KFDM COOP

Lake Alan Henry is big bass bonanza Franco Vallejos of Albuquerque, N.M. caught this 13.05-pound bass on Lake Alan Henry Thursday. The fish was 25.75 inches long and 20 inches in girth. He was fishing in 2 feet of water with a live waterdog, according to Larry Hodge with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Three more 13-pound-plus bass were caught this past week, and believe it or not they all came from Lake Alan Henry that is without a doubt the hottest monster bass lake in Texas, if not the world, right now. I got an email from Larry Hodge, with the Budweiser ShareLunker Program on Friday, saying that they had just picked up a 13.05-pound bass that was caught on Alan Henry Thursday by Franco Vallejos of Albuquerque, N.M. He also said they had heard that two more bass in the 14-pound-plus class had been caught there, and they were on the way to pick them up. The bass caught by Vallejos is the fourth to be caught and entered into the ShareLunker Program from Alan Henry this season. The heaviest of the bunch is the 15-pounder caught last week. That was a new lake record. It replaced the old lake record weighing 14.94. Since 2000 there have been 18 confirmed catches of 13-pound-plus bass from Alan Henry. If they pick up a pair of 14-pounders by today that will bump the total to 20. So far this season 25 bass have been entered into the ShareLunker Program. Hodge says that's the most entries since 1996, when 28 bass were donated to the program. So far Lake Fork has produced five ShareLunkers this season. Many of you probably are not familiar with Alan Henry, but it's definitely worth a fishing trip, especially during April. It's produced nine bass during April since 2000. The lake is located 65 miles southeast of Lubbock. It's on the South Fork of the Double Mountain Fork of the Brazos River, and covers 56 miles of shoreline that's made up of mostly steep rocky terrain. According to TPWD records the lake was stocked with largemouth and smallmouth bass in 1993 and 1994. What makes this lake such a big time producer of huge bass is anybodies guess. It could be from lack of angling pressure, such as tournaments. At any rate, it should definitely be a go-to destination for anglers in the hunt for big bass. If you're looking to win some money and big prizes you might want to check out the McDonald's Big Bass Splash being held April 21-23. It'll be held on Sam Rayburn out of the Umphrey Family Pavilion, located just east of the dam. Robin Johnston, with Sealy Outdoors (the outfit heading up this tourney), says they will be paying out $560,000 worth of cash and prizes for big bass. "We had 3,700 entries in this tournament last year," says Johnston. "It's usually held on the third weekend of April on Sam Rayburn. We're expecting about 4,500 entries this year." In last years tourney 11-year-old Brandon Adams won this tourney with a big bass weighing 11.57 pounds. That big bass was worth a Triton boat package and a Hummer. I talked with him after the tourney and Brandon said he was going to sell the Hummer and keep the boat. The money from the Hummer was going towards a college education. He's already signed up for this year's tourney, according to Johnston.

[Hidden Content] State-mandated tests have put just about all spring sports activities on hold this week and that includes Memorial's spring football practices. But that doesn't mean the Titans are forgetting about the grid game. "Coaches are coaching and kids are learning," is how new coach Ron Thompson answered when asked what the football program was up to this week. Except for a practice in pads Monday, he meant they were learning new offenses and defenses by watching. And what they were watching was themselves on videotape. "You don't know what kids are thinking," the coach said. "You tell them out on the field to do this thing or that. But the players really don't know until they see it on film." And it's not just teenagers who learn better with videotape, Thompson said. He recalled that when he coached at the University of Texas two decades ago he had occasion to visit the off-season practices of the Washington Redskins and visit with Super Bowl MVP John Riggins, a running back. "I asked him about a play they had run in the Super Bowl and I started to draw it up for him," Thompson recalled. "He said, 'I don't understand that. Show me the play on film. That's how I learn.' "And from that," Thompson said, "I learned to film as much as you can, and watch as much film as you can. That's how you learn." So the Titans have been practicing -- four times last week and once this week -- under the watchful eye of a video camera. And during their days away from the practice field this week, they've been watching themselves on video with their position coaches pointing out the good, the bad and the ugly. "The film work is helping," Thompson says. "Every time they see it, they're getting better. We're trying to move at a slow and moderate pace and digest what we've learned." The Titans return to the practice field next week for drills on Monday through Thursday, taking the weekend off for the regional track meet. Exactly how much better they are for their time watching video will be known next week. But as for who has impressed the head coach so far, the list includes quarterbacks Davon Lewis, Alonzo Revuelta, Harry Brown and Jerrell Alexander and offensive linemen Ronald DeJohn and Jonathan Vernon. Defensive linemen Charles Jacobs, Marcus Abbott and Darius Leveige and linebacker Jordan Charles and defensive backs Todd Gardner and Anthony Cockrell. The coach didn't single out any receivers. "Reeivers as a whole are starting to come around," the coach said. "They're starting to emerge as catchers."

Juco coach drools over Titan recruits A week later, Roy Champagne can still hardly contain his glee. The Lee College basketball coach came over from Baytown last week and left Port Arthur with three recruits from Memorial High and it's like he made off with the crown jewels. That's how highly he regards forwards Dominique Keller and Jack Thomas, the two players he signed to full scholarships, and guard Toddrick Thomas (no relation to Jack), who he recruited as one of Lee's three walk-on players for next season. Of course, it was Lee College's interest in Jack Thomas and Toddrick Thomas that persuaded Keller to sign with the Rebels instead of San Jac, Keller said. "We're real excited about what Dominique and Jack can do," said Champagne, whose team finished 15-16 overall last year, 10-12 in Region XIV play. "They're great competitors and all-around basketball players." Keller, the two-time All-District 22-5A first-team pick and winner of the James Gamble Mr. Inside award, was obviously the plum of Lee's recruiting trifecta in Port Arthur. The 6-foot-7 player who set a Titan scoring record of 42 points in a game last season is being counted on to take up the slack left at Lee College by the departure of junior college All-American Mike White, who signed last week with Indiana. White, also 6-7, averaged 19.4 points and 7.4 rebounds per game this past season. The Springhill, La., native was co-MVP of Region XIV despite his team's middle-of-the-pack finish. "Interestingly enough, I think Dominique can replace White," Champagne says. "When you look at the junior college prospects within a 250-mile radius of the Houston area, Dominique Keller is one of the best, if not the best, front-line players that are out there. "He has the ability to shoot, shoot the 3, and the ability to score on the block. What he has is not a turnaround jumper, and it's not a jump hook. It's kind of a James Worthy shot. He has such a long wingspan, it's hard to block his shots." Jack Thomas was Keller's cohort underneath the basket and his scoring and rebounding skills might have equaled or exceeded Keller's. For his size. Even though he played taller, Jack Thomas is only 6-3. Champagne intends to use him on the wing. "I think Jack is going to be one of those guys people are going to scratch their head and say 'Where the hell did he come from?'" Champagne said of the player who missed more than half his senior season in an eligibility dispute. "He's a serious competitior, and when he played pickup games with our guys, he got after it, shooting the 3, using the pick and roll, dunking on people. He's not going to concentrate on any one thing. He's a basketball player. "We don't guarantee anybody a starting position, but if he doesn't make it, I'll be surprised." Toddrick Thomas, a 5-10 point guard, faces an uphill battle for playing time, Champagne admits. "When you take a walk-on, you're giving him an opportunity to have a uniform," the coach says. "But to get in the games, you've got to be like Rudy (the Notre Dame walk-on who was the subject of a movie). A lot of the time, it's just a matter of timing." Several of the James Gamble Awards finalists will be back on the basketball court Saturday for the 18th annual USA High School All-Star Classic at the Montagne Center. Larry Guidry of Crowley, La., is behind the event, having started it in Kansas City in 1988 before moving to Louisiana in 1995. This will be the second year to play in Beaumont. A Texas versus Louisiana girls' game will be held at 3 p.m. and a Texas versus Louisiana boys' game is set for 5 p.m. There will be slam dunk and 3-point shooting contests at halftime. The Texas boys' team includes Memorial's Dominique Keller, who won the Gamble "Mr. Inside" Award two weeks ago. Other Gamble Awards finalists expected to play are Keith Fisher and Brandon Moton of Beaumont Central, Mack Randall of Ozen, Bryan Harris of Silsbee and Noah Cole of Vidor. Other local players in the boys' game are Xavier Blueford of Beaumont Cathedral, Tracoy Hinson of West Orange-Stark, David Redmon of Ozen and Adrian Lee of Kountze. Locals on the Texas girls' team are Ashley Johnson of Port Arthur, Brittney James of West Orange-Stark, Latavia Joseph and Erica Darkins of Ozen, Lauren Simmons and Letha Toran of Central, Tiarra Green of Silsbee, Martinee Turner of Kountze and Katie Sanders of Orangefield. Port Arthur's James Gamble will be guest speaker at a Friday night banquet for the players at Beaumont's Melton YMCA, then join another former Lincoln High coach, Terrull Henderson, in coaching the Texans. Cynthia Fonteaneaux, wife of Memorial girls' coach Joe Fonteneaux and head coach of the Port Arthur Lady Heat AAU program, will coach the Texas girls. Baytown's Texas Hooping Angels were the big winners in the first local AAU girls' tournament held recently in Nederland. The Texas Hooping Angels Gold, national champions a year ago, defeated their "B" team, the Texas Hooping Angels, 46-23 in the championship game. The Texas Hooping Angels Gold were led by Lauren Flores of North Shore and Nia Toro of Bellaire High School. Fort Bend 90 beat the Oak Ridge Rebels 55-50 for the consolation championship.

Yes.

We'll see!!

I wonder if he's from Bullard??

I haven't seen many weaknesses!

Congrats!!

North Sabine---Heavy winds have kept anglers fishing the channel and river systems. Flounder fishing has been fair to good in Black Bayou on live mud minnows fished around small drainages and in Bessie Heights Marsh. Very few reports of trout. Redfish are fair to good along with black drum on the intake side of the Entergy Canal on crab. South Sabine---Heavy winds have made fishing tough. Protected areas are producing a few specks on live bait. Blue Buck Point has been good for reds and flounder on mud minnows and mullet when it has been fishable. Sabine Pass---Very few reports.

[Hidden Content]

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HD 10 Sabine Pass 5

They've had some good ones! There's to many to post here right now.

[Hidden Content]

Louise Smith, 'first lady of racing,' dies at 89 GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Louise Smith, the first woman inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1999, has died. She was 89. Smith was a barnstormer who ran for $100 to $150 in first prizes and some extra appearance money. Smith, remembered as "the first lady of racing," was on the NASCAR circuit from 1945-56. Known for her fearless style, she won 38 modified events. "It was hard on me," she told The Associated Press in an interview in 1998. "Them men were not liking it to start with and they wouldn't give you an inch." Smith died Saturday, and the family was to receive friends and hold funeral services Monday, according to the Westville Funeral Home in Greenville. Smith had battled cancer and been in hospice care, one of her nieces, Dora E. Owens, told The Greenville News. Smith, a native of Barnesville, Ga., lived in Greenville for most of her life. She got her start in racing when young promoter Bill France was looking for a way to get people to the track. He asked about female drivers, and someone mentioned Smith. France started NASCAR on the road to its dynasty in part by sending Smith to tracks in the Northeast and Canada. "We didn't think this was going anywhere," Smith said. "If we went out of state, it was like we went to heaven." Benny Parsons, a longtime NASCAR star, former series champion and now a TV analyst, said Smith's death was like losing a piece of history. Parsons said it's been hard for racing to find female drivers, noting the hype Danica Patrick brought to open-wheel racing last year when she became the first woman to lead a lap at Indianapolis and was the race rookie of the year. "If we could find a Louise Smith here in 2006 to get in there and finish fourth in the Daytona 500, imagine what that would do for NASCAR Nextel Cup racing," Parsons said. Smith was married to the late Noah Smith, a junkyard owner who didn't approve of her job. Her father and brothers were mechanics. She never had children of her own. Smith was a barnstormer who ran for $100 to $150 in first prizes and some extra appearance money. She mixed with Curtis Turner, Ralph Earnhardt, Bill Snowden, Buddy Shuman and Buck Baker. "We traveled in a gang. If one of us had a hot dog, we'd all get a bite as long as it held out," she told AP. Smith was remembered for some spectacular crashes, too. In 1947, she went to watch the beach races at Daytona in her husband's new Ford coupe, but when she arrived, she had to race. So she entered the shiny new car -- and you guessed it -- wrecked. Parsons called it "the greatest story of all." "Her husband said, 'Where's the car, Louise?' And she said, 'That ol' trap broke down in Augusta [Ga.],"' Parsons said. "He showed her the newspaper. The wrecked car was on the front page." Smith quit racing in 1956, but stayed close to the track, working with Darlington Raceway's pageant before she resigned as grand patron in November 1989 after serving more than a decade. "It's still hard for me to leave a race track," she said. "I could stay forever."

Kelly 5...........Donnie Cornona hits game winning HR in the bottom of the 9th. St. Thomas 4

:pp :damnfunny

Just telling the truth, seriously the best runner i've ever seen! You can ask alot of Coaches that that played against him!

Best Running QB i've ever seen was Beasley.

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Great job Bobcat!!! I only have 7 more schedules to get and we'll be done.

Blue Chips!! Nick Nolte was awesome!!

Woodville 11 Trinity 2

Bad News Bears! :thumbsup

Gooch is the real deal that's for sure.