Tarkington Open

[89Falcon]

23 hours ago, Bobcatfan4life said:

TARKINGTON LONGHORNS (0-0, 0-0)

Aug. 26 - at Evadale, 7:00pm

Sept. 2 - at Shepherd, 7:30pm

Sept. 9 - Huntington, 7:30pm

Sept. 16 - at Beaumont Kelly, 7:00pm

Sept. 23 - OPEN

Sept. 30 - Hardin*, 7:30pm

Oct. 7 - at Orangefield*, 7:30pm

Oct. 14 - Kirbyville*, 7:30pm

Oct. 21 - at East Chambers*, 7:30pm

Oct. 28 - Buna*, 7:30pm

Nov. 4 - at Anahuac*, 7:30pm

2-8 or 1-9

[PlayActionPass]

56 minutes ago, bullets13 said:

 Orangefield was a 7-4 playoff team in 4A last year, Anahuac went 9-3 last year and is on the rise in pretty much every sport, and East Chambers is always good.  Kirbyville was mediocre last year, but seems to be coming up.  Buna was bad and Hardin was worse, but half the district will be pretty good.  Regardless of what you think of the district, Tarkington was by far the worst team in the district last season, and they were a long way from even stepping over the bar to next to worst.  6 of the 9 teams Tarkington played last season (0-9, 0-6) are on their schedule this year, and only one of their nine losses was by less than 30.  The only game that I can look at on this schedule and think they may have some realistic shot at winning is Hardin.  I think a great season is 2-8 and the majority of the 8 losses being by less than 30 points.  

I'm not going to put a number to the wins and loses, but the biggest hurdle that faces the new coach is developing toughness, mentally and physically. 

Especially if he going to run the double wing. Tarkington has been in some form of the spread for 3 years now and the results have not been stellar, but the one thing they have lacked since Stan Howard left is toughness.

[2wedge]

23 minutes ago, PlayActionPass said:

I'm not going to put a number to the wins and loses, but the biggest hurdle that faces the new coach is developing toughness, mentally and physically. 

Especially if he going to run the double wing. Tarkington has been in some form of the spread for 3 years now and the results have not been stellar, but the one thing they have lacked since Stan Howard left is toughness.

Taylor can get them right, and at least make them competitive, but the community is going to give him a couple of years. The ceiling at Tarkington is 5-5 and the occasional playoff appearance. That's it. Set those expectations and they can be somewhat respectable. 

[Uncle Pig]

On 5/6/2022 at 6:04 PM, navydawg31 said:

Maybe he saw what he was working with at La Porte? More money but also more problems… lol 

Nothing like running a program how you want vs having to answer to someone…

If Tarkington really did reach out to him he probably throughout a $ figure and said heck why not?

Plus at this point I think Tarkington just wants someone to stay for more than a few years… 

La Porte will be good again here before long. Coach Berneathy is a great coach and he certainly gets the best out of his players. 

[Separation Scientist]

On 5/11/2022 at 2:32 PM, bullets13 said:

 Orangefield was a 7-4 playoff team in 4A last year, Anahuac went 9-3 last year and is on the rise in pretty much every sport, and East Chambers is always good.  

How many of these had a deep run last year?  Who out of those three is going deep this year? See? 

Nobody outside this district is even remotely concerned about it. Zero fear of this district.    

 

Beating Hardin by 50 or Tark by 60 does not mean you are a strong team once the playoffs start and you play real competition.

I do agree though if Tark goes 2-8 next year (Hardin and Evadale) it would be a start. Then build from there.  

     

 

 

[Guest mrtomcat]

15 hours ago, Separation Scientist said:

How many of these had a deep run last year?  Who out of those three is going deep this year? See? 

Nobody outside this district is even remotely concerned about it. Zero fear of this district.    

 

Beating Hardin by 50 or Tark by 60 does not mean you are a strong team once the playoffs start and you play real competition.

I do agree though if Tark goes 2-8 next year (Hardin and Evadale) it would be a start. Then build from there.  

     

 

 

who is this kid at hardin throwing the football around?  my buddy went and watched the 7 on 7 the other day and he says they beat el campo and another beaumont area school, before losing to somebody in their section to go to state.  the kid they had last year could not throw it 10 yards, so surely its not the same kid?  did they have a move iN ?

[oldschool2]

11 minutes ago, mrtomcat said:

who is this kid at hardin throwing the football around?  my buddy went and watched the 7 on 7 the other day and he says they beat el campo and another beaumont area school, before losing to somebody in their section to go to state.  the kid they had last year could not throw it 10 yards, so surely its not the same kid?  did they have a move iN ?

Probably the HFC's son.  I think he was an 8th grader last year.

[Separation Scientist]

2 hours ago, mrtomcat said:

who is this kid at hardin throwing the football around? 

I don't know much of anything about Hardin, or who that kid is. Only reason I somewhat follow this 3A is beacuse I have a freind with a son that goes to Tarkington, who is trying to motivate his son to play. I want to see Tarkington develope a pulse. I really focus on 5A-DI.

[Guest mrtomcat]

4 hours ago, oldschool2 said:

Probably the HFC's son.  I think he was an 8th grader last year.

well that makes more sense.  was told he was pretty good ?    does hardin have any weapons for him to throw to?  

[bullets13]

21 hours ago, Separation Scientist said:

How many of these had a deep run last year?  Who out of those three is going deep this year? See? 

Nobody outside this district is even remotely concerned about it. Zero fear of this district.    

 

Beating Hardin by 50 or Tark by 60 does not mean you are a strong team once the playoffs start and you play real competition.

I do agree though if Tark goes 2-8 next year (Hardin and Evadale) it would be a start. Then build from there.  

     

 

 

I'm not saying they're great, but there are 32 3A districts in the state, and this is not "one of the worst".  bottom half probably, but there are several districts who are weaker.  This district also has the great misfortune of having to face teams out of what is by far the best district in the state in the early rounds of the playoffs every year.  There won't be many deep runs out of this district when you're running into Lorena, LRA, and next season Franklin in the first 2 rounds.  

[Separation Scientist]

1 hour ago, bullets13 said:

I'm not saying they're great, but there are 32 3A districts in the state, and this is not "one of the worst".  bottom half probably, but there are several districts who are weaker.  

7 hours ago, mrtomcat said:

 

To be fair I did not say this 3A is THE absolute "worst" in the whole state, but they are arguably the 2nd or 3rd worst. For sure they are in the bottom quartile. The valley district 16 is the only one I know for fact that really is worse. Orangefield is coming in new, so that can change.   

[bullets13]

42 minutes ago, Separation Scientist said:

To be fair I did not say this 3A is THE absolute "worst" in the whole state, but they are arguably the 2nd or 3rd worst. For sure they are in the bottom quartile. The valley district 16 is the only one I know for fact that really is worse. Orangefield is coming in new, so that can change.   

High end bottom quartile maybe.  I think there are several places in the state you could move this district and they’d have a team or two getting 3 rounds deep most years.  It just absolutely won’t happen with the teams they have to face in the first and second rounds currently. EC lost a close one to Little River Academy this year in the second round. Woodville had to face Lorena second round.  Anahuac ran into Columbus.  This district is unfortunate to have to play top-10 schools in the second round of the playoffs, and now you can add Franklin to the mix, who was the 3A d-2 champ last year.  

[oldschool2]

5 hours ago, mrtomcat said:

well that makes more sense.  was told he was pretty good ?    does hardin have any weapons for him to throw to?  

I have no clue.  You probably know more about them than me.

[Guest mrtomcat]

12 hours ago, oldschool2 said:

I have no clue.  You probably know more about them than me.

all i know is what i'm told...historically hardin has NO weapons even if they have ONE he can throw to, i doubt its enough to do any real damage in district.  

[Separation Scientist]

18 hours ago, bullets13 said:

It just absolutely won’t happen with the teams they have to face in the first and second rounds currently.

We are actually in agreement. Thats what I have been saying. A team from this distrct can go a chest thumpin' 9-1 or even 10-0, and "look" strong on paper, but its totally false. They melt like a sno-cone in the August heat when they hit the 2nd round. I hope Anahuac grows, Orangefield comes in strong, and Tark can at least develop a pulse. Maybe better days are ahead.

Thats all for me here, all good. 

 

[2wedge]

On 5/13/2022 at 8:44 AM, mrtomcat said:

who is this kid at hardin throwing the football around?  my buddy went and watched the 7 on 7 the other day and he says they beat el campo and another beaumont area school, before losing to somebody in their section to go to state.  the kid they had last year could not throw it 10 yards, so surely its not the same kid?  did they have a move iN ?

His name is Brady Barrier and he is Head Coach Ned Barrier's son. He is incredibly talented, already bigger and more skilled than any QB Hardin has seen in a while. I know this is probably going to generate some comments from the peanut gallery, but he is going to be a very special player and has a chance to be big time. Not asking you to believe me today, but I'll be available to discuss more in depth in 3 years or so when everyone else knows. 

[bullets13]

On 5/14/2022 at 11:33 AM, Separation Scientist said:

We are actually in agreement. Thats what I have been saying. A team from this distrct can go a chest thumpin' 9-1 or even 10-0, and "look" strong on paper, but its totally false. They melt like a sno-cone in the August heat when they hit the 2nd round. I hope Anahuac grows, Orangefield comes in strong, and Tark can at least develop a pulse. Maybe better days are ahead.

Thats all for me here, all good. 

 

To a degree we’re in agreement.  Lorena lost to 4A world beaters China Spring last year by 8 and won the 3A D1 championship.  Franklin won the 3A D2 championship, and actually beat Lorena. If you go 9-1 and lose to one of those teams in the second round, or LRA or Columbus for that matter, I don’t know that I’d call that “melting like a sno-cone.”  So we’re in agreement that it isn’t a great district, but I feel you’re seriously downplaying how difficult the competition they’ve been running into is 

[Separation Scientist]

Year in and year out the competition this district faces is not as strong as Lorena and Franklin is now. If anything the gap is widening. I think the almighty EC was undefeated and top ten or something like that a few years ago and lost to an unknown 3rd place Yoakum team in the 2nd round. The tallest midget in the room melted like a sno-cone.   

[oldschool2]

On 5/14/2022 at 8:18 AM, mrtomcat said:

all i know is what i'm told...historically hardin has NO weapons even if they have ONE he can throw to, i doubt its enough to do any real damage in district.  

Probably a good bet. 

[oldschool2]

On 5/14/2022 at 3:45 PM, 2wedge said:

His name is Brady Barrier and he is Head Coach Ned Barrier's son. He is incredibly talented, already bigger and more skilled than any QB Hardin has seen in a while. I know this is probably going to generate some comments from the peanut gallery, but he is going to be a very special player and has a chance to be big time. Not asking you to believe me today, but I'll be available to discuss more in depth in 3 years or so when everyone else knows. 

If this is true about the kid's ability, surely there is no intention of putting him through the trouble of staying all four years.  Just saying.. if I had a kid with potential to do well I would put them in a situation where that potential could be best put to use. 

[bullets13]

24 minutes ago, oldschool2 said:

If this is true about the kid's ability, surely there is no intention of putting him through the trouble of staying all four years.  Just saying.. if I had a kid with potential to do well I would put them in a situation where that potential could be best put to use. 

Yup.  If he's THAT good I kind of expect him to start a year at Hardin, generate some interest, and then him and his dad go to a much bigger job as a package deal.  

[oldschool2]

1 minute ago, bullets13 said:

Yup.  If he's THAT good I kind of expect him to start a year at Hardin, generate some interest, and then him and his dad go to a much bigger job as a package deal.  

That's not a new concept.  If we're being honest, who would blame either of them?  Nobody. 

Matter of fact.. it's happened at Hardin before.  

[Guest mrtomcat]

3 minutes ago, bullets13 said:

Yup.  If he's THAT good I kind of expect him to start a year at Hardin, generate some interest, and then him and his dad go to a much bigger job as a package deal.  

 

29 minutes ago, oldschool2 said:

If this is true about the kid's ability, surely there is no intention of putting him through the trouble of staying all four years.  Just saying.. if I had a kid with potential to do well I would put them in a situation where that potential could be best put to use. 

i dont even know if i would allow him to start a year on that team and risk getting hurt because they are terrible.

why not leave now if thats the smartest thing to do......why even let him continue in hardin unless hardin is better than we are giving them credit?

after looking back at some previous hardin threads, i noticed where they had an undefeated 8th grade team....maybe thats why he hasnt moved ?

[oldschool2]

23 minutes ago, mrtomcat said:

 

i dont even know if i would allow him to start a year on that team and risk getting hurt because they are terrible.

why not leave now if thats the smartest thing to do......why even let him continue in hardin unless hardin is better than we are giving them credit?

after looking back at some previous hardin threads, i noticed where they had an undefeated 8th grade team....maybe thats why he hasnt moved ?

It's not difficult to go undefeated in 7th or 8th grade with one standout skill player (relative to the competition) and a few role players.  Having a good player will often make the other kids play up and/or want to do well.  Many teams do well during a junior high year only to find out that 9-12 is a much different animal than 7th only or 8th only.  Kids mature differently, kids improve at different rates, kids move out or move in, kids quit, classification changes, and several other variables.

Winning an undefeated district championship during a junior high year has zero bearing on what may or may not happen during the upper classmen years.  Just like doing poorly in junior high doesn't mean that'll happen when they get to high school. 

[Guest mrtomcat]

9 minutes ago, oldschool2 said:

It's not difficult to go undefeated in 7th or 8th grade with one standout skill player (relative to the competition) and a few role players.  Having a good player will often make the other kids play up and/or want to do well.  Many teams do well during a junior high year only to find out that 9-12 is a much different animal than 7th only or 8th only.  Kids mature differently, kids improve at different rates, kids move out or move in, kids quit, classification changes, and several other variables.

Winning an undefeated district championship during a junior high year has zero bearing on what may or may not happen during the upper classmen years.  Just like doing poorly in junior high doesn't mean that'll happen when they get to high school. 

hardin does poorly in junior high and has ever since i can remember and then they do poorly in high school, which seems relatives to their ability to be poor during the earlier years.  but if a coach, in this case has a son who is THE star, stays at the school, he must know that either A) we are going to be good and change things around or b) he dont care about getting his son to the next level because he's content enough with hardin and mediocrity.