The Mule Fan

Hey Mules Fans! As you can see, we have changed the face of the Mule Fan blog. This will be part of a new Mules Football website that we plan to launch very soon which will include the Mule Fan blog along with enhanced calendar functions to keep you updated on Mules football announcements. Check back soon!

Looking Back:

AH Mules vs Lehman Lobos

“We Can Run The Ball Well”

With 21 first downs and only one punt, it's easy to see that the offense moved the ball well. Add the defense holding the Lobos to only 225 total yards and 11 first downs, and you can see why the game ended 63-14 Mules. Lehman has some really good athletes, but the Mules play as a team, are disciplined, and were doing their jobs. It was a game where everybody got to get involved, and with an expectation of a deep playoff run, we will need to have everybody with game experience.

Our running backs got a lot of work Friday night, and with 252 rushing yards and only 20 passing attempts in a spread offense, you can see that for yourselves. William Thompson (WTT) ran 17 times for 105 yards with 2 TD’s while Andy Brooks ran 14 times for 60 yards and a pair of TDs himself. The offensive line did a great job moving the line of scrimmage for our running game. You add to that the receivers blocking down-field and it's easy to get to those 252 yards rushing. We posted 28 of our points in the first half while holding the Lobos to only 7. Our defense was just swarming. Its hard to single-out one person because of all the Mules around the ball, but recently moved-up sophomore Blake Rosenthal had 2 picks that really helped open up the game. I think he was showing off for his brother Justin (The Red Rocket) visiting from college.

When you add our passing game and the usual suspects involved in that to the running game and strong defense, you get a wide margin. Forrest (Elder) and Bubba (Richter) connected 4 times for 48 yards and a touchdown, Steven Elder finished the night 12-20 with 2 TDs and 36 yards rushing. With 35 second half points, it presented a great opportunity to see some new faces on the field. Working out the kinks with some of these guys will pay dividends during the play-offs.

This is a really good time to have an off week. With injured guys starting to come back, and a few guys banged up, this extra time will help heal a lot of stuff before the last game and the 1st round of the play-offs. We will need everyone for our push, and with the coaches having an extra week to be prepared, I have high expectations myself. Next Friday, the 5th of November, we get after it again with Clemens at our home stadium to finish up regular season. Come out and yell a bit!!! This is how we roll!!!

District Standings - Week 5:

	Won	Lost
Smithson Valley Rangers	4	0
Alamo Heights Mules	4	1
Buda Hays Rebels	3	1
NB Canyon Cougars	3	2
Clemens Buffaloes	1	3
Kyle Lehman Lobos	0	4
Lockhart Lions	0	4
Alamo Heights defeated Kyle Lehman 63-14
Smithson Valley defeated Clemens 39-0
Buda Hays had a Bye
NB Canyon defeated Lockhart 33-3

Chirps from the Byrd, Head Coach Byrd, that is:

Mule Fan: What’s your plan for the next couple of weeks to keep the team focused with an off week?

Coach Byrd: We are trying to rest some ankles and injuries and also go back to some fundamentals and try some new situations. We are going to work hard 3 days this week to keep our routine and then start-up on Monday as a normal game week.

Mule Fan: A lot of forecasters are predicting us getting to the regional finals by winning the first 3 games. What’s your plan on getting there and going further?

Coach Byrd: In the play-offs, anything can happen. You can’t really look past the first game because anyone can upset you. It comes down to us executing and taking care of business. They got to stay hungry and focused. Play-offs are scary, because loser goes home. We need to make the plays. We can play with anyone.

During the Bye Week, the Mule Fan sought out a few tips from an NFL expert to help keep the boys motivated during the off-week.......

JV Levels Lobos 31-7

It was a good week for the JV Mules as they rebounded from the prior week and brought their A-Game against the Lobos from Kyle Lehman. The JV Mules are now 6-3 with one game left to play against Clemens on November 4th.

Lehman received the opening kickoff and it appeared that the Mules might be in for a longer afternoon than anticipated as the Lobos running back, #10, made big gains play after play. Lehman was able to drive the ball 80 yards to score, all on running plays. The Mules actually weren't all that impressed, and after receiving the ensuing kickoff, responded with their own scoring drive. QB Wes Yancy moved the ball downfield with good runs from Coby Bailey and a nice pass to George Mixon. Finally, Yancy scrambled the last 35 yards for a Mules TD as he weaved in and out of lumbering Lobos. After a Matt Kelly extra point, the score was tied 7-7 with 1:46 left in the 1st quarter. The Lobos offense would struggle from that point on. On the next series, Jimmy Russell sacked the Lobo QB for a loss and a fumble, giving Heights the ball on the Lehman 18-yard line as the teams switched ends for the 2nd quarter. This time QB Kevin Kujawa led the Mules the 18 yards needed for another Heights touchdown, as Kujawa turned a missed snap into a 5-yard scoring run to advance the score to 14-7.

On the next Lobo possession, Lehman again moved the ball downfield. Lobo #10 had another big run, picking up 34 yards and backing the Mules defense deep into their own territory. Lehman found itself on the Mules 5-yard line, but that's about as far as they got. The Mules defensive line of Hunter Martin, David Birkey, and Chris Abdouch, dug-in their cleats and held the Lobos on the next three downs as the Lehman quarterback tried to score on three consecutive QB keepers. You had to wonder why they didn't give the ball to #10 at least once on those last three plays! So the Mules took over on their own 1-yard line, with Kalen Brockwell at quarterback. On 1st down, Coby Bailey gave the Mules some breathing room as he brought the ball out to the 12 yard line. Then Brockwell hit consecutive passes to Deon Demus and George Mixon to put the ball on the 45-yard line. Coby Bailey followed that up with a big 25 yard run before Brockwell hit Alex Bathie, who made a fingertip catch across the middle for another 25 yards to give the Mules a 1st down at the Lobo 5-yard line. But the drive stalled there and the Mules took the field goal as Matt Kelly kicked it through the uprights to end the first half with the Mules ahead 17-7.

Heights received the 2nd half kickoff and went back to work on offense. Yancy put together a nice series of passes to Deon Demus, John Durbin, and finally Alex Bathie, who brought in a beautiful pass in the corner of the endzone to make the score 24-7, Mules. The Lobos took the ensuing kickoff and tried to get something going, but linebacker John Rascoe sacked the Lehman quarterback for a loss on 4th and 5, giving the Mules the ball at the Heights 37-yard line. Kalen Brockwell came in again at QB, and he promptly hit John Durbin for a nice 14-yard gain along with a screen pass to Demus, putting the ball down on the Lobo 22 yard-line as the 3rd quarter came to a close. On the next play, Brockwell was run out of bounds on a 1-yard keeper, but a late hit by the Lobos gave the Mules a 1st down at the 6-yard line. From there it was easy for Robert Low to put it in High gear for the last 6 yards and another Mules TD. 31-7 Mules. While there was no scoring in the 4th quarter, the Mules continued their defensive dominance. When Lehman tried to lob the ball downfield in desperation, Safety Matt Kelly hit the Lobo receiver, knocking the ball free where it was recovered by linebacker Henry Nixon. Final highlights included a 45-yard run late in the game by Robert Low.

Final score - 31-7, Mules! Great job JV!

Looking Ahead:

AH Mules vs. Clemens Buffaloes

Friday, November 5th - 7:30 PM

Alamo Heights Harry B. Orem Stadium

There is no game this Friday as our Mighty Mules have a week off as they rest-up, heal-up and polish-up for their final game of the regular season. Check back next week as the Mule Fan will give you the quick breakdown of the Clemens Buffaloes.