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Author: Daniel Jones

The Greatest High School Football Game Ever Played

Written by Daniel Jones on . Posted in HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL.

It’s approaching midnight on November 26, 1994.

The game is winding down, and many of the 40,000-plus fans at Irving’s Texas Stadium have left. 

With the Plano East Panthers trailing them 41-17 in the Region II semifinal in class 5A Division II, the Lions of Tyler John Tyler High School (John Tyler) are thinking beyond the next round of playoffs. Instead they’re dreaming of a state championship “Basically, the game was over. It was in our control,” John Tyler quarterback Morris Anderson told D Magazine in a November 2014 article. “And all we had to do was finish it out.”

His teammate, kicker Nico Hernandez remembers their coaches coming down from the press box. The Lions even put in their second-team defense. Both teams had come into the game with 12-0 records.

Plano East was a blue-collar group with a few all-stars peppered in, John Tyler basically a track team in football uniforms. Opponents feared their defenses. That season, John Tyler had been giving up, on average, about 14 points a game; Plano East less than nine. The Associated Press ranked Plano East No. 2 in the state poll; John Tyler at No 3. 

It had been a relatively close game up until this point. 

The Lions came into the fourth quarter with just a seven-point lead (24-17), soon after scoring a field goal to put the score at 27-17. Toward the end of the quarter with the Panthers on first and goal, the aggressive John Tyler defense stripped the ball away from Plano East quarterback Jeff Whitley. The Lions recovered the resulting fumble, and returned the ball 90 yards for a touchdown. 

The Lions were by now ahead 34-17. Four minutes and 24 seconds remained in the game. “Then the next series,” Whitley said in the same article, “I dropped back to pass, they hit me, I fumble, and they [ran] it back for another touchdown. I mean, I was just devastated.”

Now the game is looking like a blowout.

The Lions lead 41-17, only three minutes and three seconds left to play. “Why the hell am I going back in this game?” Whitley said, admitting he expected the backup quarterback to come in at this time. “We thought it was over.”

But the Panthers are relentless, scoring on a two-play 70-yard drive, but miss the two-point conversion. The score is now 41-23, the Lions still holding on to the lead. Only two minutes and 36 seconds on the clock.

Then a little bit of Texas football magic.

Terence Green, Plano East’s wide receiver, is filling in for the usual kicker who had been booted from the team the week before. Green, in the final minutes of the game, executes three consecutive onside kicks. 

Again that’s … Three. Consecutive. Onside. Kicks. (Green also caught a touchdown pass that brought the score to 41-23, and set up another touchdown with a 44-yard catch). And each time, Plano East – magically, unbelievably – not only recovers the ball but also drives it down the field for touchdowns.

Green later told D Magazine it was his first time doing onside kicks. “I did it with my toe. I toe-punched the ball. You don’t ever see someone toe-punching an onside kick, it’s always soccer style,” he said. 

“But I was just thinking, ‘Hey, get this thing end over end, then change the speed up on them. See what we can do.’ I was wanting to get that end over end, almost like a ground ball in baseball. A bad hop can pop up and hit you in the mouth.” The first Plano East touchdown takes six plays, then a two-point conversion. They still trail 41-31 with a minute and 29 seconds left. 

The second requires another six plays but ends with a failed two-point conversion, bringing the score to 41-37. There are just 56 seconds to play. An extra point follows Plano East’s final touchdown, a pass from Whitley coming in just three plays. Only 24 seconds remain in the fourth quarter as the Panthers take the lead, 44-41.

“I just remember thinking that I have never seen – from the field looking up into the stands – people going that crazy,” Whitley said. “It was a surreal moment. … I guess after the second onside kick, and then we score, then you start saying, ‘Lord, if we get this, then we’ll probably win this game.’ ”

But in the final seconds of the game, there is quite the twist. 

On his final kickoff, Green sends the ball high into the air. It falls into the hands of John Tyler kick returner Roderick Dunn, who had already mishandled two of Plano East’s onside kicks. 

Lions coach Allen Wilson, also in the D magazine article, said he thought the ball was going over Dunn’s head. “Rod could’ve just looked at it and let it go out the back of the end zone. But instead he goes back and fields it on the three-yard line. The rest is history.”

Dunn then runs the ball up the field 97 yards for a touchdown with 11 seconds left on the clock, the only touchdown of his entire high school career. Truly amazingly, John Tyler has taken back the lead at 48-44.

In the final seconds of the game, Plano East’s brief possession ends in merely two plays with an interception, and the Lions win the game.

And then the state title. The Lions then won the Class 5A Division II championship, beating Lake Highlands, Arlington and, finally, Austin Westlake in the title game.  The game was such a powerful story that it won ESPN’s 1995 ESPY Award as Showstopper of the Year.

Coach Wilson, in the same article, said the game wouldn’t have the same resonance it does today if the winner hadn’t went on to win the state title. “It lives in the lives of the kids who were there, the fans who were there. They relive it, probably not every day but periodically,” Archie McAfee, then the Plano East principal, told D Magazine. 

“When they watch another team get down, they think, ‘Aha. Maybe this will be another Plano East-John Tyler comeback.’ It gives people hope that things like this can happen.”

Hutto Reloads 2019

Written by Daniel Jones on . Posted in HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL.

Despite losing key players, this year’s team shouldn’t be taken lightly.

Last season, the Hutto Hippos stomped its District 5A-11 competition, many times outright embarrassing their opponents and taking no mercy whatsoever. The team beat Pflugerville Connally 78-14, Cedar Park 65-21, Pflugerville 59-13, Manor 65-35, Rouse 40-0 and McCallum 58-7. Thanks to two powerhouse players and Division I commits, quarterback Chase Griffin (UCLA) and running back Chux Nwabuko III (Texas Tech), the team continued its prowess well into the playoffs but found its match in Foster, who beat Hutto 41-31 in the third round of the state championship semi-finals. “I think everybody knows that the target is on our backs,” Hutto head coach Brad LaPlante said. “I think that’s a big challenge for our kids to repeat as district champions. Yet I know they’ve worked hard to get that opportunity to repeat.” He said his players have a winning mentality, and they care about each other and give their best to their teammates and their coaches. “And that’s a great place to be.”

The 2018 season was the fifth consecutive year Hutto made the playoffs when the team had an 11-1 (6-0) record; so that team isn’t a one-year wonder. Coach LaPlante said that’s because he and his staff are building a program, not just a team from season to season. Sure, last year’s team lost a lot of experience and talent, but he said this year’s team also has a lot of talent and experience returning. This includes a hard-running offense lead by senior tailback Mekhi Kimble, who runs the forty-yard dash in 4.4 seconds; just as speedy is senior slot receiver Dajon Harrison. Coach LaPlante believes senior outside receiver Trey Pinelli “is the best blocker in all of CenTex,” who LaPlante also anticipates will get more ball action this season.

Of course the big question mark is filling the quarterback position now that Chase Griffin graduated and off to UCLA. Hutto has two or three possible quarterbacks, with rising sophomore Grayson Doggett and senior Brock Bujnoch being the top two competing for the position. Key returners on defense are senior outside linebacker Landyn Watson, “a key to the defense’s success.” Senior noseguard Lordswill Uwa has some Division I interest, and junior defensive end Braylon Sugg “at times has the best hands and feet out of all them,” coach LaPlante said. Senior Logan Tipton is a three-year starter at left tackle, and Jayson Vogelpohl is a returning all-district linebacker. 

“We’re going to control our own destiny. We’re really good when we want to be. But we have to make that decision every day to be really good. I like the fact that we are in control. I think we have the pieces to the puzzle to make a run. We may just have to do it in a different way that we did last year.” Coach LaPlante said the returning players have to create a team identity, which will have to start on defense, an element of the team that he feels particularly confident about. Altogether, Hutto’s defense will have about eight returning starters on the line, at linebacker or in the backend as well. Naturally, Hutto’s offense will be forced to fill in big shoes left by Nwabuko and Griffin, who last year was named a Gatorade Player of the Year in quarterback for the state of Texas. Last year, Griffin had 4,051 passing yards, 51 passing touchdowns, 415 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns. “You can’t replace them,” coach LaPlante said. “But you find a way to manage the players that you do have. Our offensive coaching staff has done a good job at that. I think everybody thinks we’re done. We had a lot of big-time seniors leave last year, but I think we’re going to sneak up on some people with our team’s speed and how well we play together.”

Westlake QB Kirkland Michaux on the 2019 season.

Written by Daniel Jones on . Posted in HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL.

“This year, something special is going to happen.”

Kirkland Michaux is staring at the throne, the starting quarterback position for Westlake High School’s varsity football team. It’s his senior year, and although college seems like a lifetime away, time is creeping on in. Football season is here. And if the end of last season proved anything at all, it showed how Michaux was ready when the grill got hot. Let’s go back to the fourth round of last year’s state championship quarterfinals against Vela, and Westlake senior starting quarterback Taylor Anderson gets hurt pretty bad in the fourth quarter. Michaux, then a junior and the team’s backup quarterback, took to the opportunity in the same way a relief pitcher in baseball might come in late to finish out a game for a struggling or tired starting pitcher. Michaux entered that particular game once Anderson labored off the field, and then lead the Chaps to a 28-0 victory. “Taylor and I were super-close, and we always prepared together,” Michaux said, who added that being a pitcher for Westlake’s baseball teams helps him get into games so efficiently and “get going where we left off. But, honestly, I love the pressure. If you want to be a starting quarterback in 6A football, you better love pressure.” 

He went to lead the Chaparrals two more games into the state championship quarterfinals, before losing to West Brook 35-30 in mid-December and falling out of the tournament. Westlake’s final record was 13-2 (8-0 in 25-6A). “The biggest thing I learned was to be patient. That’s probably the biggest thing that helped me along the way, to be patient and trust my line, and be able to put the ball to people.”

Michaux looks to read option the ball in the 2018 State Playoff match against Beaumont Westbrook. The Bruins defeated the Chaps 35-30 @ Legacy Stadium last December in the “2018 Football State Championships – 2018 Football Conference 6A D2” tournament.

The ability to meet the pressure head-on may certainly be a theme in the young man’s football career thus far. In week three of the 2016 season, Westlake head coach Todd Dodge first brought up the young freshman Michaux from JV to be the varsity’s backup quarterback and he got some playing time. “That helped me so much, because I got to run the offense at such a young age. I think it really helped my development.” His sophomore year, he played quarterback in eight games for Westlake, some of which were starts, but Anderson ultimately had the starting position. That is, until Anderson got hurt late last December. So “I had to step it up. And those were the two most-fun games I’ve ever played in,” Michaux said. “I threw a touchdown, and that gave me some confidence going into the quarterfinals. We just got outplayed in the semifinals.” 

His next chapter is still a question for Michaux, now a senior with a 3.6 GPA. He wants to play either baseball or football in college, perhaps even both, and he’s been in talks with Rice, Colorado State and few other schools. But right now he’s undecided on where to attend college. And yet the starting quarterback position is still up for grabs. Westlake head coach Todd Dodge said he will play various players at quarterback the first few weeks of the season to see who fits. 

Michaux will surely be working hard to earn the position. Coach Dodge said he feels confident in any player who takes on that role and can lead the team offensively. Yet all that matters to Michaux right now is Westlake getting ready for a strong season where the goal is always the same, coming from such an esteemed program. “Our goal is always to win States. That’s what it’s been for a long time. And the goal doesn’t change,” Michaux said. “We have some guys coming in who don’t have a ton of varsity experience, but they’re learning really well. And we’ve all been playing together since Pop Warner, and I just feel like, this year, something special is going to happen.”

Lake Travis Baseball

Written by Daniel Jones on . Posted in High School Baseball.

Lake Travis one of the best baseball teams is set on winning a state championship

A year after losing in the 6A regional quarterfinals, Lake Travis High School’s baseball team has returned with a vengeance. At 27-3 (14-1 in District 25-6A) on the 2019 season, the Cavaliers, who are district champions and among the top teams in the state, have their eyes set on winning the whole thing. Lake Travis coach Mike Rogers said rankings aren’t at all important, because the school’s team has been ranked highly before, only to get knocked out of the playoffs prematurely.

“The purpose was not to maintain a ranking but to get ready for the playoffs,” he said. “Going in, there is no, ‘Hey, we have to do this now’ mentality. It’s just doing what we’ve been doing. We’re going to pitch really well, we’re going to play great defense. And we’re going to take advantage of offensive situations and try to put pressure on people.”

Coach Rogers said the team has increased its running game, amassing more than 100 stolen bases this spring, and also bunting the ball better than past years. But mostly his Cavaliers are strong on defensive and pitching. “We’re always going to be a pitching and defensive team first. You get in the playoffs, I think that’s the key,” he said. “You’re facing everybody’s number-one [pitcher], quality arms are solid there. So, we’ve done that. We’ve sure been blessed with offensive talent and just performed well throughout the season.”

Brett Baty at the Dell Diamond for our Photo-shoot with
Texas Sports Monthly. Photo: CJ Bills

Powerhouse seniors Brett Baty and Jimmy Lewis, and junior Storm Hierholzer, are the team’s top arms. Baty, also the team’s third baseman when he’s not on the mound, was named Gatorade Player of the Year last year when he hit .435 with 12 home runs. But he pitches consistently in the low 90s; although he has committed to play next year at UT, he is expected to be a first-round draft pick in June and will likely sign on to play professionally instead of attend college. Lewis, who also plays first base, throws in the mid-90s and has committed to play next year at LSU. He is also expected to be drafted pretty high, which may also encourage him to choose professional baseball over college. Lastly, Hierholzer, who has already signed on to play baseball at TCU, throws in the low 90s and is dominating in his own right.

And with strong pitching and defense, the team’s offense has been able to loosen up at the plate, often putting up football score-type games. Baty alone is hitting over .650 with about 50 RBIs and more than 15 home runs. “Obviously, we’re happy. I think the kids have embraced the early-season expectations and their own expectations as well,” coach Rogers said. “They’ve put a great effort forward, and [our record] is pretty nice. … We have the same routine every day. I think kids respond to that and get confidence in what they’re doing. It’s worked well for us.”

But the team is not invincible, as seen in the April 2, 9-5 loss at home to Akins, one of the worst teams in the district. Coach Rogers said he threw some different arms and wanted to see some non-starters get some playing time, although he said it’s not excuse. “It happens in baseball,” he said. “It didn’t work out. Also it was a wake-up call. Sometimes people think success is easy and take it for granted, so it kind of refocused us.”

Nonetheless, the team is focused on what it has to do to win a state championship in 6A. “We’re right where we thought they would be. It’s one of those things that really separates this bunch from earlier bunches as teams; is just the closeness as a unit. That’s something we talked about again in August, trying to maintain that bond and that cohesiveness and togetherness throughout the season. It’s easy to talk about; it’s hard to do sometimes when you’re playing more or not playing as much. But they’ve done a really good job of making sure that we stayed together.”

Major League Baseball Draft Outlook: Rouse High School’s Jared Southard

Written by Daniel Jones on . Posted in MLB.

Jared Southard has been making most opposing high school batters look foolish for the past few years. It’s almost been like a Division I pitcher throwing to a high school’s junior varsity team. The stocky, six-foot-two-inch, 200-plus-pound pitcher, a senior at Rouse High School in Leander, has been surely dominating this season. He’s given up fewer than 10 hits, and just one earned run, in 40-something innings, and at the end of the regular season was nearing 100 strikeouts. He’s thrown several one-hitters and even one or two no-hitters this season.


Southard committed to play baseball at UT in the fall of 2016 when he had just turned 16 years old his sophomore year. Even then he was throwing in the upper 80s. Now, he throws a fastball that consistently hits 91-93 MPH, often topping out at 96. This fact, coupled with command and his sharp, hard-breaking curveball that routinely hits 77-80 MPH, makes Southard virtually unhittable at the high school level. When Southard signed with UT in 2016, he was ranked as the 135th overall player in the country in the graduating class of 2019, was considered the 15th best player in the state of Texas, and was ranked third for all right-handed pitchers in the state for the 2019 class. In 2016, following his sophomore year, he was named an Honorable Mention Underclass All-American. Now the young fireballer will surely get drafted this June, which could lead to him signing a contract to play professional baseball.

Southard didn’t start pitching seriously until the summer before his sophomore season; before that he’d been a catcher. And then really things took off for him: He was named to 17-5A’s All-District team after his sophomore and junior seasons. He has played club and travel baseball with the Houston Banditos, and even represented Texas at the States Play Tournament hosted by the Texas Rangers. University of Texas head coach David Pierce, speaking to the Longhorns’ official website, said he thinks of Southard as a “power right-hander.” He said the young pitcher “looks the part, and his arm is explosive. He continues to work hard to be the best he can be. Jared’s ceiling is tremendously high, and he has a chance to reach it because he is a grinder.”

“[Jared] has been really good,” Rouse head coach Chad Krempin said. “He is undefeated on the season, and he hasn’t given up an earned run on the season. He’s given up six hits, I believe, in 40-something innings.” Coach Krempin admitted that the Rouse coaching staff decided early on to limit Southard’s time on the mound. That way, he wouldn’t be overthrown, which could lead to injuries and an inability to use him down the road in the playoffs.

But since throwing Southard more frequently late in the regular season, coach Krempin said Southard has “been phenomenal; he’s thrown several one-hitters and one or two no-hitters. And just one run, unearned, has been scored against him. … I think he’s going to get drafted pretty high. There’s a chance that he could sign if he’s drafted high enough.” In other words, if Southard gets drafted high enough in the Major League Baseball June draft, whether in the first, second or third rounds, the money that is likely to come from a signing bonus (perhaps well into the seven figures) would certainly influence Southard’s decision to choose a career in professional baseball over playing at UT.

Georgetown Eagles Baseball

Written by Daniel Jones on . Posted in High School Baseball, TEXAS SPORTS.

The highly ranked team has proven experience, talent and mindset to make deep run in State Playoffs. (Editor Note. Article originally appeared Feb 19th 2019 Print Version. Updated edition for recent playoff activity)

BY DANIEL JONES

“Our main goal right now is really trying to build our team chemistry,” Georgetown High School’s head baseball coach Adam Foster said in early February, “and really focusing on energy and the process of trying to avoid getting wrapped up in being ranked fourth in the state” (as noted in txhighschoolbaseball.com’s preseason poll).

Nonetheless, he added that the program’s 2018 success garnered this ranking, when the Eagles went 32-11-1 overall (14-0 in District 18-5A) and made it to the fourth round of the playoffs, losing in the regional semi-finals. Nine players from that team graduated, but only six started. And building talented baseball players is a tradition at Georgetown High School: In the last 20 or so years, the program has developed several Division I and professional ballplayers, including Brewers closer Corey Knebel who played at UT.

In 2019, Georgetown has all the ingredients to brew up another fantastic season ‒ a lot of returning starters, experience, a lineup that has seen a lot of quality at-bats against some of the state’s best pitching, and a complete array of arms that comprise what coach Foster said is “probably the best pitching staff, top to bottom, in the state of Texas. No real superstars, but everybody’s got a role, and they’re really good at their role.” He said this year’s team still has to go out and prove their preseason ranking.

Coach Foster expects senior shortstop Cole Posey, who will play next year at Boise State, to be in the middle of the team’s lineup and have a “huge contribution.” A three-year starter at Georgetown, Posey last season hit .234. Senior catcher Wyatt Childress will be at the top of the lineup and should lead the team’s running game ‒ last year he had 30 stolen bases and two triples in 37 games while hitting .261. “He can really run,” coach Foster said. Of all returning players, senior third baseman Jeffrey David, expected to hit in the middle of the order, had the highest batting average at .322; he has committed to play next year at Texas A&M.

Coach Foster said if the Eagles’ offense can match its pitching, “it’s going to be a very special year.” Georgetown has a truly complete pitching staff returning for 2019, equipped with senior right-handed starters Grant Wood and Jack Brinley, both of whom throw in the upper 80s and have solid breaking balls, and also a stacked bullpen of guys capable of coming in at any time to get batters out. Wood, who will pitch next year at Blinn Junior College, went 6-2 last spring with a 2.38 ERA in 10 starts and 13 games pitched. Brinley was 5-1 with a 1.35 ERA in six starts. The bullpen consists of seniors Reese Grimes (18 games pitched, three saves and a 1.46 ERA), Brooks Hancock, lefties Jared Pierce and Noah Thompson (3-0, 3.15 ERA), Ryan Courtney and Jackson Sioson (2-1, 11 games pitched, 2.33 ERA), who is the team’s closer and lead the 2018 team with five saves.

After beginning the season with a series of scrimmages and competitive tournament games, Georgetown starts district play in mid-March. “Every year, at this time, everyone’s expectation is winning the last game of the season,” coach Foster said. “It’s completely obtainable and very possible right now. … This happens to be one of the best teams we’ve ever had. If we can get them to play for each other, I think the sky’s the limit with this bunch.”

NOTE: “I think the Georgetown and Williamson County area has some of the best ball players in all of Central Texas if you look at the teams making the state playoff’s right now ” Coach Foster told Texas Sports Monthly April 23rd 2019. Georgetown will face an old district rival in Rouse Raiders this Thursday at Leander Rouse. The Raiders are well coached by Chad Krempin and currently the 2019 District Champs at 19-8 and (12-0) district play.

The Eagles of Georgetown 28-2 (12-0) district will face the Raiders of Rouse this Thursday at 7pm for the first round of area High School playoffs!

Lake Travis baseball beats Westlake, ranks 1st in the state’s 6A

Written by Daniel Jones on . Posted in High School Baseball.

The cross-town district match-up has postseason indications

BY DANIEL JONES

On a chilly night in mid-March, a large crowd witnessed some of the country’s best high school baseball when the visiting Lake Travis Cavaliers beat the Westlake Chaparrals 7-3 in seven innings. Lake Travis moved to 16-0 (5-0 in District 25-6A), and the Texas High School Baseball Coaches Association now ranks the team at first in the state in 6A. (The same association ranked the team second in the state in preseason polls.) With the loss, Westlake fell to 15-3-1 (3-1 in District 25-6A).

“It’s always exciting [playing your cross-town rival]. You can go throw everything out the window,” Lake Travis head coach Michael Rogers said. “Great energy tonight, great crowd. Both teams needed to play in that environment to get ready down the road, so fortunately we came out on top. Our district is much better than it was in the past. Both teams needed this kind of game to get ready for the playoffs, which is still a long way away, but that kind of stuff pays dividends down the road.”

Lake Travis six-foot-six-inch starting pitcher Jimmy Lewis, who has committed to play next year at Louisiana State University, was absolutely dominating with his 93-MPH fastball. He got the win pitching 5 and ⅔ innings, giving up just two runs and five hits while earning 12 strikeouts. In four innings, Westlake’s starting pitcher, senior Dylan Savino, allowed three runs and four hits, accumulating six strikeouts. He got the loss on the night.

The game was relatively quiet going into the third inning: Westlake had a 1-0 lead, which resulted from a solo home run from senior Bobby Serfass. And then when Lake Travis had two runners on in the third, junior shortstop Parker Guerin smacked a three-run home run to take the 3-1 lead. Westlake pitcher Savino then threw a scoreless fourth inning before Westlake relievers would finish the last three innings and give up another four runs; and three more Lake Travis relief pitchers would come in and keep the Chaparrals offense from scoring for the rest of the game, finishing what Lewis started.

“I was just trying to get ahead in the count,” Lewis said, “and use my curve ball to my advantage ‒ because they were sitting fastball ‒ and just keep them off-balanced.” On the team being ranked highly in the state and possibly having what it takes to go far in competition this season, he said, “We don’t want to listen to outside noise, and we have to just play as a team, keep up the camaraderie and keep going.”

Offensively, Lake Travis dominated as well. After Guerin’s three-run bomb in the third, the Cavaliers pounded out several more hits in the games, including doubles from seniors Austin Plante and Bretty Baty in the fourth inning, and then a bases-loaded, two-RBI double from Lewis in the top of the sixth.

Westlake hitters put up a fight, though: Aside from Serfass’s solo bomb in the second inning, senior shortstop Peyton Sanderson doubled and junior second baseman Ford Elliot singled in the first; senior outfielder Denton Apple had two doubles, one in the second, then another that drove in two runs in the fourth.

“I was proud of our kids,” Westlake head coach JT Blair said. “We were ready to play. It was a great performance by a great high school pitcher. It’s just one game. We’ll put that one behind us and get ready for next week. Our district is tough from top to bottom. Our guys are up to the challenge.” The two teams play each other again Friday, April 12, 7 p.m., at Lake Travis.

Corey Knebel Living Field of Dreams

Written by Daniel Jones on . Posted in MLB.

Corey Knebel was somewhere around El Paso, on his way to spring training in Phoenix, when we finally caught up. He had just obliterated a large burger and fries, quite possibly easing the transition from the relative normalcy of the off-season to the demanding, high-stakes, though always thrilling, kickoff to baseball season.

And Knebel, 27, has a lot to be excited about: He was virtually unhittable in the playoffs last October, posting a .90 ERA and 14 strikeouts in 10 innings; this after he struggled to pitch at his best for much of the 2018 season following an April hamstring injury.

Although the didn’t quite match the same regular-season impact he had as an All-Star in 2017, in which he had a 1.78 ERA, 126 strikeouts and 39 saves in 45 opportunities, Knebel’s performance in the 2018 playoffs proved him to be one of most dominating closers in all of Major League Baseball. With help from his lights-out pitching, the Brewers made it to game seven of the National League Championship Series before the team lost to the Dodgers, just a game shy from competing in the World Series.

“To be honest, the comfort factor for me is ending the season like that. That was definitely the highlight of my career. I wanted to pitch in every game, and of course I couldn’t,” because he had a scheduled rest day, he said. “Now I’m able to move forward into this next season and start off strong just like I ended.”

EMBRACING THE PRESSURE

The 39th overall pick in the Major League Baseball 2013 draft by the Detroit Tigers, Knebel this January signed a one-year, $5.125 million contract extension with the Brewers, beginning his fifth season with the organization. When asked if the new contract takes some of the pressure off him to perform, the former UT closer said it doesn’t and that he also doesn’t want it to because “I really feed off the pressure.”

Knebel, a Leander-area resident and a graduate of Georgetown High School, approaches closing out big league games the same way he does with hunting. He starts getting his mind right and focused when he’s sitting up in the hunting blind when things are calm. “You’re excited, but you know you have to calm down or else you’re going to miss your shot,” he said. “Well, that’s exactly how I feel when I’m in the bullpen.”

But it’s big league hitters who more likely have to calm down when he’s called in to ensure a win. Knebel’s the one whose fastball occasionally tops out at 100 MPH, a pitch that makes his wicked breaking ball nearly impossible to hit when it’s placed well.

CREDIT WHERE IT’S DUE AND SAGE ADVICE

Regarding his success in professional baseball, he gives credit to the countless coaches, teammates and family members who have helped guide and encourage him along the way, from his father to Georgetown High School head coach Adam Foster, former UT coach Skip Johnson, who is now head coach of Oklahoma University, and Brewers manager Craig Counsell. “These guys have been all the keys to my success. All have helped me and have been right there to lean on, especially when I went through my tough time last year.”

To his 12-year-old self, he would say, “Honestly, do not give up on your dreams. I never thought I’d be where I am today. It was just a dream that I had when I was younger.” He also discourages youngsters from throwing curve balls. Learn how to get guys out with your fastball and changeup, he said. It’s worked for him.

Southwestern University Baseball is set on making it to regional.

Written by Daniel Jones on . Posted in College Baseball.

BY DANIEL JONES

A year after losing in the final round of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) tournament to Centenary College, and just a win away from going to regionals, Southwestern University’s baseball team has returned with more experience and an eagerness to up its game.

    “Everyone’s got a lot of energy, a lot of pep in their step,” J.C. Bunch, the team’s head coach, said in early February.

Last season, the Georgetown, Texas-based Division III team finished with an 18-24 overall record ‒ 7-11 in the SCAC. At home, the Pirates went 12-12; but away games were a different story: just five wins in 15 away games. Coach Bunch said he was, despite the team’s losing record, pleased with how well Southwestern played at the end of the season and in the conference tournament.

The 2019 season began in mid-February, and conference play kicks off Friday and Saturday, March 15 and 16, with three away games at Schreiner University.

This year’s team lost some arms from 2018, but coach Bunch isn’t at all worried. “I think we have a deeper pitching staff than we had last year,” he said. “We’ve returned the nucleus of our pitching staff,” which includes three returning, right-handed hurlers ‒ sophomores Austin Smith and Aaron Clark and junior Colton Hunter. Smith had a 4-1 record last season in 11 total appearances on the mound, including six starts; Clark was 2-2 in 11 appearances; and Hunter was 3-4 in eight starts and 12 total trips to the mound.

Coach Bunch said two freshmen could “see meaningful innings.” They are local recruits Travis Harvey (Cedar Park High School) and Benjamin Ludwig (Westlake High School). And other relief pitchers who didn’t see as many innings last year will also be brought in more often to get batters out.

More depth on the mound means the Pirates can have more live scrimmages while simultaneously saving pitchers for games. “To get better,” coach Bunch said, “we have to actually play baseball. Batting practice doesn’t make you better; it’s live at-bats, it’s instant feedback from the pitcher.”

Offensively, he’d like to see this year’s team hit for a much higher average and hit for more power. Last year the Pirates hit .260 with just 12 bombs. Plus coach Bunch wants his players to come to the plate with more “intent,” he said ‒ to get in the batter’s box with a specific objective already in mind, whether it’s to advance a runner and get them in scoring position, or to disrupt a pitcher’s rhythm and confidence.

Most of Southwestern’s strongest offensive players have returned this season. Sophomore infielder Seth Spark hit .311 last year as a freshman. As a result, he was named to the American Baseball Coaches Association Division III’s West All-Region Third Team. Three seniors will lead the team and set an example for the younger, more inexperienced players. They are starting catcher Colby Schmidt, first baseman Cole Kelly, who in 2018 had a .300 batting average, and outfielder Ethan Hallmark ‒ a .306 career hitter.

“We’re cautiously optimistic with how this year’s going to go,” coach Bunch said. “But our goal every year is to find a way to get to the regional tournament.”

Cedar Park Rebounds for District Push

Written by Daniel Jones on . Posted in HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL.

Cedar Park Rebounds for District Push

BY DANIEL JONES

Cedar Park Timberwolves head coach Carl Abseck is able to put things in perspective as it pertains to football and his team of high school players. “It’s not just about football,” he says in his 22nd year of coaching, his 14th with Cedar Park. “We’re training them to be successful by the lessons that we teach within the game of football.”

That’s saying a lot for a man who led the team to a Class 5A, Division II state championship in 2015, and who also as an offensive coach in 2012 helped guide Cedar Park to a Class 4A, Division II state championship. Coach Abseck’s sense of perspective has surely been tested this fall following last season’s district championship and subsequent loss to Manvel in the third round of the playoffs. This season, Cedar Park’s 28-game district winning streak came to an end when his team lost 65-21 to undefeated, district-leading Hutto.

He says that, while the loss wasn’t indicative of his team’s best, Hutto is no surprise this year, adding that they’re a talented team that will likely win the district championship.           Nonetheless, Cedar Park is still very likely to get a playoff berth. “What we’re playing for at this point is seeding,” says coach Abseck. He’s depending on players like sophomore quarterback Ryder Hernandez, who before the Hutto match had gone five straight games with at least 200 yards passing. His two favorite targets have been senior wide receivers Carson Neel and Brandon Breed, who have scored numerous touchdowns and caught for several hundred yards.

Coach Abseck says Hernandez, who last season played for Cedar Park’s freshman team, is a talented athlete whose maturity and leadership abilities extend beyond his years. “He’s got a bright future, and we’re glad to have him leading our offense,” he says. “He’s multidimensional – he can throw, he can run – and he’s done a good job of catching up to speed as a sophomore … and stepping into that role and running with it.” Hernandez’s voice gives away his youth, but his selfless nature comes out in the words he says. He doesn’t feel a lot of pressure playing at this level because he admits his job is to take the pressure off his teammates, most of whom are older than him.

After this season, his goal is to have Cedar Park win the district championship then win the state championship – which is not necessarily out of the question this season. And competing at the Division I college level would be Hernandez’s next objective. He’s not dwelling on the Hutto loss, but rather looking at how the defeat can benefit the team: “We got worked pretty good by Hutto, but I feel that’s going to prepare us even more to make good run in the playoffs.”

Cedar Park’s season wraps up November 9 at Manor High School. Manor is another district contender.  Coach Abseck says his team will finish strong if it takes care of business each week. “If we improve the way we’re capable of improving, then we’re going to be able to do some damage when it comes time for the playoffs.”