What's Up With Wills: Cedar Hill's going to state

Just think, a few years ago, Willie Warren had ditched Cedar Hill. So had a bunch of other players. And Longhorns coach David Milson was left to watch as neighbor Duncanville won a state title in 2007, and then Warren's North Crowley team in 2009. Well, look at Milson now. In dramatic fashion, Cedar Hill won its way back into the UIL State Tournament, as Tayler Jacobs knocked in a buzzer-beater to beat, of all teams, Duncanville, 60-59, on Saturday night in the 5A Region I Final in Fort Worth. Cedar Hill rallied from a 16-point deficit to beat the Panthers for the third time in four meetings this season. It gave Cedar Hill its first trip to Austin since 2004. It feels like it's been 20 years, not five. Look, I never was really that fired up about this Duncanville team this year, and I have a lot of respect for Phil McNeely and athletic director Kevin Ozee. But I didn't like the schedule that saw Duncanville play a ton of games out of state. It will be interesting to see if McNeely calls it a career after this season. As for Milson, I've always rooted for him since the Horton brothers left and Warren left for greener pastures. The Longhorns play great defense and Milson is an excellent coach. No one deserves a return trip more than him. Now comes the state tournament and the opportunity to root for Cedar Hill and DeSoto, especially with 37-0 Houston Strake Jesuit making it to Austin. There's no reason for Strake Jesuit to be in the UIL if everyone's not in. It will be a huge disappointment if Milson or DeSoto's Chris Dyer and their players are denied a state title because of Strake Jesuit and its scholarship players. But for Milson, at least he's back. VYPE HOT 10 TOPICS The buzz in Austin this weekend was all about Houston Nimitz's Britney Griner, the high school dunk machine. But the weekend belonged to the Mansfield Summit Lady Jaguars. Starr Crawford, the 5A state final MVP, had 14 points and 12 rebounds in Summit's 52-43 victory over Nimitz on Saturday night in Austin. But if you were there in person or watched on TV, you know that it was Summit's defense led by Crawford on Griner, the 6-8 Baylor signee, that was the difference. Griner had a great game, scoring 22 points with 12 rebounds and nine blocks. But Griner, who had 58 dunks coming into the game, didn't throw one down against Summit. And that's how Summit won its first state title since the school opened in 2002. Mansfield Timberview missed out on making it two state titles for Mansfield as it lost the 4A state title game to Waco Midway, 50-27. The interesting story here was the Baylor women's coach Kim Mulkey was able to watch her daughter Makenzie Robertson play in the state final game, then make it back to Waco 30 minutes before game time for the Lady Bears game against Texas A&M. Baylor won, 64-60, to clinch second place in the Big 12. I would have thought for sure that the Lancaster boys would have won their way to the state tournament after watching them crush Corsicana, but it's Kimball that is headed to Austin after a 66-54 victory on Saturday in Garland. Davion Green and Keenen Owiogbe combined for 33 points in the game. DeSoto and coach Chris Dyer are back in the state tournament after a 47-42 victory over Mesquite in the 5A Region II Final. Dyer's teams have always played well in close games, and the Eagles were able to make big free throws and key defensive stops in the win. DeSoto faces a tough test in 37-0 Houston Strake Jesuit. Plano's Rex Burkhead continues to rack up the post-season awards. He was named the PrepTicket.com North Texas Male Athlete of the Year. He was also the Ford Built Tough Class 5A Football Player of the Year. Please not the Superman logo on the video which, regretfully now, I wish myself and Plano Star reporter Brian Porter had come up with a more creative nickname for Rex. Here's the link: http://www.prepticket.com/video/market/north--texas/id/823292:Video:92616. It's a pretty well done video. It will be interesting to see where former Plano basketball coach Tom Inman winds up next season after being an assistant coach at Arlington Bowie for a season. Surely a program in need of a top coach will seek his services. Inman is only four years removed from a state title at Plano. Following the recruitment of Plano West defensive end Jackson Jeffcoat is going to be an interesting one. Word from some West insiders is that he's leaning to Southern Cal. Getting Jeffcoat to say this is next to impossible. One recruiting insider told me that Jeffocat is off limits to Rivals.com writers. Personally, I want to see Jeffcoat lift Plano West to a third- or fourth-round playoff game. Then I'll become interested in where he's going to play college football. One of the best baseball tournaments around is set for this weekend -- the Frisco Tournament of Champions. Defending 5A state champion Plano West is in the field. By the way, very interesting that Plano West, which was snubbed in the 5A preseason polls in favor of prospect-rich Coppell, already has two victories over the Cowboys this season. The Wolves have a real thing going under Kendall Clark, who is quickly becoming the premier coach in the area. Meanwhile, the pressure is going to mount on Coppell's Don English to win big games. One of the best football coaching hirings I've seen in awhile was by Corsicana, snatching Tyler Chapel Hill's Phil Castles, who brings in a resume of either rebuilding powers (Chapel Hill) or keeping things rolling at a good program (Elysian Fields). Also, Grapevine landed Castles' predecessor at Corsicana, Dave Henigan, who learned a lot in missing the playoffs two seasons in a row. He's going to win at Grapevine. Just watch. THE RANDOMNESS THAT IS ME I have mixed feelings about the Cowboys decision to release Terrell Owens. Look, we all get it — someone, it looks like Stephen Jones, wanted felt like Owens had to go to relieve quarterback Tony Romo of the tiresome act that Owens can be. No doubt this is Romo's team. Meanwhile, Owens' numbers declined last year, and that can't be ignored. But was that more a product of the Cowboys' offense being about as predictable has the sun coming up every morning under offensive coordinator Jason Garrett. Personally, this move puts Garrett on notice. He has to produce now. He has to Romo better and he has to call the plays that get the Cowboys in the Super Bowl. It feels like I'm the only one in the world fired up about the World Baseball Classic. But I love it. Watching Japan and Korea on Monday morning was great stuff. Seeing the Americans win two games is a great feeling. But now that Chipper Jones is slightly injured all of the detractors are going to start ripping the event and the timing of it as related to the start of the season. I see this as the perfect time to hold the event. It's important for the game and it wouldn't work after the season. I must say that "24" is really, really good this year. The writers have done a great job of staying focused. I've also got to check in on where "Friday Night Lights" is on NBC. Think there have been four or five episodes. I do know the ratings have been dismal, which means this is going to be the last season of the show. Too bad. It's a great one, but NBC has ruined it by sticking it on Friday night. I'm going to try to get into March Madness this week. But right now, college basketball is a big bore. Yes, Oklahoma's Blake Griffin is a great player, and so is North Carolina's Tyler Hansbrough, but college hoops is just average right now thanks the NBA's one-and-done rule, the worst thing ever in basketball. I love Kevin Durant, but why would Texas retire his jersey after he played only 30-something games in Austin. The games are still fun to watch because of endings like Alabama-Tennessee this weekend, but it's difficult to sit down and watch an entire game. Todd Wills writes on Dallas-Ft. Worth area high school sports and many, many other things every Monday on VYPE.com/DFW.