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Sunday Column: Houston Pride on the Line ... Again

Joshua Koch
Dec 15, 2019

HOUSTON - "Just proud."

Those were the first two words Fort Bend Marshall's James Williams thought of. Standing on the grass with the fading Texas A&M logo in the middle of Kyle Field on Saturday evening, Williams watched as his team celebrated. Fort Bend Marshall for a second-straight year had punched its ticket to the 5A Division II State Championship game.

But the Buffs won't be alone carrying the H-Town banner up to the Metroplex come Friday.

Shadow Creek, which improved to a remarkable 30-1 over the first two years of its varsity program is also going back, along with defending 6A Division I Champion North Shore.

"Houston plays great football," Williams said. "It has a lot of great kids and great coaches. Excited for all of them."

When the year started we thought these three teams could go all the way. They had the talent back - Dematrius Davis and Zach Evans (North Shore), Malik Hornsby and Devon Achane (Fort Bend Marshall) and Alec Bryant and Xavion Alford (Shadow Creek). They had the "been there and done that" factor and were ready to go since January.

The talent was put on display throughout the playoffs as each of these teams looked stronger and stronger as the weeks progressed. The groups stayed healthy, which is key at this time of the year and left little doubt in each of their wins.

Unlike last year, this won't be Fort Bend Marshall and Shadow Creek's first time to walk in and play inside the shiny palace of AT&T Stadium. They've been there and you can tell.

Shadow Creek's Brad Butler calls his current Sharks' team "one of the most mature" he's ever coached. Williams echoes the same sentiment when talking about "unfinished business" with his crew. Both are motivated and ready for revenge, even though Shadow Creek won't get its shot against Highland Park like Fort Bend Marshall will against Aledo come Saturday morning.

The pressure though is probably most on North Shore.

The Mustangs are in back-to-back state championship games for the first time in program history. North Shore enters this week carrying an all-time record of 3-0 in title games with a legitimate shot at No. 4 this weekend against a Duncanville team which lost its starting quarterback to injury on Saturday.

The last team to win back-to- back state titles from Houston was Katy back in 2007 and 2008, which went to state three-straight years from 2007-2009.

What is truly remarkable is Houston is sending the exact same three teams to the final weekend of the season for a second-straight year. Which is extremely rare in high school football, considering the turnover with each graduating class, injuries and other outside factors that affect a group of 15-18-year-old kids.

Prior to last year, Houston had sent three teams to the state title games in the same season just twice since 2011. That year, Dekaney, Fort Bend Hightower and Manvel went, when the highest classification was still just 5A. Dekaney was the only team to win a title that year.

In 2015, when Houston hosted the state championships at NRG Stadium, the Bayou City sent three again. George Ranch, North Shore and Katy all went and won state titles.

Could 2019 be a repeat of 2015?

Shadow Creek, North Shore and Fort Bend Marshall seem to be the group that could do it. But Denton Ryan, which knocked off No. 1 Frisco Lone Star in the state semis, Aledo, which will seek its state record ninth state title, and Duncanville, which is seeking revenge for last year's loss, stand in the way.

It's Houston vs Dallas all over again.

There's something about that rivalry that gets people fired up, especially on social media and especially when it comes to playing for football state titles.

Last year, Dallas took two of the three title games in the state's largest classifications and it took a last-second Hail Mary for Houston to bring home theirs in 2018 to prevent a clean sweep.

So, Houston pride is on the line for a third time in the last four seasons. Can the Creek Boys, M-Block and the Beasts of the East bring home the hardware?

What we're watching right now is special and I hope fans can see that. In years to come when we reflect on the runs of the Buffs, Sharks and Mustangs we will remember the players. We will reminisce about the special moments. But what will truly etch this trio of teams into the history books forever?

Titles.

texas high school football playoffs north shore north shore high school north shore football fort bend marshall fort bend marshall football shadow creek football shadow creek sharks james williams brad butler jon kay uil state uil state football championship vype houston high school sports houston high school sports texas high school football

Remembering Lancaster's Tony Evans Jr.

Shana Willeford
11 Apr, 2021
Tony Evans Jr.'s Twitter Account (@TonyEvansJr1)

The community in Lancaster is mourning Sunday after the news broke on the death of Lancaster High School football star, Tony Evans Jr.

The talented 17-year-old wide receiver was reportedly shot about 1:30 a.m. on Sunday morning in a room at the Hawthorn Suites hotel near Dallas Lovefield airport. There was one other victim. Evans Jr. and the other victim were taken to the hospital where the three-star athlete was pronounced dead. As of Sunday afternoon, the other victim has been reported to be in stable condition.

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dallas fort worth high school sports dfw high school sports lancaster lancaster football lancaster tiger football lancaster tigers lancaster tigers football tiger football tigers football tony evans jr.

DFW Soccer Playoffs: State Semifinals

Stephen Peters
11 Apr, 2021
It's the last week of the 2020-21 UIL soccer season, and we're down to the penultimate set of games. The DFW area is in great shape to bring home a lot of hardware this week with five boys teams and five girls teams remaining across all classifications.
The DFW area is guaranteed to have a representative in the State Title game in four of the six classifications. Let's check out the schedule.
Records are based on MaxPreps.com
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dfw high school sports uil playoffs uil soccer uil texas high school soccer texas high schoool boys soccer texas high school girls soccer dfw high school soccer allen rockwall-heath frisco wakeland fort worth diamond hill-jarvis celina flower mound midlothian heritage grapevine

VYPE Live - Middle School Boys Lacrosse: St. Andrew's vs. Regents

VYPE Live
11 Apr, 2021

Join our VYPE Live crew for this Texas Middle School Lacrosse match-up on Saturday, April 11:

2PM - Middle School Boys Lacrosse: St. Andrew's vs. Regents

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VYPE Live Lineup - Saturday 4/10/21

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VYPE Live Lineup - Friday 4/9/21

GAMES

VYPE Live Lineup - Saturday 4/10/21

VYPE Live - Middle School Boys Lacrosse: St. Andrew's vs. Regents

VYPE Live - Softball: Kempner vs. Foster

VYPE Live - Baseball: Cedar Park vs. Marble Falls

VYPE Live - Baseball: Dripping Springs vs. Boerne-Champion

VYPE Live - Softball: Cedar Park vs. Leander

VYPE Live - Boys Lacrosse: Episcopal Houston vs. Friendswood

VYPE Live - Baseball: Liberty Hill vs. East View

VYPE Live - Boys Lacrosse: St. Andrew's vs. Greenhill School

VYPE Live - JV Baseball: Episcopal Houston vs. College Station

VYPE Live Lineup - Friday 4/9/21

VYPE Live - Baseball: Liberty Hill vs. Glenn

VYPE Live - Lacrosse: Anderson vs Smithson Valley

VYPE Live - Lacrosse: Westwood vs Regents

VYPE Live Lineup - Thursday 4/8/21

VYPE Live - Baseball: St. John's vs. Kinkaid

VYPE Live - Middle School Girls Lacrosse: St. Stephen's vs. The Trojans

VYPE Live - Softball: Cedar Park vs. East View

VYPE Live - Baseball: Vista Ridge vs. Westwood

VYPE Live - Baseball: Vandegrift vs. Cedar Ridge

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