Five Surprising (Good) Teams This Year

[robanadana]

OK, this is the year of the underdog, the downtrodden, the team that simply stinks over the last couple of decades. Here are five that have really impressed me this year.

1. Liberty. Perennial doormat, the Panthers are undefeated and crowing about their upcoming meeting with WOS, presumably for the district championship. I've always wondered out loud to liltex "why doesn't Liberty have a good team?" Question answered, this year they do.

2. Splendora. With 1106 students compared to the rest of there district sporting 1400 or better and first season in 5A ball they were expected to get clobbered from the get go and 0 - 10. Interstate 69, Splendora 0. A district victory against mighty Dayton and two other preseason wins have most teams scratching their heads. "Where is that W we were supposed to get against them?"

3. Porter. Another of the US59 - IH69 growth spurt teams, Porter is the darling of 21-5A, undefeated with a victory over the greatest team ever from football Mecca, Crosby. We'll see if Cinderella gets her Spartan playoff chariot at the end of the season.

4. Evadale. How many of you can even find them on the map? Easy to do, head north on 105 outta Vidor and follow your nose. The Rebels are 5 - 0 and have the best team I've seen them have in a couple of decades. They might make a run in the playoffs.

5. Woodville. After a huge one-sided win against Kirbyville, the Eagles finally can do something other than play baseball. That new wood pellet stadium finally feels good under their pulpwood cutting, Brogan wearing feet and they're looking like a playoff team this year.

What are you guys thoughts? This has been a heck of a football season...well worth the $6.00 admission. Cheap.

[prepballfan]

Not as sure about Evadale kinda think the were expected to be good atleast around the folks I know.

[AggiesAreWe]

29 minutes ago, robanadana said:

OK, this is the year of the underdog, the downtrodden, the team that simply stinks over the last couple of decades. Here are five that have really impressed me this year.

1. Liberty. Perennial doormat, the Panthers are undefeated and crowing about their upcoming meeting with WOS, presumably for the district championship. I've always wondered out loud to liltex "why doesn't Liberty have a good team?" Question answered, this year they do.

2. Splendora. With 1106 students compared to the rest of there district sporting 1400 or better and first season in 5A ball they were expected to get clobbered from the get go and 0 - 10. Interstate 69, Splendora 0. A district victory against mighty Dayton and two other preseason wins have most teams scratching their heads. "Where is that W we were supposed to get against them?"

3. Porter. Another of the US59 - IH69 growth spurt teams, Porter is the darling of 21-5A, undefeated with a victory over the greatest team ever from football Mecca, Crosby. We'll see if Cinderella gets her Spartan playoff chariot at the end of the season.

4. Evadale. How many of you can even find them on the map? Easy to do, head north on 105 outta Vidor and follow your nose. The Rebels are 5 - 0 and have the best team I've seen them have in a couple of decades. They might make a run in the playoffs.

5. Woodville. After a huge one-sided win against Kirbyville, the Eagles finally can do something other than play baseball. That new wood pellet stadium finally feels good under their pulpwood cutting, Brogan wearing feet and they're looking like a playoff team this year.

What are you guys thoughts? This has been a heck of a football season...well worth the $6.00 admission. Cheap.

Sorry, but Evadale does not qualify as an underdog, downtrodden, a team that simply stinks over the last two decades.

Also, Liberty is 99-106 in last two decades including the 5-0 start this year with 12 playoff appearances in that span while Vidor is 84-111 with just 4 playoff appearances.

Be careful who you call downtrodden and stinks over last two decades.

[CCRed]

2 minutes ago, AggiesAreWe said:

Sorry, but Evadale does not qualify as an underdog, downtrodden, a team that simply stinks over the last two decades.

Also, Liberty is 99-106 in last two decades including the 5-0 start this year with 12 playoff appearances in that span while Vidor is 84-111 with just 4 playoff appearances.

Be careful who you call downtrodden and stinks over last two decades.

I was thinking along these same lines but didn't know the exact stats.  Thanks for revealing them.  Vidor should be one of the surprises this year based on their previous "stink of the last couple of decades".

[Hagar]

Interesting thread.  I'll throw my 5 or 7 out.

1- Porter, hands down, no contest.  Probably biggest in Texas.

2- Splendora, with their small pool.

3- Woodville, good wins, especially over Kirbyville.

4- Vidor, didn't surprise everyone, but still surprising some.

5- Liberty, back in form.

6- Tie - Hull Daisetta & Sabine Pass, because they've cost me so many pickums this year.

Rob - Appreciate the good comments about Evadale.

[Eagles12]

Can we stop calling Porter a growth spurt team? Really not an accurate statement. To me, it does a disservice to the kids who have been here through all the struggles and worked their butts off to get to this point to call them a growth spurt team and act as if they are winning because a bunch of move ins came in.

[Hagar]

If I'm not mistaken, Porter has grown considerably in recent years, as has most of that area, not in small part due to ExxonMobil's huge complex at The Woodlands.  My son lives in Porter, and it seems bigger every time I go there.  Growth is not a bad thing.  To me it indicates a nice community, and Porter certainly has some great new schools.  Personally, I'm proud of those Spartans.

[raideroldtimer]

4 hours ago, robanadana said:

OK, this is the year of the underdog, the downtrodden, the team that simply stinks over the last couple of decades. Here are five that have really impressed me this year.

1. Liberty. Perennial doormat, the Panthers are undefeated and crowing about their upcoming meeting with WOS, presumably for the district championship. I've always wondered out loud to liltex "why doesn't Liberty have a good team?" Question answered, this year they do.

2. Splendora. With 1106 students compared to the rest of there district sporting 1400 or better and first season in 5A ball they were expected to get clobbered from the get go and 0 - 10. Interstate 69, Splendora 0. A district victory against mighty Dayton and two other preseason wins have most teams scratching their heads. "Where is that W we were supposed to get against them?"

3. Porter. Another of the US59 - IH69 growth spurt teams, Porter is the darling of 21-5A, undefeated with a victory over the greatest team ever from football Mecca, Crosby. We'll see if Cinderella gets her Spartan playoff chariot at the end of the season.

4. Evadale. How many of you can even find them on the map? Easy to do, head north on 105 outta Vidor and follow your nose. The Rebels are 5 - 0 and have the best team I've seen them have in a couple of decades. They might make a run in the playoffs.

5. Woodville. After a huge one-sided win against Kirbyville, the Eagles finally can do something other than play baseball. That new wood pellet stadium finally feels good under their pulpwood cutting, Brogan wearing feet and they're looking like a playoff team this year.

What are you guys thoughts? This has been a heck of a football season...well worth the $6.00 admission. Cheap.

I agree with all but Evadale, those guys tend to be pretty decent most years. I personally would have put Vidor on this list. Your team looked totally impressive Friday night. Not the usual Vidor that we've grown used to. Might even take DC.

[BMTSoulja1]

 

 

But we knew Evadale was gonna be good even before the addition of Mackey....  I wouldn't put them on this list....

[aTmfan06]

Yeah definitely don't know why Evadale is on here lol

[robanadana]

OK, OK, there is a little disclaimer at the bottom asking for y'alls' thoughts. I considered putting Vidor on here but was concerned about being called biased. Besides, since 2009 the Pirates are 46 - 38 with three playoff appearances; this year withstanding (number 4). Like most of y'all, I start threads to stir the pot a little and IMO, these are my five. You are or course, welcome to your opinion. Evadale was expected to do good but they haven't been phenomenal over the last decade and I was pointing out that they might make a good run in the playoffs. Besides, I'll bet half the people on this board can't find Evadale on the map. Take them off, put us on it and there ya' go! AAW, Liberty has had only one winning season since 2000, (2011) according to lonestarfootball.net. I didn't go back further because that sorta proved my point.

[AggiesAreWe]

13 minutes ago, robanadana said:

OK, OK, there is a little disclaimer at the bottom asking for y'alls' thoughts. I considered putting Vidor on here but was concerned about being called biased. Besides, since 2009 the Pirates are 46 - 38 with three playoff appearances; this year withstanding (number 4). Like most of y'all, I start threads to stir the pot a little and IMO, these are my five. You are or course, welcome to your opinion. Evadale was expected to do good but they haven't been phenomenal over the last decade and I was pointing out that they might make a good run in the playoffs. Besides, I'll bet half the people on this board can't find Evadale on the map. Take them off, put us on it and there ya' go! AAW, Liberty has had only one winning season since 2000, (2011) according to lonestarfootball.net. I didn't go back further because that sorta proved my point.

You might want to check our very own history forum.

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Liberty has had 4 winning seasons since 2000. But, you stated the last two decades so why stop at 2009 when speaking of your Pirates?

Also, Vidor is 41-39 from 2009 to week 6 of this season.

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[Playa]

I think Eagles12 is trying to say that they arent winning bc of growth right now.  Porter Literally has 2 guys on the varsity roster that moved there since last football season

[robanadana]

3 hours ago, AggiesAreWe said:

You might want to check our very own history forum.

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Liberty has had 4 winning seasons since 2000. But, you stated the last two decades so why stop at 2009 when speaking of your Pirates?

Also, Vidor is 41-39 from 2009 to week 6 of this season.

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Unless I say something good about Silsbee, I guess this is gonna continue. I actually meant this to be a GOOD topic about teams that aren't the Nederlands, Daytons, Crosbys, WOS of the world. But, since everyone is so hiney-hurt this year because their teams aren't performing up to expectations; I guess I'll just take this thread as a loss and move on. GO PIRATES!

[blackflag]

Whoa! Whoa! Hold up a minute!

 

 

$6 tickets???

[AggiesAreWe]

1 hour ago, robanadana said:

Unless I say something good about Silsbee, I guess this is gonna continue. I actually meant this to be a GOOD topic about teams that aren't the Nederlands, Daytons, Crosbys, WOS of the world. But, since everyone is so hiney-hurt this year because their teams aren't performing up to expectations; I guess I'll just take this thread as a loss and move on. GO PIRATES!

I am just saying when making these type posts, one should fact check. Got nothing to do with my team.

You the one calling teams "downtrodden and stinking".

[WOSgrad]

A few thoughts on the teams that you mentioned:

1.    Liberty - I guess whether they are a surprise depends primarily on where you are from.  I am like you, that the degree of improvement this season has been surprising as the past few years had brought nothing that Chad Taylor, who was hailed as the messiah in Liberty, had promised.  But I know that you and I had heard from folks like liltex that said the improvement was coming and we would see it as early as this year.  However, I would caution the Panther faithful to thinking that the path to a Week 10 showdown with WO-S is a clear one as just the week before they face someone that I would add to this list of surprisingly good teams and that would be Hardin-Jefferson.  Yes, they made great strides when Coach DuBois was there, but before then they wore the moniker, somewhat begrudgingly, of a basketball school.  And then last year in Coach Sloan's first year, they had a defense that was decimated by graduation and an offense that had trouble finding it's identity.  Things seemed to have been figured out by the Hawks which is gonna make that October 21 game an interesting one to watch.

2.    Splendora - The surprise to me with their success so far is not only that they were rising one classification, but that they had no success over the past 10 years.  The 3-0 start including the win over Dayton, but district losses in the last couple of weeks leaves me not as bullish on Splendora as I once was. And with the next 3 games being against Barbers Hill, Porter and Crosby, I fear that we might see that the Wildcats, as the late Dennis Green once put it, were who we thought they were.

3.    Porter - nothing to add there, other than they have some tough games coming up as well.  What Porter has done compared with what Kingwood Park has not shows that we may need to start mentioning Jim Holley as one of the area's better coaches.

4.    Evadale - not surprising, Torres at QB is the real deal, so is Williams.  The Rebels have had a line of good teams, it is just that the UIL alignments have recently been pretty unkind to them and place them behind teams like Tenaha and the like which has kept them out of the DC picture.

5.    Woodville - Again, not really that big of a surprise.  That Lockhart kid is something special. Did I think they would do what they did to Kirbyville? No, but they are a quality team who I thought would be safely in contention for the playoffs.

Teams that I would add to the list:

1.  Humble Summer Creek (4-0) I know it will please very few as we fear the Bulldog faithful with return to their arrogant selves, but the Bulldogs finally seem to be finding their footing in 6A where the success they found in 5A has eluded them.

2.  Hardin-Jefferson for the reasons stated above

3.  Sabine Pass - Yes, their wins have not been over especially accomplished teams, but then again, these were teams that usually counted the Sharks as a W on their schedule.  I think what has helped is that they had a bunch of experience that was returning and Coach Thibodeaux has been able to get the parts working this year.

[liltex]

34 minutes ago, WOSgrad said:

A few thoughts on the teams that you mentioned:

1.    Liberty - I guess whether they are a surprise depends primarily on where you are from.  I am like you, that the degree of improvement this season has been surprising as the past few years had brought nothing that Chad Taylor, who was hailed as the messiah in Liberty, had promised.  But I know that you and I had heard from folks like liltex that said the improvement was coming and we would see it as early as this year.  However, I would caution the Panther faithful to thinking that the path to a Week 10 showdown with WO-S is a clear one as just the week before they face someone that I would add to this list of surprisingly good teams and that would be Hardin-Jefferson.  Yes, they made great strides when Coach DuBois was there, but before then they wore the moniker, somewhat begrudgingly, of a basketball school.  And then last year in Coach Sloan's first year, they had a defense that was decimated by graduation and an offense that had trouble finding it's identity.  Things seemed to have been figured out by the Hawks which is gonna make that October 21 game an interesting one to watch.

2.    Splendora - The surprise to me with their success so far is not only that they were rising one classification, but that they had no success over the past 10 years.  The 3-0 start including the win over Dayton, but district losses in the last couple of weeks leaves me not as bullish on Splendora as I once was. And with the next 3 games being against Barbers Hill, Porter and Crosby, I fear that we might see that the Wildcats, as the late Dennis Green once put it, were who we thought they were.

3.    Porter - nothing to add there, other than they have some tough games coming up as well.  What Porter has done compared with what Kingwood Park has not shows that we may need to start mentioning Jim Holley as one of the area's better coaches.

4.    Evadale - not surprising, Torres at QB is the real deal, so is Williams.  The Rebels have had a line of good teams, it is just that the UIL alignments have recently been pretty unkind to them and place them behind teams like Tenaha and the like which has kept them out of the DC picture.

5.    Woodville - Again, not really that big of a surprise.  That Lockhart kid is something special. Did I think they would do what they did to Kirbyville? No, but they are a quality team who I thought would be safely in contention for the playoffs.

Teams that I would add to the list:

1.  Humble Summer Creek (4-0) I know it will please very few as we fear the Bulldog faithful with return to their arrogant selves, but the Bulldogs finally seem to be finding their footing in 6A where the success they found in 5A has eluded them.

2.  Hardin-Jefferson for the reasons stated above

3.  Sabine Pass - Yes, their wins have not been over especially accomplished teams, but then again, these were teams that usually counted the Sharks as a W on their schedule.  I think what has helped is that they had a bunch of experience that was returning and Coach Thibodeaux has been able to get the parts working this year.

Nice post,good to see High Island scoring alot of points.Humble would've been in some conversations if 4 yr starter Terio Brown had not torn acl & lost for his sr yr.

[Eagles12]

10 hours ago, Tracker25 said:

I think Eagles12 is trying to say that they arent winning bc of growth right now.  Porter Literally has 2 guys on the varsity roster that moved there since last football season

Yes I am not denying that there has been a ton of growth there obviously has. But what you said is exactly what I am saying,

[robanadana]

12 minutes ago, Eagles12 said:

Yes I am not denying that there has been a ton of growth there obviously has. But what you said is exactly what I am saying,

Guys, it wasn't a slam on Porter, just you were never getting the press that I thought you deserve. I know full well what being the doormat is all about...just thought I would give you a measure of success. Look forward to seeing the Spartans play ball in the near future. I personally would have left the Cosby / Porter thread going for the rest of the year. Growth in a school district has a lot more positive effects other than directly adding football players. More money for programs, better coaching and better facilities are all things that come with that. You guys play in one of the finest stadiums in the state, there's a lot to be said about that.

[robanadana]

6 hours ago, AggiesAreWe said:

I am just saying when making these type posts, one should fact check. Got nothing to do with my team.

You the one calling teams "downtrodden and stinking".

Just trying to add a little humor to it there Zoltar. Maybe you should try it sometime.....

[Hagar]

21 hours ago, AggiesAreWe said:

You might want to check our very own history forum.

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Liberty has had 4 winning seasons since 2000. But, you stated the last two decades so why stop at 2009 when speaking of your Pirates?

Also, Vidor is 41-39 from 2009 to week 6 of this season.

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Gotta say it AAW, you're fudging on the 41-39 for Vidor, including this season.  This season is the reason Vidor should be on the list.  They are 36-39 without the 5 wins this year.  And even as much Vidor football as I've watched/kept up with, for them to be leading District going into week7, you're talking ancient history.  Not sure if the 78 team did.  Only one I know for sure is the 64 team.

[AggiesAreWe]

27 minutes ago, REBgp said:

Gotta say it AAW, you're fudging on the 41-39 for Vidor, including this season.  This season is the reason Vidor should be on the list.  They are 36-39 without the 5 wins this year.  And even as much Vidor football as I've watched/kept up with, for them to be leading District going into week7, you're talking ancient history.  Not sure if the 78 team did.  Only one I know for sure is the 64 team.

I counted those wins the reason why I stated from 2009 to current.

Vidor was 37-39 entering this season. They are 42-40 with the 5-1 record this season.

[TexasPanther2012]

22 hours ago, robanadana said:

OK, OK, there is a little disclaimer at the bottom asking for y'alls' thoughts. I considered putting Vidor on here but was concerned about being called biased. Besides, since 2009 the Pirates are 46 - 38 with three playoff appearances; this year withstanding (number 4). Like most of y'all, I start threads to stir the pot a little and IMO, these are my five. You are or course, welcome to your opinion. Evadale was expected to do good but they haven't been phenomenal over the last decade and I was pointing out that they might make a good run in the playoffs. Besides, I'll bet half the people on this board can't find Evadale on the map. Take them off, put us on it and there ya' go! AAW, Liberty has had only one winning season since 2000, (2011) according to lonestarfootball.net. I didn't go back further because that sorta proved my point.

the history forum on this site is 100% accurate when it comes to liberty at least dating back to 2000. That other site is completely off. 

[Hagar]

35 minutes ago, AggiesAreWe said:

I counted those wins the reason why I stated from 2009 to current.

Vidor was 37-39 entering this season. They are 42-40 with the 5-1 record this season.

Nope, better look again.  You said Vidor is 41-39 to week 6.  But regardless, just the fact that Vidor is leading Dist, going into week 7, albeit a half game over PAM & PNG, is still virtually unheard of.  We're seeing history AAW.  Sit back and enjoy it with us.