Hello SETX... I am a loyal, but informed and objective Carthage "Homer"... Just wanted to say good luck and congratulations to both teams this week... I also wanted to say that it is ridiculous to believe that either team will underestimate the other in the State Championship game... Neither team has gotten this far by underestimating their opponents... It is an awesome experience to get to support your team in this endeavor, no matter how many times your team may or may not have made it before... Only 3 years ago, we had only been to the big show once, and came up short... We know that there is a HUGE target on our backs, and I'm sure Coach Surratt and Company are fully aware of that... From the sound of it, it's gonna be a nail-biter, just as it should be... A powerhouse Coldspring running game vs. a strategically balanced offense from Carthage... Defense will be the name of the game... I'm not gonna spout stats or tout ignorant opinions without having seen your team develop over the season... And speaking of which, That is exactly what has happened to Carthage this year... We were supposed to be in a rebuilding year, and weren't supposed to even be here, AND that is exactly what we've done... This Carthage team, more than any other that I've ever seen, has developed and matured as the season came along... And as to the 2 losses earlier in the season, they were the best thing that could've happened for this team... IMO, it helped kickstart the development of these guys... I can't substantiate the claims that we were missing 9 starters... (I believe that to be incorrect)... We were down our D-1 middle linebacker, our very talented safety/ receiver was out, and our qb was injured and didn't tell the coaches... AND we got beat... Those nights, Nac and Chapel Hill were better than us... Thankfully, we are as healthy as we can be after having played 15 games in a season... Good Luck to both teams and their families and fans... I expect both teams to leave it all on the field... As far as a prediction, I obviously have to go with my DAWGS!!!
