Goose Creek Memorial 7 on 7

[Guest Ranger83]

Patriots warm up to 7-on-7 play

By Dave Rogers

 

Published May 24, 2009

HOUSTON – The Goose Creek Memorial Patriots not only stuck their toes into the 7-on-7 football pool Saturday, they made it to the deep end.

The Patriots went 2-1 in games played at the State Qualifying Tournament put on by Houston Chavez at the Houston Texans training center at Reliant Park.

They didn’t qualify for the tourney’s playoff rounds, but their first entry in the offseason passing game was something to grow on.

“They started off a little nervous, it being their first time ever,†said Chris Roberts, who helped coach the team along with Chad Savoie, “but they stayed after it and the last two games they did a really good job.

“All in all, I was proud of them, especially for being as young as they were. We had two freshman safeties (Terry Vallaire and Euday Arthurton) running around and swatting balls down all over the place.â€

Trailing Houston Waltrip 14-6 at halftime, the Patriots rallied for a 29-20 win with quarterback Cody Larson throwing touchdown passes of 35 yards to Jared St. Julian, 14 yards to Pat Wood and seven yards to Price Jacobs.

That victory inside the Texans’ air-conditioned practice bubble capped off a day that saw them drop their opener to Chavez by a 44-21 count, then start their comeback with a 39-14 win over Milby.

“We were too worried about being here,†receiver Keithen Collins said. “The last two games, everybody was having fun, getting open and catching passes, and we got the wins.â€

Collins and running back DeMartie Allen joined in on the touchdown scoring for the Patriots, who finished second to Chavez in their four-team pool.

Chavez, a state qualifier last year, won all three of its games, also beating Waltrip 27-14 and Milby 47-19.

Bellaire, Channelview and Westfield joined Chavez in Saturday afternoon’s semifinals, playing for a spot in the finals and the right to advance to the July 10-11 state tournament in College Station.

“Chavez caught us cold,†Larson said. “They have a lot of athletes, like North Shore.â€

Larson is the only Patriot player with 7-on-7 tournament experience, having played for Sterling in this tournament last year and playing in a summer league against North Shore before he decided to follow his coaching dad to GCM.

“It’s fun to come out here with all these athletes and see how we play against teams of stature,†he said, “especially the 5A schools.â€

Patriot linebackers D’Rente Rogers and Jason Savoie are working with a different group of secondary players than those they played with last fall, when many of the GCM receivers doubled up on defense.

“We’ve had a lot of freshmen step up,†Savoie said of a group that included Vallaire, Arthurton, Isaiah Wimberly, Melvin Smith and Darwin DeJean.

“They’re pretty good, just young,†Rogers said. “We’ve got more people to work with now and we’re getting it down.â€

The Patriots will be joining Sterling and Lee, North Shore, Galena Park, Pasadena and La Porte in a weekly 7-on-7 league this summer.

“It was really a good day for them,†Roberts, the volunteer coach, said. “It’ll help them out a lot.â€

[Bigdog]

7-on-7 league, now that's not a bad idea for this area, I wonder if someone could set it up? It would help all the teams in this area!

[KFDM COOP]

Several teams play in local weekly leagues in the area.

[bronco1]

That volunteer coach Chris Roberts knows football. Goose Creek ISD needs to hire him for the Sterling Head Coaching spot.