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Westlake Soccer coach James Baker

Written by Russell Dowden on . Posted in SOCCER.

TSM: Welcome to Texas Sports Monthly coach. At about the halfway mark through the season coach, how do you feel about this team so far as you get settled into district play?

Coach Baker: We knew coming in, with the experience that we had returning, this group had the potential to be pretty special. We have had some early season injury issues to our seniors, but we have used that opportunity to establish some depth, and the boys have really risen to the challenge. I really like what we have as a group, and I think, as long as we continue to work and improve, game by game, we have a real chance at something big.

TSM: Things are looking good as you’ve posted a 10-1-2 record thus far. Talk about your offense coach i see Zack Burd nailed that kick in the Lake Travis game the other day. This team has shown some grit thus far would you agree?

Coach Baker: It is one of the things that we preach here, being able to meet adversity head on and overcome it. We want to be aggressive and attack, but we also have to be able to respond when things aren’t going our way. A lot of teams would have folded after going behind to a team with such a tremendous defense; I thought we improved significantly after they scored and we responded right away, and probably could have added another at the end.

TSM: Lake Travis coach David Bammel will likely get in the playoffs, they played you pretty close in that tie game holding your guys to just that one goal in the 1-1 tie. Soccer may not get the accalades that football does by most media around town but district rival is still a rival. What did you think of that Cavs team yall just played in late January?

Coach Baker: They are a perennial playoff team and have had their fair share of success recently in the form of District Championships and playoff runs. I have a tremendous amount of respect for Coach Bammel and the program he has developed. They are always well organized and difficult to get through, and they always seem to have playmakers that can create that something special offensively. Rivalry games are always tight affairs, and our game certainly lived up to the billing. We are looking forward to heading to their place in February and trying to take the season series.

TSM: What players stand out as your top offensive guys? And what 2 or three are you best defenders?

Coach Baker: We have a lot of fantastic attacking players, any of which are capable of finding the back of the net. Right now, our leading goal scorers are Junior David Leadbetter, who generally gets the most attention from opposing defenses, and Sophomore Raghav Sharma, who has stepped into our striker role perfectly and helps spearhead our attack. Junior Ty Jarrett has also been phenomenal this year, and is undoubtedly our most versatile player; he has played almost every position on the field at an extremely high level. Our defense is led by Senior Captain Oscar Nordfjell, who is an absolutely wonderful player, as well as Junior Max Moeser, who has been the biggest revelation with our injury issues in the back. He has come in on a mission and has been a rock for us in the back.

TSM: You have Del Valle coming up coach who also has won 10 games this season and is decent in this district. What will you prepare for in this contest as we close out January?

Coach Baker: Del Valle is always a tough opponent and they have had a great start to their season. The big challenge is that they play a similar style to us, in that they want to control the ball and influence the defense to create space. We have to continue to work on playing as clean a game with the ball as we possibly can. Our talent lies in our control and our passing, so we have to put ourselves in a position to be successful by taking care of the ball. It will be a challenge, certainly, but we are feeling confident in our chances to get the three points.

TSM: Best of Luck with the rest of the season coach as we get in the net with district play. Any final thoughts on the popularity of Soccer in Austin as we are only a year away from
a professional team in 2021?

Coach Baker: Thank you! I’ve been around soccer in Austin for a long time, and this is probably the most soccer crazy the area has ever been. That can only be a good thing for the area and for the young players coming up through the pipeline. We look forward to seeing the product that Austin FC put out on the field to add to what the Bold have been doing the past couple years. It is a really exciting time to be a soccer fan in Austin!

Westlake defeats Cibolo Steel in first round 30-7

Written by River Tompkins on . Posted in HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL.

A familiar playoff matchup took place at Chaparral stadium between the Cibolo Steele Knights and the Westlake Chaps. Just two years ago Westlake had knocked the Knights out of the playoffs in a 28-14 victory. The Knights were trying to rewrite history in the first round of Texas high school playoffs. History repeated as the Chaps beat the Knights 30-7 in what was a much closer game than the score implied. 


Steele received the ball to start the game, a game that would be dominated by defense. Steele would go three and out setting the Westlake Chaparrals up in great field position. After picking up a first down or two the Chaps found themselves in a 3rd&16 situation after a fumbled snap by Kirkland Michaux. Michaux found star receiver Mason Magnum for 13-yards but with a price as Magnum took a massive hit flipping him in the air.
Going for it on fourth down Kirkland threw up a fade to 6’4″ freshman receiver Jaden Greathouse who drew a pass interference call. The Chaps would later make a field goal, giving them a 3 point lead.  


Steele’s drive would open with an explosive play as receiver Daryn Mcknight took an end-around for 33-yards. Coming into the game Mcknight had only had four carries those had gone for 112 yards and an average of 28. Steele would not be able to push the momentum forward as they threw three incompletions. With the kicking unit coming onto the field they were hoping to tie up the game, star Westlake safety Sage Luther had a different idea as he blocked the kick, Braden Duncan would recover and return it to the 47-yard line. 


Westlake would replicate the opening drive as they drove down the field and finished it off with a field goal. Only up by 6 points, Steele could take the lead back with a big play. Steele placed together another strong drive highlighted by Daniel Jackson’s 15-yard catch and De’Quavion Thomas’ 5-yard touchdown run.


There was one matchup in particular that every fan loved watching and had a undeniable impact on the game. It was #5 vs #5 Daryn Mcknight vs Sage Luther. Mcknight was a big-time playmaker for Steele as they never stopped feeding him the ball. He was always covered by Westlakes promising safety Sage Luther. One would make a giant play and then the other would come right back with one of their own. Sometimes they would cancel each other out, regardless, it was a great matchup of two competitors. 


Kirkland Michaux answered Steeles touchdown instantly as he found senior receiver Ryan Lindley on a 38-yard corner route for a walk-in touchdown. This set the Westlake section on fire, it was the big play they needed to assert dominance and take over the game. 
Westlake would soon get the ball back after a Steele punt and they tried to repeat history in throwing the corner route again. This time history was not so forgiving as Kirkland’s pass was intercepted by Maison Sharp who made an excellent catch on the sideline. 


The Knights were officially in their two-minute drill trying to get a score and even the game up before half time. The drive started with a 40-yard pass to Daryn Mcknight who was tackled by Sage Luther. Steele quarterback Wyatt Beagle scrambled for 11-yards just enough to convert on 3rd down. Beagle would than find Daniel Jackson on a 15-yard pass over the middle. On the next play, Beagle would overthrow his receiver and be snatched out of the air by Westlake defender Michael Taffee. Westlake would capitalize on the field position and score a field goal putting them up 16-7 heading into halftime. 


Heading into halftime both teams have played great games but both also needed to improve certain areas of their game. For Steele, it was about getting into the endzone and cashing in on possessions. They were to close too many times to have only scored 7 points in the first half. For Westlake they needed to run the ball more effectively, they needed to move the chains and not force turnovers if they wanted to keep their lead. 
Westlakes offense started heating up in the 4th quarter. Steele’s defense felt defeated and Westlake took advantage of that running the ball straight up the gut down after down. Westlake receiver Jason Croker (lined up at running back) sprinted through the running lane than dove into the endzone for a 4-yard Westlake touchdown.


Westlake will move onto the second round of the playoffs where they will face Brennan High who are fresh off a 35-13 win over Roosevelt. Coincidentally Westlake squared up against Brennan in round two of the playoffs last year with Westlake winning 49-7.  

NFL passing record a Brees

Written by Russell Dowden on . Posted in NFL FOOTBALL.

Texas Sports Monthly is predicting that it will be week 6 of the 2018 NFL Season before Austin Texas’ very own Westlake Chaparral Drew Brees will be the NFL’s All-Time Passing leader. Brees will pass Hall of Fame QB Brett Farve the week before in Week 5 likely. Brees was 37-of 45 in week one this season putting up 439 yards and 3 TD’s in the loss against Tampa Bay.
Given the age of the competition, it is unlikely that anyone in Drew’s generation will catch up to the future Hall of Fame QB in passing yards.
We believe that Drew will ultimately be on top for many years to come with NFL passing. Ben Roethlisberger and Philip Rivers are currently at 8th and 9th on the list while Eli Manning is amazingly only 5 short from his older brother Peyton. While Manning may be on top for the next few weeks, Drew will reclaim the passing title this October. Yet Tom Brady, who is older than Brees, is closing in on #9’s numbers. The biggest challenge for the GOAT (if he is indeed the greatest of all time), is can Tom Brady continue to play and stay on the field longer than Drew Brees?
Only time will tell and it is likely that Brady will be 2nd to the one time Westlake Chap of west Austin Texas. TSM believes that while some believe Brady may be one of the greatest QB to every play the game on Sundays, # 9 will edge out the GOAT as the # 1 all time passing leader in NFL History.
Go Drew!




Drew Brees   #9 QB

New Orleans Saints | Official Team SiteHeight: 6-0   Weight: 209   Age: 39

Born: 1/15/1979 Austin , TX

College: Purdue

Experience: 18th season

High School: Westlake HS [Austin, TX]