Mules Ground Rockets in 41-0 Weather Shortened District Opener
-Look Next to Rivalry Game with Boerne Champion
By Bob Cohen
Sr. Editor, Consumer of Baked Goods Brought to Home by Cheerleaders
(San Antonio) – Everyone was looking for relief on Friday
night. A summer weary sun-dried
group of fans from both sides were looking for a cooler weekend in San
Antonio. Timing is everything
right? The temperatures dropped to
pleasant levels early in the evening.
By the end of the first quarter, the Kennedy Rockets had taken
knee-buckling blows from the Mules to the tune of 21 points and were searching
for some relief as well. While the
weather kept going in a positive southerly direction, the deficit for Kennedy
did as well and by halftime, the Mules had pasted up 41 well-distributed points
just as the rain began arriving in sparkly sheets.
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| Photos courtesy of Mary Candee www.dulcedesigns.photoreflect.com |
The
Mules offense got to cruising speed early scoring on their first three
possessions. The Mules defense was impenetrable allowing no first downs until
the second quarter and forcing Rocket punts including one, which for the second
consecutive week forced the Mules to start a series from their own one-yard
line late in the first period.
Except this week, rather than fool around with the inconvenience of a
drive, Dalton Banks delivered a deep sideline pass which Greer Shetler
collected in stride and motored most of the rest of the way in beautiful picturesque
strides until a visible hamstring pull at about the 15 forced him to totter the
rest of the way to the end zone. Incidentally,
this play was nominated by News4 San Antonio WOAI-TV for play of the week. Get on line and make sure it gets voted
in. http://news4sanantonio.com/sports/features/high-school.
Shetler’s
field tour followed two other quick strikes by the Mules. The Mules punctuated their first
possession of the game with a three-yard Brendon McClinton TD run which ended a
70-yard drive that took two and a half minutes. On the next possession sophomore running back Deryl Reynolds
reeled off a 50-yard tote not quite to paydirt but had it called back for a
block in the back. On the very next play following that temporary setback,
Banks dialed up receiver Zach Ford on a 77-yard touchdown pass.
The
Mules defense held Kennedy to 40 yards of total offense, forced five punts and
allowed only three first downs in total.
By 9:48 in the second quarter, second team substitutes from the offense
and the defense began to make appearances on the field. Unfortunately a potential bench
clearing night was cut short by the game being called. But while they were in,
the second wave did a great job as well.
Mules’ running backs Deryl Reynolds scored on carries of nine and three
yards and Grant Biggs found the pay station on a 19-yard lug. And the defense kept the clamps on
Kennedy, which was unable to escape first gear all night. For the night, Alamo
Heights totaled 419 yards of total offense and picked up 16 first downs. Quarterback Dalton Banks was 10 of 13
for 237 yards and two touchdowns.
27-5A Scores
Boerne Champion 42
Memorial 2
Lockhart 14
Seguin 13
Kerrville Tivy 50
Floresville 40
San Marcos, idle
"His Inside Voice"
A weekly discussion with Mules Head Coach Mike Norment
Mule Fan: To
begin with can you tell us how the decision was made to cancel the second half
of the game?
Coach Norment:
As we were coming into halftime, Mike Post our trainer, has a lightning
meter and there was a lightning strike just outside the range of calling
everybody in. So we came in and
talked about what we were going to do in the second half, how we were going to
substitute and as we were starting to go back out to warm up Mike Post said
there was a lightning strike within the range and so we all had to come back
in. By rule, if there is a
lightning strike within a designated area, you must wait 30 minutes. So we’ve
already been inside for 30 minutes and now we’re going to wait at least another
30 minutes because we don’t know if the lightning is going to continue. So at that point, (Alamo Heights
Athletic Director) Gene Phillips goes over to confer with the Kennedy coaches
and the referees and everyone decided it was best to call the game at that point. Also by rule, once you reach halftime
it is a complete game and so the game ended at 41-0.
Mule Fan: The
Mules appeared to play a near perfect first half scoring on six of seven
possessions, rolling up a lot of offense and allowing almost nothing
defensively. What stood out most
to you about the way your team played as the first half went along?
Coach Norment: We
talked about wanting to go out and take care of business right from the get-go
and not have any letdowns. And
then if you get a lead don’t have another letdown. So I was very proud that we
came out guns-a-blazin’. We were
moving the ball very quickly. The tempo was very good offensively. Defense, boom, shut them down, three
and outs and made them punt. Then the other thing I was proud of is when you
start putting subs in both offensively and defensively there’s a little
letdown. Except there wasn’t
any. The defense still played hard
forcing them to punt and we were able to score. So those were the things that stood out for me in this game.
Mule Fan: Other
than getting some guys some deserved playing time, is there much more you could
have gotten out of the game had you finished it?
Coach Norment:
When it’s 41-0 and with the weather conditions, there’s not a lot
besides a lot of guys who deserve to get in. That’s my big regret is that we couldn’t get a lot of guys
in that work hard every day, that come to practice and do everything you
ask. We want to reward them when
we can. You never know. You want to get them playing time
because you never know when they’re going to have to step up and get into the
game.
Mule Fan: Let’s
look at Boerne Champion then. Of
course this is a rivalry game and the Mules have never lost to Boerne Champion
since they’ve been around.
Thinking back to last year, you faced a pretty potent running
attack. What are the differences
between the two versions of their team?
Coach Norment:
Last year we were fortunate because we jumped on them early and got them
down a little bit. They’re very
similar to last year but probably a little better. This is Coach Keith Kaiser’s second year so he’s got them
rolling along really well. They’re
scoring a lot of points. They’re
the second ranked defense in our district behind us. So I expect a great game because it’s Boerne Champion and
Alamo Heights and that’s always going to be a great game.
Mule Fan: As
we’ve said, this is a rivalry game.
They know they haven’t beaten Alamo Heights and you know you haven’t
lost to them. How is that fact
used, if at all, in the preparation for the game during the week?
Coach Norment:
To tell you the truth I have not mentioned it to the kids. I don’t know if they even know that and
I don’t really care. I just don’t
want this to be the year that Champion beats Alamo Heights. So we’ll concentrate on the game like
any other week. We had a good
Monday workout and we’ll get better on Tuesday right through Thursday. Every district game is important. Of
course it’s Boerne so it’s going to be a little bit more special because it is
a rivalry game. You really don’t
have to say a lot to the kids because they know who they’re playing.
Mule Fan: Does
the strangeness of the half game blowout win last Friday affect the flow of the
preparation for the game?
Coach Norment: I
don’t think so because Boerne is in the same situation because they had a
blowout win too. At the same time
our kids were executing pretty well when they were in there. If we had been sloppy that would have
been one thing. But I thought we
did a good job executing no matter who was in there. So I just think we’ll be a little bit fresher.
Mule Fan: I
want to talk a little about special teams. The Mule Fan has gotten some questions about the philosophy
of kickoffs and how you decide to pooch kick and give good field position or a
short field and what dictates kicking it deep and making a team work at running
it back up field?
Coach Norment:
Well first of all if you can’t kick it into the end zone then there is a
chance of a return. I know that if
we pooch it, we’re going to give them the ball at the 30-yard line, which is
our goal with no return or very little return. We have kickers right now who can get it to about the 10 or
five-yard line. If we have a great
wind, maybe into the end zone. But
a lot of times, the best athletes are back there (receiving) and if you kick it
to the five or 10, you allow the other team to set up their return that they
work on every week. And instead of
giving them the ball at the 30 or 35, they can get a big return or maybe even a
touchdown. If you pooch the ball
you very rarely give up a big play.
So our philosophy is that if we can’t kick it out of the end zone, we
give them a nice high pooch and give them the ball on the 30 or 35. Our goal is
the 30 anyway so anything inside the 40 we consider a positive.
Senior quarterback Dalton Banks is right up there in area rankings: 3rd in the area in total offense with 985 yards and 4th in passing with 63 completes in 101 attempts for 810 yards, 7 TD's and 1 Interception. Senior tight end Greer Shetler is 8th receiving with 18 catches for 304 yards averaging 16.9 yards with three touchdowns. Shetler is also ranked 4th in receiving yardage. Zach Ford also makes this list at 12th with 245 yards and 9th in receptions with 16 averaging 15.3 yards with 2 TD's. Senior receiver Colton Courtney is 14th in receptions with 13 catches for 122 yards at 9.4 yards per catch.
Meatus Pinkus
Given the abbreviated nature of the game on Friday, the Mule
Fan has elected to award ham patties to both the offense and the defense for a
total shutdown on Kennedy. Why patties?
Well, we are on a tight budget here. While you are generous with your subscriptions, this only
covers a small portion of our operation.
Our board of directors has forbid us from giving away a full ham or hams
this week given the fact that we only played half a game. So we have smushed together a few
slices of bacon, shaped them into attractive patties and stuffed them into a
spam can. That’ll have to do this week.
Boerne Champion
Notes
The rivalry with Boerne Champion continues. But as intense as it is,
Boerne Champion has never beaten the Mules…The Mules won the last
meeting last year at Harry B. Orem Stadium 41-17...Boerne is 3-0 this year, 2-0
on the road and enjoys a six game winning streak dating back to last
season…This season’s wins have been against Stevens, Hays, and Memorial…They
finished 2013 with a record of 7-3 and 4-3 in district play…the Chargers last
playoff appearance was a loss to the Mules in 2011…Champion is averaging 44.7
points per game and allowing 17.7…the return seven offensive and defensive
starters from the 2013 team…players to watch are running back Travis Popisil
and senior wide receiver Cort Cowart who had 44 receptions, 738 yards and six
touchdowns in 2013.
Road Trip Tickets
When the Mules travel, it is important to check in with the
Alamo Heights athletic office and Patty Juarez, who the Mule Fan Blog often
refers to as the Mule Whisperer, for all the important ticket information. Without Patty, we’d all go off the
rails. Anyway, this week, Patty
says tickets can be purchased in advance for the low, low price of $7 for
adults and $3 for students. If
you wait to purchase on game night, those folks in Kendall County will soak us
for another buck. Do we have to
remind you that each and every dollar put in their coffers puts us further at
risk of invasion? Help us fortify
our boundaries and protect the future of our children and our children's children. Get your tickets in advance. If
Boerne people make it to our ’09 borders then the Tivy people can’t be far
behind. Do your part and get your
tickets in advance. Athletic office hours this week are Wednesday-Thursday 8:30am-12:00pm and 1:30pm-3:00pm, Friday 8:30am-3:00pm.
We had some problems with the form displaying properly last week. This had to do with a blowout of one of our cam converters. We'd been warning management that they could go at any minute and that a simple bolt was all it would take to fix. Nope. Budget considerations held up the repair. We got emergency funding to replace capacitors and converters at a much higher price so now we are back to functioning. So here's another try. Get you little Mules out and playing with the big boys on Sunday, September 21. See the information below.
Cliché Corner
Identify the football cliché.
Impress your friends; baffle your
enemies with all this nawlidge.
A.
Bring the house
B.
Clean the house
C.
Employees must wash hands before returning to
work
Answer A. to “bring the house” means to rush as
many as 10 players typically in a punting or field goal attempt situation to apply maximum pressure to the kicker and perhaps block the attempt
Radio
Follow the Mules at home or away all season on KBUC-FM 92.5
as well as live streaming on www.tsrnsports.com. Ed Suarez, Dave Parker and Albert
Gonzalez bring you the sounds and excitement every week. It is the Mule Fan’s belief that these
games are archived on the www.tsrnsports.com
website as well so if you want to hear the game after the fact, this can be
done.
Mule Fan Mail Bag
Yeah we get letters and e-mails. Some are quite constructive and instructive or just downright helpful. Some make us
laugh. You name it, we’ve seen
it. Here’s one now:
Dear Scum Bag, oh I meant Mule Fiend,
I’m tired of asking you to write more about my grandson. Why is it so hard to do? You write
about other people’s grandkids.
I’m really worked up about it.
You’re a monster. You must
have climbed out from under some slimy rock. Were you by chance raised by wolves?
Love,
Dad
Your Input
Every year, we get great comments and ideas from our ever-creative readership. This is YOUR blog Mule fans. We want to make it better for you. So we'll consider any ideas. Management may not, but we will. What do you want to see more of or less of? More comics? Color fonts on our stock quotes? A little less science? More classified display advertising? Fewer shrimp recipes? More funny connect-the-dot pictures? It's really an open topic. Just let us know. We'll consider it all. E-mail works best although wrapping around a rock and throwing it through our office window can also grab our attention but not in a healthy way. E-mail to bobcohen@sbcglobal.net. And thanks again for your subscription.
On Saturday, the Mules varsity was out working hard at the
Ram Station on New Braunfels conducting a fundraising car wash. Reports are that there was a nice amount
raised which is good considering that the crew worked in some rain for a little
while. Mule Fan staff was asked to
take the cars of some of the slobs on our miserly board of directors to get a
clean up. When asked how much
these board members wanted to give the guys for their work, the reply was “give
them our warmest personal regards.”
Oh well, now you know what we deal with. Anyway, members of our editorial staff, who barely have two
nickels to rub together for our weekly reporting work, did their part
contributing hard earned wages to support the boys.
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| Scrub a Dub Dub While Getting Some Pub |
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| The Car Wash Publicity Team-It Pays to Advertise |
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| The Car Wash
Fundraiser Was a Success! Thanks!
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