SPORTS
Panthers get rematch against Blum
The Saint Jo Panthers football team will face the team that ended their magical run through the playoffs last year this week in the area round of the playoffs.
The Blum Bobcats not only beat the Panthers in the 2019 state quarterfinals 54-30, but wound up upsetting the defending state champs McLean in the finals two games later to win the state title 58-52.
The Bobcats lost several of their players to graduation, but returned enough this season to be ranked 11th in the preseason polls.
That rank fell early in the season thanks to three straight one-sided losses. Two of those losses came against some of the best ranked teams in the state Jonesboro and May. Blum has not lost since their bye-week in mid October.
The interesting thing about this matchup will be how similar these teams’ strengths not only are, but each other’s playbooks.
Saint Jo Coach Mark Stevens said he and his coaching staff became friendly with the Blum coaching staff during the offseason. The Bobcats invited the Panthers in and opened their playbook to them which Stevens said is where they got the majority of their plays for this season.
“I knew we had a talented running back coming back (Logan Brawner) and wanted an offense that would really feature him,” Stevens said.
The previous year the team’s playbook was heavily influenced from looking at division II state power Strawn. Stevens said he was surprised about how open McFarlin and his staff were in showing them everything.
With both offenses running similar plays featuring quick sweeps and off-tackle runs, there will be few secrets either coaching staff will have on the other.
“It will really come down to who executes on the field the best because both teams will have seen this offense run against them in practice all season,” Stevens said.
The Panthers play Blum at 7:30 p.m. at Bridgeport on Nov. 20. Tickets can be purchased at Saint Jo ISD’s website.
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the mid-week edition of the Bowie News.
Bowie had six players play in the Maskat Shrine Oil Bowl football all-star game. For pictures from not just the football game, but the basketball and volleyball games as well that feature athletes from Bowie, Nocona and Saint Jo, click here https://www.dotphoto.com/go.asp?l=bnews1&AID=6875584&T=1
Nocona is welcoming back Coach Sandy Langford, former coach and alumnus for the Lady Indians, as its new volleyball head coach.
Langford comes back to Nocona after spending the past 11 years leading the Glen Rose volleyball program.
Her circumstances with her family allowed her to jump at the opportunity once she became aware the position at Nocona was available.
“My youngest graduated and is playing football at Midwestern (State University),” Langford said. “All of our family is here and I knew that Coach Kara (Lucherk) was leaving. We were eventually going to retire here. Our oldest son plays college football at West Texas A&M and we’ll be two hours closer to him as well.”
She again will lead the Lady Indians volleyball program, one that she led all the way to the state title game in 2011, which is the farthest the volleyball program has ever gone in its prestigious history.
Langford kept up that level of success during her 11 years at the bigger 4A Glen Rose. She won less than 20 games only twice during her time, winning her 500th career game back in 2023. Her teams were ranked among the top 10 in the state five times and Langford led Glen Rose to the state tournament in 2017, the best finish in program history.
With the Lady Indians also having its own string of success, appearing in back-to-back regional finals while finishing atop the district standings both years, Langford is excited to not just keep the success going, but shoot for the stars.
“We are not expecting anything less than a state championship,” Langford said.
She has stacked the non-district schedule with strong, state-ranked 3A and 4A teams as well as big tournaments that will test Nocona’s mettle early next season in the hopes it will prepare them for a long playoff run.
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the weekly edition of the Bowie News.
The Red River High School Bass Club competed this past weekend, May 31 – June 1, at the State Tournament on Lake Conroe for the two-day tournament.
Two of the teams from Montague County traveled south to try their best at the culmination of the year for the state title. Teams were able to pre-fish on Friday before the Saturday and Sunday competition. On Friday, there was a flipping contest for the youth and Cooper Johnson won third overall and won a $500 scholarship and an Academy gift card.
The club’s two teams who competed were Lane Smith/Colt Henry with boat captain Jimmy Smith. The team placed 63rd with a total of 16.22 pounds. The second team of Cooper Johnson/Corbyn Patton and boat captain Jayson Toerck placed 169th with a total weight of 2.29 pounds.
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the weekly edition of the Bowie News.
-
NEWS3 years ago2 hurt, 1 jailed after shooting incident north of Nocona
-
NEWS2 years agoSuspect indicted, jailed in Tia Hutson murder
-
NEWS2 years agoSO investigating possible murder/suicide
-
NEWS2 years agoWreck takes the life of BHS teen, 16
-
NEWS2 years agoMurder unsolved – 1 year later Tia Hutson’s family angry, frustrated with no arrest
-
NEWS2 years ago
Sheriff’s office called out to infant’s death
-
NEWS2 years agoBowie Police face three-hour standoff after possible domestic fight
-
NEWS3 years ago
Driver stopped by a man running into the street, robbed at knifepoint