rumors through the Mule Fan office corridors that the publishers have simply had enough of us and can’t get us out of here fast enough. Those ungrateful *&^%*&#@!!
Anyway, we snuck in after hours to knock out a little parting message. It has been a real pleasure to write these little messages for you these last two seasons. Did we know what we were getting ourselves into? Sort of. But it all took on a life of its own and we can both say, hand on heart, that it was fun creating it as we went along. We would like to thank you all for being loyal readers too. Yes, we were paid tens of cents to do this and that part was nice. But the real currency for us was that you came to this site over 14,000 times in two seasons. Our goal was to give you a place to go each week to check in on what was going on with Alamo Heights Mules football. We thank Coach Byrd, his staff and the boys themselves for two years given to us of wide-open access to a great program. We tried to take the Mule Fan to places to which parents and fans don’t always have access. We tried to give you detail of the games and previews of the next opponent that you wouldn't get anywhere else. We hope you felt like “insiders.”

As you all know, we are parents of seniors and we are sorry it is over but grateful for an amazing experience. It is a program with caring people up and down the line. We should all be proud. There is something about high school football in Texas that creates a bond amongst the players, coaches and parents which is hard to describe or duplicate. We will miss that.

You’ll recall our “recruitment” efforts on these posts for the past few weeks to find someone to take over this duty and run with it next season. At press time there is still no word on who will do it. No surprise really. These crazy publishers will make it as hard as they can to sign somebody new. That’s just the kind of scrawny varmints they are. But we feel certain that someone will come forward and the Mule Fan will be up and running again next year. We will be there to offer support and to prepare the new writers for the constant pounding they take from relatives, friends, clergymen and former piano teachers who want their favorite Mule to get some extra “pub.” And we’ll be there to follow the Mules in 2010 and years to come. Thanks and GO MULES!!!

Extra-Extra!! Read all about it!

Mule Fan Editors Sacked Unceremoniously in Newsroom Ouster!!

Attention all Mule Fan readers: This is the management of the Mule Fan. We don’t know about you but we were sick of the rambling, soppy goodbye speech by these two hacks who call themselves bloggers. They were overfed and underpaid and it was time to put them out on the streets to bother others. So we’ve sent them packing and tossed in expletives they haven't heard before just to make sure they knew we meant it. It is time we told OUR story. We are tired of being portrayed as dopey goofballs who don’t know a vowel from a trowel. We taught those two bozos everything they know about writing. You should see the way they left this office. There is one entire office filled with Fig Newton cookie wrappers and they left their black light poster of Elvis captaining a shrimp boat. Total slobs!! Oh yes you can be sure that we’ll find someone else who can do the job. It’ll be someone that will be a lot less trouble for us. You people just keep paying the subscription. We don’t need to hear any complaining. If those goobers owe you money or have any overdue library books, here’s how to reach them: bobcohen@sbcglobal.net and brosenthal@trpsalaw.com

Sincerely, The Publishers

MULES TAME WILDCATS 28-14

VICTORY OVER GREGORY PORTLAND SETS UP STATE QUARTERFINALS MATCH-UP AGAINST #1 LAKE TRAVIS

On the Friday night during Thanksgiving week, nobody knew for sure what type of crowd would show up 120 miles away in Calallen. Thanks to some hard work by many, especially Patty Juarez in the AH athletic office, Mules fans headed south in planes, trains and automobiles. The team had a good week of practice while most students were taking the week off. Lest we forget, the Band, Spurs and Cheerleaders were unable to spend Thanksgiving time with Aunt Bessie and Uncle Fred at the farm in Ohio, as they too committed to the week by supporting the football team. The Gregory-Portland fans took a short trip to Calallen for the game played in their backyard. Judging from the number of folks in the GP stands, the two towns must've shut down for the evening, sending everyone to cheer on the Wildcats. But, Mules fans made themselves noticed. Starting with a team send-off and a police escort out of town, this community seemed focused on the day. By game time, four busloads of fans and several hundred other cars, helped fill the Heights stands. This clearly was a key as the Heights team was able to lean on fan support when the game was on the line.

GP won the toss and deferred to the second half. Heights moved the ball on the ground and in the air. Cullen Mills, looking spectacular on the night, completed three consecutive third down passes to Bryson Marshall, who himself had a great evening. Hollye Marshall and her parents were thrilled. Brent was busy trying to keep Tyler calm as he reassured him that he had played just as well last year, no matter what Bryson said. The drive stalled and the field goal attempt just missed. GP took over and attempted to move the ball under the Slot-T formation, a set the Mules had a tough time containing in the second half of the San Marcos game. But on this night, the defense again showed it was able to step up to the plate. Early in the drive, James Uhl and Forrest Hagar caused a fumble giving the ball back to Heights. A few plays later, Justin Rosenthal carried it in from the 9 for a 7-0 lead with 3:04 left in the first quarter. The defense again held, thanks in part to a 7 yard loss caused by a Thomas McSween sack. The Mules took over at the 29 yard line at the end of the first quarter. Heights 7, GP 0

The Mules continued to move the ball on offense. Mills was on target on this drive, given time provided by the offensive line. He connected with Marshall, Garza and Cabell. The Mules moved all the way to the Wildcat 6 and a tough helmet hit to the ball caused a turnover, giving the ball back to the Wildcats at their own 6 with 10:57 left in the second quarter. Before the Mules knew what hit them, the Slot-T worked to perfection as Joey Sanchez scampered 78 yards for a touchdown and a 7-7 tie with 8 minutes left in the second quarter. This would be the only big run the defense gave up on the night. The Mules took over and on a 3rd and 7, the Wildcats looked to be in good position if they could hold and force a Mules punt. That would be a big "if" as Mills lofted the ball deep to a streaking David Garza who hauled it in for a 65 yard touchdown and 14-7 Heights lead with 6:03 left in the second quarter. The rest of the quarter was fairly uneventful as the defense continued to hold the Wildcat offense and the Mules offense could not put together a drive. Halftime-Heights 14, GP 7.

At halftime, Mules fans seemed a bit nervous. The Mules seemingly had outplayed the Wildcats but the scoreboard only reflected a 7 point lead. The Wildcats would get the ball first, so the defense needed to come out strong again. With both teams moving the ball and the clock, the game was on a quick pace. Stand in the concession line too long and you might miss the entire third quarter.

The quick game continued in the third quarter. The Wildcats received the kickoff and though they drove to the 46, the defense held. The Wildcat punt pinned Heights at the 8. The Mule got the ball out of the danger zone with running and passing. Again, Mills found Bryson Marshall for some key third down receptions. The drive stalled but the Stern punt pinned GP at their own 10 with 4:42 left in the quick moving third quarter. This was becoming a game of field position and the Mules were moving the field in their favor. The defense again held, with Mike Warren making a huge stop. The Wildcat punt forced the Mules to start from their own 30. Mills to Marshall for 20 and Rosenthal for yardage on the ground. The quarter ended with the Mules at the GP 30. It appeared that the awesome offensive line was wearing down the Wildcats defensive line. End of the Third Quarter: Heights 14, GP 7.

A couple plays into the fourth quarter and Mills, on his best play of the night, rolled left behind great protection, and threw back across the middle to Garza in the end zone. Heights 21, GP 7 with 11:23 left in the game. The Wildcats were down but not out. With quarterback Fishbeck apparently stopped in the backfield, the shifty junior found daylight for a 50 yard gain. A few plays later, running back Sanchez carried it in from the 5 and the score was 21-14. With 5:25 left in the game, the Mules lined up expecting the onside kick. Have we seen more onside kicks than normal this season, or is it just me? With only Thurmond deep and 10 on the line, the Wildcats did, in fact, opt for the short kick. Fortunately for Heights, it took a high bounce up and out of bounds. Mules ball at their own 49. Time to run some clock and get a few first downs. That's exactly what the Mules did. On eight consecutive running plays, the Mules offensive line was downfield on every play opening up holes or moving the line. Rosenthal carried it in from the 15 with only 1:43 left in the game. The defense finally could relax, forcing GP to use the remaining clock without getting to the endzone. Final: Heights 28, Gregory-Portland 14.

Once again, the Mules played good ball. Any win in the third round of the playoffs is a good win. The Mules have some things to work on in the upcoming week but the key thing is, they will be working on plays into December---the true goal when the season started in August. Thanks to the Coaches, Staff, Gene, Patty, the Trainers (Mike and Adrianna) and the Manager (Trey). These people and their families gave up their Thanksgiving break to prepare the boys for this game. It would've been easy to look back to the Killeen game or look ahead to the Lake Travis game, but the important issue was to have the boys prepared for, and focused on, the Gregory-Portland Wildcats. The preparation is evident. This defense has seen a greater variety of offenses than Elizabeth Taylor has seen in husbands. And the defense has been able to adjust to each of these offenses. On the night, the offense was balanced in the air and on the ground, racking up 457 yards. The line, as always should get the lion's share of the credit. The special teams again were great. Good victory and on to the Quarterfinals.


LOOKING AHEAD

Lake Travis Cavaliers – San Marcos 7:30 p.m. - Friday at Bobcat Stadium on the campus of Texas State University

The Lake Travis Cavaliers. Okay, where do we start. Well, here's where we start. How about this? The Mules are in the State Quarterfinals of the 4A Playoffs, Division I. To break that down, this Mules team is one of only 16 4A teams in the State playing football in December. This is what we dream of. Lots of statistics and numbers on Lake Travis. We all know that. Now our boys can go play with their heart and see how they match up with the very best.

Did we say the very best? Yes, Lake Travis was picked by most to win the 4A, Division I, State Championship. Not a bad pick considering they had won thirty (yes 30) straight games coming into the 2009 season – a streak that now stands at an incredible 43 consecutive wins. Not a bad pick considering Lake Travis has won back-to-back State Championships. Not a bad pick considering 10 starters return off of last year's State Championship team. The Cavaliers have a program that many colleges envy – including an indoor practice field. The program is incredible, and the talent continues annually, much in the way that Southlake Carroll dominated the 5A scene for several years. Maxpreps lists Lake Travis as the 12th best team in all of Texas (including 5A teams) and 94th in the country.

On defense, the Cavaliers returned Crow and Lazarus who combined for 300 tackles last year, twenty of those for a loss. With last year's Quarterback Garrett Gilbert graduated to UT, this year's QB is Junior Michael Brewer, whose father was himself a quarterback at UT in the early 1980's. The Cavaliers also returned several offense linemen, receivers and their kicker, Kramer Fyfe, who has booted a ton of extra points and kickoffs for the scoring machine.

Prior to this past weekend's game, Quarterback Michael Brewer was averaging 300 yards passing per game and he had thrown for 34 touchdowns. Brewer has completed over 71% of his passes for a total of 3,572 yards. Brewer has also rushed for 427 yards and another 15 touchdowns. Running Back Andy Erickson has run for 786 yards and 18 touchdowns and caught 47 passes for 1116 yards and 11 touchdowns. Conner Floyd has caught 53 passes for 1,034 yards and 8 touchdowns. Three other receivers have at least 20 receptions. Obviously, Lake Travis is a solid team. Since the Kerrville game, Heights has had stretches of good quarters but has not really put together a solid 48 minutes. The Mules will have to have a performance like the Kerrville game to have a chance to hang with Lake Travis.

On Defense, Quinton Crow averages 11.3 tackles per game, Austin Williams averages 10.1 tackles per game and Ian Lazarus averages 9.1 tackles per game.

Lake Travis rolled through its regular season undefeated. Lake Travis beat Killeen by 25 points and Austin Westlake by 21 points. Lake Travis was only tested once this year by Steele in the second round of the playoffs. Lake Travis won by 7, but the game may have served as a wakeup call for Lake Travis, which soundly beat Flour Bluff in San Antonio this past weekend. The Cavaliers have scored over 50 points 10 times this year and were held under 40 points only once (by Steele). In six games this year, Lake Travis gave up 7 points or less.

Have a nice day.

A Few Words with the Head Coach of the Mules – Don Byrd
November 30, 2009

Mule Fan: Congratulations on the 28-14 win over Gregory-Portland and now you move on the 4th week of the playoffs. For the second time this year you faced the Wing or Slot T offense, they broke one long one on you but by the third quarter it looked like the Mules defense had the Wildcat’s offense figured out and held them scoreless in the 3rd. It has to be hard to simulate that offense in practice. How much did it help that you had seen it against San Marcos?

Coach Byrd: I think it helped a lot. We made some mistakes scheme-wise against San Marcos that we straightened out this week. That helped out a lot. Having seen it once before meant that it wasn’t a big learning curve for the kids and they actually had some reps going against it. The alignments and some of the game plan was similar so it helped out a lot.

Mule Fan: The Mules got a TD run early from Rosenthal and then two outstanding touchdown passes from Mills to Garza. GP then made it a little scary with a time consuming scoring drive in the 4th. They followed that with an onside kick which of course was not successful. With the way the Mules offense was moving the ball did Gregory-Portland really have any other choice but to try the onside kick?

Coach Byrd: No I would have done that too. They needed a shorter field and they needed something to try to keep our offense off. We went down the first drive and we had a key miss on third down and we should have gone in and scored. Then we scored. Then we got down in the red zone and had a turnover. And even though we only got the one touchdown out of those three drives, we sure kept the ball away from their offense for a long time and we made them have a long field. That’s huge making them have to go that far. It’s hard to put 18-20 plays together to be able to score so it helped out our defense tremendously.

Mule Fan: The offense took over from there and closed it out by moving the chains and protecting the ball. What more could you have asked for on that final drive?

Coach Byrd: You start with the offensive line always and they had a great game. And then Justin (Rosenthal) runs so hard. He’s getting so many carries but he’s able to handle it. Now he had a little problem with the asthma. The climate down there probably hurt him more than anything. But he still had 190 yards. I’m not upset I’m just worried that we probably should have substituted a little more in this game because of the asthma problem.

Mule Fan: Did the game unfold the way you thought it might and in the way you prepared during the week?

Coach Byrd: Right you know offensively we scored 28 points. We had two other opportunities which would have put us at 42 and we missed a field goal. So that is about where I was hoping to be. We had the yardage we needed but we just didn’t finish the drives. We overcame some penalties which we haven’t done in the past so that was a plus. Defensively we started out against that offense a lot stronger and yes we did give up a run there and missed a few tackles here and there but all in all it was a great effort. And then our kicking game, besides the missed field goal, we were creating some long fields for the other team and that’s huge from here on out.

Mule Fan: We’ve talked about this a couple of times this season that this group of seniors with all the playoff runs in their careers have been around the game 13 extra weeks which is more than a full season. What does it mean to have that kind of senior leadership and experience in the locker room and on the field this deep in the playoffs?

Coach Byrd: Well the first thing that comes to mind with these seniors is that we have 41 of them still out. Of course only 11 of them can be on the field at one time. So that’s such a tribute to the kids showing us that they respect and they enjoy what we’re doing here at Alamo Heights with the football program. And they grew up and as freshman on campus seeing a state championship. We worked them out those five weeks in nothing but fundamentals. Then as sophomores we worked them out two extra weeks and they were going against varsity kids and older kids. I think a lot of times the kid’s light comes on and they say “Hey this is fun but I’m not having success against these older kids because I’m not strong enough or quick enough.” I think that really ups the tempo and the intensity in the off-season which carries over to each and every season.

Mule Fan: Now on to the state quarter finals and the Lake Travis Cavaliers. They come with a pre-heated reputation is pre-heated of a long winning streak and two straight state titles. But a lot of the boys had a chance to see them in person the last two weeks at the Alamodome. Did that help to demystify them a little?

Coach Byrd: Well I think so. Don’t get me wrong Lake Travis is an outstanding program. Coach Morris does a great job. They have unbelievable community and school support for the football program up there. You can tell by the facilities and the things they’ve accomplished that it’s a complete package. But our kids have been in big games. We’ve played Stony Point and they’re still playing. We’ve played Clark and they’re still playing. Steele is as good as anybody in the state. Everybody in our district challenged us so we’ve been in some big games and we’ve been in big games over the years. So I’m hoping that the kids will believe. The state championship year we had to spend a lot of time with kids and parents and community talking about the fact that “Yes we can take Lamar, we can take Copperas Cove.” It’s been a neat week because I get a feeling that everybody now has bought into it after beating a Calallen and the two games that I just mentioned and even back in the 80’s when we beat New Braunfels and shut them out up there, that we’ve come up against some teams that are at the top in the state and we’ve had success against them. So the mystery and the intimidation by going against a good program I hope is over with. We’ve got to go out and play a perfect game and do some things but half the battle is believing.

Mule Fan: We had a chance to see both of those games in the Alamodome and above all they look to us to be a very patient and disciplined team. What do you think is Lake Travis’ key strength and how will you prepare for dealing with it?

Coach Byrd: They have many weapons on offense. It’s a sound offense. They spread things out. Their running back/receiver is a big play guy. He’s a Manziel (Kerrville QB Johnny) and they’re smart enough to give him the ball a lot. Then they have a well coached offensive line and they have two receivers that are big “go to” guys and a quarterback that makes good decisions. They don’t get penalties and they don’t turn the ball over and they take what the defense gives them. They’re patient on defense. They’re very aggressive. They have some stunt packages that are real sound. They don’t give up the big play. They tackle well in space so you’re going to have to earn what you get. Probably the best part of their team that I’ve been impressed with is their kicking game. Every opponent I’ve seen they start the drive from the 20 or inside making an 80 yard field. That takes a lot more out of your offense to move the ball. Their punt team too. Everything’s sound. They’re a well coached team. They’re like anybody else. They’re human. Their defense does have weaknesses and every play they line up just like every defense. Their offense does have big play guys but they have to execute. We have some things going. I don’t think they’ve seen defensive ends as quick and as big as ours. Michael Warren’s played solid in the middle. Our safeties have done well. Then on offense we’re as balanced as you can get. Out kicking game has done well. So there are some things that Alamo Heights is bringing to the table too.

Mule Fan: We’ve seen some good quarterbacks this year. Their quarterback, Michael Brewer, likes to run a lot of fakes, mis-direction, likes to go to his left and throw and there seem to be lots of plays designed for him to read and create. How do you simulate that in practice?

Coach Byrd: We’ve got three or four films on him and we’ve watched him in person now. You just try and simulate what you think they’re going to try to attack us with and show our players. You can’t show it all but you can show enough of it and hopefully they can shut down what you show them. The stuff that you can’t hopefully they’ll recognize and be able to get better at defending as the game goes on.

Mule Fan: Lots of schools turn out good teams from time-to-time. But these two schools have good programs. There’s a difference in those two things aren’t there?

Coach Byrd: You know it’s hard to pinpoint where the differences are and what it takes. I know we have a great work ethic here at Heights and I know that they have a great work ethic there. I know that their coaches spend a lot of time in the off-season learning technique and schemes to put their kids in a position to have success. You have to work immensely hard on the weights and quickness. And you have to make sure the kids believe in what you’re doing. So there are a lot of things. But being there and doing different things in big games gives you the credibility to be able to get that kind of program.

Mule Fan: We were talking before we started this interview that there have only been this Alamo Heights team and a couple of others that have been this far in the playoffs. It’s early in the week but could you give us a sense of the vibe, the atmosphere in here and can you compare it to the 2006 and 2004 teams that had success at this time of year?

Coach Byrd: There’s a certain air where somewhere along the line the kids decide they just want to be good at playing the game of football. Then it becomes an atmosphere of no mistakes in practice and intense. Then you go out and most of the drills are game-like tempo. The kids are really getting after it and they’re pushing each other and they’re taking pride when they make mistakes of trying to get it corrected. It takes a lot to have that special ingredient that makes a team want to be good. That’s what I’ve been sensing with this team just like we did when we went against Lamar in that year in the Astrodome and had a nice run and then of course the state championship team.

Mule Fan: Good luck this week. It’s a big game for Alamo Heights and we know the kids are cranked up and ready to play.

Coach Byrd: Yeah it’s going to be a lot of fun. I was proud of the crowd we had go down to Corpus and looking forward to having just an unbelievable high school atmosphere Friday at 7:30 in Bobcat Stadium.

Ticket Sales Information for AH vs. Lake Travis on 12/4/09

Tickets are on sale at the Alamo Heights Athletic Office at these hours this week:
Tuesday 8:30 a.m. - Noon & 1:30 - 4:30 p.m.
Wednesday 8:30 a.m. - Noon & 1:30 - 4:30 p.m.
Thursday 8:30 a.m. - Noon & 1:30 - 3:00 p.m. (Athletic Ofc)
4:45 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. (Muledome)
Friday 8:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.

Ticket Prices: Adults - $8
Students - $4 (kinder thru 12th)

AT GATE ALL TICKETS - $10

Mules Playoff Radio: ESPN 1250 The Zone

The Mules really need your support in San Marcos on Friday. So if you can come to the game, please do. But it you cannot make it you can follow the action on ESPN AM 1250 The Zone. Airtime for the pre-game show this Friday is at 7:00 p.m. Ed Suarez and Dave Parker will call all the action. Please say thanks and patronize all of the generous sponsors. If you’re not in town, you can listen to the live broadcast on the internet at www.tsrnsports.com/index.html.


Flash from the Past

Thanksgiving week was a perfect time for a motivational visit from some familiar members of the 2006 Alamo Heights state championship team. On the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, Giovanni Vizza, Sam Dibrell, Adam Bridgeman and Bobby Broadnax stopped by to watch as the Mules prepared for Gregory-Portland, renew some old friendships and take some of the younger boys' meal money. After the workout, the 2006 Mules had a few words of wisdom for the 2009 Mules who want to be where these guys have been. We have a few highlights for you in our video below. You'll hear from Vizza, Broadnax and Bridgeman. Dibrell's comments, while inspirational, have been saved back by the Mule Fan editors for inclusion on the "Bootleg-Uncut Sessions" version which is scheduled to be released just prior to Christmas.






GO MULES!!!!!!!

Countdown to a Third Round Clash with Gregory-Portland

LOOKING AHEAD
Gregory–Portland Wildcats

Next up for Heights are the Gregory-Portland Wildcats. The game will be at Corpus Christi Calallen's field, essentially making this a home game for the Wildcats. For those of you unfamiliar with the coastal areas of South Texas, simply ask one of your buddies with a "beach home" in Key Allegro or Port Aransas. They've probably been through or within a stone's throw of Gregory-Portland many times. The good news is that the boys will travel in the fancy buses as they head south. As many of you may not know, on these long trips, the coaches pull over before getting to the stadium to allow the boys to stretch and get taped before arriving at the stadium. Since this Friday is a school holiday and no classes will be missed, the Mule Fan lobbied unsuccessfully for an early departure, and an educational trip to the State Aquarium and the U.S.S. Lexington. Therefore, the Mule Fan is pushing for the pre-game taping to occur at the beach. Likely this too will be shot down by the coaching staff, though if some gulf fishing was involved, we might have a shot.

The Wildcats come into the game with a record of 10 and 2. Gregory-Portland (let's call them GP from here on out) returned six starters on offense and three starters on defense from last year's team that was a regional finalist, having gone 6-0 in district. Once again, GP was predicted to finish first in district, and they did so in convincing fashion. Though some folks say that these gulf coast districts are not as tough – don't kid yourself, the Wildcats can play football. Leading the offensive line is tackle Chance Vernon, a 6'7", 335 monster in the middle. Yes, the Mule Fan checked the sources to confirm that both the height and weight were correct. On offense, the Wildcats return Joey Sanchez, a small but shifty running back who ran for 1200 yards last year, and quarterback Kyle Fishbeck, who also started last season for the Wildcats. On defense, Brett Parker is 6'3" and runs a 4.6 40. Joining Parker on defense are a slew of talented defensive tackles, including Gonzales who had 80 tackles last year, and linebacker Garza who had 75 tackles last season.

This season, GP started off the year going 2 and 2 in its non-district games. Then, as expected, GP ran through the district at 5-1, losing only once by one point to Port Lavaca Calhoun. GP scored 70 points in the game before that game, and following the loss, GP scored 42, 49, 42 and 38 points before being held to 12 last week. Over the last three games, the GP defense has become dominating, giving up only 6, 10, and 12 points. In the first round of the playoffs, GP beat San Antonio McCollum 38-10, and last week, the Wildcats beat an 11-0 Mission team by a score of 12-7.

Okay. Yada, Yada, Yada. What does GP do? What is their offense? What is their defense? On offense, the Wildcats are led by Fishbeck at QB and RB Sanchez. Fishbeck throws an average of 10 times per game for an average of 92 yards a game. So, how did they with so many ball games passing only 90 yards a game. Well, guess what Sherlock? They run the ball. Joey Sanchez averages 114 yards per game, Nikki Smith averages 113 yards per game. Johnson and Robeau each average 35 yards per game, and Fishbeck runs for another 20 yards per game. On total, the Wildcats average 272 yards per game rushing – more than any team Heights has faced. The offense is similar to San Marcos with many different runners touching the ball. The Heights defense must expect everyone except the water boy to carry the ball. Heights will face a team hoping to control the tempo with long drives (sounds like a team that plays at Orem Stadium). On defense, Polasek averages 10 tackles per game, Smallwood averages 11.5 tackles per game and Garza and Luna both average over 7.5 tackles per game. The Wildcats force about 2 turnovers per game. Justin McArthur (#1) is a threat on punt returns and kickoff returns – keep it away from him. As we've become more experienced, we've located more websites with statistics, so next year's Mule Fan writer will look intelligent right out of the gate.

Kickoff is 7:30 at Corpus Christi Calallen.


A Few Words with the Head Coach of the Mules – Don Byrd
November 24, 2009

Mule Fan: The Mules advanced to the third round with the 21-19 win with a big tip of the cap to the Alamo Heights defense for a fantastic effort. They forced turnovers, scored points, held Killeen to half their average yardage output and half their scoring average and of course get a huge game winning stop on the two point conversion at the end. To quote former NFL coach Dennis Green, “Was Killeen who you thought they were going to be on Friday?”

Coach Byrd: Oh exactly. You know they were a team that seemed to get better as the season wore on. Last year we got a good taste of the athleticism and their speed. They’re a well coached team and they are one of the top programs around right now. I think when it hits playoff time they play as well as anybody. The defense just played unbelievable. The defensive coaches did a great job of coming up with an outstanding game plan. They’re great coaches and the kids play hard for them and the kids went out and executed. It’s really hard to single one out. We got the interception with Thurmond and some other big plays but play in and play out every one of them was playing exactly the assignment with a lot of intensity and a lot of excitement.

Mule Fan: Take us through that last two point conversion attempt from Killeen which was obviously THE key play at the end to close it out. What were your observations from the sidelines?

Coach Byrd: Well they were going to the right. The quarterback had the option. Nelson (Skylar) went right through and just made an outstanding play along with Luke Maloy and the rest of them. It was just a play that was going to be close. We were just a little more aggressive and quicker off the ball than they were. Those were the guys who were at the point of attack but it was just a great play across the board with the entire defense. Skylar made a great play and Warren was there also. So it was just a great play out of our line backing corps and then Maloy coming up along with everybody else.

Mule Fan: What effect did the nasty weather have on each team’s game plan?

Coach Byrd: The neat thing about it is that playing on the new surface means that you have great footing no matter what the weather is so that worked out well for us. But it makes it harder to concentrate and it’s a little harder to execute on offense. Defense you get to react the same way you have all year. But it throws a little bit of the timing off. But all in all I thought the game unfolded about the way it should have no matter what the weather was. It’s a little harder to throw the ball and get to some of your outside game.

Mule Fan: The offense moved the ball well between the 30’s but struggled a little inside the “red zone” and had difficulty finishing particularly in the first half. Was that weather related, something Killeen put in front of you with their adjustments or just down to execution?

Coach Byrd: No you look at it and we had a lot of plays of four yards or better. You go back and look and each drive was either killed by a bad snap or a penalty. We had two holding calls that stopped drives and we jumped offsides. We had a bad snap. There’s four drives that ended right there. We just didn’t quite finish. It was just hard to get explosive plays down the field so you were going to have to have longer drives and against a team that talented it is hard to overcome any mental errors.

Mule Fan: In games like that you can always expect special teams to play a role and Heights got an outstanding night out of the kicking game with Stern’s punts and knocking in some good kicks while Killeen struggled with theirs. Does special team play seem to be amplified at this time of year?

Coach Byrd: Exactly and the punt team was unbelievable giving them (Killeen) a very long field in the shadow of their end zone. That cuts down on their play selection which helps our defense. Also on the kickoffs I thought he (Stern) placed them very well the majority of the time and the coverage was outstanding. So those were big, big parts of the game.

Mule Fan: On to Gregory-Portland now. This is as deep as Alamo Heights has been in the playoffs since the state championship run in 2006. You’re facing a 10-2 team that has only completed 58 passes all season but with a pair of backs that each average over 100 yards per game. Are we looking at a San Marcos type of offense here?

Coach Byrd: Yes it has a lot of similarities. Both of these coaches from San Marcos and Gregory-Portland worked under the same coach and they are disciples of the offense he runs. It’s going to be a condensed offense where they run right at you. They come off hard and low. They’re not one of the bigger teams. The thing that catches your eye immediately is how aggressive they are across the board. The kids just play hard from the snap of the ball to the whistle. So we’re going to have to match that intensity and make sure that we’re taking care of business because they’re a very well-coached team.

Mule Fan: Clearly they live and die by the running game but can you get into a situation where you clamp down hard enough on their backs to force them to pass because obviously they would seem to prefer not to?

Coach Byrd: Yeah you can get them out of their running game. The quarterback throws the ball very well. If you are fortunate enough to stop them and they start spreading things out a little bit more he can still hurt you with his passing not only in the spread formations that they run but his play action. You get so tied up in stopping the run that you can fall asleep and that receiver sneaks by you.

Mule Fan: So again with the running game, is it more of a grind-it-out, four yards at a time or do these backs get out in space and create on their own?

Coach Byrd: It’s a condensed formation where there are not usually the bigger gains or larger amount of yards. Then they do pitch it out on the option and get you in space so it’s a combination of both really.

Mule Fan: Any other trends you’ve observed either on film or from other exposure to Gregory-Portland?

Coach Byrd: We’ve played Gregory-Portland off and on for years. They’re very well coached and have unbelievable community support. They run the ball and grind it out. On defense they’ll play a pretty aggressive front. They’ve had to jump into man coverage against us in year’s past. I’m not sure if they’ll stay in their “cover four” which is two safeties and the corners backed off a little bit or what they’re going to do against us. But they’re just a very aggressive, well coached football team. There’s not much more you can say about them.

Mule Fan: The boys are out of school for the Thanksgiving holidays so you have their full focus and attention which is timely during this important part of the playoffs. What does this allow you to do differently from your normal routine during a school week?

Coach Byrd: During the school week when we try to watch films or lift weights there are always kids that have to meet with teachers and do things like that which they need to do. But this week with no school we get their undivided attention so that’s been nice. We get to work out in the morning and spend a little bit more time in the afternoon planning instead of the coaches having to run off and teach a class and so forth. So it’s kind of a nice setting. It’s a lot quieter around school when it’s just us showing up for practice and then everybody goes home in the afternoon. So it’s a neat setting and it’s nice to get back into practicing during Thanksgiving week.

Mule Fan: You have a walk-through scheduled for Friday morning before you leave which is typically done on Thursday. Will that give you and extra day on Thursday for a full workout or will that be more like a typical Thursday?

Coach Byrd: It’ll be kind of in-between. See we’re actually losing a little bit of time because we normally work out fourth period, our athletic period during the school day right before lunch where we get in eight five minute segments or about 40 minutes. We did not want to go much longer (in practice) so we’re trying to keep the same schedule Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and then Thursday we’re going to add a few things that we didn’t accomplish during the week. So it’s a little different but we’ll get it all in by Friday.

Mules Playoff Radio: ESPN 1250 The Zone

If you can come to the game, please do. But it you cannot make it you can follow the action on ESPN AM 1250 The Zone. Airtime for the pre-game show this Friday is at 7:00 p.m. Ed Suarez and Dave Parker will call all the action. Please say thanks and patronize all of the generous sponsors. If you’re not in town, you can listen to the live broadcast on the internet at www.tsrnsports.com/index.html.

Go Mules!!!!!

LOOKING BACK

MULES REFUSE TO LOSE TO ROOS---21-19

Heights heads to the third round of the playoffs with thrilling victory.


For the second straight year, the Mules went 7-3 in the regular season. For the second straight year, the losses were against Stony Point, Clark, and Steele and the victories were against the same seven opponents--Laredo(seems like a lifetime ago),Clemens, Boerne, Seguin, San Marcos, New Braunfels and Kerrville. For the second straight year, Heights beat Brackenridge in the first round of the playoffs. For the second year in a row the Mules were matched up against a talented team from Killeen. For the second straight year, the game was played on a cold, drizzly night at a neutral stadium. NOW GET THIS ONE, for the second straight year, Killeen scored 19 points...that's pretty weird but having written for two years, The Mule Fan writers recall these things. For the second year in a row, the game was on the line at the end of the fourth quarter. But this time, the ending was oh so sweet.

For those of you who have followed the Mules this year, the game seemed to be a snapshot of so many events that had happened during the year. Like the Clark game, a steady rain changed both team's game plans. Like the San Marcos game, the Mules stuffed a critical two point conversion to preserve a win at the end of the game. Like the Kerrville game, the defense shut down a high-powered offense averaging 40 points a game. Like the Steele game, the smallest lineman for the opponent seems to be twice the size of our largest lineman...and meaning no disrespect to our linemen, our linemen are a pretty healthy sized group. And like so many games this year, the Cardiac Kids have aged each of their parents by a good 10 years---this writer's hair has gotten thinner and grayer by the week (got to blame it on something).

So, here we go. Mules won the toss and elected to defer to the second half. Killen set up shop at its own 12. Before you could even say the second "Car" in "Car-Car" or the second "Da" in "Da-Da", Mamma Sharon (I presume "Ma-Ma" in the Thurmond household) is on her feet because Carter Thurmond has picked off the first Killen pass and returned it to the endzone for a 7-0 lead with 11:42 left in the first quarter. Wow...an unexpected start to the game. Killen took the next kickoff and got a couple of first downs on the ground. With the wet weather, Killeen had to change its game plan which is normally a passing offense. So too did Heights have to change its defensive scheme which was geared to stop the pass. The Roo drive went all the way to the Heights 36 when a bad snap gave the Mules the ball at the 48. Heights went to work on the ground getting as close as the Roo 10 before a holding penalty pushed Heights back to the 20. The drive stalled and Kristian Stern kicked a 28 yard field goal for the 10-0 lead with 5:08 left in the first quarter. Time for a quick editorial aside: The special teams were awesome on the night...something as simple-looking as an extra point or a field goal deserves extra credit on a rainy night--great blocking, great snaps by David Garza, great holds by Steven Elder and, of course, great kicking by Kristian Stern added 4 points in the first quarter that were not sure things in this weather. The defense went back to work holding the Roos to 3 and out. Rosenthal with a 35 yard gain to the sidelines but again Killeen held on a 4th and 8. Killeen then started to roll its offense. RB Haskins and QB Cummings (both juniors) went to work on the ground and the quarter ended with Killeen driving to the Mules 5 yard line. Heights 10, Killeen 0.

On the first play of the second quarter, the Roos scored on a 5 yard run. Killen had cut the lead to 10-7. Though Heights had outplayed the Roos, the offense was struggling to put points on the board, missing opportunities by not making the plays when they needed to do so. Momentum Roos. In the words of Scooby Doo..."Rut Roh." The rest of the second quarter was a bit sluggish. With the heavy rain, neither team was able to do much on the ground or in the air. Both teams struggled to move the ball and again the defense was holding back this potent Killeen offense. Halftime: Heights 10, Killeen 7.

What do you do at halftime? You listen to the band, watch the Spurs and ponder what should have been. It seemed that the Mules had the Roos on their heels but they could not put them away. Grab a cup of coffee, discuss strategy with the other fans and head to the seats. Speaking of fans, the Mules had a tremendous amount of support. Thanks to all the folks who made the road trip on such a crummy night. The crowd definitely pumped up the Mules and it was evident as many Mules players turned to the fans encouraging them to turn up the volume. The crowd- appointed cheerleader, Brent Marshall, did his impression of Rick Shaw--not the "hand over your right heart" thing, but the "That's Enough for Another Alamo Heights First Down" thing.

Third quarter started with William Thompson returning the kickoff to the 30. On the night Thompson returned kickoffs extremely well giving the Mules good field position on a couple of occasions. Cabell and Marshall make great catches from Mills, but the Mules drive stalls. Enter one of the best weapons on the evening--Krisian Stern. Stern's punt pins the Roos at the 12. After the defense held again, the Mules forced a punt on 4th down. This Mule Fan can not see so well at night (scary to think he then drove 70 miles back to San Antonio) so he is unable to specifically point out names of the defenders making great plays on the night. However, the linemen, as always were awesome, the linebackers (on this evening led by Mike Warren and his 14 tackles) and the defensive backs (led on this evening by the hard hitting Phillip Massari) contained the Roos offense. Back to the story. Roos punting on 4th down but the snap goes into the endzone for a Mules safety and a 12-7 Heights lead. A Mules turnover set Killeen up in good field position. On a 3rd and 20 Cummings found Baker and the tall, strong receiver pushed his way into the endzone. Up 13-12, Killeen elected to go for 2 to try to put themselves up by a field goal--this missed conversion would be important later in the game. The extra point was no good, but Killeen led 13-12. See Scooby Doo above. The Mules again took the ball but the drive stalled. Fear not though Mules fans--Stern's punt drops out of bounds at the 3. The defense holds AGAIN and on the 4th down punt, the snap is extemely high (from my lofty perch, it looked like it went through the goal posts), goes out of the end zone and the Mules are up 14-13 with 1:43 left in the third quarter. Luke Maloy returned the free kick to the 48 where Heights went to work. Steven Elder on the keeper romped for 15 yards, the Mules moved the ball further on the ground and Rosenthal carried it in from the 15 for the 21-13 lead with 38 seconds left in the quarter. The Roos took the ball and Massari and Sandoval made nice plays to end the quarter. Heights 21 Killeen 13.

Starting the 4th quarter, Maloy broke up a 3rd down pass, presumably because he wanted to return the punt again. Oh how (Mules baseball coach) Coach T cringes everytime the Mules force a punt. The Mules drive stalls and Stern pins Killeen at the 10. The defense holds and the Killeen punter boots a 58 yard punt. The Mules punt and Killeen starts at their own 17 with 3:18 left in the game. The defense looks to be in good shape but on 3rd and 10, the call is pass interference against the Mules. Very questionable call it seemed from our side of the field (Any of you seen that Buffalo Wild Wings commercial where the fans ask the ref to do something to send it to overtime? For those of you that have, this penalty seemed right on point in front of the Roo sidelines). In any event, the refs certainly had a better view than The Mule Fan (and was probably a bit less biased), so the Roos had life. Killeen continued to drive nicely down the field and Cummings found Sylvester for a 28 yard touchdown with 38 seconds left. Killen will go for two to try to tie the game. More grey hair. Less hair. See Scooby Doo above. On the option pitch the Mules stuff the run at the one foot line. Though there were certainly others there, Mike Warren and Luke Maloy looked to be in on the big stop. Now, the onside kick...shades of San Marcos. On the kick, the reliable Zach Richter comes up with the ball. 36 ticks left..Mules to take a knee..no direct snap...shades of New Braunfels Canyon. Snap is good. Mules win 21-19.

They (spotter Charlie Wernette, to be precise) say a team needs to win two out of three to win a game. Let's start with defense. Killeen averages 40 points a game and over 400 yards a game. The Mules hold them to 205 yards with 83 yards coming on the last drive and the defense held the Roos to just 19 points. What a performance by the defense. Special teams? Kicking team, punting team, kickoff return team and punt return team. Add in perfection on field goal/extra points and the Mules are in good shape. The offense outgained Killeen and totaled 240 yards with a wet field. What a great win for the program. Practice over Thanksgiving week is what these boys have hoped for...and they've got it.

PLAYOFFS ROUND TWO-LOOKING BACK


CLASS 4A, DIVISION I, REGION IV


C.C. Flour Bluff 38, Harlandale 21


Lake Travis 27, Steele 20


Heights 21, Killeen 19


Gregory Portland 12, Mission 7

Sneak a Peak at the Post Game Locker Room Excitement from Dripping Springs!

There's nothing like the excitement of a crucial playoff win in high school football. For the second consecutive year, the Mule Fan editors have negotiated a "playoff budget" with their publishers to travel the video crew. This occurred at the last minute on Friday so we had to roust them out of the bowling alley to pack up in time to get up 281 and through the traffic to get to Dripping Springs. During the course of the game, the Mule Fan editors paced the aisles nervously waiting for the crew to arrive. They finally turned up claiming that we told them to go to Sulphur Springs. Come to think of it, it is possible. But, no worries, they made it in time to capture an excited group of Mules in the post game locker room. Enjoy!!

Tickets and Transportation to Corpus Christi

Next to Thanksgiving plans, the most important topic of the week (or is it THE most important topic of the week-we know how the Mule Fan would vote!) is the subject of tickets and transportation to the game this Friday November 27th, as the Mules face off with Gregory-Portland in Calallen’s Wildcat Stadium at 7:30 pm.
First up-ticket sales info directly from Patty Juarez (All ticket sales at the AH Athletic Office except in Muledome as noted):

Monday 1:30-4:30 (Athletic Office) & 4:30-7:30 (Muledome)
Tuesday 8:30-noon & 1:30-5:00
Wednesday 8:30-noon & 1:30-5:00
Thursday (Thanksgiving-no ticket sales)
Friday 8:30-1:30

Pre-Sale Prices: Adults $7 Students $3 All tickets at the gate at $8

Bus transportation has been arranged. Please read the information below very carefully. Families of players (and anyone else wishing to depart early) will depart at 2:00 p.m. after a player send-off at 1:30. The 2:00 p.m. buses will make a stop at a restaurant in Corpus Christi before the game. Cost per person on either the player family/early bus (or buses depending on demand) or 4:15 departure/fan bus is $15 per person. A fan/later bus (or buses depending on demand) will depart promptly at 4:15 p.m. Both groups of buses will depart from just outside the athletic office and Muledome. Bring your own refreshments.

IN ORDER TO RESERVE A SEAT ON YOUR BUS, PLEASE WRITE A CHECK FOR THE NUMBER OF SEATS YOU ARE RESERVING TO “AH VARSITY FOOTBALL”. HERE’S THE MOST IMPORTANT PART! DROP OFF YOUR MONEY TO PATTY JUAREZ, AND INDICATE WHICH BUS DEPARTURE TIME YOU WANT TO THE AH ATHLETIC OFFICE (HER OFFICE HOURS THIS WEEK ARE POSTED ABOVE) BY NO LATER THAN 9:30 AM WEDNESDAY MORNING NOVEMBER 25. WE WILL FILL AS MANY BUSES AS WE CAN BASED ON DEMAND. WE WILL DETERMINE THAT NUMBER BY WEDNESDAY MORNING. NO SEATS ON THE BUS CAN BE RESERVED WITHOUT THE PAYMENT.

Two Mule Fan Posts this Week!!

Oh you're in luck Mule Fan readers. We figure everyone has a little extra time on their hands this week. Since the Mule Fan editors have used up all our vacation, the publishers have "asked" us to consider putting out two posts. It is playoff time and we're three rounds deep so we agree that it is only right that we "feed the beast" a second time. Our preview of the Mules' next opponent, Gregory-Portland and our weekly visit with Coach Don Byrd will be out mid-week. Plus we'll have maybe a few more surprises. Keep checking back!